electronic access control

Golden Valley Memorial Healthcare Swaps the Hassle of Keys and Manual Access Changes for Unified Access Management

Golden Valley Memorial Healthcare LogoGolden Valley Memorial Healthcare (GVMH) is a leading rural healthcare organization dedicated to providing compassionate, friendly, quality care for patients close to home.

GVMH gives its rural communities convenient access to highly trained medical specialists who provide a full range of services, including specialized areas such as cardiology, oncology, ophthalmology and more. GVMH also has a high-tech 56-bed hospital, a 24/7 emergency department, four multi-specialty physician clinics, an outpatient clinic and a cancer center.

Focused on serving rural populations, GVMH operates a main campus in Clinton, Missouri. They also operate nine satellite healthcare facilities located in Windsor, Warsaw and Osceola, Missouri.

On any given day, they are processing thousands of employees and patients moving throughout their campuses and inside their facilities.

The Problem: A Cumbersome, Offline System

Though located in rural communities, GVMH experiences the same challenges as larger healthcare campuses in urban areas. On any given day, thousands of personnel are moving through their facility requiring multiple tiers of access. Patients must be kept safe and visitor tracking must be managed at all times. Finally, critical equipment and pharmaceuticals require highly regulated protocols.

Prior to 2019, GVMH’s access control operated offline, so whenever a key or credential was lost or needed to be changed to prevent unauthorized access, it had to be done onsite. Performing access changes this way took time and resources. Considering the number of times an access point has to be changed in any given month, it became clear they could reallocate their investment to a more streamlined and more secure solution.

The Solution: Network Security to Manage Multiple Locations

Kenton Brothers deployed an access control system in GVMH’s main building in Clinton and in all satellite clinics to standardize all access points. The access control system is IP-based, providing a unified management and administration experience through mobile apps and flexible architecture. Should GVMH expand, its access control solution expands with it.

Now, instead of rekeying or changing credential access at the location site, GVMH’s administrators can remotely cancel a credential/badge at any building from one location.

Unified access control is phase one of GVMH’s long-term plan. Phase two will tackle the organization’s intrusion system. Like access control, GVMH’s intrusion alert system will be consistent across all locations and on one platform to consolidate security vendors and result in measurable resource and cost savings.

To learn more about access control systems for your organization, please give us a call.

Keying Systems Part 2: Restricted vs. Standard Keyways

By Ryan Kaullen, Field Services Manager at Kenton Brothers

Keying Systems Series
Part 1: Importance of Master Key Systems and Restricted Keyways
Part 2: Restricted vs. Standard Keyways (this story)
Part 3: Peace of Mind with Keying Systems

Restricted and Standard Keyways

In a world of ever-changing physical security, the question consistently is raised: How do I bring more security to my facility through keying?
The answers are contained within knowing the options that are available between Restricted and Standard Keyways.

Restricted vs. Standard Keyways

Restricted

Restricted key systems operate on a higher level of security vs. a standard key system. And yes, restricted key systems come with a minor increase in cost, but the benefits justify the added cost.

Benefits of using a restricted key system include:

  • An authorization process determines who can get keys and high security lock cylinders made/purchased.
  • They are harder to pick (open).
  • They can’t be duplicated at your local hardware store.

One of the biggest upsides of a restricted keyway solution is that there are checks and balances in place. To get a key made, you must be on the authorized user list. This means that if keys are lost or stolen, the key holder must approach management. You immediately know when a key is lost or stolen. This provides another layer of security to your facility, and lessens the time of exposure.

Standard

Standard key systems have their place in security, but they’re easily duplicated at most hardware stores. Users can make as many duplicates as they want without getting authorization. And if keys are lost or stolen, management may never know that there are keys missing until it’s too late. This scenario ultimately compromises the people, property, and possessions of your facility.

Want to know more about restricted key systems?

Physical key security is extremely important for facilities, just as important as commercial access control and intrusion. And physical key security is an important element of a complete access control security solution. If you would like to know more about restricted key systems for your company, please give us a call.

Securing the Bremer County Jail and Police Department

By Gina Stuelke, CEO of Kenton Brothers

Problem: Aging Systems protecting the Bremer County Jail and Police Department

The Bremer County Jail was last renovated in 2003 to house up to 79 inmates in a variety of configurations. Not only does this jail house inmates for Bremer County, but they also have contracts to house prisoners from other counties in the area. They also have a contract for federal prisoners.

Due to the extensive growth in these contracts, Bremer County Jail needed updated high-level security. The previous security systems were becoming obsolete and simply not meeting the increased demands. To enhance capabilities, Sheriff Dan Pickett and his team decided it was time to upgrade. Investing in a new security system would be vital for the success of the entire facility. Correctional officers would be able to utilize smart systems to increase the safety of inmates and improve effectiveness.

