Why an elevator card access system may be right for your building

If you have mixed-use or multi-tenant facility with one or more elevators, you may be wondering if adding an elevator card access system is a good idea. Elevators are a prime area of vulnerability in office and residential buildings that can leave your tenants and property at risk of vandalism, theft, or even bodily harm. When you have an elevator card access system in place, the elevators will only open for an authorized person presenting his or her card so access to the floors in your building can be tightly controlled.  If you are not sure if this security solution is the best choice for your building, consider these five reasons to use an elevator card access system:

You want to enhance security in your building.

An elevator card access system will prevent uninvited visitors from accessing the various floors of your building, protecting your tenants and premises from vandalism, theft, and harassment. Elevator access control can be used as a stand-alone system or incorporated into comprehensive automated security systems in buildings that include CCTV surveillance, digital recording solutions, and room by room access control to provide the highest level of protection from loss or damage.

You want to keep your tenants and premises safe.

Unsecured elevators can pose a safety risk to tenants in residential and commercial buildings. In commercial buildings, elevator access control systems can prevent rival firms from entering restricted floors, adding an extra level of protection for proprietary knowledge and IT data storage. In residential buildings such as university dormitories, condominiums, and high-rise apartment buildings, elevator card access systems can keep non-residents from entering elevators and floors where children or other vulnerable residents may be placed at risk. This can be a prime selling point for families looking for a secure dwelling.

Your tenants desire improved accountability in office settings.

In office buildings that house multiple departments or sections, elevator access control systems allow managers to control access to different floors according to a set time schedule. Access can be permitted during standard business hours, but restricted after hours and on weekends for most employees. Access is set for each individual card holder, so senior executives can have free access to all floors at all times, while maintenance staff can be permitted floor access with a set time limit.

You want to deter crime.

Each elevator access card keeps a log of the holder’s movements as they travel between floors. The cards can maintain information for thousands of events, which can be an important deterrence to prevent theft, vandalism, or other crime from occurring in residential settings as well as multi-tenant office buildings.

You are looking for a way to reduce operating costs.

Maintaining a physical guard to prevent unwanted visitors from accessing your upper floors can be prohibitively expensive, particularly in buildings with multiple elevator locations. An elevator card access system provides your building system manager with an automated way to control admission to the various floors of your building, without the need to have a physical guard on the premises.