Tony Smith

There is a broad appeal to the idea of using a smartphone or wearable device as a credential for physical access control systems. Smartphones already perform a range of tasks that extend beyond making a phone call. Shouldn’t opening the door at a workplace be among them? It’s a simple idea, but there are obstacles for the industry to get there from here. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What are the challenges and benefits of mobile access control solutions? 

In the past few weeks, the light at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel has brightened, providing new levels of hope that the worst of the pandemic is behind us. Dare we now consider what life will be like after the pandemic is over? Considering the possible impact on our industry, we asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: Which security technologies will be most useful in a post-pandemic world?

Security systems are vital to any company. Nowadays, however, they can also provide additional benefits to any enterprise beyond protecting people, assets and facilities. Specifically, systems that were previously focused on security can now be leveraged in new ways to benefit the broader enterprise. When this happens, the security department transitions from a ‘cost centre’ to a repository of data that can benefit the whole company, and even contribute to the bottom line. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: How can ‘security’ systems benefit the larger mission of an enterprise?

As an industry, we often speak in buzzwords. In addition to being catchy and easy to remember, these new and trendy industry terms can also reflect the state of the security market’s technology. In short, the latest buzzwords provide a kind of shorthand description of where the industry is - and where it’s going. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What new buzzword(s) rose to prominence in the security industry in 2020? (And how do they reflect industry trends?)

Artificial intelligence is more than just the latest buzzword in the security marketplace. In some cases, smarter computer technologies like AI and machine learning (ML) are helping to transform how security operates. AI is also expanding the industry’s use cases, sometimes even beyond the historic province of the security realm. It turns out that AI is also a timely tool in the middle of a global pandemic. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: How is artificial intelligence (AI) changing the security market?

A shift toward touchless devices during the coronavirus pandemic has been a boon to the biometrics sector. Another factor in the recent increase in use of biometrics is lower prices, which are a symptom of a maturing market and of new technology capabilities. Increasingly, integration of biometrics with access control and other security systems is expanding use cases and sales numbers. For additional insights, we asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What are the new trends and opportunities with biometrics (facial, fingerprint, iris and/or voice)?

Retrofit projects provide new levels of physical security modernisation to existing facilities. However, retrofits come with their own set of challenges that can frustrate system designers and defy the efforts of equipment manufacturers. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What are the biggest challenges of retrofit projects, and how can they be overcome?

When a fire or other emergency occurs in a building or facility, first responders depend on every available resource to ensure a safe and orderly evacuation and response. One element in any response plan is the facility’s physical security systems, including access control, video surveillance and intrusion detection. How can these systems contribute to an orderly response to a chaotic situation?  We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What is the role of security systems in the event of a fire or other emergency evacuation?

Tools such as standard operating procedures (SOPs) and checklists ensure that every factor is considered when installing a physical security system – or do they? Security system installations are detailed projects, and any overlooked detail is a missed opportunity to make the system better. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What is the most overlooked factor when installing physical security systems?

Securing large campus environments can be particularly demanding and requires a range of technology solutions. In effect, a campus may represent a dozen or more individual facilities to be secured, in addition to protecting the overall environment. Seeking more insight into the number and variety of needs of securing a campus, we asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What are the security challenges of protecting large campus environments?

Entrance control and access control - of the physical kind - are common terms in the security industry which are often used interchangeably, but should they be? Having worked both sides of the fence, with previous roles at TDSi and HID and now the Major Accounts and Marketing Manager at Integrated Design Limited, Tony Smith highlights the subtle but important differences between these two terms and the systems they refer to, outlining how they should work together to achieve optimal security. Access control is a system which provides discriminating authentication Access control provides a discriminating authentication process and comprises the software or hardware that defines the criteria for acceptance or denial Used to describe a system which performs identification of users and authentication of their credentials (deciding whether or not the bearer of those credentials is permitted admission) access control is an incredibly broad term. Access control provides a discriminating authentication process and comprises the software or hardware that defines the criteria for acceptance or denial of an individual to a restricted area. Entrance control – such as security turnstiles - takes the output of that validation and has the capability to see whether that criteria is being adhered to, either granting or denying access as appropriate. Entrance control is the hardware responsible for keeping people honest If access control verifies authorised personnel using their credentials – their face, fingerprints, PIN number, fob, key card etc – and decides whether or not they are permitted access, entrance control is the hardware which enforces that decision by making users present their credentials in the correct way, either opening to allow pedestrian access or remaining closed to bar entry and potentially raising an alarm. For example, a card reader acts as an access control device, recognising the card holder as having the correct permissions and saying ‘yes, this person can pass’. But, it’s the entrance control system – a turnstile, for example – which actually physically allows or denies access. Physical access and video surveillance Some entrance control systems don’t feature a physical barrier, however. Fastlane Optical turnstiles will not physically stop an unauthorised person from passing through, and instead alarm when someone fails to present valid credentials, alerting security staff that a breach has occurred. These kinds of turnstiles are suited to environments which just need to delineate between the public and secure side of an entrance, with less need to physically prevent unauthorised users from entering. State of the art access control integrations have been installed for award-winning complex, The Bower It’s also possible to capture video footage of any incidents, allowing security personnel to identify users failing to abide by the access control system’s rules, using It’s also possible to capture video footage of incidents, allowing security personnel to identify users failing to abide by access control system rules the footage to decide on the level of response required. The breach could have been the result of a member of staff being in a hurry and failing to show their card before passing through, in which case they can be reminded about the security protocol. Or, it could be an unidentified person who needs to be escorted from the premises. Entrance control and access control working together For optimum security, access control and entrance control should work together, with the entrance control system enhancing the use of the access control system, making it more efficient and better value for money. The two can’t effectively operate without each other. Security turnstiles, for example, require something to tell them that someone is about to enter – the access control system does this – and, the access control system needs a method of stopping people when they don’t badge in correctly. The two systems are complementary.

