Q&A: Permits for Access Control (March 2013)
This post was printed in the March 2013 issue of Doors & Hardware
WWYD? Safe and Secure Schools
I have been struggling with this post. I can't answer the question the world wants an answer to -
WW: Thanksgiving Edition
I'm spending most of this week in Tennessee, and yesterday I went out to the local supermarket for a few more Thanksgiving dinner supplies. This door caught my eye...
WWYD? Secure Pair
I recently visited a facility where security is their top priority. Many of the doors are set to sound an alarm if they are left open for more than 6 seconds. This presents a challenge when carts are being moved through the opening, because the doors need to stay open long enough for the carts, but need to close before the 6-second mark. There are 10,000 employees on-site during a typical day, and leaving a door unsecure / not locked or latched can result in termination of their jobs. Many of the doors are fire doors, which adds some extra complexity to the issue. Almost all of the doors have access-control.
WW: Another Airport Exit
This is becoming a recurring theme. I'll be in a few airports later this week...maybe I'll see some more.
Mag-Locks – Security Impact
For the second time in two months, a news story came across my desk that involved the impact of mag-locks on security. For some involved in the security industry, mag-locks are perceived to be an easy way to retrofit a high level of protection, because the field preparation is limited and the manufacturers' literature shows holding force specifications which seem like more than enough to keep out the average burglar.
Hold-Opens on a Bank of Doors
Am I the only one bothered by this? Probably.
Q&A: Testing Delayed Egress Locks
Question: Is there a code requirement for how often the delayed egress hardware in my facility must be tested?
No Special Knowledge or Effort
Here's a little something to enjoy with your morning coffee. Most of us are aware of the requirement for egress doors to be able to be unlocked/unlatched without a key, tool, or special knowledge or effort, but sometimes this requirement is overlooked, especially when hardware is retrofitted on an existing door.
WWYD? Double-Egress Pair
This is an actual problem on a current project, and I'm hoping some of you will have ideas to help out. The doors and a portion of the hardware have already been installed, and the remaining hardware is on-site. It's a double-egress pair in a health-care facility, and it is equipped with a system to prevent patients with Alzheimer's Disease or other conditions from "eloping". There is a sensor in the vicinity of the doors which detects an approaching occupant wearing a transmitter bracelet, and when an occupant is detected the system automatically arms the delayed egress locks, which prevent the patient from leaving the unit before staff members can arrive.
WWYD? Theater Security
As I read about the terrible movie theater tragedy in Aurora, Colorado, I thought about things from a door hardware consultant's perspective. Could future tragedies be prevented by changing the way we think about the hardware on movie theater exits? Because the suspect allegedly propped open the exit door so he could return during the movie with guns, explosive chemicals, and a protective vest, would monitoring or alarming the emergency exit have thwarted his attack?
Decoded: Doors with Access Control (October 2012)
This post was printed in the October 2012 issue of Doors & Hardware
Decoded: Fail Safe vs. Fail Secure – When and Where?
This post was printed in the August 2012 issue of Doors & Hardware
WW: 15 Minutes to Freedom
If you don't know why this sign leaves me wordless, read this post.
Q&A: Electric Latch Retraction on Fire Doors
Question: I was told that I couldn't use dogging on panic hardware installed on fire doors. Is it acceptable to use electric dogging?
WW: Raceway
I received this photo from Nancy Bailey of Girtman & Associates, a division of Bass Security Services. I'm guessing that the slack in the wire is so that it can be run around the outside of the glass kit. If this was a fire-rated door, would this method be acceptable?
Cafeteria Door – Follow Up
Remember this door from my trip to the science museum last week? I asked what was wrong with it and several of you had good ideas.
Decoded: Electric Strikes on Fire Doors
This post was printed in the June 2012 issue of Doors & Hardware
Creative Power Transfers
Every so often a set of photos comes across my desk and I don't know whether to laugh or cry (remember these?). The photos below left me speechless. I could have saved them for Wordless Wednesday since I have no words, but I couldn't wait to share. Thank you to Michael Glasser of Kroll Advisory Solutions for sending them.
Reader Photos
My friend Nolan Thrope of Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies really knows how to make a girl cry:
WWYD: Access Control on Sliding Doors
Jon Bossie of Surveillance Specialties sent me the photos below to see if any of my readers had ideas about how to add access control to these sliding doors. He and I both have some thoughts but maybe there's something we haven't considered. The doors are mounted on the outside face of the wall, each serving an individual office. When the door is closed, it overlaps the aluminum frame face. There is currently no method of securing the doors. WWYD?
Creative Application: Pair with Electric Strike
As many of you know, I was away last week to do some specwriter training. While I thoroughly enjoyed hanging with some of my peeps for a few days (not to mention 12 hours in the car with 3 of them), my email really piled up. I was so happy to find these photos in my emailbox, so I could put up a quick blog post.
WHY? Unequal Pair with Mag-Lock
Do you ever look at a door opening or a particular hardware installation and ask yourself, "Why'd they do that??" I know you have! I've decided to create a new category of posts, where we can puzzle these out together.
Decoded: IBC – Electromagnetically Locked Egress Doors (March 2012)
This post was printed in the March 2012 issue of Doors & Hardware
WWYD: A Little Help Here?
Today is the 3rd anniversary of iDigHardware (aka iHateHardware)! WOOHOOOO!!!
