5 reasons to use an Access Control System
In this day and age, it is important to have an access control system, even as a small or medium-sized business.
Do you know who is on your premises right now? If you let a cleaner, postman or repairman in to perform their role, how can you be certain they aren’t going into unnecessary rooms and potentially causing a security breach?
If you still use old-fashioned tools such as locks and keys as your sole method of access control, you will find these questions difficult to answer.
Not only is this a security risk, it also potentially puts visitors and contractors at risk from a health and safety perspective.
Here are 5 reasons why you should take the plunge and invest in our long-lasting, reliable smartcard access control system:
- Integrated security monitoring system
Thanks to our powerful WinAC.NET software, basic access control can be integrated with multiple elements of site security, such as car park barriers, CCTV facial recognition and visitor management checking-in to create a smooth, seamless site transition. This means that as well as giving your site manager detailed control over which staff members can access which areas at which times of day, you can also use smartcards to monitor real-time footfall at entrances and exits.
2. Small, long-lasting and easy to use smartcards
Our contactless smartcards are similar in size to a credit card, so they are easy to fit in a wallet or pocket as well as common lanyard fittings. The radio-frequency technology means that you don’t need to remove them from your wallet or pocket as long as there is nothing metal in the way. The cards don’t use internal batteries and can resist temperatures extremes; theoretically they can keep going for as long as you might need them.
3. Limits access to cardholders only
The ‘limited by status’ facility enables you to grant or revoke access based on status requirements, such as not letting someone clock into work if they have not presented their card at the site entrance. If you have had problems with people forgetting to clock in, you can even use our Single Sign On module to stop them from logging onto their computer without first registering their presence with their smartcard. Temporary cards can be set up to be given to visitors and allow them access to pre-determined areas.
4. Improves the visitor experience
According to a visitor management white paper by Proxyclick, two out of every five people in the 2,000 US and UK workers surveyed claim their perception of a company or brand has been negatively affected by their experience in the corporate lobby or reception area. Giving visitors a smartcard which has been pre-assigned a set “visitor” security profile means that you can be confident they won’t accidentally wander anywhere unsuitable, and they won’t have to loiter impatiently outside of doors waiting for an employee to let them through. It also removes the need for them to record their personal details in an insecure sign-in book.
5. Health and safety integration
Our access control system can be linked to your existing fire alarms. Once the alarms sound, the system will print out a report of who is clocked into the building at that time. You can then create muster points, where staff can assemble and present their smartcards at a reader to register that they have safely exited. This means that you can be certain, in real-time, who has left the building in an emergency. This is particularly useful for visitors, who might otherwise be forgotten about in an emergency.