Sheriff Pickett worked closely with our engineering team, headed up by Brinton Hallum, to identify specific needs, desires, and expectations for the new systems of both administrative areas and the jail. The primary goal was to increase the capabilities and functionality of their security systems while centralizing administration.

Solution: Implementing Commercial Access Control and Video Surveillance

Bremer’s previous system contained PLCs (Program Logic Controls) that were outdated and couldn’t be upgraded. Our solution consolidated the previous PLC functionality with new integrations that met Bremer’s needs and allows for future expansion. Even better, the way we architected the new solution will be a seamless transition for correctional officers and will provide them a chance to focus on higher level details.

Commercial Access Control

Gallagher LogoThe new solution begins with card access control by Gallagher. This access control system then interfaces with a system of custom programmable logic controllers for general jail control, including lighting and water control. We added card readers on every cell door, every pod entry door, and intake. Users can scan their credential to not only gain access into these areas, but also turn on lights and record guard tour activity throughout the facility increasing the productivity of the facility.

The flexibility of the system assists administrators to meet Federal regulations and improve the safety and reliability of their daily operations while offering adaptability for future security upgrades.

Commercial Video Surveillance

Milestone LogoThe next step was to implement a Milestone commercial video surveillance system with Axis cameras. This specialized system was chosen to provide full prison visibility, while utilizing camera analytics to improve facility awareness and guard effectiveness.

Integration

We leveraged Gallagher’s strong integration with Milestone to make the correctional officer’s lives easier through improved administration with specific alerts for various scenarios.

For example, by using motion detection analytics in the Axis cameras, Milestone can be alerted to the presence of an inmate on one side of the door and then notify Gallagher to deny card access through that door without proper level credentials. This gives guards a chance to control and notify the entire facility from a safe distance.

Because all systems operate on this network, the Gallagher access control system can signal the Harding intercoms to alarm various high decibel alerts allowing immediate notice of security threats. This can help alleviate the margin for mistakes and reduce the opportunities for officers to be in harm’s way.

The specialized integration we have designed provides the benefit of less personnel required to manage the system and therefore offers them a way to do their job more efficiently and with greater precision. By allowing smart systems to help with the burden of security, Bremer County can be ensured that their facility will be protected with the utmost accuracy and highest level of performance.

Bremer County: Sheriff Dan Pickett“I can’t say enough good things about Kenton Brothers. They have been great to work with including a few small changes as our project progresses. Brinton has been excellent in everything they have done keeping us informed on what the next step will be. I was concerned at the beginning of our bid taking with other companies doing such a huge project. I would recommend Kenton Brothers for a security upgrade such as cameras and jail controls!!!” – Sheriff Dan Pickett

Precision Livestock Farming: Boehringer Ingelheim ushers in a time of transformational change.

By Gina Stuelke, CEO of Kenton Brothers

Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health LogoBoehringer Ingelheim Animal Health in St. Joseph, Missouri has partnered with Kenton Brothers to provide state of the art identity and access management and commercial video surveillance technologies to protect their people, property and possessions. Not only does BI see the importance of putting security technology in their buildings… they invest heavily on the power of technology to keep animals healthy and help farmers increase efficiency.

In several pig barns, crews will install high-tech microphones that hint of things to come.

Precision Livestock FarmingThe microphones form a key part of a digital monitoring tool that records the sounds that pigs make 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It relies on an algorithm to detect changes in swine coughing patterns before most human ears hear them. The system sends an alert to an app on a farmer’s phone or to their computer when it detects signs of respiratory distress.

Early detection of increased coughing in swine lets farmers and veterinarians collect samples and get a diagnosis more quickly, potentially improving the health of sick pigs and limiting the risk of exposure to nearby animals. That could boost a producer’s bottom line in an industry where respiratory and other diseases claim an untold number of pigs and cost hundreds of millions of dollars a year.

This innovation is just one part of a larger Boehringer Ingelheim commitment to take advantage of rapid technological change to offer diagnostic and monitoring solutions that help livestock and pets and the people who own and care for them.

‘It’s all about the data’—the quicker you receive the information, the faster you can treat the problem and have less negative impact on the animal and industry as a whole.

Pet Wearables

Precision Livestock FarmingIn animal health, the spread of new technologies has given rise to smart devices for dogs and cats and precision livestock farming, which holds the potential to optimize operations and improve animal wellbeing. The market for pet wearables alone will reach a few billion dollars in the next few years, analysts have said.

Sensors attached to and located around livestock, coupled with the power of algorithms to detect patterns in reams of data, have the potential to provide actionable items that save time and money.

Missouri Jail Administrators: Hard working, Professional and Committed

Missouri Sheriffs and Jail administrators came together in October. They’re passionate about the securing county detention centers!