Code Requirements for Electromagnetic Locks
This article was published in the February 2012 issue of the Locksmith Ledger:
Fractured Fairy Tales: Electrified Hardware and LEED®
Every so often I love to have a guest blogger write a post for me, so I can have the night off to do something fun and exciting like attend a PTO meeting (sad, right?). My colleague, Steve Ostapower, was recently involved in a situation where the power usage of a Von Duprin EL (electric latch retraction) device was questioned, and I asked him to share his findings with you (Thanks Steve!). Enjoy!
Access-Controlled Egress Doors
I'm in San Antonio, Texas at a beautiful hotel and conference center for our annual sales meeting, and there are A LOT of doors with mag-locks. Check out the coordination of the bank of pairs below...concealed closers, overhead stops, and mag-locks all coexisting in the same space. Notice that the mag-locks have a split armature to save space vs. a double-magnet. Every pair has a motion sensor, a push button, and a key switch, presumably for locking and unlocking the mag-lock. I would not typically specify a separate key switch for each opening in a bank of doors, but nobody asked me.
WW: Blocked Exit Sensor
I saw this application twice in one week...the exit sensor for the mag-lock mounted behind the exit sign. It definitely affects the range of the sensor. The code requirements for mag-locks do not address exact placement of the sensor, but this seems like common sense, no?
EAC Catalog and Power Supplies
Many of Schlage and Von Duprin's electronic access control product numbers have changed within the last couple of years, and I've gotten a lot of calls about converting products and finding current information. The Electronic Access Control Catalog is now available on the Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies website, and the Search feature makes it much easier to find what you're looking for.
Decoded: Delayed Egress Hardware – Code Comparison (January 2012)
This post was printed in the January 2012 issue of Doors & Hardware
WW: A Hot Mess
This photo was taken by Jim Lenox of Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies of Metro-NY. What you can't see in the photo is the pair of vertical rod panics which have had their rods and latches removed.
What If?
Have you ever run into one of those doors that needs access control, but for whatever reason it's almost impossible to get the wires to the lock? Maybe it's an existing door (especially if it's fire rated), or an opening set into stone or a fancy surround like the door on the left. It might be a situation where the wiring would have to be run in surface-mounted conduit, or where drilling into the walls or ceiling would create too much dust or would interrupt a busy workspace. In a health care facility, there are specific procedures that must be followed to protect the air quality for patients and staff. An exterior gate or remote door would also be a tough access control installation if the product is hard-wired.
Decoded: Stairwell Reentry – Myths & Facts (September 2011)
This post was printed in the September 2011 issue of Doors & Hardware
WWYD? – Police Station
One of my favorite job-related activities is going into a facility and helping with their hardware problems. This week I was called into a police station to look at a door that had allowed several escapes, as well as the main entrance. I thought it would be fun to see what you all would recommend in these situations.
There’s an App for That
I don't know about you but I'm so overwhelmed with information and data that I can't find anything. I hate spending time looking for what I need...Google has ruined me! I'm so used to being able to find an answer to any question within seconds, it drives me crazy when I can't.
“Secure” vs. “Secured”
I was at a security meeting for one of my projects recently, and I heard the security consultant refer to the "secured side of the door," meaning the inside - the area that is protected by the security system.
Seaside Hotel, Tel Aviv
This is a very unusual door - stone clad and an exterior opening only about 100 feet from the ocean. The door and panic hardware were installed by Entry Systems Ltd., the stone, mag-lock, and wood surround were added by someone else. The photos were sent to me by Eyal Bedrik of Entry Systems Ltd., in Israel (Thanks Eyal!). If you have any questions about this opening, just leave them in the comments section and I'm sure Eyal will be happy to fill us in.
Calling All Locksmiths!
I have a special place in my heart for locksmiths. Maybe it's because I've been "saved" a few times...like the time I locked myself out of my apartment in my PJs at 6 a.m. Or maybe it's because I like the mechanics of what they do. I always loved helping our in-house locksmith with masterkeying, and I've been told by an experienced locksmith that I'm a natural at shimming cylinders. How many people can say that?!
Bill’s Blog: Smart Cards
I swear, I didn't send him the camo underwear. :-)
Quannapowitt Mag-Lock
Today my oldest daughter and I participated along with some of my coworkers and some of our compañeros from Trane, in the Quannapowitt Take the Lake 5K. It was a beautiful morning and we walked/ran in honor of some of our friends and coworkers who have battled cancer or are still fighting.
Look what I saw on the Jersey Turnpike…
I saw this keypad lockset in a rest area on the Jersey Turnpike recently. Can you identify it?
Reader Photos
All of today's reader photos came from my compañeros at Ingersoll Rand Security Technologies:
Hardware Man
OMG - I LOVE this video. Maybe I'll get inspired to do a series of "Hardware Gal" videos. :-)
Mag Holder Extensions
I'm getting ready to head to NYC to do a presentation for the DHI chapter there, so here are some quick photos of a cross-corridor fire-rated pair sent in by Andy Olson of Reliable Glass and Door. There has to be some sort of rule against this.
Decoded: I-2 Special Egress Locks (January 2011)
This post was printed in the January 2011 issue of Doors & Hardware
Decoded: NFPA 72 on Access Control (December 2010)
This post was printed in the December 2010 issue of Doors and Hardware
Stay in School
I just noticed an article in the Edinburgh Evening News that was worth sharing. No, I don't make a habit of reading Scottish newspapers, but thanks to Google I see all kinds of news items involving fire doors.
Gates
My daughter Norah and I went to New Haven yesterday for what will hopefully be our last trip to Yale-New Haven Children's Hospital. Thank you to everyone who has inquired about her...she's doing great and is back to her old tricks.