5 Ways To Improve your Building’s Access Control System

Credit to Author: Atin Chhabra| Date: Fri, 22 Feb 2019 04:18:48 +0000

Building access control systems – or home control systems – are developed to ensure the safety of people and data within the premises. An essential feature of an access control system is to ensure that only authorised individuals are allowed entry to specific areas of an infrastructural facility. Efficiently installing an access control system can enable an organisation to control who is accessing their facilities, ensuring safety for all. An access control point is integrated into either a door, turnstile, parking gate, elevator, or other physical barriers, where access points can be electronically controlled – typically, these points happen to be a door. It is crucial for entities (residential or commercial) to keep their occupants and assets safe by having an effective system in place. These security measures can be kept up-to-date by considering the listed points.

Evaluate the usefulness of your system

First and foremost, one should inspect what the fundamental purpose of their system is and whether the current system is effectively providing that. A significant factor to consider is the location of your control systems and whether it protects the individuals and assets which genuinely require it.

Review who has access

Some systems are faced with an issue where the number of active cards controlling the system exceeds the number of employees or residents actually requiring it. Such errors can be expected across organisations, although this can be avoided by setting features to timeout the cards. These situations can be as follows:

• If the card is not used for a predetermined amount of time at the control facility, access is shut off.
• After a certain period of inactivity, cards must be renewed.
• Connect the card to human resources databases.

Upgrade your technology

It is suggested that a 125-kilohertz technology system is now outdated & should be updated. Building security managers should start installing encrypted technology instead. Ideally, an access control system should be updated every ten years and not treated as a one-time investment.

Periodically test the system

A Building management system’s functionality should be tested on a monthly or quarterly basis. Periodic testing will ensure proper functionality and allows security managers to plan any possible changes required well in advance.

Watch out for tailgating

Politely holding open the door when requested is a common practice but can lead to potential risks. Employees should be educated to observe strictly who they are opening the door for. A frequent assumption is that bypassing an established security system is challenging, leading to complacency and casualness – which is why multiple layers of security should be enforced to deal with the problem of tailgating.

The safety of individuals on the premises is equally vital to concealing valuable data. Access control systems are crucial to prevent the theft of knowledge or critical components, as well as nullifying threats to the safety of employees or residents. This further validates the need to periodically assess the efficiency of your access control system in place.

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