Security for a new building: what to specify during construction

Security is almost always designed after a building is occupied, when every cable run means visible trunking, broken tiles and a resident asking why there is a hole in their lobby ceiling. During construction, the same cable runs cost a fraction of that and disturb nobody.

Why this is the cheapest moment to decide

Cabling is inexpensive. Reopening finished walls, ceilings and floors to add it later is not. A conduit run planned alongside electrical first-fix costs close to nothing extra in labour, because the crew and the access are already there. The same run specified after handover requires a separate visit, protected finishes, and disruption to residents who are already living there.

This is true whether the building is a housing society, a factory shed or a school - the earlier the design happens, the cheaper every metre of cable becomes.

What to specify before the walls close

• Conduit to every future camera position, not just the ones planned for day one. A spare conduit run costs little and saves a full retrofit if coverage is extended later.
• A dedicated, ventilated space for the recorder and network equipment, not a converted store cupboard decided after the fact. Heat and dust shorten recorder life significantly.
• Power points at every camera and barrier position, sized for the load, rather than assuming an extension cord will do.
• A backup power path from the building's main supply to the security equipment room, so the system rides through outages along with the rest of the building.
• Cable routes for gate barriers and intercom planned alongside the civil work for the gate itself, since barrier foundations are set in concrete and are expensive to move afterwards.

The mistake developers make: conduit without a plan

Many new buildings do include empty conduit for security "for the future" - which sounds sensible and often turns out to be conduit run to guessed positions by someone who never did a proper security survey. The conduit exists, but it does not reach the positions a real system actually needs: the basement ramp, the lift lobby, the specific blind spot at the boundary wall.

The fix is straightforward and cheap relative to the building's total cost: bring in a security surveyor during the design phase, not after the conduit is already cast into the slab. A half-day survey against the actual architectural drawings costs far less than discovering the conduit is in the wrong place once the building is occupied.

Handover: what the builder should give the first committee

When a developer hands a building to its first managing committee, security infrastructure should come with documentation, not just physical conduit. Ask for:

• As-built drawings showing every conduit and cable route actually installed, since site changes during construction often differ from the original plan
• A list of which positions have conduit ready and which do not
• Confirmation of what power capacity is available at the equipment room
• Any camera or barrier hardware already installed, with its make, model and warranty status

Without this, the first committee starts from zero, re-surveying a building that was already designed - badly or well - years earlier.

A simple checklist for the site visit

If you are a developer, a committee member, or an admin manager involved before handover, walk the site and confirm: conduit reaches the gate, the lobby, the basement ramp and the boundary blind spots; the equipment room has power, ventilation and a lockable door; barrier foundations are in place at the intended gate width; and there is a written record of what was actually installed versus what was originally drawn.

That one visit, done early, is what separates a building where security is a same-week addition from one where it means breaking open finished surfaces.