There is a broad appeal to the idea of using a smartphone or wearable device as a credential for physical access control systems. Smartphones already perform a range of tasks that extend beyond making a phone call. Shouldn’t opening the door at a workplace be among them? It’s a simple idea, but there are obstacles for the industry to get there from here. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What are the challenges and benefits of mobile access control solutions? 

In the past few weeks, the light at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel has brightened, providing new levels of hope that the worst of the pandemic is behind us. Dare we now consider what life will be like after the pandemic is over? Considering the possible impact on our industry, we asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: Which security technologies will be most useful in a post-pandemic world?

Security systems are vital to any company. Nowadays, however, they can also provide additional benefits to any enterprise beyond protecting people, assets and facilities. Specifically, systems that were previously focused on security can now be leveraged in new ways to benefit the broader enterprise. When this happens, the security department transitions from a ‘cost centre’ to a repository of data that can benefit the whole company, and even contribute to the bottom line. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: How can ‘security’ systems benefit the larger mission of an enterprise?

As an industry, we often speak in buzzwords. In addition to being catchy and easy to remember, these new and trendy industry terms can also reflect the state of the security market’s technology. In short, the latest buzzwords provide a kind of shorthand description of where the industry is - and where it’s going. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What new buzzword(s) rose to prominence in the security industry in 2020? (And how do they reflect industry trends?)

Artificial intelligence is more than just the latest buzzword in the security marketplace. In some cases, smarter computer technologies like AI and machine learning (ML) are helping to transform how security operates. AI is also expanding the industry’s use cases, sometimes even beyond the historic province of the security realm. It turns out that AI is also a timely tool in the middle of a global pandemic. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: How is artificial intelligence (AI) changing the security market?

Integrated Design Limited (IDL) has developed a new cost-effective and rapidly deployable entrance control solution that can help business owners adhere to COVID-19 social distancing guidelines and help keep staff and customers safe. Based on existing, proven technology, the Integrated Design Limited’s customised Door Detective Compact entrance control solution has been adapted to enable robust and straightforward population monitoring and control at single entrance doorways. Door Detective Compact solution The Door Detective Compact solution is ideal for a range of workplaces, such as offices, especially for shared kitchen facilities or toilets, small retail stores, factories, leisure facilities, and colleges, etc. or any other work environment where the maximum capacity needs to be controlled to prevent overcrowding. Installed on either side of a door frame or placed on both sides of an entrance on stands, Door Detective Compact units monitor the doorway using infrared optical technology and detect pedestrian movement in either direction. Real-time population monitoring and detection Using the newly developed control box, a maximum population threshold limit is set Using the newly developed control box, a maximum population threshold limit is set. As people walk in and out of the monitored area, the real-time population is detected and displayed on the control box, along with the maximum number of people permitted in the space at any one time, with lights and alarms used to provide alerts when safe numbers are exceeded. If the population is at a safe number, the units display green lights indicating that further people can enter. Should the population count reach the set threshold limit, the Door Detective Compact units turn red, providing a warning that no further people should enter. If the maximum limit is exceeded, the units flash red and an audible alarm sounds to indicate that numbers need to be reduced to a safe level. As people leave the monitored area, the population count decreases and the units return to green, to signal that it is safe for further people to enter. Small footprint, aesthetic design The rectangular stainless steel enclosures of the Door Detective Compact have a small footprint and offer an aesthetically pleasing two-tone design to complement multiple types of décor, while still maintaining its market-renowned performance. Tony Smith, Major Accounts and Marketing Manager at Integrated Design Limited (IDL), stated “Businesses which require their staff to be physically present, whether that be in an office, a factory, a retail store, or other, have been looking for ways to control the number of people it is safe to have in their premises, or particular areas within their premises, at any one time.” Tony adds, “We have developed a rapidly deployable and cost-effective solution which is, in essence, a ‘plug-and-play’ population counter which doesn’t require any complex installation and can be set up in around 15 minutes, to help business owners keep their staff and customers safe by preventing overcrowding.”

