Digital Access with the Familiarity of a Key: A Versatile Combination
As organizations upscale, downsize, or onboard new locations, facility managers must more flexibly manage access control ever and frequently adapt to new situations. Increased service contracting has also handed many essential building functions over to third-party providers, rather than employees. They also need efficient building access that does not compromise security.
In addition, physical, cyber and ‘hybrid’ physical-cyber threats loom large, as do the regulations designed to protect critical sectors against them., They now include the EU’s NIS2 guidance and Cyber Resilience Act (CRA). Compliance and the implementation of joined-up security and access management are ongoing challenges, particularly in the sectors on which NIS2 obligations fall most heavily: infrastructure, finance/banking, healthcare, energy, transport, and data centers.
Mechanical locking was not designed for such a complex, dynamic environment, yet this demanding landscape is becoming the ‘new normal’. Despite these challenges, any new access or security solution must now battle for budget and justify its total cost of ownership (TCO), producing a definable return on investment (ROI) in the process.
Combining the Advantages of Keys and Digital Access
One major benefit of the mechanical key is its familiarity. A mechanical locking system with patent protection may still be an appropriate solution, but digitization offers many opportunities for business efficiency and compliance. Unlike mechanical security, a digital solution offers the ability to allocate time-based rather than blanket access authorization, and to amend it quickly and flexibly. A digital credential, such as a smart key, can be programmed or de-authorized in seconds, negating the threat posed by lost keys and the significant costs of changing cylinders and re-keying. When building technology can connect solutions for access, fire protection, and escape routes, for example, both user safety and facilities management benefit.
With a digital solution, audit capability is automated for every lock and user, benefiting compliance efforts; manual access tracking with mechanical keys is either time-consuming or, in many cases, impossible. Tracking and tracing access is one requirement of NIS2.
“Of course, moving from mechanical to digital access management is not like flicking a switch,” says Frank Stier, VP & Head of PU Key-based Digital Cylinders at Assa Abloy Opening Solutions EMEIA. “Many organizations have large systems. They cannot change all at once, so digital systems must be able to scale gradually over time as budgets allow. The right programmable smart key system offers precisely this.”
Choosing the Right Key-Based Digital Solution
Smart key systems are the fastest, least disruptive way to switch mechanical security for intelligent digital access. They immediately upgrade the flexibility of access management in organizations of any size or type. Electronic or electromechanical locking cylinders simply slot in place of the legacy mechanical devices, without door damage or wiring. Intuitive software and programmable digital keys give facility management teams granular control over the movements of staff and contractors. Some solutions allow security managers to administer mechanical and digital access within the same system.
One smart key option is Assa Abloy’s Cliq, which simplifies the granting, personalization, and management of access rights. Because this system logs every access event, audit trails are generated with a few clicks in the software control panel – streamlining compliance obligations with the latest generation of regulations. The product ecosystem includes more than sixty different cylinder and padlock types, ensuring almost any need can be met.
“We offer two versions within the Cliq family to meet varying individual situations,” explains Stier. “Fully electronic eCliq offers maximum digital flexibility with a single mechanical profile and electronic coding. Cylinders meet the highest VdS requirement and operate maintenance-free. Electromechanical PROTEC2 Cliq adds multiple mechanical profiles on top of the electronic coding, with the option to manage mechanical cylinders in the same unified system and/or develop custom-made locks for specific applications. These two versions are also interoperable with the same software.”
Adaptability, scalability, security, convenience, and trust are just some of the reasons Cliq is already adopted in many of the most demanding access management environments for access management.
Remote Digital Management Anywhere in the World
Founded in 2016, Orca Industriemontagen is a global industrial assembly and relocation services business with a high level of technical expertise. From planning to transport and final installation, Orca supports machine system assembly across industrial sectors, with a focus on food and pharmaceuticals. In addition to new installations, they offer secure relocation for used systems. Orca’s experts and equipment are always on the move,. So they sought an access solution to ensure the security of multiple opening types of doorway across internationally distributed sites, as well as transport to/from and containers at these locations*.
Orca chose eCliq for intelligent digital key access with cloud-based management. Their needs were met by a combination of robust, reliable, wireless cylinders for almost any application,; a battery-powered digital key;, intuitive, cloud-based management;, and the convenient option to update users’ access permissions remotely using the Cliq Connect smartphone app.
Employees now carry a single, digital eCliq key that is individually programmed only with just their relevant, time-limited access authorizations. When the management team in Germany approves access to a cylinder via the software, this authorization can be transmitted to the user’s key in the app via Bluetooth – wherever s/he is in the world. System installation was equally simple: only a screwdriver was required to mount wireless cylinders at new or existing entrances and exits.
“The key advantage for us is the worldwide functionality and the ease of use. This is an enormous benefit in terms of security and convenience for people and materials,” says Jochen Busch, Orca Industriemontagen’s owner.
Protecting Medicines on the Move
Well -governed management of access to controlled drugs is always essential, especially with the urgent nature of care provided by the London Ambulance Service. The trust required a versatile and easy-to-use access control system, with multiple permission and skill levels across multiple locations**. As Gavin Mooney, Advanced Paramedic Practitioner and Trust Medication Safety Officer, explains: “Our previous access control system was not meeting our needs, as we had insufficient oversight of who had access to particular lockers or codes for the keys. We had to find a way in which paramedics could get access to drugs over a large geographical area, but we also needed to ensure the system was compliant, with auditability for security purposes.”
With Protec² Cliq, each member of staff now carries an individual key, that can be activated via a wall panel or computer programming device at the start of a shift, giving access to areas and assets in accordance with their clearance. Over 4,000 keys were issued to London Ambulance Service paramedics, giving traceable access to drug cabinets at multiple stations across the whole estate. Cliq devices fit alongside and help to evolve their existing solution, giving the capability to manage a large estate by enabling new permissions or decommissioning a key instantaneously to ensure that keys cannot be used inappropriately.
