Wireless access control solutions can have a major impact on helping users reduce energy usage and save money. Though there are costs attached to adoption of these solutions, providers such as ASSA ABLOY are ensuring that these costs are not fixed and that the solutions can provide direct, long term benefits.
For example, cost savings can occur at the very beginning during the installation stage – arguably the most important stage in a product’s lifecycle.
According to calculations in a report from ASSA ABLOY, labour savings for those who chose wireless versus wired locks were 82.5{470a194d391afe0dcd139ab6e124d2ab766783b27f0c34e59b7fd52773fed158}; experts determined these statistics by projecting the costs for a 100-door installation.
Wireless installation is much faster and less intrusive because wireless locks require little to no drilling around the door, whereas wired access control needs cabling through and partly around a door – which means specialist electrical installers, too.
By choosing a wireless solution, organisations also upgrade building security without inconveniencing staff or disturbing everyday work routines. In 2017, the Harvard Business Review declared energy efficiency one of the “key levers for business success”.
Between 2021 and 2022, non-household energy prices increased by at least 10{470a194d391afe0dcd139ab6e124d2ab766783b27f0c34e59b7fd52773fed158} in every EU country except one. In Greece, Romania and Denmark, unit prices for businesses more than doubled. Wireless, battery-powered devices can help protect against increases and volatility.
Battery-powered locks use less energy than traditional wired locks, which normally work via magnets connected permanently to electricity. Wireless locks work differently. They only “wake up” when presented with a credential, to make an access decision.
This translates to an additional saving on energy costs: More than 70{470a194d391afe0dcd139ab6e124d2ab766783b27f0c34e59b7fd52773fed158} or thousands of euros over a typical access control solution’s lifetime. Other related energy and materials costs during use are also lower. Wireless locks only need a change of their standard battery – which may be rechargeable – typically once every two years.
Wireless locks also add flexibility – and can reduce costs – when an organisation reconfigures or expands their office space. High-quality, innovative wireless locks like ASSA ABLOY’s Aperio range can typically be reinstalled at another door without impacting reliability. They move to wherever is convenient.
If a business is rethinking workspace to encourage flexible or hybrid work patterns, for example, cost efficiencies could be significant. Typical savings on office relocation or expansion are estimated at around 30{470a194d391afe0dcd139ab6e124d2ab766783b27f0c34e59b7fd52773fed158} with wireless over wired locking.
A suitable, integrated solution
As home of the renowned St Andrews Prize for the Environment, the University of St Andrews has sustainability at the heart of its ethos. For student accommodation, university managers sought an energy-efficient access control solution which respected and reflected these principles.
A major challenge facing the university was that multiple different standalone access control technologies had been installed piecemeal at student halls over the years. To upgrade the accommodation, university managers sought a more suitable, integrated solution.
They university chose ASSA ABLOY Aperio battery powered electronic escutcheons. Approximately 1,600 doors so far are equipped with electronic access control – without cabling.
The Aperio devices integrate fully and work flexibly with both the university’s existing central system and their student ID card. University security managers continue to enjoy the efficiency benefits of monitoring and controlling access from a single point and in real time, including for doors in multiple buildings.
