Card, mobile credential, payment and security
Throughout their history, dedicated servers have been a fact of life for card programs both large and small. Over time, however, the evolution of campus card systems and advancements in computing technology have given rise to newer alternatives to the traditional, dedicated server.
Card offices now have a wealth of options to choose from that can enable them to either leverage in-house servers or eliminate hardware altogether. What, then, should an institution consider when weighing its options?
Traditionally, the issue posed by in-house servers has been the cost of maintenance and human resources to keep them running. Additionally, in-house servers require physical space that must be secured and protected against the outside world and the natural disasters it can bring.
Using this logic, then, minimizing the number of servers needed to manage a system would make sense for any institution. But minimizing and eliminating are two very different things.
One alternative to the traditional server setup is Software as a Service. This architecture enables a school to cut back on–or eliminate altogether–server hardware on campus by either moving the card system to the cloud, or hosting it in an off-site server via a third-party provider.
Software as a Service essentially gives institutions the opportunity to outsource its card system. It can be an ideal fit when in-house expertise is limited or resources are constrained.
But as outsourcing has gained momentum, another shift has taken place. Computing power has increased and the price of physical servers has fallen, making the cost argument against campus-hosted servers a debatable topic.
“The major advantage of on-site servers is total control over your system and the data stored within,” says Brian Adoff, executive vice president at NuVision Networks. “Cloud computing is light years ahead of where it was a handful of years ago, both in terms of speed and reliability, but it still can’t compete with an on-site system,” he suggests.
Comparisons aside, Adoff points out that in-house servers remain a core element of higher education. “I’m not aware of a campus without an IT department that doesn’t already support on-site servers,” says Adoff. “In the past, bringing on a One Card system meant purchasing and maintaining a $10,000+ hardware server, but today virtualized servers are drastically bringing those costs down.”
Initial approaches to server reduction and outsourcing have led to some confusion between the various solutions available to institutions.
In the 90’s Application Service Provider, or ASP, was the buzzword. ASPs hosted and managed specialized applications, helping organizations to reduce costs through central administration.
A predecessor to the contemporary Software-as-a-Service model, ASPs hosted dedicated third-party applications on behalf of clients. This would be similar to a campus card vendor offering to host a university’s dedicated system, eliminating the need for on-campus hosting.
It’s particularly important to recognize the differences between hosted services and Software-as-a-Service solutions, explains Kent Pawlak, director of Product Strategy at Blackboard Transact.
“Hosted solutions generally involve moving the same application, deployed on-premise, to a remote hosting facility with each application continuing to be dedicated for a single organization or tenant,” says Pawlak.
“Today, a school on the East Coast can host a campus card system in a data center in California,” says Taran Lent, vice president of Product Development at CardSmith. “But when you do that you haven’t materially changed the economics or logistics around service delivery. You haven’t created any benefit or leverage, you’ve only moved where you’re hosting the system from point A to point B.”
Software as a Service and most cloud-based applications, on the other hand, are designed to enable many institutions to share software and hardware with logical separations of data.
The current Software-as-a-Service trend shows vendors consolidating servers, leveraging advancements in computing power and reducing relative costs. In addition to the Software-as-a-Service model, server virtualization and multi-tenancy are also transforming the server market.
A virtual server essentially acts as a real, physical computer with one notable difference: the software being run on a virtual server is separated from hardware resources. One machine can run many virtual servers and one virtual server can easily migrate from one machine to others.
The first day of summer classes isn’t just the start of a new semester for Florida International University students, it’s also day one for a new point rewards system for the university’s One Card.
Beginning May 12, the Office of Business Services launched the new rewards program in an effort to revamp students’ use of the FIU One Card. According to FIUism, the hope for the new rewards system is to make the One Card more valuable to students.
The program works by allowing students to accumulate points for each purchase they make with the card, with the exception of book advances and meal plans. Perhaps the largest expense for any given student, book advance transfer funds are eligible for points according to university officials.
Students can check their points online, with points being awarded within one day of purchase and posted on the university website.
