Commercial/Building Access Control System Integrator: Design, Sales, Installation & Service

Building Access Control System Services -Franklin-Park, IL 60131

Protect your organization from costs involving: Employees, Inventory, Theft, and more.

Andromeda sells, installs, services, and supports a host of recognized, top-quality access control systems in order to provide the best possible solution to your office and building security needs. We focus on Access Control installations for local, medium-sized businesses like yours in Franklin Park, IL.

By integrating an electronic building and office access system with security camera and burglar alarm systems through your computer data network, your business can reap many additional rewards beyond basic security/protection functions involving your employees, your inventory:

• Comprehensive intruder deflection & defense (including detection, restriction)
• Audit-trail and automated attendance reporting (to greatly improve and simplify other aspects of your daily, weekly, and annual tasks!)

Keyless Entry
No need to change locks, make or replace keys

Time-Controlled Access
All devices can be programmed by time-of-day and day-of-week on a "per entry-way" and "per employee" basis

Audit-Trail Reporting
Know who goes where and at what time - all the time!

Time and Attendance Reporting
Paperless time cards with break and lunch verification

Alarm Notification
Produce Email alerts and phone/camera system responses to entry breaches

Dual Authentication
Require two access methods for entry to sensitive areas

Anti-Pass Back
If someone does not enter legally, the same person is unable to exit.
No Tailgating!
Disable access entry at a moments notice.

Telephone System Control/Monitoring
Link 2-way intercom & door control to your phone handsets!

Andromeda Technology Solutions is a technical services provider offering 24/7 emergency response to areas like yours in Franklin-Park, IL 60131 with remote access converging voice, data, surveillance, and access control systems. 

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Let's Get Started On YOUR Access Control System in Franklin Park, IL

Contact us or fill out the Request form on this page now to ask us to contact you!

We provide Building Access Control system design, installation, help, setup, repair, and tech support throughout Chicagoland and NE Illinois.
Besides the immediate Chicago metropolitan area, we are pleased to provide Access Control services to most of the surrounding suburbs.

AndroPedia Tech Library

As part of our service, it is important to keep our client-partners well informed on Access Control system developments, news, and best practices. Here is just a sampling of typical items from our AndroPedia^SM library archive:

Installing cameras at your office or facility is important. But once you’ve invested in having CCTV cameras installed, how are you going to use the recordings to add value to your office?

When investing in security technology, discussing why you want the equipment and what you are trying to do with it is the most important detail in the whole process.

Sure, you want to make certain that you are covering the areas at your office and building that matter most:

• Entrances
• Parking lots
• Areas with valuable inventory
• Areas with high traffic or rate of incident

But, what is the objective and why are these areas important?

One of the first questions we have for prospects looking for security cameras is, “What made you decide you want cameras?”

We hear all kinds of answers – theft, suspicious employee activity, liability . . .

Sometimes, the answer is as simple as, “I know I’ll just feel better if I have them up”.

Often times, the why is the single most important detail for a professional security project. By addressing the reason for install, we are able to make sure you get a superior product but Andromeda can also help develop a solution that adds real value, real ROI.

That focus on providing value and return on investment brings us to today’s topic –

How Integrated Security and Video Analytics Software Can Help Decrease Theft, Increase Efficiency and Optimize Workflow at Your Facility.

First, let’s look at what Video Analytics Software is.

In a nutshell, video analytics software tracks video data recorded by cameras and enables automated monitoring of people, vehicles and objects within a camera’s view.

This is a powerful toll you can add to your integrated security arsenal. It transforms visuals collected by your camera system into influential data you can use to improve functionality at your building/facility.

To better illustrate how this works let’s walk through an example.

Picture a manufacturing or distribution center with high volumes of product and a few key issues they need to address:

1. Theft: Items are mysteriously disappearing from the warehouse.
2. Shipping & Receiving Issues: trucks are forced to wait in line to access delivery bays which causes unnecessary expense.
3. Liability: due to employee incidents (dropped pallets, forklift related accidents and other damages), insurance premiums are rising.

This building originally wanted cameras so that they could have an eye on activities in the warehouse. This is a great first step – but as you know, having the recordings doesn’t mean you have a way to use them for positive change at the facility.

Honeywell’s Video Analytics Software: Active Alert®

Honeywell cameras were installed at designated locations but to truly add value and solve the issues the management team faced, Honeywell’s video analytic software Active Alert® was also installed to begin tracking patterns and monitoring activity at the warehouse.

