Renowned French hospital benefits from cost savings and easy staff management with ASSA ABLOY’s SMARTair wireless access control solution

When Groupe Hospitalier Mutualiste Portes du Sud looked to modernise door security, their focus was clear - A battery-powered rather than wired solution was required to meet the access control challenges of a hospital environment.

Like any healthcare setting, Portes du Sud needed to ensure their premises are an open, welcoming space for the public, while simultaneously keeping medicines, staff, equipment and sensitive data secure. Every user group — from doctors, nurses, patients and their visitors, to a host of temporary and contract workers — needs access rights tailored to their precise demands and schedule.

Wire-free electronic solution

A wire-free electronic solution offers a number of concrete advantages in future-proofing hospital access control and meeting these challenges. It provides managers with the flexibility to tailor rights to a whole team or just one person — and change or cancel those access permissions anytime. They can audit access for faster incident investigation.

While helping phase out expensive metal keys, wireless devices also offer seamless compatibility with existing mortise locks and easy, cost-effective installation without cables. And, because they are powered by standard batteries, any future outages do not impact hospital security.

A flexible system, recommended by security experts

One SMARTair escutcheon on its own replaces a wired reader, an electrical connection and a magnetic lock"

Portes du Sud consulted three specialist providers and each one recommended the same system: SMARTair from ASSA ABLOY.

Hospital doors are now locked securely with battery-powered, wireless escutcheons. “One SMARTair escutcheon on its own replaces a wired reader, an electrical connection and a magnetic lock. And, it is just as safe,” said Frédéric Steenhoute at Groupe Hospitalier Mutualiste Portes du Sud.

SMARTair’s TS1000 software

All credentials, door devices and users are managed easily from SMARTair’s TS1000 software. When someone loses their badge, managers cancel it with a couple of clicks, which saves the money and time that would be wasted changing locks in a mechanical system. If property goes missing, it’s easy to trace who went where and when, which keeps equipment and personal belongings safer.

And, with no mechanical keys to order — badges are fast and cost-efficient to print from their own printer — the hospital saves money, too.

Wireless access control offers autonomy

As well as protecting premises with a future-proofed solution, managers value the autonomy that wireless access control gives them. On any date, at any time of day or night, the ease of use and maintenance of a wire-free system makes life simpler for hospital technicians.

Devices are easy to maintain

SMARTair’s Openow mobile app enables management and door unlocking by smartphone

Hospital managers enjoy everyday benefits in the management of staff and temporary contractors. “The fact we can assign rights to a whole team, and also specific rights to two or three people at the same time, is very useful,” adds Steenhoute.

SMARTair also several options for extending the reach or functionality of access control in the future. The hospital can add escutcheons with anti-bacterial coating, for example. Another potential future option, SMARTair’s Openow mobile app enables management and door unlocking by smartphone.

SMARTair devices easy to move anytime

SMARTair devices can be moved anytime, in order to adjust or reconfigure door coverage. Web management can handle access for new buildings or any Group expansion.

Choosing the SMARTair wireless solution enables hospital managers to do all this — as well as install and maintain the system — in-house, which saves even more time and money.

“Wireless solutions allow us to be autonomous,” said Frédéric Steenhoute, adding “It is very easy to remove an escutcheon from one door and to install it on another door; all our technicians can do it.”