The system is awarding points from a wide range of local merchants at a one-to-one ratio. Students will receive one point for every $1 spent at a series of local restaurants including: Pollo Tropical, Subway, Tropical Smoothie, Chili’s Too, POD Markets, Sushi Maki, Almazar, Starbucks, Jamba Juice, Faculty Club, Dunkin Donuts, Bustelo, Moes, Burger King, Chick-fil-A, Einsteins Bros Bagels, The Fresh Food Company, Freshens, Miros, Papa John’s, Salad Creations, GrilleWorks at Biscayne Bay Campus and La Focaccia, a café located on FIU’s campus.
Beyond food, students also receive one point for every $1 spent at Barnes & Noble and Recharge U, as well as two points for every dollar spent at Santi’s Hair & Nail Salon, Ricoh and Golden Touch Barbershop.
The largest reward point haul is given to those students who choose to link their FIU One Card with Wells Fargo. This is a one-time point offering worth 25 reward points.
There are six reward levels, ranging from 750 points at level one, up to 5000 points at level six. Each level has a set prize reward:
In cases where purchased items are returned or refunded, the reward points earned from the purchases will be deducted from the student’s point balance. Students can redeem their rewards at the FIU One Card office by showing their card during their business hours. The points expire at the close of each academic year.
Many agree that NFC technology is yet to realize its full potential in the consumer marketplace, but a new piece of Android software could turn the tide and make way for a renewed NFC landscape. The forthcoming Android 4.4 operating system, more commonly referred to as KitKat, will push to Android devices everywhere complete with a technology known as host-card emulation.
Host-card emulation is an alternative to standard NFC card emulation – a technology that already exists within a number of NFC-enabled Android devices. NFC emulation leverages a separate chip in the device itself called the secure element. Commonly, these secure elements come in the form of SIM cards provided by wireless carriers, or telcos.
When NFC card emulation is conducted, the emulated card is provisioned into the secure element on the device via an Android application. When the user holds their device over an NFC terminal, the NFC controller in the device then routes all data from the reader directly to the secure element.
With host-card emulation, however, this premise is taken a step further using a new method that does not involve a secure element at all. Instead, it enables an Android app to emulate a card and talk directly to the NFC reader, circumventing the traditional secure element altogether.
“It is a technology built into a device’s operating system that enables a mobile device to emulate a payment or other card, allowing users to make NFC mobile payments and other proximity transactions,” explains Martin Cox, global head of Sales at Bell ID.
Host-card emulation essentially creates a virtual smart card, represented in software form and hosts it in the cloud. It’s a technology that could greatly affect the structure and delivery of NFC services.
The predominant initial use of host-card emulation will almost certainly be in the payments sector. The adoption of mobile wallets has been sluggish, but Google’s decision to include host-card emulation is expected to shake things up.
“Placing the payment credentials in a remote environment and communicating via the cloud, rather than in an secure element inside the mobile device, offers more control and direct access to application issuers, as well as eases the launch of NFC based mobile services,” explains Cox. “With ‘pure cloud’ solutions, the device does not require a physical secure element, as the payment applications are provisioned into a remote secure element and accessed by the device during the transaction.”
Host-card emulation mimics cards based on key ISO and NFC Forum specifications. This is important for the future of mobile payments security, as these specifications are already being used and are a verified standard for a potential EMVCo and NFC payment infrastructure. This is good news for Google because host-card emulation services would still comply, in theory, with existing security and technology standards.
This is why insiders suggest Google’s support for host-card emulation makes sense, particularly in the wake of Google Wallet and Isis coming to market. By circumventing a device’s secure element – which in many cases resides within the telco-issued SIM card – Google can enable customers of any mobile carrier to use Google Wallet even if the customer’s service provider is one of the three telcos driving Isis – Verizon, AT&T or T-Mobile. Sprint is the lone holdout of the Big four telcos that has openly supported Google Wallet.
In a nutshell, by leveraging a cloud-based secure element environment, telcos no longer play a central role in NFC payments; placing their desired, intermediary role in the mobile payments sector in jeopardy. There are still kinks that need to be worked out both in the technology and its security, but Android’s dominant smart phone market share has cast doubt on mobile network operator’s future in the NFC mobile payments process.
Android’s forthcoming KitKat update could be used as more than just a means to skirt Isis and wrestle control of mobile wallets from the telcos. It could in fact be used in any NFC service. By leveraging host-card emulation, NFC handsets remove the physical secure element from the transaction, leaving services such as ticketing, identity and access control to be developed and implemented in a shorter amount of time.
