With their patent-protected keyway, Burch explains, “No one else in the country will have this keyway. It is only for this campus, and I have to sign documentation to get the keys and cylinders directly from the manufacturer. We can cut the key blanks and pin the cylinders, but no one else can get them.”

The campus uses interchangeable cores to simplify re-keying, especially in emergencies. Burch says that, previously, when someone lost a key ring, had it stolen or failed to turn it in when leaving the university, it took three locksmiths as much as three 12-hour days to re-key a building. Now, he states, his department keeps close to 200 cores ready for emergency re-keying. “With interchangeable cores, it takes us hours instead of days to re-key a building,” he adds.

To help control key distribution, the university is also planning to install an electronic key cabinet in the maintenance room of every building instead of issuing master keys. Authorized individuals who need access to specific areas will then swipe their identification card and use a PIN code to check out the required key or keys.

“The system will send an E-mail to the person’s supervisor if a key isn’t turned in at the end of the day or the project,” Burch adds. “That will give us an audit trail and they can’t put the key back in the wrong place, so we always will know where each key is.

“We’re also in the process of educating the university staff, so that when Joe leaves, you have to turn in his keys to the access control shop,” Burch points out. “Then when Sam takes his place, we need his photo identification to assign him the keys he needs. They can’t just give Joe’s keys to Sam. We also added a serial number imprint to every key so it is completely traceable.”

Each department or building has a designated key contact person who has the necessary software to track the keys for which he or she is responsible. Burch notes that his access control department is able to check the audit trails the system provides at any time to find out who has a specific key.

Mix Conventional, High Security Keys to Reduce Costs

Knowing who has access to a facility at any point in time helps to protect the things we value most. Without a key management program that incorporates some form of patented key restriction, the ability to control key duplication becomes an impossible task. While high security keys and cylinders do tend to cost more than their conventional counterparts, the ability to mix in conventional and high security cylinders within a facility decreases that financial impact and still provides a higher level of control.

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Leif Selstad is the product management leader for Schlage Locks & Key Systems.

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