The White Chapel Building was acquired by Derwent London, a FTSE 250 Index British-based property developer, in December 2015. The building, opposite Aldgate East underground station in the City of London, previously housed RBS.
A complete refurbishment of the building meant that the developer required a new security system. Required was an IP-based access control system, that would give tenant access to assigned floor/s and approved areas only, manage visitors, and restrict unapproved visitors to a lobby area. Also to be installed were 35 CCTV cameras with remote monitorin; and panic button and lock-down facilities in case of emergency.
The NSI-approved installation company Antron Security project managed the design and fitting of the access control and security system for the White Chapel Building, and acted as the ‘go to’ contact for the client, Derwent London. Inner Range provided the core access control product Integriti, that integrates with third party products to become a PSIM (physical security information management) system, managing not only security and building automation but also people and business continuity processes.
Integriti allows around 2,000 people access to their approved parts of the building, besides managing visitors and allowing security managers to monitor events remotely. Key integrations with Integriti for the White Chapel include 35 CCTV cameras to allow security managers to view live and recorded events across the site. This includes remote monitoring, if security managers are off site.
Access is via four Integrated Design Limited (IDL) Fastlane lobby turnstiles to ensure only those permitted can access areas beyond the reception and lobby. Tenants and visitors can only access approved floors using the security credentials on their access card or smartphone.
Tenants and staff were set up to use their smartphones to open doors and other smart devices with the HID Mobile Access ‘Twist and Go’ mobile app. The Integriti product can read and check security credentials from users’ mobile phones to see whether they are allowed access. A BluePoint visitor pass system was installed and integrated with Integriti as a way of managing visitors. It allows ‘hosts’, such as tenants, to issue temporary passes for their visitors without needing to pass every request through a central point. The passes can be issued on paper or via email; or as Apple Wallet or Google Pass credentials. These appear on the visitor’s smartphone with a QR code without the visitor having to search their phone for them. Location and time-based information included in the pass ensure it appears when and where it is needed. The BluePoint passes can be read by Integriti at entrance turnstiles and lifts to ensure visitors can access areas agreed by the ‘host’.
Other Integriti features in use include smartcard entry integrated for access via doors, lifts and entrance turnstiles. Cards are issued to 500 users initially. Gigabytes of on-board memory at controller hardware level are for ensuring the system keeps working even if offline. UniBus, an in-cabinet bus allows the connection of expansion modules, communications modules, and door and reader modules to extend the range and scope of the Integriti system.
