Before Winter Hits
As temperatures drop and winter approaches, facility managers and business owners have a long list of seasonal tasks to tackle. HVAC systems are serviced, exterior areas are inspected, snow removal plans are finalized, and buildings are prepared for the months ahead.
But there’s another system worth adding to that fall checklist: your access control system.
Over the course of a year, employees change, tenants move, vendors come and go, operating hours shift, and buildings evolve. Yet access permissions and security systems don’t always change along with them.
A quick fall review can help ensure your access control system still reflects how your property actually operates today — and identify opportunities to make managing your building easier heading into winter.
Here are five areas property managers should review.
1. Review Who Currently Has Access
Start with one of the simplest questions: Who can currently enter your building?
Depending on your system, there may be active credentials assigned to former employees, previous tenants, contractors, vendors or others who no longer need access.
Review your current user list and look for credentials that should be removed or updated. It’s also a good opportunity to confirm that current employees and tenants have access only to the areas they need.
Modern access control makes this much easier than managing traditional keys. Rather than wondering whether a key was returned — or considering whether a lock needs to be rekeyed — credentials can typically be managed individually.
2. Check Your Readers, Doors and Hardware
Access control is only as effective as the physical components supporting it.
Take a walk through the property and pay attention to controlled entrances. Are doors closing and latching properly? Are readers responding consistently? Has any hardware become loose, damaged or difficult to operate?
Fall is a particularly useful time to identify these issues before snow, ice and freezing temperatures arrive.
Routine access control maintenance can help uncover small issues before they become larger service problems.
3. Review Access Schedules and After-Hours Permissions
Your building may not operate on the same schedule it did six months ago.
Take a look at automatic lock and unlock schedules as well as employee, tenant and vendor access times. Pay particular attention to people who need access outside normal business hours, including cleaning crews, maintenance personnel and contractors.
With shorter days and holiday schedules approaching, fall is a good time to make sure your system’s schedules match your property’s actual operations.
The goal isn’t simply to restrict access. It’s to make sure the right people can access the right areas at the right times.
4. Make Sure You Can Manage Your System When You’re Not There
If your access control system offers remote capabilities, make sure the appropriate members of your team know how to use them. Depending on your system, that may include reviewing activity, managing credentials, changing permissions or responding to access-related issues without being physically onsite.
If your current system requires someone to be at the building every time a credential needs to be changed, it may also be worth exploring whether newer technology could make day-to-day property management more efficient.
5. Ask Whether Every Door That Should Be Controlled Actually Is
Buildings change.
Maybe you’ve added office space. A storage area now contains higher-value equipment. An employee-only entrance sees more traffic. Or you’re still using traditional keys on doors that would be easier to manage electronically.
As you walk your property, look beyond the entrances already connected to your access control system.
Where are you still relying on physical keys? Where would additional control or visibility make managing the property easier?
You don’t necessarily need to overhaul an entire system. In many cases, access control can evolve as the needs of a property change.
Make Access Control Part of Your Fall Property Checklist
Good commercial building security isn’t about adding technology simply for the sake of having more technology. It’s about making sure the systems you have are appropriate for the way your property operates.
Before winter arrives, take a few minutes to review:
- Active users and credentials
- Doors, readers and associated hardware
- Access schedules and permissions
- Remote management capabilities
- Areas that may benefit from additional access control
For facility managers and operations teams responsible for multiple buildings, tenants or changing teams, making this part of an annual commercial building security review can help keep access organized as properties evolve.
Need a Second Set of Eyes?
Titan Technology Systems installs and services commercial access control systems for businesses and properties throughout the region.
Whether you need service on an existing system, want to add additional doors, or are considering an upgrade to newer access control technology, our team can evaluate what you have and help determine what makes sense for your property.
Before winter hits, make sure your building’s access control is ready for the season ahead.
Talk to Titan Technology Systems about your access control system.
Ready to review your current access control system or discuss an upcoming project?
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