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Physical security at distribution centre

‘Security starts at the perimeter’ is a well-worn saying that still holds true. Not only is the perimeter barrier, for example fencing/walling and electric fencing important, but so is the physical access system key in preventing unauthorised ingress and egress of people.

In June 2022, Massmart officially opened its new distribution centre (DC) in Riversands, Johannesburg. This 75 000 m² warehouse is the second of three new facilities in Massmart’s new centralised network which uses shared distribution centres to serve stores across the entire group.

The new state-of-the-art facility has been custom-designed to suit Massmart’s needs and will manage the highest volume throughput of all Massmart facilities. In line with Massmart’s supply chain strategy, the Riversands DC is a product-based distribution centre, specialising in high-volume, pallet-based products.

Turnstar Systems was requested to supply five 4-metre Velocity Raptor boom gates for the main entrance of the Massmart DC. In addition, a further two 3-metre Velocity Raptors for the staff parking and two 3-metre Velocity Raptors were installed at the facility’s weighbridge.

The Velocity Raptor barrier contains an integrated OPTIC LED light strip for maximum visibility, safety and aesthetics. Total operating time of the boom is 2,8 seconds for the 3-metre barrier and 3,7 seconds for the 4-metre version, making them ideal for the high-volume traffic experience at the Massmart DC.

The Velocity Raptors were all installed in dedicated lanes at the entrances and exits to the premises and Turnstar also supplied Anti-Riot spikes. Specifically, two 4-spike strips were installed at the weighbridge, two 4-spike strips were installed at the main exit and two 5-spike strips were deployed at the main entrance.

The recessed Anti-Riot spikes were installed in line with the perimeter fence and operate using a mushroom-head pushbutton with key rest. The spikes are permanently in the down position and are raised only in the event of an emergency.

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