Moreover, the inclusion of host-card emulation means that full NFC capability – including operation of the reader functionality of NFC handsets – would be made available to app developers, Cox says. This would give developers the ability to create applications that can turn handsets into contactless card readers, a function that has potential in the mobile point of sale sector and a host of other markets.
This handset as a reader aspect of NFC has long held promise for an array of applications and services, but it has seldom been utilized.
Also at the heart of host-card emulation potential influence is Android’s market presence. The operating system powers the vast majority of the deployed devices on the market today, and Google seems poised to leverage this with host-card emulation.
During the third quarter 2013, Android dominated global smart phone shipments with an 81% share. “This is a positive step for the industry as support for host-card emulation on Android 4.4 brings service delivery opportunities to a huge segment of the smart phone market,” says Cox.
Host-card emulation will also prove to be particularly fitting for issuers who feel that the use of a physical secure element on the device adds insufficient value to justify the hardware’s additional cost.
In theory, host-card emulation will give service providers more available business models, partners and developers with which to work. Companies like Bell ID are prepping to meet new host-card emulation demands head on.
As a Trusted Service Manager, Bell ID aids service providers in securely managing and distributing contactless services for their customers via the networks of mobile operators. Cox believes that host-card emulation can blow the doors open for loyalty, couponing, access control and transit ticketing.
Bell ID’s Secure Element in the Cloud solution offers two options – a purely cloud offering and a hybrid cloud/physical secure element option. As Cox explains, the hybrid option offers many of same benefits of an exclusively-cloud solution – increased flexibility, greater storage and processing power and no need for SIM certification. The only difference is that it includes the accepted security of a physical secure element.
For the immediate future, Cox sees this hybrid method being the preferred choice, as it offers a different level of flexibility. “Some service providers will opt for a pure cloud solution, while others may believe that for higher value services it is wise to utilize a physical secure element in either the classic NFC model or cloud/secure element hybrid,” he explains. “The beauty of host-card emulation is in the additional options it brings to the market.”
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As universities nationwide wind down for the year, many students will have leftover funds on their dining accounts. While last minute convenience store purchases will likely be in order, Salem State University students decided to invest their leftover funds in a more noble cause.
According to The Salem News, as the semester came to a close last week, Salem State students spent the last of their Clipper Card funds at the Salem Diner – but not on themselves. Instead, students paid for meals for random citizens from their university’s surrounding community.
Recipients of the free meals ranged from construction workers and other random patrons of a local diner to those less fortunate. One student asked if she could get her food to go, so that she could send her meals to a local homeless shelter.
As part of the Clipper Card Meal Plan students are allocated a set amount of “Dining Dollars” per semester. These funds can then be used at various dining locations around Salem’s campus for students to make purchases.
At Salem, Dining Dollars roll over from fall to spring semesters but expire at the end of each academic year, and for some students, the remaining balance come the end of the year can be significant.
This is a practice that institutions across the nation could easily promote as a means to give back to the communities they call home. Aside from teaching an important lesson to students and giving them an opportunity to give back themselves, this is also a way to ensure that the money spent on meal plans is put to good use – perhaps better than stocking up on candy bars and soft drinks at the university convenience store.
What better way to spend some of your leftover funds than to provide a meal for someone who needs it? Well done, Salem.
In my five years in the campus card industry, I have noticed that the focus has shifted more and more to two main components: technology and security. Rightfully so, as these are the key components that make up any successful identification program: some type of credential–the technology–and the objective of that credential–security.
As important as these components are, however, it is equally important to remember why we are in this business. Yes, for some it may be to design the newest and greatest biometric software or identity solution, but ultimately we are in it for the benefit of our customers. In the world of campus cards, our customers use our products for everything from identification to access and from a debit card to a soda can opener. Regardless of the use, however, they expect the card to work without fail every time.
Recently, I have found myself asking why customer service is important in our field. Students need us more than we need them, right? Does it matter if I treat my customers poorly? They are still going to need their ID, and it isn’t like they can do it without me. Or can they?
Soon there will be those who do not remember having to turn a mechanical key to open a door. For those us who remember, imagine which is more troublesome for the customer: fumbling with that key or swiping a magnetic stripe that fails. At least with the key the customer can still gain access to the room. Poor customer service, much like a faulty magnetic stripe, will make the customer long for the day when all they had to do was put a key in the lock.