A shift toward touchless devices during the coronavirus pandemic has been a boon to the biometrics sector. Another factor in the recent increase in use of biometrics is lower prices, which are a symptom of a maturing market and of new technology capabilities. Increasingly, integration of biometrics with access control and other security systems is expanding use cases and sales numbers. For additional insights, we asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What are the new trends and opportunities with biometrics (facial, fingerprint, iris and/or voice)?

Retrofit projects provide new levels of physical security modernisation to existing facilities. However, retrofits come with their own set of challenges that can frustrate system designers and defy the efforts of equipment manufacturers. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What are the biggest challenges of retrofit projects, and how can they be overcome?

When a fire or other emergency occurs in a building or facility, first responders depend on every available resource to ensure a safe and orderly evacuation and response. One element in any response plan is the facility’s physical security systems, including access control, video surveillance and intrusion detection. How can these systems contribute to an orderly response to a chaotic situation?  We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What is the role of security systems in the event of a fire or other emergency evacuation?

Tools such as standard operating procedures (SOPs) and checklists ensure that every factor is considered when installing a physical security system – or do they? Security system installations are detailed projects, and any overlooked detail is a missed opportunity to make the system better. We asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What is the most overlooked factor when installing physical security systems?

Securing large campus environments can be particularly demanding and requires a range of technology solutions. In effect, a campus may represent a dozen or more individual facilities to be secured, in addition to protecting the overall environment. Seeking more insight into the number and variety of needs of securing a campus, we asked this week’s Expert Panel Roundtable: What are the security challenges of protecting large campus environments?

Most people working in the security industry are familiar with the term ‘tailgating’, but what about ‘sidegating’? For Integrated Design Limited (IDL), manufacturers of Fastlane turnstiles, this new term refers to the act of two people attempting unauthorised side-by-side dual entry through an entrance control system, and it has only recently become relevant due to the advent of wider turnstile lanes.  Install turnstile lanes IDL developed extensions to their range of Fastlane Speedgates In response to changing regulations and to meet customer demands for wider lanes for both pedestrian and wheelchair users’ comfort, IDL developed extensions to their range of Fastlane Speedgates, launching the Glassgate 155 at the end of 2017 and, most recently, the Glassgate 400 Plus. Both models enable Fastlane customers to install turnstile lanes of up to 1200mm wide, significantly wider than the standard 660mm and 914mm DDA and ADA compliant lanes that have previously been supplied. But, with the development of wider lanes came the potential for ‘sidegating’. Driven by this emerging security risk, IDL developed new optical technology which will be demonstrated in the Fastlane Glassgate 400 Plus model at IFSEC 2019, and they invite you to put this latest innovation to the test on their stand - IF330. Comfortably fit wheelchairs “Developing Speedgates that are wide enough to comfortably fit wheelchairs, including sports wheelchairs - which are wider than standard wheelchairs - means that the lanes are also wide enough to easily fit two pedestrians through, side-by-side,” comments Tony Smith, Major Accounts and Marketing Manager at Integrated Design Limited. Our in-house engineers have developed technology, which will be on display at IFSEC" “Most turnstiles are unable to detect this kind of behaviour, so for individuals wanting to attempt unauthorised access – whether they have harmful intentions or not - this presents an opportunity. Our in-house engineers have developed technology, which will be on display at IFSEC, that is capable of preventing this from happening.” The new technology being showcased at IFSEC is part of IDL’s policy of continuous improvement to its products and services, including wider redevelopment of IDL’s optical system which is purpose designed and built by IDL’s in-house engineers for exclusive use in Fastlane turnstiles.  Authorise entry “Behind the beautiful exterior of a Fastlane turnstile, the intelligent infrared matrix that drives the decision to authorise entry makes thousands of calculations per second based on speed of passage, luggage being carried or pulled, distance to the authorised pedestrian and direction of movement,” continues Tony. “We’re constantly reviewing the way the intelligence interprets what it sees in a lane to further enhance our already market-leading optical system, with further developments due to be announced soon.”   “In the past, when we have taken new products to shows, we have had a few visitors thinking that they can beat our systems and we always welcome the challenge,” concludes Tony. If you would like to see a live demonstration of the Fastlane Glassgate 400 Plus and test its capabilities, it will be on show at IFSEC, 18-20 June 2019 at ExCeL, London, on stand IF330.