Although storage is important for any business, it is especially important for businesses in cannabis and other high-risk industries. Any business that handles high-value products can be susceptible to theft without adequate secure storage procedures, but cannabis is also prone to deterioration when stored improperly. When designing and building out a cannabis facility, cannabis security experts prioritize choosing the proper secure storage option. The main two choices for secure storage are vaults and safes, but these can vary drastically in quality, cost, and function.
“How secure storage differs in the cannabis industry than other high risk, high value asset industries such as the precious metal and loose gems industry is huge,” said David Randall, a managing partner at Rolland Solutions, a company of safe, vault, and security device experts.
“The biggest mistake in such a young industry is that most people think big is strong, not realizing that there are all different types of safes that are made for different types of applications,” David said. “Most Cannabis facilities need large storage capacity, they take that more into consideration than the security aspect.”
Secure Storage for Smaller Cannabis Businesses
Smaller cannabis businesses with limited amounts of cannabis on-site, including retailers and craft grows, may choose to store product in safes rather than a vault. The benefit of safes is that they can be easily added to any business regardless of floor plan, unlike vaults which require substantial alterations to existing structures to install.
Though safes may look similar, choosing the wrong safe for a cannabis business can open up the facility to theft or cause damage to products. While some businesses may choose to purchase cheap gun safes to store product, this safe is easily breeched and cannot ensure the conditions necessary for quality cannabis storage.
“What we see most in the cannabis industry are large GUN SAFE type safes built and designed to store guns, not high vault asset and are not designed to withstand attack with common hand tools,” David Randall said.
The better option for smaller cannabis businesses is choosing TL-rated safes which are held to some of the highest security standards in the industry. Unlike gun safes which are lined with sheet rock, TL-rated safes are constructed with concreate and are proven to be some of the toughest safes to break into in the industry.
“There are several U.L. List security containers that are tested and rated for burglary attack, the most common TL-30×6 and TRTL-30×6 rated safes,” David Randall said. “These types of safes are used in other high risk, high asset value industries.”
Secure Storage for Larger Cannabis Businesses
For cannabis businesses with significant amounts of cannabis on-site, including cultivators, manufacturers, large retailers, a secure storage room or vault would be the preferred storage option. Not all vaults are considered equal, and the security of vaults can vary based on the construction materials and equipped security devices. When vaults are built by inexperienced general contractor, they can cause structural damage to the existing building due to the heavy construction materials.
One of the most secure and cost-efficient options for cannabis secure storage room is lining the walls and ceiling with maximum-security mesh. This method is used to secure government, commercial, and retail buildings all over the world and is easier to implement in existing structures than a traditional vault constructed with concreate. Secure storage rooms lined with maximum-security mesh help create a protected and controlled environment for the storage of cannabis.
When required by regulations, vaults may need to adhere to Title 21 Code of Federal Regulations §1301. This requires vaults to be constructed out of detailed heavy-duty materials and to meet specified security standards. It is also required that vaults of this standard include additional security devices, such as sensitive ultrasonic equipment and sound accumulator systems.
In addition to the construction of a secure storage room or vault, cannabis business owners will need to equip security equipment to alarm and monitor the area. Common security equipment recommended by security experts includes:
- Access Control System (using two-factor authentication)
- Video Surveillance System
- Alarm Monitoring System (including motion detectors)
- High-Security Vault Doors and Door Locks
Choosing A Cannabis Secure Storage Option
Although there are many options for cannabis secure storage, there is no ‘one solution’ that is right for every cannabis business. That is why it is important to hire security experts with experience in secure cannabis storage for all license types. Choosing a cheap safe or hiring an inexperienced general contractor to install the vault could cost a business thousands of dollars, but the right cannabis secure storage solution could set the business up for success.
How Can Sapphire Risk Help?
Tony Gallo and the team of application writers and consultants at Sapphire Risk Advisory Group have written hundreds of cannabis secure storage plans for cannabis business applications. Follow us on social media to stay up to date with more security best practices and cannabis industry updates!
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