Let’s be honest, our ID credential is not the only one in our customer’s wallet. I probably have ten ID cards in my wallet from various organizations so there is no question of who I am. Our customers also have multiple debit cards, separate keys and some even have a real can open for their soda. So why do they need us?
That is where customer service comes in. We all believe that our ultimate goal is to make life easier for our customers, but believe it or not we often have to sell that idea to them. Customer service is essential in our business because, yes the customer can get the same results from other services. Sure, we can all agree that we should provide quality customer service because it is the right thing to do. I too am a firm believer in the Golden Rule. But it’s more than that; we are all in the business of sales. We have to sell the idea that our product is worth the customer’s time.
So what does the customer want from us?
Honestly, not much. Primarily, they want their credential to work. They don’t want to interact with us on a regular basis. When they do lose their card, they want the interaction with our office to be as quick and efficient as possible.
The truth is that it does not take much to keep a customer satisfied. In fact, if a customer doesn’t remember who or where we are, then we’re doing a fantastic job. Our job is very much behind the scenes, just like many others on a busy college campus. Our customers want to use our product without ever having to think about it. When they come into our offices, they want to be able to leave without incident. It’s simple really. As long as the credential works and we aren’t rude, we can stay in the game.
But what if we want to get ahead of the game?
The field of identification and security is moving quickly in pursuit of the latest and greatest technology. To grow a card program we have to stay on top of technology, but to do so we must sell our customers on the benefits. More selling means increasing or improving our level of service. Now we must go beyond keeping the customer satisfied and actually make them happy.
As we strive to grow our card programs, it is vital that we not lose focus on what is best for the customer in the pursuit of the newest or coolest technology. Advances in technology for the sole purpose of advancing technology are often lost on the end user. Yes, facial recognition is awesome, but when that system fails to open the door, the customer is going to once again wish for that mechanical key.
Regardless of the type of card a university issues to its students, there remains one constant – students are going to punish them.
Whether it gets bent at the bottom of a bag or purse, hole punched beyond repair or accidentally thrown in the wash, student ID cards are put through the paces. But what can be done to prolong the life of a card, or better still, is there a way to entice students to take better care of their credential?
One possible answer comes in the form of the many card accessories – lanyards, card sleeves, rigid plastic holders, etc. – that students can use. It’s an oft-overlooked option in the campus card realm, but one that can make a difference in the life of a card.
Often a university will give students a lanyard and card holder of some sort at orientation, but many stop there when in terms of accessories. In other cases, the campus will make accessories available for purchase at the card office or bookstore.
“Universities position accessories for students by stressing that they can protect a student’s investment,” says Mark Degan, corporate marketing manager for ColorID. “The less time that the student has to spend coming back to get their card replaced the better, and it’s less money out of the student’s pocket.”
Accessories can be grouped into two categories: Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC) merchandise featuring NCAA logos and blank, or card program-specific accessories. “We can do both, but we prefer the non-CLC route when it comes to card accessories,” says Degan.
Depending on the card type and application, there are a number of options that students can utilize when it comes to ID accessories. But Degan stresses that accessories should always be a consideration.
“No matter what the card office does at the ID printer, no matter how many sheets of laminate they use, the student ID card could always use extra help,” says Degan. “As soon as students get their hands on their card, they’re going to use it for crazy things like ice scrapers or they’re going to put it through the laundry.”
It’s for this reason that he suggests card offices consider providing an all-encompassing layer of protection. “If you can contain a card in a rigid holder that would be the best possible scenario,” says Degan.
In addition the way cards are used, the size of the university and the card technology it uses can play a role in the accessories that a card office should consider. “Campuses should first consider the type of card they have and how they’re using the credential on campus,” he says.
“For campuses that don’t use contactless technology, have a logical access solution on campus, or just use mag stripe, you may not need protective accessories because you’re not subjecting the card to a lot of wear and tear,” says Degan. “The point of a card holder is to protect cards so they will last longer. But what’s the point of spending 50 cents on a cardholder for a card that only costs a dime to make?”
For more advanced cards, however, spending 50 cents to protect a card that costs $5 makes sense. “The best way to prolong the life of a card is to first laminate the card during the printing process, this way you give the card a good start before it even leaves the card office,” explains Degan. “After that I really like the rigid card holder, which is a polycarbonate piece of plastic that doesn’t flex, so when you slide your card in, it doesn’t bend or bow.”
