Safe and secure

Tool loss and theft drain jobsite productivity and budgets. Here are some ideas to plug the leak.

As workers pulled into the parking lot Monday morning, a squad car was there, with lights flashing. Some workers were a bit uneasy, but breathed a sigh of relief when they found out the officer was investigating a jobsite break-in over the weekend.

Out of the six job boxes on the site, five were vandalized and four were gutted of their power tools. Without tools, the workers were sent home for the day. The key to reducing theft and loss is to have effective jobsite tool storage.

“The first step is identifying what you want to store,” says Ken Hagemeyer at Greenlee-Textron. The tool box should accommodate tools you need and be built to handle their weight.

“Contractors often put too much in tool boxes. When they are overstuffed, you can’t find anything very easily,” says Gary Marcus at Waterloo Industries.

A wide variety of job boxes are available. The traditional chest, slope-lid or piano-box styles are good all-around units, but can be difficult for storing large items. “Newer designs offer more flexible storage and easier mobility,” says Sam Samsel at Delta Consolidated Industries.

For example, clamshell-type cabinets can open wide and offer cupboard convenience; even the tried-and-true piano-box styles, with adjustable shelving, offer better use of space.

“Field offices are a growing trend,” adds Hagemeyer. They provide tool storage and work areas for blueprints and manuals. Some models have locked areas in the cabinet for valuable items, such as computers.

Make it visible
Marcus suggests keeping tool boxes in visible areas. “This isn’t always possible, but anything you can do to make it harder to break into, the less likely it will happen,” he says.

Greenlee-Textron added a storage box to its line that takes it one step farther. “We developed a mesh storage box so people can see what is inside. It’s very good for low-value supplies. It was an idea from workers in the field. They surmise thieves won’t break into it if they can see it’s not worth their time,” he says.

Make it movable
The toolbox experts say casters and pallet-style designs are becoming very popular. “Units are getting moved more on jobsites,” says Samsel, “We also have some new units that allow the box to be picked up with a forklift or pallet jack. They are easier to load and unload from trucks and trailers.”

Hagemeyer says users find newer boxes with 3 1/2" pallet pockets to be easier to move with a lift truck or pallet jack.

He also suggests users pay attention to the casters on rolling units. “Casters that are 6" in diameter roll better than 4" casters,” he says. That’s important on clamshell-style units where wheels must roll freely to open the unit.

Make sure it is durable
Look at the tool box design to assure it can take the rigors of everyday use and the brute force of prybars and bolt cutters.

“Look for cabinets with designs that keep rain out,” suggests Samsel, “They should also be designed so the locks can’t be accessible to a bolt cutter.”

Hagemeyer says box corners should be reinforced and have an overlapping design that helps keep weather – and prybars – out. They should also have a continuous piano-type hinge with a permanent pin. “Two locks is better than one lock. With one lock, you can get lots of leverage on the corners with a prybar,” he says.

Look at your locks
Greg German at American Lock says there are several ways to assure locks will do their job.

He recommends using solid steel locks. In coastal areas where salt corrodes steel, brass or aluminum solid-body locks with brass or stainless steel pins offer corrosion resistance with only a slight decrease in security.

The number of pins in the padlock cylinder also affects its security. The more pins, the harder it is to pick. German also recommends padlocks with stainless steel pins for better drill resistance than brass pins used in most padlocks.

Published in the January/February 2002 issue of Contractor Tools and Supplies magazine.

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