Which type of Electronic Article Surveillance is right for me?

Whilst running a retail business can be ultimately rewarding, the prospect of theft is a constant worry for many retailers. Over the course of a year, the businesses sector loses hundreds of millions of pounds due to theft alone. It's a loss of income that could potentially make-or-break some businesses, who are already competing in an unforgiving retail game.

In today's world, we simply cannot keep our eyes on everyone all of the time. This is precisely why using electronic article surveillance, such as product tags, works seamlessly alongside CCTV systems that are able to provide those additional, constant eyes for retailers. Aside from offering a warning system for your security teams, the presence of a tag on an item that has been taken through a store's security field will provide great evidence to prove shoplifting, if the person involved is unable to produce a receipt. Offering these benefits, it's easy to see why so many businesses have employed EAS in their stores to help to kerb the loss affecting practice of shoplifting.

Our range of Electronic Article Surveillance tags.

Here at Tagmax, we understand that it can be difficult when thinking about choosing the right security solution for whatever your needs or budget dictate. Being vastly experienced retailers and installers of retail security equipment, having worked on behalf of businesses of varying sizes and in all manner of retail environments, we are able to say with confidence that we will be able to offer your business the best opportunity to manage its security effectively.

With that in mind, here is our guide to each of the EAS tags available and how they help retailers to effectively protect their stock.

• Electro-Magnetic . Made from a strip of amorphous metal, these tags are amongst the most commonly found type of EAS tagging system, simply because they offer a cost-effective solution in their abilities to firstly, offer a sufficiently able security solution and secondly, their ease to be attached and detached from products.
  
  The strip present on the tag is lined with a ferromagnetic material that gives off a coercive field and detection is achieved by the tag sensing low-frequency signals that have been generated by a pedestal system, which essentially 'go looking' for the field generated by the strip. You're likely to find these types of tags inside items such as books, food packaging and clothing items. They are ideal to use if you run a retail operation that has to run to a tight budget and/or has many, many products to protect.
• Acousto-Magnetic . AM tags work in a similar way but are made of two strips, the type of metal as outlined above and also a magnetic metallic strip. This strip works to increase the signal strength of the tag, offering a more robust and accurate tagging solution in a much wider field of detection. Due to their abilities to offer a complete range of detection, you're more likely to see these types of tags present on more expensive items, such asclothing, alcohol and electrical goods, which by their value alone are items that are often targeted by shoplifters.
• Radio Frequency . Often known as RF or RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) are tags that employ a tiny chip that can be sensed by the magnetic field given off by the security system. RFID tags are also able to include specific information about the product that they're attached to. This gives retailers the opportunity to know exactly what type of product is being taken through the field.

The major benefits of tags that employ radio frequencies, is that they can be sensed even when they're several feet away from its detection device – giving the user plenty of time to deal with any potential shoplifting incidents. Due to the abilities of a RFID tag to contain specific information, you're likely to see them used on a wide range of items, but more commonly on media items, such as books, DVDs and other electronic devices. Another popular usage of RFID tags is within a warehouse environment, where each item can be identified in a matter of seconds, making for quick and easy storage or movement of the item.

Which Transmission System to Choose.

You've probably seen the more common pedestal systems installed by the entrance/exits of other retailers. Many of them are visible on purpose, so to provide a visible deterrent to anyone thinking about stealing from the store. Others may be hidden or disguised, so not to make potential thieves aware that products are being tracked. Another reason could be that the design of the system simply clashes with the aesthetic look of the store. However, many stores simply cannot afford the room to install a pedestal system and if that is the case, there are other transmission systems that retailers should consider: Underfloor or concealed door systems.

Underfloor security systems are literally installed within the flooring of a store and mostly take the form of a mat, which everyone will need to step on as they exit the store.

Concealed security systems are present close to the exit, but due to the nature of being hidden, they take up less space than a common pedestal system.

Protect your store with Tagmax Today.

Providing all the benefits listed, many stores have found the usage of electrical article surveillance and their accompanying pedestal systems to be the perfect weapon against shoplifting. If you're interested in employing EAS tags in your store, don't hesitate to call our customer supportteam who will be delighted to help on 0800 044 3160 or alternatively, e-mail us at sales@tagmax.co.uk.