Secure Site Selection
Issue 4 - Sep / Oct 04

Corporate real estate managers are, like the rest of the population, now required to fulfi l their duties with an increasing awareness of geo political security concerns. Recently companies have been stepping up their approach to potentially harmful deliberate human actions compared to climactic or accidental events that were, especially in Asia, the focus in the past. Certain company’s executives feel that they are more likely to be targeted than others due to the global political climate. Banks have always been extremely cautious about security but now all companies with real or perceived social, political or religious affi liations are increasing their physical security specifi cations and business continuity plans. Step one is fi nding a secure site.

levels of risk
Risk consultants, generally, take a geographical “out-side in” approach to location
risk (see fi g. 1). Usually the decision to set up in any particular country or city location is a product of a decision made at senior management level over which the CRE and security teams will have had little infl uence. However, when it comes to determining area within the city and especially the building itself the risk profi le of the country and region will have a signifi cant impact. One multi-national media company has armed guards stationed 24 hours per day at some of their locations while they only cover offi ces 17 hours per day in others. If a country or city is viewed as high risk for some reason then security is should be a more important consideration when selecting the area, building and specific floor.

country
Country risk can be divided into two parts. “One Country Risk” - or having all operations in the one country should be avoided in case an entire country is affected by the same event, like fl ooding for example. Specifi c country risk, being the risk of simply having operations in that country at all, varies on a day to day basis. Indonesia, the Philippines and Pakistan are all considered risky
on an ongoing basis. This is the case regardless of industry. Helen Keller International, a shifted its Asia-Pacifi c regional offi ce from Indonesia to Singapore last September due to the security situation said its regional director for Asia-Pacifi c Martin Bloem. Other companies show their lack of commitment to the market by not having a permanent presence and thus avoiding the site
selection process at all. A good intermediate approach is to take space on a day-to-day basis in a business centre.

area
For most companies it is important to be near, clients, providers and other amenities. For some businesses a less central, less easily accessible location where dedicated guards are responsible for the company’s whole building, car park, grounds, perimeter and even overhead security may be the only option. There are also numerous factors that need to be balanced against business
needs when deciding what area to locate. Exposure to weather events will require local advice but other things to look out for include military installations, consulates, government buildings, large scale tourist attractions and reserves of fuel such as might be stored for use in back up generators.

One way to mitigate the risks of a particular area is to decentralise locations. This approach can serve the dual purpose of taking advantage of rental price fl uctuations says John Mortenson, Jones Lang LaSalle. Now that connectivity and communications is so simple having up to four locations in a city is not uncommon. If some redundancy is built in then if one of those locations
is disabled for any reason, another can absorb the seats.

building level
A security expert will consider many factors when deciding whether a building is safe from the location of air intake vents to the age and agility of the guard force. Car parks are one area that should be vetted thoroughly before any location decision is made, says Joe Wilson, Kroll Associates (Asia) Ltd. If the building is built over a car park (or other form of easily accessible public space such as public transport hub or tunnel) then careful consideration of access to that space
is in order. How is it monitored, are vehicles checked, are there direct links to the lift shafts. Government - building codes change as governments react to events. For example the Japanese the government legislated to improve construction codes after major earthquakes in 1983 and then again after the Kobe quake in 1995. So while newer buildings are more high profi le they are also generally built to a more advanced code.

Knowing and having confi dence in the owner and manager of the building is an important first step. It is common in Asia for landlords to be unforthcoming about their properties details. That is a good time to strike them off a list of potentials. Other owners go out of their way to make the prospective tenant’s task easier. The CRE should work with the FM team and the landlord to gather a detailed knowledge of the portfolio, access and egress points and existing security infrastructure to determine whether ongoing management of security will be a problem in this location. Security systems might need to be upgraded and it is important when contemplating an upgrade to remember that retro-fi tting, especially in a poorly maintained facility, is expensive. Some landlords
may have made the task easier by installing products that make systems easier to integrate, such as Digimedia Link, a surveillance and remote telemetry system that uses public (ISM band) frequencies. Once a wireless network has been established by the building management tenants can start using it with few necessary works.

In some instances occupiers may tailor the site to their own specifications. A good
working relationship with the landlord is again required. In a built-to-suit facility this will clearly be the case, but in other instances it is also possible to negotiate that the cabling or installations of fixed systems are satisfactory. Take air conditioning systems for example. Phil Lomax, Associate Managing Director, Security Services Group - Regional Practice Head, Kroll Asia says that since the anthrax scares of 2002 building air circulation (previously only contemplated with regards to fi re and visibility) has become a greater issue. In order to ensure satisfactory control of air circulation during a period of contamination, it is essential that Air Handling Units (AHU’s) on each floor circulate air within that fl oor only and that each of the AHU’s start and stop controls are controlled through the central building automation or management system.

