In 2014 there were over 8 million property crime offenses committed in the United States, resulting in an estimated $14.3 billion in losses, according the FBI’s 2014 Uniform Crime Report. This statistic is frightening enough on its own, but when you also consider the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s finding that 30% of all businesses fail because of crime, including theft, taking property without the owner’s consent, and burglary, entering a building with the intent to commit a crime, it becomes clear that taking measures to protect your business is a necessity.

When it comes to keeping your business and employees safe, few things provide the level of security and adaptability of an access control system. Whether protecting a room, building, or entire campus, access control systems’ scalability make them a viable solution for businesses and organizations of all sizes.

What is an access control system?

An access control system is a security method consisting of physical and/or electronic systems that evaluate and enforce credential authentication before allowing access to a place or resource. Examples of access control systems commonly used in commercial environments include personal identification numbers (PINs), biometric scans, and physical or electronic keys.

What are the benefits of an access control system?

The benefits of controlling access to buildings, rooms, and resources, go well beyond protecting your company’s employees and assets, and securing your business. Additional benefits include:

  • Access permissions can be customized to each user
  • Ability to give authorized visitors entrance to your business
  • Door lock scheduling that can automatically lock and unlock doors
  • A history and audit trail of everyone who enters and exits the building
  • Aid in loss prevention investigations
  • Ability to deactivate individual electronic keys (when used), avoiding the costly need to rekey an entire building
  • Reducing risk of employee error in securing building when leaving
  • Secure storage for confidential material
  • Ability for authorized personnel to provide remote door access

What are the top considerations when selecting an access control system?

While there are many available options and types of access control systems on the market, initial considerations when selecting the right one for your business needs, should include:

  • Supported forms of authentication
  • Number of authentication types required
  • Automation capabilities
  • Ability to provide different levels of access based on an individual’s level of authorization
  • Ability to support smartphone-based applications for remote system operation
  • Type of system monitoring and management, whether in-house or by an outside service
  • Integration capabilities with other security and life safety platforms

Of all the advantages of having an access control system, though, we believe the most valuable is peace of mind; the assurance that your building is secure, your assets are protected and your business won’t become a statistic.

If you would like to learn more about potential applications for an access control system in your organization, we would be happy to provide a one-on-one consultation to answer any questions and help you determine what might be the best system for you. Please reach out to our Security, Access and Vigilance Systems Integrator for Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, Dan Gelinas at 207-249-5505.

Further reading on the FBI’s 2014 Uniform Crime Report can be found here.

Further reading on the U.S. Chamber of Commerce finding, and the impact of crime on business, can be found here.

 

 

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