Unleash the power of access control with wireless locks

An access system is a familiar technology to many businesses — of every size. Access control may operate as standalone electronic locking. It can also integrate with complimentary business systems such as HVAC, time-and-attendance, in-house payments and more.

In most companies’ access systems, important doors and locks are wired to mains electricity. Software then filters and monitors traffic. It is a tried-and-trusted way to let the right people in — and keep everyone else out.

Yet the expensive and sometimes complex demands of wiring doors can stop electronic access control in its tracks at the front entrance. This leaves building door control in the hands of mechanical locking, which limits the power of security to contribute to business success.

The answer? Unleash access control from its cables: Extending security with wireless devices, filtering access around a building interior, benefits a business in at least three valuable ways.

Way #1: ensure only authorized personnel open sensitive doors
Not everyone should be able to see the CEO’s laptop or open the server room. In real-world situations, where staff is busy, relying on manual lock-and-key technology often leaves doors unguarded. If a lock is somehow breached, a security manager will have no idea when, nor will they be able to identify the last person to open the door.

Cable-free access control is now available for all kinds of internal door, of every size and any material. At Luminy University in France, for example, wireless devices ensure only qualified and authorized staff open rooms where hazardous materials and valuable equipment are stored.

By extending an existing access system, you do not need to rebuild site security from scratch — assuming the wireless devices you choose can integrate with third-party access or building management systems. With these integration-ready wireless devices, businesses build extra capacity slowly, extending security as budgets allow.

Businesses can filter and track access to more than just rooms, too. Wireless cabinet locks add security to cupboards, cabinets and drawers — for everything from employee personal items to controlled medicines. These are places that a wired system may find difficult to reach. In addition, battery-powered locks can add real-time control and monitoring to server racks, so IT staff know right away if unauthorized access has even been attempted. Audit trail functionality traces every physical breach.

Way #2: more convenience for employees, peace of mind for facilities teams
Wireless access control devices bring security much deeper into a building. Employees feel safer at work; facilities and security managers can relax, because important openings beyond the front door are secured and monitored, without any need to waste time tracking bunches (or hundreds) of mechanical keys.

The workload to maintain a network of wireless devices is minimal. Locks only need a change of battery every two years on average, nothing more. The maintenance can be done in-house, by almost anyone. Battery operation is energy — and therefore, cost — efficient, too.

For visitors and employees, a single credential still opens all their authorized locks. No one carries large, inconvenient key bunches: It saves everyone’s time, as nurses and other staff at the Centre Hospitalier Métropole Savoie discovered.

Using NFC or Bluetooth technology, the latest wireless devices are also compatible with secure mobile credential technologies, including Seos. As the adoption of mobile access control grows, wireless technology is futureproofed.

Way #3: understand your building’s use (and its users)
With the exception of designated “high security doors”, wired access control often stops at the front entrance. Once employees and visitors are inside the building, the system loses track of them. This leaves valuable business data un-gathered.

Extending access control with wireless digital devices can help you collect this data and put it to work. A better understanding of building use enables more efficient energy management, for example. If no one is occupying a suite of offices, why heat or air-condition them?

Granular access control can help inform decisions about leasing more space — and of what type — or whether to let leases expire. This type of data will only grow in importance as work patterns become fluid. IBM estimates the global “mobile” workforce will number 1.87 billion people by 2022. Understanding how these workers use office space will be critical.

Buildings are getting smarter: The global smart buildings market will be worth almost $110 billion by 2025. Gathering data enables automated systems to make intelligent, cost-saving decisions in real time. In this way, extending access control wirelessly will directly impact profitability.    

If cables are still limiting what an access system can do for your business, the answer is wireless.

To discover how wireless technology can unleash the power of your access control system, download a free Aperio Solution Guide at https://campaigns.assaabloyopeningsolutions.eu/aperio