Temporary construction security · Lease

Lease Jobsite Security Through the Build

Larger, insurance-required, and GC-required commercial and residential projects in Southern California increasingly need surveillance, intrusion alarms, and fire protection on a partially built structure. Nelson Security leases that stack for the construction period—not a permanent house system. When the job is done, the temporary gear comes out. The same cameras that protect the site let owners look in on progress as the building goes up.

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A Jobsite Is Not a Finished Property

Open perimeters, staged materials, incomplete envelopes, and rotating trades create a different risk than an occupied building. Carriers and general contractors now often require cameras, alarms, and even life-safety coverage before the structure is closed in.

Since 1985 we have designed manufacturer-independent security for Southern California sites. Construction coverage is a temporary lease for the project—installed, adjusted as phases change, and removed when the job is done. A permanent system for the finished building is a separate conversation if you want it.

Lease For The Construction Cycle

Protect the site. Give owners a window into the work. Leave when the building is ready.

What You Are Leasing

Temporary cameras, recording, intrusion detection, and—where the job or the insurer requires it—life-safety or fire protection appropriate to a partially built structure. Coverage can move as fencing, floors, and access points change. This is a lease for the construction period. When the job is done, the temporary gear comes out.

  • Duration matched to the construction schedule
  • Repositioning as the building envelope changes
  • Removal at substantial completion
  • Optional path to a permanent system after occupancy

Who Typically Needs It

Owners, developers, and general contractors on commercial or high-end residential jobs where the insurer, the GC, or the project size makes temporary security a condition of the work—not a nice-to-have camera on a pole.

  • Insurance-driven construction requirements
  • GC-required jobsite surveillance and alarms
  • Owners who want remote progress viewing
  • Commercial and residential builds across our SoCal markets

Typical Jobsite Stack

Manufacturer-independent. Sized for a construction site.

Cameras & Recording

Perimeter and material-yard coverage, night performance, and recording retention that matches how the site is actually used.

Owner Progress Viewing

Remote access so owners and project teams can look in as the building goes up—security first, visibility as a byproduct.

Intrusion & Alarms

Detection on gates, temporary doors, and incomplete envelopes—plus point-to-point beams on the perimeter. Communicators that still work when power and finishes are unfinished.

Life-Safety & Fire

Jobsite-appropriate fire and life-safety protection for partially built structures when the carrier or the code path requires it.

Power & Connectivity

Temporary power, cellular or construction-network paths, and recording that does not depend on a finished IT closet.

24-Hour Remote Monitoring

Audio and video remote monitoring of the cameras and alarms when nobody is on site—nights, weekends, and other unoccupied hours.

After-Hours Coverage When The Site Is Empty

24-hour remote monitoring of cameras and alarms, with point-to-point beams as a typical perimeter layer.

24-Hour Remote Monitoring

When trades leave and nobody is on site, the lease includes 24-hour audio and video remote monitoring of the cameras and alarm events. After-hours activity is watched—not only recorded for later review.

  • Audio and video remote monitoring, around the clock
  • Cameras and alarm events on the same watch
  • Built for unoccupied nights, weekends, and holidays

Point-to-Point Beams

These systems generally use point-to-point beams as well—a detection layer across a construction perimeter where walls and doors are still incomplete. Manufacturer-independent; we match the beam path to the fence line, yard, and phase of work.

  • Typical on open or changing perimeters
  • Works with the cameras and alarms, not instead of them
  • Repositioned as the site layout changes

Protect The Site. Watch The Build.

Site Protection

Theft, after-hours entry, and undocumented activity are the usual reasons a carrier or GC wants cameras and alarms on a job. We treat that as security work: coverage geometry, recording you can actually retrieve, and alarms that still communicate when the building is a shell.

Owner Visibility

The same live and recorded views let owners, developers, and lenders look in on progress without driving to the site for every question. Access is controlled—this is not a public webcam.

Selected Work

Two leases: a 2.5-acre Montecito remodel, and a Malibu house on PCH after the Palisades fire.

Lease

Montecito Remodel

2.5-acre estate undergoing a major remodel. About 10,000 square feet in the main house, about 2,000 in the guest house. The new structure had to stay secure from vandalism and theft. Some buildings were left as-is, with valuables still stored inside. Many trades were coming and going. Those buildings had to stay locked down.

Nelson Security kept the burglary and fire alarm system on lease for two and a half years, the length of the build. Point-to-point beams, cameras, and heat detectors went into the unfinished major remodel. The estate had multiple entrance gates, and the secure line did not stay put. As the work moved, the perimeter moved, and the beams and cameras moved with it.

The owners and the contractors had the apps the whole time. They could watch the property from anywhere, any hour. Project managers were trained first-in, last-out. Auto-arming ran behind that, so if someone forgot at the end of the day the system still came on and the estate was not left open.

Lease

Malibu — After the Palisades Fire

This house sits on PCH in Malibu. When the Palisades fire tore through, it was damaged but not lost. Valuables remained inside. The property still needed protection — and for months, there was no power or internet coming in from the street.

Nelson Security moved in a leased system: cameras, an alarm, interior motion sensors, and contacts on every door and window, providing full coverage while permanent equipment waited to go in. A leased network and whole-house Wi-Fi kept the property usable for visitors and the construction crews working through it. Auto-arming ran at the end of the day, so if someone forgot to set the alarm the house was still protected.

Solar on the roof charged a battery bank that carried the system overnight and recharged by day. Starlink replaced the dead street connection. When the city eventually got generators out to the block, they failed more than once — the battery carried the system through every outage without interruption.

Construction Security FAQs

Is this a permanent security system for the finished building?

No. This is a lease for the construction period. When the job is done, the temporary cameras, alarms, and beams come out. A permanent system for the finished building is a separate conversation if you want Nelson Security to stay on. Request a consultation — by appointment from our Thousand Oaks base for Southern California commercial and residential jobs.

Do insurance companies and general contractors require jobsite security?

On larger, insurance-required, or GC-required commercial and residential projects, many carriers and general contractors now expect surveillance, intrusion alarms, and—on partially built structures—life-safety or fire protection. We design the temporary stack to the requirement you actually have, not a one-size kit on a pole.

Can owners watch construction progress remotely without a public webcam?

Yes. The same cameras that protect the site give owners, developers, project teams, and lenders remote viewing as the building goes up—without a site visit for every question. Access is controlled. This is not a public webcam.

What systems are typically included on a construction lease?

A typical jobsite stack is cameras and recording, intrusion alarms, point-to-point beams on the perimeter, and life-safety or fire protection appropriate to a partially built structure. The lease includes 24-hour audio and video remote monitoring of the cameras and alarms for after-hours and unoccupied periods. Platforms are manufacturer-independent.

Do you monitor the site when trades leave and nobody is there?

Yes. When the site is empty, we provide 24-hour audio and video remote monitoring of the cameras and alarm events—nights, weekends, and holidays. After-hours activity is watched, not only recorded for later review. These systems generally use point-to-point beams on the construction perimeter as well.

Does coverage move as fencing, floors, and access points change?

Yes. Temporary cameras, beams, and alarms can be repositioned as the envelope changes. Power and connectivity are designed for a jobsite—temporary power, cellular or construction-network paths, and recording that does not depend on a finished IT closet. Architecture-first coverage geometry, then removal at substantial completion.

Related Solutions

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Priority Markets

High-end residential and commercial projects across Southern California.

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Lease · Jobsite coverage

Cover The Site Before The Next Phase

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