An affordable and prefabricated solution created for new buildings and also for a retrofit installation in existing rooms in houses and apartments.
FAMILY OFFICE ELITE spoke with Sven Leidel, an expert for HNWI/UHNWI Risk Mitigation & Protection Strategies located in Hamburg, Germany.
FOE:
Mr. Leidel, although this is already your second interview with our magazine, please tell us again about your professional security background and introduce yourself to our readers!
LEIDEL:
I was born in 1968 in Hamburg, Germany and I am a German citizen. As a former member of the German military police, I have been dealing with the topic of protection and security since 1988. Today I am involved, as an honorary member, in various national and international security and professional associations in advisory and executive functions. I am a professional lecturer and trainer, facilitator and specialist author, security consultant and expert in the field of protection strategies for exposed individuals. I have gained extensive expertise from more than 25 years of industry and professional experience and I have operated in numerous foreign assignments and projects in Europe, North America, Latin America as well as parts of Asia. My longtime customers include many major national and international corporations and insurance companies as well as small and medium-sized enterprises, exposed private individuals, family offices and family foundations as well as entrepreneurial families and high net worth individuals. Last but not least, I am an author and editor of two books in respect of Travel Risk Management; see www.travel-security-handbook.com (English) and www.handbuch-reisesicherheit.de (German).
FOE:
Your company provides Risk Mitigation & Protection Concepts for HNWI´s / UHNWI´s. Why do you call your “physical shelter concept” a SAFE ROOM and not a PANIC ROOM.
LEIDEL:
We have chosen SAFE ROOM for three reasons: (1) We feel, that SAFE ROOM meets the purpose and security aspect much better, plus the word “panic” sounds too negative in our point of view, (2) our exclusive technology and construction partner “Turtle Saferooms” is using the wording SAFE ROOM also in the company name and (3) the naming PANIC ROOM is often associated with the same name movie.
FOE:
That´s right, when I hear PANIC ROOM I am thinking automatically about Jodie Foster in the Hollywood movie “Panic Room”.
LEIDEL:
Most people do! At the end you can use both conceptualities; there is no right or wrong. We have decided, we do not want to sell a “Hollywood Horror Experience or Feeling” to our clientele, that´s why we use SAFE ROOM. What you see in the movie “Panic Room” is more of a bunker with thick steel, massive concrete walls and a high end technical solution (i.e. self-sufficient air conditioning, oxygen and power supply). Most of the time, the reality with private clientele and their SAFE ROOM solutions looks quite differently.
FOE:
What makes your concept so different?
LEIDEL:
We offer a proven “room-in-room retrofit installation solution” as well as a professional architectural solution for new buildings. With the know-how and experience of our technology partner, we are able to plan a SAFE ROOM already in the construction phase or use existing rooms in the house or apartment also as a SAFE ROOM. For example, you can rebuild and use an existing dressing room, that is close to the master bed room, as a SAFE ROOM. Optically the purpose of the room stays the same: A simple dressing room with all of your cloths. But if necessary, you can close the door(s) of the dressing room and it protects you against intruders, kidnappers, criminals a.s.o.. The beauty is, you can still use the dressing room in your day-to-day-routine for the purpose the room was originally planned and built. This concept gives us the opportunity to be efficient and costs effective, but it still meets the need for an individual and customized security and protection level; in our point of view the best possible price-performance-ratio.
FOE:
Your solution is not a bunker that protects against the next bomb or terror attack, right?
LEIDEL:
By far not … our standard SAFE ROOMS are not designed to withstand and resist a bomb attack or a siege for many hours or days by trained and heavily armed terrorists. In order to be also on the safe side in respect of those threats, clients then must invest hundreds of thousands of EURO/GBP/US$. Anyway, upon request we can also assist with those demands; it is all a question of money and availability. Generally speaking, it is our understanding, unless you are in a witness protection program or you have received massive threats from mafia or organized crime groups as well as from political, religious or otherwise motivated radical groups, you do not need a massive bunker or high end solution. The vast majority of our exclusive clientele is looking more for a lean solution with a good price-performance-ratio. Having this said, our SAFE ROOM solutions start at a little under EURO 10,000 for the very minimum version and solution.
FOE:
What is your solution protecting from?
LEIDEL:
Our SAFE ROOMS are protecting from violent intruders and criminals, as well as from kidnappers, stalkers or violent ex-life partners. The purpose of a SAFE ROOM is, to provide a safe retreat and to protect the home owners from physical harm until the police, law enforcement or the contracted security company has arrived. If you can trust the statistics, this means that a SAFE ROOM needs to withstand and resists the penetration effort and attempt from criminals for app. 15 – 20 minutes. In the meantime, help should have been arrived at your house in most cases.
FOE:
Who is a typical SAFE ROOM client?
LEIDEL:
If you are talking about the age of our clients, this goes by all ages. It could be the retired wealthy couple, which does not feel comfortable anymore to use physical defenses in case of an intrusion by violent criminals. It could also be the HNWI family, where the husband has to travel a lot for business and the rest of the family members are alone at home a lot. In addition, it can also be the successful mid age business couple, which wants to add another level of security while they are at home. So bottom line, you see that there is no typical clientele by age. It is more a question of the willingness to reach the next security level (on top of an existing CCTV and alarm system) or even the ability of the financial investment in the next security level.
FOE:
Does your SAFE ROOM concept also protect against bullets from handguns, rifles and automatic weapons?
LEIDEL:
Our standard solutions protect against 9mm, Magnum .44 and up to Kalashnikov 7.62. Nevertheless, if a client needs an extra level of protection, we can also secure the SAFE ROOM against higher and stronger calibers. Again, it is just a question of money and availability. To be honest, it is our experience that the resistance class 7.62 is sufficient in most cases. There is really no need to spend more money on higher resistance classes, if there is no real known threat need. At the end, the client will get what he or she is asking for.
FOE:
Are there any technical limitations or requirements from your end?
LEIDEL:
Not really, beside the fact that our collaboration partner Turtle Saferooms needs a minimum of two bearing walls in order to build in the room-in-room-solution. Other than that there are no real technical limitations or requirements from our end.
FOE:
Some interested persons might think: “We do not want all the conversion and construction dirt in the house (for several days)!”. How do you respond to this statement?
LEIDEL:
I totally understand, that most clients would like to avoid any disorders, inconveniences and impairments at their homes for days, like you experience when you i.e. convert your bathroom. In our case the whole process is very simple, fast and “pretty clean”. After assessing the threat and risk level and deciding which resistance class is reasonable for the SAFE ROOM, our technical experts will measure the room and create a 3D model with a special software program on the computer. All necessary materials and walls will be manufactured at the production site in Bremen. When all preliminary work is done, the technical experts will schedule a date with the client in order to build in the individual and prefabricated parts. Therefore, the team will arrive in the morning, build in all parts and leave already in the evening.
FOE:
Don´t you hope that the “Day X” will never come, where the clients have to use the SAFE ROOM?
LEIDEL:
Of course I do! But even if the client never has to use the SAFE ROOM, it is my experience that having a SAFE ROOM in the house creates kind of a peace of mind for the client and the whole family.
FOE:
Mr. Leidel, thank you very much for your time and the interview.
