Latvian
РусскийProtection against burglary
It makes sense to store valuables securely. Not just passports, jewellery or money need to be securely stored. The loss of legal documents, insurance policies and other valuable papers may cause major problems.
Burglary is a problem, but it’s not unknown for a company’s own staff to turn to crime. Two out of ten companies have to contend at least once a year with an employee who commits an offence.
Confidential information such as staff data or company secrets must not find its way into the wrong hands. Often, insurance companies cannot cover such events, but they may have consequences.
Security rating
This figure indicates the value of cash and valuables up to which insurance cover will operate, if that is the value of the contents of the safe. This is based on cash being stored in a burglary-resistant cabinet or safe situated in uninhabited, unguarded and unsecured premises in a built-up area. Insurers may deviate from the security rating, depending on the security measures adopted.
Tip: always check with your insurance company that they accept the security rating of your safe. Various ambient factors may reduce the insurance cover, but may also raise it!
Burglary resistance tests
The resistance of archive cabinets and safes to burglary can be tested by a number of authorised testing institutes in various European countries. The tests involve attempting to make one or more openings in the product. The time taken and the tools used together indicate the burglary-resistance of a cabinet or safe.
EN-1143-1
The European standard for the certification of burglary-resistant safes is EN 1143-1.
EN 14450 (S1 and S2 level)
Since March 2005 a new European standard has been in force: EN 14 450. This standard was specially developed to rank the many types of burglary–resistant safes, which are primarily suited for secure storage of daily takings and for use by private individuals.
See information about insuarance and valuable protaction tests and grades
ECB-S ( http://www.fup-gut.de/english/home_ecbs_e.htm ).
Protection from fire
Within an enterprise, many documents that are important for the continuity of a company are in circulation. Irreplaceable bookkeeping paperwork, customer information or personnel files, for instance. Personal documents such as diplomas or photos cannot be replaced by your insurance company either.
How hot can a fire get?
There is no exact answer to that question. The temperature depends on various factors, such as:
• When was the fire discovered and how long had it already been burning?
• Are there any fire extinguishers?
• What is the wind speed?
• What materials are burning? Wood, paper, plastics, paint, oil or …..?
• How big is the fire?
• What is the location of the fire and what is the location of the safe?
• How fast is the fire growing?
• Is it staying in one place or is it a “running” fire?
We know from experience that the mean temperature of a fire may be as high as 600 to 800 °C. In extreme cases, the temperature may even rise to 1000°C.
Protection of paper and data carriers
Safes for paper and safes for digital data carriers protect their contents from fire in different ways. At high ambient temperatures, paper remains intact longer than data on digital data carriers. Above 175 °C, paper will be damaged or even destroyed. The critical limit for digital data carriers is as low as around 50°C. Above that temperature, the likelihood of the data on the data carriers being lost, is high.
Tip: the label on the inside of the door is the proof of quality to the customer. This label shows that the cabinet or safe was manufactured under controlled conditions and has been tested to the stated resistance class.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
Fire resistance tests
There are various institutes capable of testing safes to determine how well they resist fire. The best known are:
VDMA – A German testing institute
UL Test – An American testing institute (Underwriters Laboratories)
JIS Test – A Japanes testing institure (Japanese Industrial Standard)
NT Fire – A Norwegian testing institute
Fire resistance tests are performed in an oven. The test determines how long the safe adequately protects the contents from a temperature rise above the critical limit of 175°C (for paper) or 50°C (for data carriers), when exposed to an ambient temperature of about 1090°C. A drop test must demonstrate that the protective action is not adversely affected if a fire-resistant safe in practice falls through a floor.
S60P – one hour fire resistance for paper
S120P – two hours fire resistance for paper
S60DIS – one hour fire resistance for data
S120DIS – two hours fire resistance for data
DIN 4102
The DIN 4102 standard lays down that the wall cavity of a double-wall safe must be filled with isolating material. These safes have not been tested, but experience shows that they can resist fire for a.