A master key suite, installed by Delta Security, the east London-based CCTV and access control installation firm, is in use at properties managed by Brick By Brick, a London-based charity that provides permanent and temporary housing for people with homeless status.
The Evva EPS product provides the Brick By Brick Housing Managers with one key that can be used to open all flats within its Old Kent Road, Queen’s Road and Trafalgar Avenue properties. The six-pin security keys cannot be copied, each key can be identified and tracked with a unique coding, and only Delta can provide replacements.
The properties have been fitted with locks that replace dual locking. Isabelle Gravenstein, General Manager at Brick By Brick, says the new products are far better suited to their residents: “Residents now only require one key for their properties, and the doors have a ‘roll-on’ locking system, whereby they do not lock when the door closes, rather are required to be locked when leaving the property. Both enhancements have significantly reduced the number of occasions where residents lock themselves out.”
The system also offers benefits for housing managers. She says: “All housing managers now carry one key and can access any property should the need arise while making a site visit. Also, tracking other housing managers’ use of the keys is now far less complicated. It has significantly improved the efficiency with which we are able to perform our roles.”
This contract follows a previous installation of a cloud-based, fob-reader system used for external property entrances. Isabelle says her team are happy with the service they receive from Delta: “On one occasion, a Delta engineer onsite attending to the fob reader system, proved extremely helpful in fixing an issue with one of the resident’s locks. This wasn’t what he was on site to do, but it is this kind of helpful expertise that makes us keen to continue working with Delta.”
The keys were distributed to the residents before installation to make sure it went as smoothly as possible. Isabelle adds: “All locks were changed without any problems, and the work was carried out quickly and efficiently, minimising resident inconvenience.”
Dave Mundy, Operations Director at Delta, says it is easy to forget that keys are still an important aspect of access control. He says: “Especially for properties of this type, a simple and extremely secure key system is extremely beneficial for both residents and housing managers.”
