Using Access Control Systems

There is much more to being a locksmith than just getting people back into their houses or cars. It used to be that you had to learn each new lock that came onto the market, have the right picks and know how to defeat each one. There weren’t that many new products coming online so it was fairly easy to keep up.

Nowadays we have to almost be computer engineers as well as locksmiths. There are as many electronic locks and access control systems around that we’re expected to know now too. For the most part these are mainly restricted to commercial and business properties, but higher value residential homes are also embracing the electronic age.

Larger businesses have contracts with the security company to maintain their systems, but for smaller businesses or when these security companies prove unreliable, we get called. Not only do these devices protect the property, they also track and trace staff and allow managers to check attendance, timekeeping and movements around the building. There are different types of access control system a locksmith needs to know about, here are the different types.

Magstripe readers are used extensively in commercial properties, otherwise known as swipe card readers. Employees are given a card which corresponds to their names and access level, which permits or denies access to certain parts of the building as the management dictate. They are very efficient and easy to use, which is why they are so popular.

Control panels are mainly used for building access only. They generally consist of a keypad, into which an employee can enter a combination code to access the door. Fairly typical of many external entrances to commercial property.

Biometrics are becoming increasingly popular in access control. Either using retinal or fingerprint scanning to access buildings, or departments as the business sees fit. These are often restricted to high value businesses, laboratories and those with security concerns. They are quite expensive to fit and maintain.

Proximity readers are also quite popular as access controls. These used RFID or other radio medium to broadcast an identity to a proximity control. This then verifies and allows or disallows access to parts of a building. They are useful because they need no interaction from the user in order to work. They can be carried on the person and are picked up as they approach the reader. These are popular, partly thanks to the Disability Discrimination Act and the fact that non-able bodied people had difficulty with many forms of access control.

A locksmith is expected to know most of these systems. It’s impossible to know all of them, which is why we all specialize. There is simple too much on the market right now to know it all, and know it well. Our toolbox now has as much electronic gadgetry in it as traditional locksmithing equipment and we are having to learn computers as well as metalwork. It’s a brave new world in locksmithing.