Page 42 - Security Today, March 2018

as these different types of technology work together. For example, the perimeter of a building might have access control, and you want total control of that for a lockdown. But the interior might not need that same level of security or control. In this scenario, you could be applying both wireless and less wired solutions to offer the appropri- ate level of security.
A unique solution also exists in this space through data-on-card methodology. In these situations, while most of the locks are wire- less, there are a few hotspots within the system that are hardwired to communicate data to a server. This is done to support buildouts of new systems in existing facilities where some wiring currently exists.
Appropriate Location
Each of these types of deployments has a place in today’s buildings— be they urban hospital, rural school or a barn with no network infra- structure at all. And while not every location is the same, there are a few trends we see in the industry that are dependent on building use.
Following are a few of the uses I have seen over the past few years, ranging from very common examples to much more unique and sur- prising use cases.
Wireless Applications
Resiliency. In the past year, we have seen the need for government buildings, hospitals, and other critical facilities to be resilient in the face of natural disasters. Because of this, truly wireless devices that operate on their own, have a high value.
In a flooding situation, where water has partially submerged a building—and potentially knocked out power—an access control de- vice that stores its own information, has its own battery and makes its own decisions will continue to run and operate as long as it hasn’t fallen below the water line. That means the building remains secured, and can still offer access in the result of an emergency.
Education. Depending on the size and type of school or univer- sity, there can be hundreds or thousands of doors and openings to se- cure. When you’re operating on that scale, a wireless solution is often the best way to enable access control at all of these openings.
A typical example of this is a university with residence halls con- taining 3,000 to 4,000 doors. There is simply no feasible way to do a wired access control system. But, with an existing wireless network in place, the cost of the install suddenly becomes affordable.
Less Wired and Hybrid Applications
Government. This is somewhat new, but it is a variation on a theme we often see in government: the need for extremely secure wireless access control and credentialing. To that end, the federal government has begun implementing FIPS 201 Personal Identity Verification (PIV) for all federal employees and contractors. That means everyone working in a federal facility is issued a PIV ID Card, and those cards are used to access Wi-Fi and Power over Ethernet locks on doors, cabinets and other openings.
This new mandate for PIV devices does not come with funding for facilities, making the use of wireless critical, as it saves on cost in the install.
Further, it allows for PIV enabled devices further into a facility, such as on server racks, file cabinets holding sensitive data, medicine cabinets, and other non-traditional openings that need to be kept un- der lock and key.
Heritage buildings. Old, artisanal wooden doors or marble walls are common features in heritage buildings that no one wants to cut nor drill into. Further, older buildings often have asbestos concerns laying within the walls, a consideration that means no major con- struction can take place during retrofits.
In these situations, where simple upgrades to a few doors can
properly secure a location, using an ad hoc network that provides wireless connections to a central hub may make the most sense. Plus, using locks that are low impact in installation further protects the intrinsic value of the building.
Automated car garages. One of the more unique locations where I’ve seen a less wired solution work is in an automated car garage. It was a facility that stored vehicles on automated racks within a verti- cal storage space, and the access control panel at the front of the facility—which was wired into the server—communicated wirelessly with the racks in the interior of the building.
It is a unique solution to be sure, but it is a great example of how an ad hoc wireless system can fit with nearly any facility to improve and digitize access control.
Hospitals. Moving back to a larger vertical, we see specific use in healthcare facilities for ad hoc networks that create less wired solu- tions. For example, while every door of an existing facility may be on a hard-wired access control device, several internal openings could be quickly upgraded with new technology.
Consider how emergency rooms currently put patient belongings in a plastic bag that is kept with the incoming patient, and how that might be improved by designing a cubby system that locks with a bracelet provided to the patient.
Narcotics and other medicines are often stored in a central phar- macy area in a hospital for security purposes. With the appropriate access controls on a medicine cabinet within patient rooms, the facil- ity may be able to operationally change how they provide care.
Little changes like these can be done in a way where a proprietary wireless network is created, then connects from a hub via one wire to the server side.
Multifamily. If a building is a retrofit they likely don’t have a sin- gle wireless provider through the building and they surely don’t have wired access control in the building. Even in some new construction, it may not be the appropriate solution to wire every door.
In these scenarios, we look to solutions that provide the wireless data-on-card methodology. How this works is that nearly all of the doors within a facility are not connected to any network. Rather, the card holds the access information telling the reader what it is and is not allowed to do. Then, at the point of entry to the facility—be it garage, front door, or other access point—a wired access control panel reads the data from the card and updates the audit trail and any necessary changes to the credential.
In this scenario, the exterior access points are all wired, and likely connected to a cloud, but all the data is being continuously stored and updated through the card—not the access control point on every lock in the building.
Partnerships and Future Use
The scenarios above are a primer—far from inclusive—but giving a general idea on the innovation and inspiration behind access control for door security solutions.
To fully tap into the technologies, products and solutions available I always recommend developing long term partnerships. Building owners and managers should find integrators and manufacturers who are invested in their success. And integrators and manufacturers must be working together to share the insights and developments they are seeing from the needs of end users.
By establishing these connections, and taking a consultative approach, there is nearly no loca- tion that can’t be secured with some form of wire- less technology.
Peter Boriskin is the vice president of product man- agement at ASSA ABLOY Americas.
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