The business of theft
23 November 2021
I’ve never thought of plant thieves as being entrepreneurs but that’s the unconventional way in which they were described at a conference discussing the subject.
Dr Kate Tudor, senior lecturer in criminology at Northumbria University, was speaking at the CITS (Combined Industry Theft Solutions) Conference which took place last week and was hosted by JCB at its World Headquarters in Rocester.
She has researched into the issue of plant theft and has spoken to key stakeholders including victims, the police, manufacturers, insurers and the perpetrators themselves.
Her findings show that, while there will always be an element of opportunistic theft, most of the criminal activity is carefully planned and highly organised.
Gangs are quick to detect new opportunities and to exploit them before switching to other lucrative areas as they arise. They treat it like a business – and hence Dr Tudor's definition of "theft as a form of illicit entrepreneurialism".
Thieves can act globally and across national boundaries, taking advantage of modern technology. Consequently solutions must be uniform, co-ordinated and consistent throughout the plant industry and have to go beyond brand-specific systems.
Dr Tudor’s research showed that thieves are quick to detect shifts in demand and changes in second-hand values. They can easily switch from stealing machines to appropriating certain metals or components, if the returns are better.
Criminals can systematically identify weaknesses and exploit them, whether in police operations, user behaviour or security systems, and targeting the most vulnerable.
For example, thieves often target rural locations that are subject to less surveillance. They monitor user behaviour, such as leaving keys in machines, and they detect weak points in certain pieces of equipment.
Dr Tudor believes that the best deterrents and theft prevention measures are those adopted across industry – such as the Cesar machine identification system developed by Datatag for the Construction Equipment Association – rather than being left to individual companies.
Indeed, it is ironic that some suppliers tend to promote security almost as an optional extra rather than a standard expectation.
Given the current strong demand for equipment, the rise in second-hand values and the long lead times in sourcing many new machines, protecting equipment against theft has perhaps never been as important.
Other conference speakers, including hirers, gave specific advice on theft protection. More on that in a future post.
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