architecture tips

All business owner's want their businesses to be beautiful and welcoming to customers so that they maintain loyalty and bring new business. We also want to keep our customers, our, employees, and our property safe, no matter where we are located. When a store happens to be in a neighborhood with higher crime rates, these goals can become more urgent and more difficult at the same time.

Keep your lighting up-to-date by installing vandal-proof fixtures to reduce unlit corners that encourage hiding. Alarm systems are typically visually unobtrusive, but criminals look for them and they provide a good deterrent. Plan landscaping to avoid providing concealment for burglars or creating ways for them to climb more easily.

The Importance of Apertures

Be sure to secure all points of entry to your premises. This includes not only doors but windows and roof entries if applicable as well. Use sturdy deadbolts rather than standard weak locks that can be cut or picked easily. Consider upgrading your doors to solid core metal doors.

Glazing is one of the easier ways for criminals to enter or deface your store. Consider installing tempered or laminated glass or impact resistant plastic windows to help resist break-ins, accidents, and inclement weather. As a lower-cost alternative to new glass and frames, window films can provide extra strength and vandalism resistance for your storefront.

Window Films to the Rescue

Security films are made of special varieties of polyester, which is often laminated in tens of micro-layers to increase their resistance to tearing. The strength of this layered material and the high-tech adhesives it is applied with works well to hold together cracked panes of glass in events such as severe weather or a break-in.

Anti-graffiti films are made of 4 or 6 mil polyester. They serve to protect against vandalism from common methods of attack such as spray paint, marker tagging, or acid etchings. They also help preserve the window from normal scratching and daily wear and tear. Similarly to safety films, this variety can be applied invisibly or with a tint added. They can be cleaned relatively easily using non-abrasive cleaners, microfiber cloths and squeegees. The film can even be removed completely in the event of heavy vandalism leaving the underlying window intact with no damage.

Please note that these products should be installed by professionals, as this will ensure the longest possible life for the material, as well as the most secure and beautiful storefront system for your business. Take the appropriate steps and secure your business today!

C. Robinson is the owner of The Tint Guy, an Atlanta tinting company, specializing in automotive, residential, and commercial Atlanta window tinting. Founded in 1986, the company now has three brick and mortar locations in the metro Atlanta area. The Tint Guy is the only full-service 3M window film dealer in Georgia, providing expert sales and installations of the complete line of 3M window films. Learn more about Atlanta tinting at http://www.TheTintGuy.com/.

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