ColorID also offers holders that have multiple bays, which enable students to hold driver licenses or payment cards as well. As Degan explains, the rigid holder is probably the best route for prolonging the life of a card, but it comes with a premium price.
“If you’re trying to keep costs down, we’d suggest a vinyl card holder, which can also hold multiple cards, but make sure you get the added anti-transfer material to ensure card imagery remains intact,” says Degan. “As opposed to the rigid plastic material that holds a card by its corners, the vinyl holder physically makes contact with the face of the card, hence the need for anti-transfer material.”
A student practice that has long plagued the ID card is hole punching. Countless freshmen have sat hunched over dorm room desks, whittling away at IDs with a paper hole punch.
As Degan stresses, this is a needless act that does more to compromise the integrity of the card than make it convenient for the student. “A lot of people will punch a hole through their card, and whether it’s a technology card or not, blank or preprinted, its not a solid sheet of plastic, we make it in layers – a core sheet, art sheet and laminate sheet,” he explains. “These layers are all compressed with heat and pressure, so the second you punch a hole in it you subject each layer to humidity and the elements.”
In cases where students are adamant about punching their card, it should be done with a card-specific hole puncher. These are different than your standard paper hole puncher, featuring a thicker gauge metal because plastic is a lot sturdier than paper.
“If they must punch their card, there are certain areas on the card that we will mark so that card offices and students know where they can punch the credential without damaging an antenna or microprocessor within the card,” says Degan. “The same holds true so that a student doesn’t punch a hole and remove part of an important hotline number or similar information printed on the card.”
To get around this ill-advised situation, universities should opt to offer students a card holder so the allure of hole punching can be avoided. Another option is the card clamp, otherwise known as “the gripper,” which latches onto the edge of a card and allows for easy access and swiping without the need for a card holder.
Once the student has selected a card holder that suits their needs, they need to decide how they want to carry it. Lanyards are the mainstay in this department, but as Degan explains, there’s no shortage of options.
“Retractable badge reels and strap clips are more popular amongst faculty and staff, as they don’t typically care about the aesthetics, but lanyards are typically the popular choice for students,” explains Degan.
For lanyards, the option to customize an order is one that many universities find attractive, provided the price is right. “Generally you can customize lanyard orders starting at a quantity of 100, though the price is a little higher,” explains Degan. “When you purchase over 1,000 units, the price for personalized lanyards will be trimmed down, with the next price break typically coming in at the 10,000 mark.”
As for the design of a lanyard itself, the process will depend on the complexity of the desired design. “We can personalize lanyards by silk screening, which lays a plastic-like ink on top of the lanyard material,” he says. “It’s a good inexpensive way to personalize lanyards with only one color printing.”
For the university looking for something more sophisticated and colorful, however, Degan suggests dye sublimation. “With this method we start with a white fabric and dye it to the desired colors,” he says.
“If you’re a school that has a lot of physical access, vending or laundry where the students have to take their card out a lot, you would want to put the card on a lanyard for easier access,” explains Degan. “Students generally enjoy lanyards, and whether they wear it around their neck or not, a long piece of fabric makes their card easier to find when it’s buried in their backpacks or purses.”
In the last year to 18 months, Degan explains that there has been an increased demand for badge holders that attach to a mobile device.
“Everyone has their cell phone on them theses days, so what better option than to combine a badge holder with a cell phone. The trick is that cellphone holders utilize 3M sticky film to attach the card holder to the phone itself.”
This can be tricky because, as Degan explains, the 3M adhesive doesn’t do a great job of sticking to custom silicone phone cases. It does, however work well if it’s on the back of a normal glass, metal or plastic backing like with the iPhone or Samsung Galaxy.
Elsewhere, Degan has seen a demand for RFID-blocking accessories in the university space, albeit in smaller quantities.
“These badge holders basically have a glorified piece of aluminum that blocks the RFID transmission from the card and protects it from people trying to sniff data from the card,” says Degan. “These are common in military and federal deployments, but they also apply to certain departments at a university, IT for example.”
Degan stresses that students don’t really need to worry about this type of attack, but what’s important is that the technology is available if it makes school officials and students feel more secure.
