Theft at the construction site: Keeping away from the loss

What you need to know:

Another missing bag of cement! Rakes, nails, spades, wires, bricks! The rate at which construction materials go missing on some building sites seems to be as high as the increasing cost prices of material in the market. There are various precautions one can take to curb loss of material during construction.

In a week, Mariam Nampijja had spent about 40 bags of cement on floor finishings. Only two rooms had been worked on. There were three more rooms to go. She had been buying the same materials over and over again. She was fed up.
“Every time my engineer would come and say we don’t have this, this is over, we need more of this and I would give him money to buy. But after I just decided to note down everything.”
Nampijja says she later realised some of the materials were not even bought and she was being made to buy what she had already bought.

James Kibaalya, an engineer from Excel Construction Company says theft at the construction site is very common and that they have had many encounters in the field.
“I have worked at various sites in different areas and somehow, there are always a group of workers that try to sneak out materials. Some are caught, others get away with it.
Things like hammers and chisels are easily stolen because they are easy to hide,” he says. However, if you do not want your site becoming a costly statistic, you might want to try implementing some or all of these preventive measures.

Keep detailed records
If you do not have a record of everything on site, you may not even recognise that something is missing until you really need it.
The first measure in preventing theft on your construction site is through keeping an accurate record of everything. This will require you to have a notebook where you will note down every material from the point of ordering to receiving, to the store and when they are taking them out to be used.
Mathew Odongo, who is building his house in Naalya, says he keeps record of everything at the site.
“I always have my notebook where I take down everything that we have bought and what has been used. Then it is easy to track whatever goes missing,” advises Odongo.

Put up security lights
One of the reasons things get stolen from a site is darkness.
Adding a light to your site does not only keep away the thieves but also helps the security guards during patrol at night.
Buy only what is needed
Buying extra materials in large quantities might look like planning ahead, but there is a downside to it. Joseph Barigye, an engineer, says extra materials are always the first things to be stolen because people usually do not notice they are missing until it is time to use them.

Instal a fence
Fencing your site is another way of making it harder for people to get in and out unnoticed.
Lucky Kwesiga, a project owner, says: “I had to put up a wall fence on my site in Kasenyi because I was not staying there and the neighbours were far away. Since construction was going to begin, I had toinstall a security plan.”

Your presence matters
Coming around during construction, taking note of things and observing everything done by your employees demonstrates to the workers that everything is being counted. It reminds them that “the boss is watching.”

Trustworthy supervisor If you are too busy to attend to the project or live abroad, assigning a supervisor you trust is another way to prevent theft of materials.
In most cases, this is your relative or friend that you trust who will be the watch man over everything that goes on at the site.
Alice Kakooza, who stays in London, says when she was building her house, she entrusted her elder brother to oversee the construction.
“I was staying this side [London] and I did not know what was happening at my site in Uganda but my brother was there to supervise the workers, buy materials and pay them which helped me a lot.”
Also, ensure that you pay the supervisors well. These supervisors do a great job so they need to be paid. They might be your relatives but remember they are spending all their time doing your work. If you pay them, chances are they will do a better job.

Private security company
Mere presence of a security guard at a site can deter a lot of petty thieving. Isaac Akol, a security guard, says when one has a security guard on the site, it is much better compared to having a watch man.
“Hiring a random person with an arrow and bow may not ensure proper safety but a guard from a professional security firm might,” argues Akol.

Befriend neighbours
Neighbours close to the construction site can also give a hand in preventing theft. Making them your friends and telling them about your construction project helps because they can tip you off in case they see someone sneaking out any materials.

Putting up a secure store
Having a secure store that can be locked is another way of preventing theft for materials. This helps to keep the materials in a designated area which is easy to manage.

Final check after work
A daily check around the site after work will help you take note of items that could have been forgotten outside or even left out intentionally by the workers. It is at this point that you check if the store is locked.

Set up an alarm system
Having an alarm system is an added advantage since it will alert you, police and even neighbours that someone is trying to break in.
Happy Ishimwe, who deals in security cameras and alarms, says they can instal for a client an alarm that will alert both the owner of the site and the police.

Theft during purchase of materials
To manage theft during purchase of construction materials choose a different shop from the one the contractor recommends.
If a contractor asks you to buy materials from a particular shop, there is a chance the contractor and the shop owner have a deal to inflate costs. Martin Namara, a house owner, says whenever the contractor suggests a certain shop he always looks for another shop.
“These guys are cunning, he will convince you to go to this shop because he has already made a deal with them to over price you,” shares Namara.
Price research
Make your own research about the prices, quality and number of materials that are needed. Knowing the cost of the materials will save you from being overcharged.
Duncan Mushabe, an engineer, advises people to have knowledge on the materials before they buy them.
“If you don’t want to be cheated it is better to have knowledge of cost of the items that your contractor wants. Find out the price, the quality and how many would be needed to finish the job.”
Mushabe adds that you can consult from engineers to tell you everything from the quality, quantity and price needed.
“There are many consulting companies you can go and consult about anything or ask your other engineer friends.”
Be there when they are loading the materials
Some people always order for materials and they are not there in person to see whether everything requested is all there and in the end they find some missing items.
Ritah Kirabo, who owns a hardware in Nakasero, advises her clients to always be there when she is packing the items.
“Me I always tell my clients to be there when am packing the materials because I do not want them to come back saying that something is missing, because when you return I do not give you anything so that is why I want someone to be there,” says Kirabo.