Here’s how Frasers Property Singapore values safety and raises the preparedness of their staff – an important step towards enhancing preparedness under the
SGSecure@Workplaces programme.
From left: Mr Alvin Low, Vice President, Head of Operations, Retail & Commercial, Ms Alison Wong, Senior Vice President, Head of Commercial Properties, Ms Molly Lim, Senior Vice President, Head of Retail Properties, and Ms Ritav Koh, Senior Manager, Workplace Health & Safety.
Frasers Property Singapore comprises businesses including real estate investment trusts (REITs) that build, own, develop and manage residential, retail and office, business space and business park properties in Singapore, Australia and the United Kingdom. With properties across various asset classes, how does the company safeguard its interests to ensure business continuity while delivering memorable experiences to their customers and stakeholders?
We spoke to their local representative, Mr Alvin Low, Vice President, Head of Operations for the Retail and Commercial divisions, who, together with his team, oversees operations across the organisation’s 16 retail and commercial properties in Singapore.
Safety and preparedness
“ At Frasers Property Singapore, we value safety and preparedness. Being prepared is vital for us when mediating threats and for business recovery. This is why we are part of the SGSecure movement – to equip our staff with the relevant knowledge and capabilities so that we can respond effectively in times of emergency. ” – Mr Alvin Low
Security guards at work.
Frasers Property Singapore deems training as essential for its staff, and ensures that they are equipped with the right skill sets for preparedness.
From 1 January 2020, security officers will have to attend a mandatory “Recognise Terrorist Threats” course, in addition to the two basic licensing units they have to obtain. In light of this, Frasers Property Singapore has trained all their staff ahead of schedule.
Building resilience through strong infrastructure
To ensure business continuity, Frasers Property Singapore focuses on building a strong business foundation to ensure resilience. This includes robust infrastructure, processes and standard operating procedures.
Security guards going about their daily routine.
The organisation has engaged a security management firm to conduct a Security Vulnerability Risk Assessment audit. This will help to identify operational gaps and areas for improvement in building infrastructures. In addition, the team has put in place plans to implement a centralized analytics system to upscale its security infrastructure, and enhance the efficiency of its security response.
Strong partnerships with government agencies
Strengthening community networks is one key area to build business resilience. For instance, Frasers Property Singapore partners with the Singapore Police Force (SPF) to conduct terror attack table-top exercises to prepare staff’s response in various scenarios.
To establish crisis meeting points, Alvin shared that the organisation has plans to conduct crime prevention simulation exercises with SPF and the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF), as well as a familiarisation walk with neighbourhood police centres (NPCs).
The walk, which allows SPF to familiarise themselves with the building, includes jointly identifying evacuation points, location of staircases and floor access to each level. This increases the response efficiency of these officers and the security team in times of need or crisis.
To manage crises more efficiently, there are plans to equip the properties with emergency bag packs for external emergency response teams. “Our emergency bag packs will include floor plans as well as important access keys, which will aid SPF or SCDF officers to navigate the building in the shortest amount of time,” said Alvin.
Workplace safety and health
Mr Alvin Low with Ms Ritav Koh.
Aside from forging partnerships with government agencies and ensuring preparedness in times of emergency, Alvin also works closely with Ms Ritav Koh, Senior Manager, Workplace Safety and Health at Frasers Property Singapore to create awareness of safety in the workplace.
Technicians doing their routined checks.
Frasers Property Singapore is bizSAFE Level Star certified – the highest level under the bizSAFE programme. One of Frasers Property Singapore’s workplace safety and health (WSH) initiatives is its Safety Awareness Walk, where the senior management and centre management team would walk the mall together to explore how they can further improve safety standards for staff. The session aims to foster an open dialogue on safety issues and the work environment and raise awareness of the importance of workplace safety, which is one key component towards being SGSecure-ready.
Join the SGSecure movement and you can play a part to keep business safe and secure too.
Photos by Frasers Property Singapore.