As the number of universities moving to more costly technology cards increases, so too does the need to safeguard these credentials and prolong their lifespan.
Thankfully, adding protective accessories to the student ID doesn’t have to come at the expense of convenience, utility or aesthetics. Moreover, accessories geared toward the mobile device and custom card accessories will provide universities with a means to further instill a sense of school spirit while protecting the students’ investment in their credential.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott has officially signed the biometric ban proposed in Florida that will prohibit schools from collecting the palm scans, iris scans or fingerprints of its students.
Senator Dorothy L. Hukill (R - Port Orange) proposed Senate Bill 188, Education Data Privacy, which bans the collection of any and all biometric data in Florida public schools – a law that will go into effect this summer. The law not only bans the collection of students’ biometric information, but also mandates that parents and students be notified annually of their rights regarding education records, as well as requires the Department of Education to assign Florida Student Identification Numbers in lieu of social security numbers to manage student records and data.
With the signature of Gov. Rick Scott, Hukill’s bill marks the first state law in the nation to ban the collection of students’ biometric data – a decision that is likely to have far-reaching consequences.
While the intentions of Senator Hukill and Florida State Rep. Jake Raburn (R - Valrico) – the bill’s House sponsor – seem well placed, the overriding concern is that biometrics as a technology remains largely misunderstood. Those within the biometrics industry have been left perplexed by the decision to ban the use of biometrics in schools, where the technology could be used to not only facilitate daily administrative tasks, but also safeguard children as they board a bus or enter school premises.
One thing remains certain, Florida’s new legislation is a clear shot across the bow for a biometrics industry that has already cemented itself in virtually every other facet of daily life, including corporate enterprises, financial institutions, hospitals and even consumer electronics. It would be a shame to condemn biometrics out of simple misunderstanding, and ban a technology that– when implemented properly – can help to safeguard personal information.
For more on Senator Hukill’s bill, listen in on RegardingID’s podcast here.
A new CBORD solution being installed at Northeastern University in Boston promises to improve student safety by leveraging online door access control.
The new security system will be rolled out to 8,000 doors across Northeastern’s 36 residence halls and other facilities. The online security system replaces the oft-laborious offline and key-based locks.
CBORD, who specializes in campus card and integrated security solutions to for the university space, is providing the system to Northeastern University in conjunction with Allegion PLC. For Northeastern, security and convenience drove the transition away from offline residence hall room locks – and the frequent card re-encoding that goes with. Northeastern now uses CBORD’s CS Access for online access control, which is integrated with the CS Gold campus card system already used on Northeastern’s campus.
Allegion, meanwhile, is providing Schlage AD-400 wireless locks and aptiQ smart cards for the integrated, online solution. This partnership will enable Northeastern to:
Northeastern is a long-time CBORD client, having used CS Gold and its predecessors since 1977. Residence hall security is a vital concern in the university space, and is a primary reason for Northeastern’s decision to revamp its physical access system with a secure, mobile-enabled online solution.
In fact, Northeastern recently conducted a student survey regarding the new locks, polling more than 1,100 respondents. Results of the survey found that 79% reported being satisfied or very satisfied with the new online locks, while 82% were satisfied or very satisfied with the various methods by which they could open their doors – card, app, text.
CBORD’s online system also removes the security risk associated with metal master keys.
When responding to lockouts, Northeastern wanted to keep its resident assistants from walking outside between buildings at night to retrieve master keys. Using the new system, resident assistants and other staff members can now use CBORD’s “MasterKey” feature to temporarily elevate their Husky Card privileges via text message and open residents’ doors using their own cards. This feature requires pre-approval, but has proven to be a valuable safety benefit.
The readers on Allegion’s Schlage AD-400 locks can be easily replaced without removing the rest of the lock from the door, giving Northeastern added flexibility should it decide to move to a different card format in the future. The AD-400’s modular design has given university officials peace of mind that they will not need to reinstall locks as technology advances.
Northeastern is using Allegion’s aptiQ smart cards for secure, encrypted reader communication, as the university wanted to move away from the comparably less secure magnetic stripe credential.
ASSA ABLOY will be working alongside student housing software solutions provider, StarRez to integrate the companies’ offerings.
