When it comes to access control on campus, universities have a number of decisions to make. Between selecting the right access software and hardware, to partnering with an integrator you trust, and choosing the card technology that best suits your campus, establishing the proper physical security measures can be a taxing process.

In a five-part podcast series from ASSA ABLOY these decisions are examined in depth, highlighting the important considerations that campuses have to navigate.

Smart cards

In a part the podcast series devoted specifically to smart card technology, Eric Widlitz, vice president of sales at Vanderbilt Industries, helps to break down the common misconceptions associated with not only smart cards, but their comparably less secure counterparts, proximity and mag stripe.

“There is absolutely no good reason today — starting with a new, fresh install — why you would ever put in proximity technology or put in mag stripe technology,” says Eric Widlitz, vice president of sales at Vanderbilt Industries. “You should always think about moving forward with some sort of smart card technology.”

Many campuses still use mag stripe cards for door access because the credentials are inexpensive, the cost to replace the existing swipe readers is high, and other campus systems — dining, laundry, vending, etc. — still rely on that technology. From a cost perspective, however, modern smart card offerings are more or less level in price with proximity cards. In some cases, smart cards may even cost less.

In the podcast, also hear from Daniel Bailin, director of strategic business development and innovation at HID Global, about how campuses can begin to plan for the next phase of credential technology today, and avoid potential headaches in the future.

“Even if you don’t think you need it today, it would be naive to think you’re not going to have to support these common platforms — phones, wearable devices, in the next, fill in the blank: one year, two years, three years,” says Bailin.

The cost of security

Unfortunately, one-size-fits-all doesn’t exist when it comes to campus security. Project managers and campus administrators must compile a plethora of information about their facilities before ever achieving a realistic estimate.

In another of the podcasts, hear from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary’s director of IT, David Middleton, who was thrown in at the physical access deep end when he was tasked with plotting campus wide security upgrades. One of Middleton’s biggest challenges, as he explains in detail, was budgeting for the security upgrades.

Learning from Middleton’s experiences, one way to help ease the budget concerns for project managers to explain how the security system can save the institution money and time in other areas. Ultimately, cost will always be a consideration for any security implementation and the project at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary stands a good example of how to navigate budgeting concerns.

Campus lockdowns

Lockdown is a functional campus protocol that no institution ever wants to enact. Nevertheless, it’s vital that a campus have a comprehensive and detailed procedure in place that leverages physical security components to ensure the safety of the campus community in times of emergency.

With shootings and other threats to campus on the rise, the need for a clear lockdown protocol and procedure is paramount. Get a detailed rundown of the considerations that campuses need to have in mind when formulating a lockdown procedure, including door locking protocols, alarm systems and establishing who on campus should have lockdown authority.

Cameras and surveillance

Beyond credential-related technology, video surveillance remains a key component of campus safety and security. Check in at Virginia Commonwealth University where a comprehensive and dynamic surveillance system isn’t just giving students and staff peace of mind, but helping to keep the campus safe.

Get an in-depth rundown on how to properly budget for campus wide video surveillance, as well as how to choose the hardware that will best suit your campus environment.

Securing security

It goes without saying that safeguarding students and the campus community is priority number one. But once a campus has implemented the proper security measures, it becomes vital to secure physical security hardware, as well. It’s an often overlooked measure that is broken down in detail in the podcast.

It’s crucial for campuses to research their chosen security products, and gain an understanding of a manufacturer’s resistance to cyber security attacks. What measures and tools are they using? What’s their philosophy towards cyber security?

This is just a small snippet of the information on offer in ASSA ABLOY’s five-part “Unlocked” podcast series. Check out all five parts of the series here.

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