| UCI needed a networked access control ssystem to control and manage student access within 35 existing buildings |
Diversity, thy name is Arroyo Vista.
That's because Arroyo Vista, one of five housing complexes located at the University of California at Irvine (UCI), offers a wide array of alternatives to traditional residential hall living, with 42 different Academic Theme, International, Transfer, and Greek Houses for undergraduate students. The two- and three-story buildings, constructed during the 1970’s and 1980’s, provide residents with an opportunity to experience cooperative living among students from diverse backgrounds with widely divergent interests.
Still, regardless of the diversity of the students, at least two things unite them all: a common interest in promoting a sense of community and scholarship; and a need for the highest level of security possible in their living situation. The former is more than adequately taken care of by the students themselves. The second, however, falls squarely on the figurative shoulders of the university.
To meet this demanding security requirement, UCI needed a networked access control system that would control and manage student access within 35 existing buildings, using an approach that was not going to become cost-prohibitive due to construction expense. Typical access solutions require wiring and conduit systems to each door and throughout the building; such an approach would require substantial financial outlay, as well as interruption to student living areas and safety.
UCI decided it was necessary to implement a uniquely qualified product that would fit the existing buildings while reducing construction time and delivery expense. To execute this plan, UCI would have to rely on a proven manufacturer of commercial locking products as well as the proven expertise of a security integration contractor that had provided similar projects on campus in the past.
SARGENT Manufacturing Company certainly fit that description. SARGENT, an ASSA ABLOY Group brand, was contacted to review UCI’s current and future access control requirements and suggest solutions for the campus housing environment.
The choice of SARGENT was not a difficult one. SARGENT had an established relationship providing various locking and door solutions for many departments within the UCI campus. In fact, SARGENT became a clear choice with its proven ability to create leading-edge products (like the Profile Series v.S2), while having established relationships with multiple proven security integrators. This turnkey approach allows proper implementation, procurement, and results for the very demanding environment required by UCI.
Other types of products had already been installed and tried by UCI, but they failed to perform in both product design and up to customer expectations. What's more, upon review and consultation, it was obvious that a typical hard-wired access control solution would not fit the building structure or the current student dynamics. Consequently, SARGENT was chosen by UCI after full review and consideration since the company offered a true WiFi wireless lock with the quality and durability needed to address customer requirements and code compliancy issues.
A Simple Choice
UCI selected SARGENT Profile Series v.S2 locking hardware because it provided the perfect combination of security and flexibility to work for almost any door hardware requirement -- both existing and future -- as well as simplicity of deployment. The fully integrated Profile Series v.S2 lockset consolidates all standard access control components for ease of installation and better aesthetics. Intelligence is built into the lock for local decision making to ensure operation regardless of network status. With its common wireless capabilities (802 b/g/n), it can leverage the existing campus IT infrastructure to reach doors where a typical wired solution may be too expensive or difficult to install.
"A critical element was the fact that the Profile Series v.S2 allowed for quick and easy installation using the existing campus WiFi network" |
Kratos/HBE was chosen as contractor on the project due to both its delivery experience on campus as well as a strong background providing solutions from SARGENT and other ASSA ABLOY Group brands. Jeff Moormann, a Commercial Manager responsible for Kratos/HBE’s security integration sales and delivery within Orange County, CA (including the City of Irvine), provided the final design and proposal that led to the award of the project by the university’s facilities and procurement department. He then provided oversight to the delivery and operational teams involved in completing the project.
The initial phase of the project was to install new entry doors with SARGENT Profile Series v.S2 locks at each resident hall main entrance and side entrance for 35 buildings. They selected entry doors from Curries, another ASSA ABLOY Group brand, to ensure that each entry provided the best security for the students while also allowing the university to replace old problematic doors and associated hardware.
Each new doorway would also be equipped with a Profile Series v.S2 lock. This provided the proper entry and exit hardware in one complete solution while also matching the university’s current lock and key requirements. The university could continue to utilize the existing keysets for the new locks.
A critical element was the fact that the Profile Series v.S2 allowed for quick and easy installation using the existing campus WiFi network. Each building was equipped by Kratos/HBE to include a new Cisco Wireless Access Point (WAP) located within a secured IT closet, providing connection from the locks to the network.