The partnership will see ASSA ABLOY’s PERSONA Campus software and StarRez’s student housing solution blended to enable campuses to manage electronic access control for student housing via the same StarRez platform that is currently used for other housing management functions.
PERSONA Campus is an access control software that enables database integration and software interface with enterprise, transactional and housing systems. PERSONA also supports both mag stripe and contactless technology, enabling easy migration to higher security credentials.
PERSONA software can also enable custom access based on a specific user, facility, or individual lock. The software is compatible with a variety of offline, Power over Ethernet and Wi-Fi locks from ASSA ABLOY’s Corbin Russwin and SARGENT brands.
StarRez, meanwhile, is a student housing software solution that features online housing applications, online roommate and room self-selection. Using StarRex, students can select their roommates and rooms online, search eligible roommates, view their lifestyle profiles, message one another and directly request roommates.
StarRez also supports management and staff administrative functions such as billing, reporting, e-mail/e-mail merge and can be completely integrated with other campus systems including student information, student financial accounts, online payment processing, single sign-on via existing campus portals, security access cards and meal plans.
A small women’s college located in South Hadley, Mass., Mount Holyoke, opted to go in a new direction with its access control system installing wireless locksets throughout the 800-acre campus. Mount Holyoke’s Department of Auxiliary Services decided that wireless access control was the perfect fit for its 41 total buildings, 20 residential and 21 administrative.
All 2,100 students reside in campus housing, and Mount Holyoke has installed more than 1,000 devices across the campus with an additional 500 monitored points. The institution’s longtime campus card supplier, Heartland Campus Solutions, provides the system.
“It didn’t take long for us to figure out that wireless access control would be good for us,” says Doug Vanderpoel, director of Auxiliary Services. “It was easy to configure, easy to add on to and there were no issues with frequency interference from other devices on campus.”
Mount Holyoke uses a magnetic stripe for physical access but the college is testing contactless smart cards as a potential alternative. They are also trialing Heartland’s mobile app, which uses cellular and Wi-Fi to open doors.
The decision to go wireless coincided with Mount Holyoke’s expansion of its residential infrastructure. “Around the time we were considering the wireless access solution, we had a new dorm coming up and we wanted to implement Heartland’s online, fully wireless card access,” says Vanderpoel. “Facilities management was on board because the locks themselves are simple to install, requiring only a carpenter or locksmith and no electrician or low voltage technicians.”
Allegion, formerly Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies, manufactures the AD-Series wireless locks that are used at Mount Holyoke. The new locksets use the 900MHz band to update and transmit encrypted information through the air. The wireless locksets can support all major card technologies.
Mount Holyoke took advantage of the flexibility that the wireless locksets provide. “For example, we had a lot of wired doors on campus, but had some doors that didn’t require or merit the kind of attention that a controller and hardwiring provides; it’s a lot of work and a lot money,” explains Vanderpoel.
One challenge was the institution’s smaller student-used buildings where wireless access control has been an ideal fit. “Many of our buildings are standard houses in surrounding neighborhoods that have been converted into campus buildings, and there is a lot of student traffic and activity,” says Vanderpoel. “Also, we recently constructed new athletic fields that require access rights for students. It’s difficult to get wires out there, so we used wireless.”
The transition to wireless access control has been a smooth one for Vanderpoel and Mount Holyoke.
“Today, our standard for residence halls is to have a wireless access reader on each dorm door and suite door,” says Vanderpoel. “We also use the readers for doors at multi-use facilities. If students are using it, it gets a card reader. If just facilities or house keepers are using a door it doesn’t get a reader, but if they share access with students, then it does.”
At each door, a wireless lockset controls access by communicating with its assigned Panel Interface Module (PIM), which is capable of managing up to 16 individual locksets. In turn, multiple Panel Interface Modules are wired to the campus network to communicate with the security system’s larger control panels.
“The control panels have a backup of transactions and the readers do as well,” says Fred Emery, Vice President of Sales, Heartland Campus Solutions. “So, if you lose network connectivity to a control panel, it can still communicate through the PIM to the readers. Additionally, if the wireless communication between a reader and PIM is lost, a reader can still operate using its stored local list,” he explains.
Wireless systems can be impacted by power outages, but in the case of Mount Holyoke, the wireless system has a failsafe in place.
