Twenty-First Century Security
As published in Worship Facilities, Jun/Jul 2005
Gone are the days when Dave Eichmann, pastor of operations and serving ministries for Chicago-based Harvest Bible Chapel, jangled down the corridor with a cumbersome collection of keys stuffed in his pocket. Although Harvest Bible Chapel has three Illinois locations in Rolling Meadows, Elgin, and Niles, a fingerprint identification system allows him to enter the office areas of his worship facilities, as well as other areas that he needs to access. Eichmann reports that his fellow pastors and elders at Harvest Bible Chapel enjoy the same freedom and ease of movement now that his facility has gone largely key-less.
According to security experts and facility personnel who've experienced what new security technologies can offer, those who run worship facilities have a lot to gain by making facilities safer, and yet simpler, for the right people to access.
Customized Access
Pete Spicher, facility manager with Christian Life Assembly in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, says his church's biggest challenge with using regular, hard keys was simply keeping the building secure. "Someone unlocks the door but neglects to lock it behind them," Spicher says. "By eliminating the hard keys and using card keys we have eliminated that problem," he says.
Spicher says Christian Life Assembly opted for a card key system that allows staff to maintain full control of building access. "Unlike regular keys, the card key system can be programmed to give different access levels to specific users," he says.
When someone leaves the employ of Christian Life Assembly, the card key can also be disabled. In addition, Spicher says his facility tries to recall all disabled cards so they can be reprogrammed and reused.
Spicher reports that approximately 180 Christian Life Assembly staff workers and volunteers are card key holders. Of that number, roughly 40 are staff members. The remaining cardholders are comprised of volunteers, teachers, leaders, and some are vendors.
Christian Life Assembly's card key system allows facility staff to give access to a specific person for a specific door or series of doors for a specific time period. According to Spicher, this works well for both seasonal events at the church and for repeat vendor services. "I have a vendor who buffs our floors on Fridays," Spicher reports. "He has a card that will only give him access on Friday from 7:00 p.m. until 10:00 p.m."
Security Options
According to Russell Vicente, COO of Tustin, California-based Securitybase.com, a security supplier that also offers electric-lock safes for churches, bio-metric or fingerprint access control is still relatively new on the market, and may be more expensive.
"For churches with smaller access control needs, I would definitely recommend stand-alone keypad products. They are generally less expensive and easier to work with. If you have less than ten doors or fifty users, I would recommend that solution," Vicente says.
When asked about security options for churches that keep children in nursery and Sunday school areas, Vicente concurs that keypads are his personal favorite, but says that customer preference is always key. He adds, "A lot of customers like using card keys because they can double as identification cards. That's a huge plus. It's tough to say what's best across the board. There are just so many options."
Curt Hilliard, vice president of commercial sales for North America for ADT Security Services of Boca Raton, Florida, echoes Vicente's sentiment that facilities' should research all the many options available to find a fit that suits their particular needs. "ADT's philosophy is that each facility is unique," Hilliard says.
Whatever method is chosen for electronic access control, Hilliard says one of the biggest benefits is that facility staff will be able to track who was last in or out of a facility, which is invaluable information. Eichmann concurs that his facility's access control system provides valuable tracking information. "It keeps a record for us, but there is not a lot of management to it," he says. "We can download who accessed the facility and at what time."
Spicher also says he manages his facility's access control system with relative ease. "I also have full control of this system from my home," he says, "which means I can lock or unlock doors from home when necessary."
Emergency Evacuation Plans
In addition to safe and reliable access control, all facilities need solid plans for emergencies. According to Hilliard, emergency evacuation plans become especially important in facilities that have more than one floor and that house daycare or preschool facilities. "In situations like these, you need a way to get the word out fast if there's an emergency in the building and it needs to be evacuated," Hilliard says.
Simple intercom systems that can broadcast a message to all the rooms in a facility often work well, Hilliard says. And there are many cost-effective systems that can be taken right out of a box and installed. Another option is full-voice evacuation systems complete with horn strobes and flashing lights.
In situations of emergency evacuation or power failures, Spicher says his facility has a plan in place for the shut down of its electronic access control system. "If the power goes out, all the doors will lock. This does not restrict egress, but would affect access," he says. As a back up, Spicher adds, pastors and maintenance staff have regular keys so doors could be unlocked manually if necessary.
Costs
According to facility personnel and industry experts, the costs associated with today's security options for worship facilities needn't stand in the way. Eichmann says that with the size of his facility and its multiple locations, electronic access control was not cost prohibitive. "When you have a big building with locks all over the place, that's expensive, too. The initial cost was higher, but it's more cost-effective in the long run and in terms of maintenance," he says.
From a security company standpoint, Vicente says that most centrally-managed access control systems will range between $800.00 and $1,200.00 per door, including installation.
Spicher advises starting small and adding on later if the budget doesn't allow for a full-fledged change-over to updated security measures all at once. "Once the system is up and running, the only thing that you need to do is create any new card keys that have been requested and update your door schedules as needed for particular events," Spicher says. "The time involved is all relative to the size and activity of the facility."
And Spicher adds, "Facility directors need to ask themselves, 'What is the security of my facility worth?'"
Quick-Links
ADT Security Services
PRODUCT: access control & assorted security products
QUICK-LINK: (800) 500-4943
URL: www.adt.com
Securitybase.com
PRODUCT: access control & assorted security products
QUICK-LINK: (800) 616-0213
URL: www.securitybase.com
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