The Basics of Security Door Access Control Systems

If you have mission-critical equipment located at remote sites, protecting your network is probably very important for you. However, safeguarding your sites goes beyond protecting your network from hackers.

There’s also the physical site security to take into consideration. After all, if your equipment gets stolen that will affect your operations and bottom line as well. So, the first step is to guarantee that unauthorized people don’t gain access to your facility. And that starts with an access control solution.

Door access control is a matter of who, where, and when. An Access Control System determines who is allowed to enter or exit, where they are allowed to exit or enter, and when they are allowed to enter or exit. This means that it is the best type of access control you can get to guarantee the physical security of your remote sites and the security of your system equipment.

Let’s take a look at the access control basics.

Secure Access Door Control Systems

Electronic central door and access systems use computers to solve the limitations of mechanical locks and keys. A wide range of methods can be used to replace mechanical keys. You can use a swipe card, a password entered on a keypad, key fobs, or even bio-metric scanning to open your doors.

The main objective of a multi-door access control system is to give quick and convenient access to authorized people into your remote sites, while also preventing the access of unauthorized people.

An IP based RTU (remote telemetry unit) at a single door grants access based on the credential presented. The decision can be made locally by the door unit, remotely by a central management system or cooperatively by sharing login profiles and access requests. These RTUs are deployed in each of your sites where you need to restrict access.

The central management system is the brain of your access control system. This door access control software serves as the main database and file manager and it is responsible for recording your system’s activity, as well as for distributing information to and from RTUs.

When access is granted, the door is unlocked for a set time and the event is logged. When access is refused, the door remains locked and the attempted access is recorded. The system will also monitor the door and alarm if the door is forced open or held open too long after being unlocked.