Digital access control has well-known benefits over traditional security, of course, but also costs attached to each stage of its lifetime. However, these costs are not fixed. Many factors – including building size, shape, type, location, national regulations and more – impact affordability and efficiency calculations.
Crucially, the type of access solution a business selects – wired or wireless – impacts total operating costs, including during installation, running and any potential expansion or reconfiguration stages.
Wireless installation
Wiring premises can be expensive. So, the potential cost savings from choosing wireless digital access begin at the very start. Installation stage is the largest contributor to potential cost savings when businesses go wireless. In calculations for one report, access experts at ASSA ABLOY examined projected costs for a fictional 100-door installation. Labour savings for those who chose wireless over wired locks were 82.5%.
Why? Firstly, because wireless installation is much faster. It is also less intrusive. Most wireless locking devices require little or no drilling of the door, whereas wired security needs cabling through and partly around a door – which means not just door damage, but the contracting of specialist electrical installers who may require multiple site visits. These costs add up.
Digital access technology
Torus aims for the highest level of LEED certification for all its new properties
In Poland, for example, developer Torus aims for the highest level of LEED certification for all their new properties around Gdansk. Where possible, they choose products with Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) and Green Circle documentation, favouring access solutions which reduce their carbon footprint. Wireless digital access technology is a natural choice.
“The lack of wiring significantly reduces materials use, reduces costs, and ensures quick installation,” confirms Torus’ Roman Sokolowski. There’s no cabling, which cuts power consumption. There’s less damage to the building fabric and fitters make fewer journeys to and from the site.
Adaptable locking solution
By choosing a wireless solution, organisations also upgrade building security with little disruption. A wireless system makes it easier to improve security at an existing building via a retrofit process which does not inconvenience staff or disturb work routines. This was one goal at Plexal, a £15 million flexible work environment for London enterprise and academia. Plexal chose battery powered wireless locks integrated with DoorFlow, NetNodes’ online platform for managing and auditing building access.
“Plexal required an adaptable locking solution for a range of different doors and, with no wiring required, it was quick and easy to install ASSA ABLOY Aperio® devices with minimal disruption,” confirms Stewart Johnson, Director at NetNodes.
Cost savings with improved energy efficiency
Choosing wireless over wired locking can play a vital role in reducing ongoing energy use
Choosing wireless over wired locking can play an important role in reducing ongoing energy use – and, therefore, expenditure. Wholesale electricity prices in Europe are approximately double what they were in 2019, according to the IEA’s “Electricity 2024” report. For a variable cost such as energy, where businesses have little control over unit prices, it is critical to control usage, especially if high and/or changeable energy prices become what analysts at ING called “the new normal for business”.
Thus, the fact that battery-powered locks consume much less energy than traditional wired solutions is increasingly relevant and important.
Additional saving on energy costs
Traditional wired door access devices often work via magnets connected permanently to mains electricity. These doors draw power around the clock to remain locked. Wireless locks work differently.
They only “wake up” when presented with a credential, to make the access decision. This translates to an additional saving on energy costs during operation: more than 70%, or thousands of euros over a typical access system’s lifetime.
Wireless digital access
Wireless locks only need a change of their standard battery, which may be rechargeable
Related energy and materials costs during in-use stage are also lower. Wireless locks only need a change of their standard battery – which may be rechargeable – typically once every two years. No specialist maintenance is required, saving on specialists and their travel to and from the site(s).
By choosing wireless digital access, businesses help protect themselves against these ongoing costs, notably energy price increases and volatility.
Cost-efficient flexible working, for staff and facilities managers
Perhaps harder to quantify, but equally easy to imagine, the financial benefits of choosing a wireless digital solution are felt in the increased convenience and efficiency of daily operations. In the co-working sector, for example, flexible access to offices is a priority. As “fixed” office space rented by corporations continues to fall, co-working spaces are expected to keep growing, with one estimate suggesting almost 18% CAGR to 2030.
To stand out from the competition, the founders of ULab in Alicante sought the latest innovations in access and design to create their 21st-century business centre. Part of the suite of digital access solutions from ASSA ABLOY, a SMARTair® system gave ULab real-time access management via battery-powered locks and Openowä, the Mobile Key solution for SMARTair, without any need to wire doors and other openings.
SMARTair TS1000 Web interface
With SMARTair and Openow, workspace residents can carry virtual keys on their smartphone
With SMARTair and Openow, workspace residents can carry virtual keys on their smartphone; ULab’s security team update their rights over the air. An office manager can perform any operation remotely from the SMARTair TS1000 Web interface. In case of an emergency, they could lock-down the site or open doors remotely, for example. It’s convenient, efficient and boosts ULab’s security, benefiting users and managers.
And because of SMARTair’s flexibility, they can comfortably welcome many more than their usual 100 daily users. “In addition to regular daily traffic, weekly traffic can almost multiply by 10 if an event is held,” says Enrique Burgos Pérez, Director at ULab. “We needed an access control system as flexible and convenient as SMARTair.”
ASSA ABLOY benchmarking report
Choosing wireless locks also adds flexibility – and can reduce costs – when an organisation reconfigures or expands their commercial space. High-quality wireless devices like SMARTair can typically be reinstalled at another opening without impacting reliability. They move to wherever is convenient.
If a business is rethinking workspace to encourage flexible or hybrid work patterns, for example, cost efficiencies could be significant. Typical savings on office relocation or expansion are estimated at around 30% with wireless over wired locking, according to the same ASSA ABLOY benchmarking report.
Cost efficiency and more control with ASSA ABLOY digital access
To refit and improve their student accommodation, managers at the University of St Andrews sought energy- and cost-efficient access control. They chose Aperio, another innovative digital access solution from ASSA ABLOY. Approximately 1,600 doors so far are equipped with battery-powered Aperio escutcheons – without cabling.
Aperio devices integrate fully with both the university’s existing central security system and their student ID card. University security managers continue to enjoy the efficiency benefits of monitoring and controlling access from a single point and in real-time, including for doors across multiple buildings.
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| Aperio, another innovative digital access solution from ASSA ABLOY. |
Benefits of cost-efficiency
In comparison to a wired solution, Aperio offers significant cost-efficiency benefits. Devices are wireless, so can be installed with little energy use and no need for wiring to the mains. They consume near-zero energy when idle and run on standard batteries, consuming little power during operation. Through the entire product life-cycle, Aperio combines reliability with cost effectiveness.
“Aperio gives us central management and control,” says Pauline Brown, Associate Chief Information Officer at the University of St Andrews, “and contributes to our award-winning track record in energy efficiency.”