It is imperative, says Lomax, that if a contaminant is discovered, the system can be set to isolate the contaminant and then vent the contaminated air. It is preferable that a program be established whereby a single click of the mouse or keystroke from the keyboard could stop all air circulation by shutting down fans and closing dampers within the affected area and perhaps within the entire building. The security department should be given access to control of the system in order to expedite this function in the most time efficient manner.

When assessing a building for suitability it is important to remember that there are often many business models in the same facility, says Kelly. All these different business models require differing levels of access from customers, staff and vendors. While most tenants take into account their own business model it is easy to overlook neighbours that may be putting the facility at risk. A restaurant needs to offer It is impossible to have protection without some inconvenience and prioritising needs based on actual or likely threats is vital. Some tenants, like restaurants for example, require free unfettered access or their customers will
go elsewhere. If there is no option but to be in a particular location then negotiate with the owner to have a separate entrance, lift shaft or both. In many locations companies such as Goldman Sachs have a separate lift shaft, tunnel or entrance. The entrance to the Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s fl oors at the top of IFC2 looks almost like a separate building with separate signage, lifts and security.

floor
At floor level there are still several things that FMs should consider. Full fl oors are obviously easier to secure than those with shared facilities as comprehensive security systems, internal staircases and fl oors that other tenants don’t have access to can all be negotiated. If sharing a lift shaft, floor or lobby with other tenants check what sort of business they have. Brian Kelly says that it is vital that we understand what they are going to be doing. Apart from the obvious risks, sharing space with an some sorts of companies will result in a lot of foot
traffi c. Embassies, certain types of trading companies, doctors offi ces and clinics, conference centres and to a lesser extent other business services companies such as business centres all pose this high-traffic risk.

If pre-committing to a building it is not as easy to judge co-tenant risk. A large key tenant who pre-commits to a building is in a good position to negotiate security criteria into a lease, as mentioned above. There is some precedent for negotiating some sort of exclusionary power or guarantee against certain types of tenants being within a certain number of fl oors. This does not give a guarantee over sub-lessors, however. While some tenants will want to have the ability to sublet space, they do not want their neighbours subletting at will. Japanese landlords prohibit subleasing except to subsidiaries but in many other Asian countries subletting
is permitted though usually with a veto power granted to the landlord. If times are tough landlords might be more fl exible about who they let or allow to sublet. In mature markets the quality of the building will generally guarantee quality tenants as landlords recognise that tenant mix is an important part of tenant attraction and retention. In developing markets it is advisable to run background checks on the adjacent cotenants to determine the nature of their business and planned duration of stay.

in the office itself
Security can be built into the fi tout of an offi ce space, even through the walls
themselves. A little extreme for the average company, the Hong Kong Police
Headquarters has mesh incorporated into the ceilings of certain areas, says Paul
Levy, General Manager, Clestra. He goes on to say that certain types of product
can also minimise loss in the event of an earthquake, for example. Partitioning
that runs on tracks rather than dry wall “gives” more under seismic pressure.
Finally, there are security issues in the offi ce itself, acoustic security might also
be a concern, if wagging ears between offi ces might be a problem address it
with neighbours, landlord or both.

A fi nal note on floor location, remember not just who can get in but who can see in. In Silicon Valley, certain companies locked the blinds at a certain angle worried that competitors were reading their computer screens. Also for low fl oors some companies are considering bomb proof fi lm on external window facades to avoid the shredding effect if a bomb goes off at street level outside of the building.

It is impossible to create a completely impenetrable workplace. And if it were
possible, it would hamper business objectives and repel staff as much, if not
more than threats to their physical security. Michael Weiner, Managing Principal, Gensler in Japan believes that security can be unobtrusive and not make those working in that environment feel as though they are working in a cage. Instead, the CREM should approach site selection with knowledge of security procedures and principles so that the next stage, developing emergency procedure, business continuity and disaster recovery plans, is made easy. The site establishes the basis for the next level of safety and security planning as well as being the location from where business must effectively operate.

A large key tenant
who pre-commits
to a building is in
a good position to
negotiate security
criteria into a lease.

It is impossible to create a completely impenetrable
workplace.

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