“Even if all that power goes down, the locks can still operate in an offline mode,” says Emery. “The PIM receives power from the control panel, so in the case of a power outage, as long as the control panel has battery back up, the PIM still works.”
The system can operate in this offline mode in a couple of different ways. “It can operate just off the site code–which is not very secure–or can use the last 1,000 valid transactions through that door to establish access privileges,” explains Emery. “The locks store transactions in local memory and use that stored list until a network connection is restored.”
It’s a feature that Vanderpoel implemented from day one of the new wireless system at Mount Holyoke.
He also ensured that backup power is available. “We made sure that the PIMs were on the generator circuit,” explains Vanderpoel. “This way we can take full advantage of the controller’s memory as opposed to just the wireless locksets’ memory.”
Many buildings were not wired for card access or were located in areas that were difficult to wire.
The health center dates back to the 1970s and features a great deal of masonry–a wiring headache, explains Vanderpoel. Additionally, there are four doors leading to a single loading dock. These doors would have been a difficult to wire individually, but using the wireless implementation makes for an easy and effective solution.
In another installation, a small unwired building is using wireless access control by drawing a signal from a nearby residence hall. In this case, the online hardware is located in the residence hall and broadcasts the wireless signal across the street to the smaller building’s readers.
Mount Holyoke has put wireless access control to the test both in terms of the solution’s published 200-foot radius and also its broadcast strength. Vanderpoel has seen this broadcast strength in practice, penetrating the equivalent of 10 walls. This is the most extreme case, but for the dorm installations they have followed Allegion’s guidelines.
“For the dorms we followed the recommendations by installing one Panel Interface Module per floor,” says Vanderpoel. “There are only so many doors you can have per antenna. So for example, if the limit is 16 doors, but we need to add 19 doors, we can draw from another antenna that is close in proximity.”
This is, in fact, exactly how Vanderpoel and his staff implemented the solution at the college’s three-story Safford Hall dormitory. As the limit is 16 locksets per Panel Interface Module, Vanderpoel was faced with an antenna dilemma. “We have three floors, and on the third there are 19 locksets and a Panel Interface Module,” says Vanderpoel. “To account for the extra need on that floor, we steal signal from the second floor module.”
Allegion expects these kinds of patch solutions to occur, and provides a testing unit with each order that enables Vanderpoel and his staff to test and see if the signal will penetrate a wall or floor before making the system live.
Another dorm on campus, Creighton Hall, has 80 locksets spanning five floors. The building houses a multitude of wireless devices, is fully Wi-Fi, redistributes cellular service for six carriers and uses the wireless locks. It’s an intricate tapestry of wireless technology, but as Vanderpoel explains, the access control system has operated like clockwork.
“We have no issues whatsoever with the signal in these buildings,” says Vanderpoel.
The benefits that Vanderpoel has seen in the relatively short time since the campus went wireless are as evident as they are valuable.
Securing facilities and making sure cards were used over keys was a primary driver of deploying the system. “We have various conferences that come in, alumni, etc. who all get a card instead of a key, and we can remotely shut those cards down immediately,” explains Vanderpoel.
Having control over the master keys, the ease of installation associated with wireless doors, and a simpler, more streamlined process has relieved a burden on the Auxiliary Services staff. With a small workforce, any bit of congestion and complication that can be eliminated makes a difference.
For Mount Holyoke, and likely a number of other campuses, wireless access control represents a significant step forward in safety and convenience.
“The technology just wasn’t there at the time we were installing our system before,” says Vanderpoel. “Just from a coordination standpoint, wired doors always present an issue between personnel. The builder doesn’t have experience with card access, so he leaves it to the electrician, who leaves it for the low voltage guy, who needs the electrician to run the conduit, and yet you still need a carpenter to actually make the door work. With a wireless lockset, all those are standalone processes.”
As if the benefits and lessons learned weren’t enough already, Vanderpoel estimates that the wireless locksets are, on average, one-third the cost of a wired door. Specifically, labor is a major factor in the price of wired doors. With wireless there is no need to hire multiple trade personnel–carpenters, electricians and low voltage specialists.
At least for Mount Holyoke, the verdict is rather clear-cut. The institution has been able to employ wireless access control to great effect, leveraging the technology’s versatility, convenience and comparably smaller price tag to forge a solution that works for the campus, its staff, and most importantly, its students.