Because UCI didn’t want to provide a separate server and special network for the project, ASSA ABLOY and Kratos/HBE utilized the services of REACH Systems, Inc., an ASSA ABLOY Access Control Partner that provided the management software for the SARGENT v.S2 lock.
Reach Systems provided its ReachNet product, the company's remotely managed Access Management Control system. This approach provided full and complete access to the entire system without the need for typical onsite computer hardware and special licenses. The ReachNet database and web applications that implement the browser interface reside in a secure data center and communicate with the SARGENT locks over the Internet. Ultimately, the ReachNet system, controlling the v.S2 locks through a safe, encrypted connection, provided UCI with a powerful and comprehensive security scheme for the Arroyo Vista complex -- one that was also simple to install and simple to manage.
"The installation was extremely smooth," said Robert Hainer, Vice President of Engineering for Reach Systems. "There were only minor issues, nothing we couldn't resolve remotely using tools built into the ReachNet web application. The same type of issues that, after training, administrators will deal with themselves via their web browsers."
Another critical factor is that the ReachNet system allows new key cards to be issued extremely quickly, eliminating the need to re-key locks when students move. This is especially important in a high-turnover environment like a college dormitory, where students may change rooms every few months and sometimes even within a semester.
The combination of Reach Systems’ Reach Net Online Management Platform with the SARGENT Profile Series v.S2 lock allowed the university to integrate, monitor, and manage each access control point via the existing university’s existing IT infrastructure while providing a significant cost reduction in both hardware and installation time. In fact, the actual savings was an astounding 52% per door, resulting in a total job savings of more than $200,000 for this 35-building access control project over a “traditional” configuration (which would include cost of door hardware, separate electrical conduits/raceways for both power and door communications, wall-mounted card readers, cable management systems as well as significant installation labor for all devices and proper drilling, penetrations, patch, paint, and clean-up). A traditional installation would also have caused greater interruption for students and staff, since the work areas were located in occupied environments.
Five-Phase Construction
The construction was divided into five phases: engineering and design completion; product manufacturing and finishing; door and hardware construction; IT integration; and customer acceptance testing.
The first phase was performed directly by Kratos/HBE with the assistance of ASSA ABLOY Group brands Curries, SARGENT, and McKinney, along with Kratos/HBE’s engineering department. This primary phase was performed and completed within 15 days.
After acceptance of the final design, Kratos/HBE coordinated product ordering and manufacturing with ASSA ABLOY for all door hardware and all IT components as provided by Cisco. This second phase was completed within 60 days and included all components as well as special paint and finish for each door.
The third phase included installation of all doors, frame components, and the SARGENT Profile Series v.S2 locks. Kratos/HBE completed construction within 60 days for all 35 buildings.
After inspection and acceptance by UCI of primary construction, the fourth phase provided IT integration of the locks and performed installation of the Cisco wireless access points within each building. A joint team approach was utilised by Kratos/HBE and the UCI IT staffs to ensure that each specific lock provided adequate performance over the existing IT infrastructure, at which point all of the locks were initialised and configured via a web browser through the ReachNet management application. This fourth phase was completed by over 45 days.
The fifth phase was final acceptance testing which was completed within 10 days and integrated the efforts of Kratos/HBE, UCI, and Reach Systems Inc.’s staff and joint resources.
The design phase was simplified due to ASSA ABLOY’s product design that incorporated proven and commercially-rated locking hardware (ANSI/BHMA Grade 1) and common wireless protocols (IEEE 802.11b/g/n) for proper integration into both UCI building and automation systems. The installation phases were completed as scheduled even with students and staff present during the actual installation.
Currently the system is providing proper access control to each of the 35 buildings as designed and was fully implemented for all security levels and personnel requirements during the fall of 2011 when the students returned to school. The next phase will involve doubling the size of the current system within Arroyo Vista and then expanding it to other housing properties on campus in an effort to provide a single completely integrated system. Since the system offers a unique combination of cost savings on construction while providing integration into the current campus IT infrastructure, UCI’s plan is to work to incorporate multiple buildings over time to fully increase security and safety while saving precious capital and delivery resources.
That's a common goal everyone can agree on.