Workplace safety is a major concern globally, and a primary focus for retailers. The rate at which associates are encountering gun-related violence in their workplace continues to increase and is now a board-level priority in many leading retail companies.
At the same time, inflationary pressures and the growing impact of organized retail crime (ORC) is seeing many retailers reporting that theft from both stores and distribution centers is reaching levels that are hurting financial performance.
Is there a way to solve both problems with a single solution? Industry leaders from Saks Fifth Avenue, ALTO, and Fanatics think there is!
Operationally deployed in twenty countries around the world and screening many thousands of employees every day, Thruvision’s advanced security screening technology is being used to check employees as they enter and leave distribution centers for weapons and stolen items.
Stopping Theft in Distribution Centers
Distribution center shrink is an increasingly costly problem for retailers. Any item that can be concealed in an employee’s clothing is at risk. Items include tobacco, alcohol, expensive food, cosmetics, perfume, electronics, phones, fashion apparel, and the list goes. What do these items have in common? They are all non-metallic, meaning even high-performance metal detectors are useless.
This is where Thruvision comes in.
While Thruvision’s security screening cameras can detect metal items, they excel at non-metallics. This means Thruvision is ideally suited for detecting and deterring employee theft. Additionally, the screening is applied at a safe, comfortable distance for both the screening operator and the person being screened, ten feet away. As Thruvision allows a security guard to see the item being stolen, the need for a physical security wanding and pat down is removed.
Rhett Asher of ALTO said, “Thruvision is bringing something super creative and super innovative that satisfies all concerns; it helps with security in distribution centers and helps improve security with the ability to look at non-metallic items without being in people’s faces.”
Function and Advantages
The device uses innovative new “body heat” video technology. There is no radiation involved, so it’s completely safe for everybody, including pregnant women and people with medical devices such as pacemakers, and no anatomic detail is shown. The device works by looking at the heat that your body emits, and a dynamic AI detection algorithm is used to highlight the items blocking body energy and displays them on HD video.
Dustin Spencer, senior director of LP at Fanatics, said, “Providing safety to guards and employees became paramount as we entered the COVID-19 space, because we’re now able to effectively screen and provide protection for the guards performing the screens as well as our athletes.”
Thruvision has significantly reduced theft. Even by screening a percentage of employees, results show that they will not risk stealing if they are aware that a highly effective security exit screening system is in place.
Workplace Safety
Improving workplace safety is an increasingly high priority for most retailers. By effectively detecting and deterring the carrying of harmful items, employees feel safer in their environment, and as Tom Kilgallon, VP at Saks Fifth Avenue, puts it, a worker that feels safe in their environment calls for better quality work, and this impacts shrink as well.
Tom also notes that Saks was looking for safety solutions first, wanting to assure their associates were safe coming to work. Kilgallon desired something more seamless, efficient, and quick, and notes they received just that through this modern technology. He goes on to say that today, safety is more important than shrink, and weapons are no longer a problem since the implementation of Thruvision. From an internal theft standpoint, Kilgallon says addressing missing merchandise has become easier.
A Solution for Every Site
Each Distribution Center has unique characteristics—differing items being held, differing layouts, differing number of employees, differing shift patterns. Despite this, Thruvision can provide an effective solution for every site.
Most customers choose a dual-camera walk-through lane that allows all employees to be screened at shift change time. This delivers maximum deterrence against theft and, when combined with a high quality walk-through metal detector, offers a very effective way of detecting guns being brought into a facility. It is the fastest screening system on the market.
This delivers even better detection performance when screening a randomly selected portion of employees as they exit.
Bottom Line
Workplace violence and employee theft are on the rise. Being equipped with the right technology to manage these threats is crucial. Through positive reinforcement for employees with good intentions and prevention of negative behavior, Thruvision’s advanced security screening technology offers the opportunity to create an ideal workplace.
Learn more about how Thruvision can transform your security program and pay for itself in less than twelve months at thruvision.com.