Within the first month, the Honeywell Active Alert® detects several trends in the facility. Once these trends were identified, management adjusted:

1. Theft: Facility managers designated high volume/traffic areas for camera placement. After compiling data, the source of theft was identified as pallets leaving the facility via pickup trucks after hours. By setting alarms and configuring the analytics software, any time a pickup truck approached the docks after pickup/delivery hours, an alarm sounded. The trend was identified and the culprits were caught.
2. Shipping & Receiving issues: the operations team decided on checkpoints and installed cameras along the routes into their shipping and receiving areas. After compiling data, it became clear that drivers weren’t taking the shortest routes in and out of the facility which led to backups and confusion. The operations team invested in signs to help drivers get in and out of the facility quicker and reduced waiting time and charges by over 40%.
3. Liability: The warehouse management staff knew they had to address forklift incidents. Cameras were installed and new routes/directional guidelines were implemented for movement in the warehouse. Additionally, employees were fined or rewarded for their incident records. At first, drivers incurred fines but word spread and within the first 9 months of tracking movements, the facility was able to lower its insurance rates because they had documentation of decreased incident/injury rates.

This warehouse knew it needed cameras. The management team knew they needed to prohibit theft, fix the shipping & receiving backups and lower their insurance premiums. Because this facility chose to work with a team of professional security experts, they got a solution that provided value well beyond recording equipment.

If you’d like to discuss your security concerns and how integrated security enhancements can provide real ROI, give us a call at the office.

To learn more about Honeywell’s Active Alert® video analytics software, find more information here.

And for a more in depth view on how Honeywell’s Active Alert® works in relation to warehousing and distribution centers specifically, take a look here.

The post How Integrated Security & Video Analytics Software Can Help Decrease Theft, Increase Efficiency & Optimize Workflow at Your Facility appeared first on Andromeda Technology Solutions.

Security cameras have many uses at your business. They can be used to deter crime, monitor employees and ensure safety on your premises. Cameras can also be used as a piece of a larger integrated security solution with software add-ons (i.e. facial recognition, temperature maintenance etc.) or equipment integration such as access control with visual intercom capabilities.

As technology advances and companies look to integrate different devices cameras will be able to do even more.

All of this in mind, your CCTV professional camera system is an investment in the security of your business and you want to get your money’s worth out of it.

On average, a CCTV professional camera system has a life cycle of approximately 5 years. This life cycle can be significantly shorter due to extreme weather conditions (if the cameras are outside) but new technologies are improving exposure thresholds every year.

There are many things you can do as the equipment owner to ensure that you get a long and dependable life out of your security cameras.

Here are our Top 5 Tips to Prolong the Life of Your CCTV Professional Camera System:

1. System Updates/Patches

Unless you’ve selected a cloud based solution, your cameras connect back to a physical recording device at your facility. Professional recording devices are becoming more like a PC or a server. They require regular updates/patches to help improve functionality, decrease bugs and resolve issues.

2. Don’t Forget to Dust

Don’t leave all the cleaning for a paid service. Make sure your recording equipment is dusted and well kept. Typically, the recording equipment will be mounted on a rack in an area where you keep the rest of your IT equipment (servers, routers, phone equipment and other hardware).

3. Testing Regularly for Recording Functionality

It might sound strange to be told to regularly check your footage or confirm that your cameras are working. However, when there aren’t regular incidents or needs to look at footage, it can be easy to forget you even have the cameras at all. The last thing you want is for an incident to occur and realize too late that your cameras are malfunctioning or your recorder isn’t working properly. We would suggest adding regular testing of your equipment to your maintenance schedule.

4. Keep Camera Lenses Clean

Just like regular testing, it is important that you check and clean your camera lenses regularly. You never know what might get on them. If you wear glasses or sunglasses, think about how often and easily they get dirty. Often times, you don’t notice until you put them on. Imagine looking through your CCTV Security Camera System. Would you be able to see clearly?Additionally, make sure to clean up foliage around your cameras to avoid blocked views. It is smart to clean camera lenses at least once a quarter if not more often.

5. Semi-Annual Professional Service/Checkup

There are many small things that can happen to a CCTV professional camera system that are best left for professional technicians.

• Faulty Equipment
• Port Forwarding
• Corrosion
• Wiring Issues
• System Audits (verification of views, users, permissions, updates)

We would recommend that you have a professional technician come on site at least twice a year to perform maintenance and checkups – ideally this would be from the company that installed your equipment in the first place. At this time they can handle all of the above and possibly even more.

A quality CCTV professional camera system is an investment. However, the protection and security they will provide you with are well worth the expense. If you take proper care of your system, it will service your needs for years. Additionally, it makes sense to look into service packages your vendor offers to maintain a system before you even install it. Many companies include all of these services for a reasonable monthly fee.

Give us a call and let’s see what we can do to extend the life of your system today!

The post Ways to extend the lifetime of your professional CCTV camera system appeared first on Andromeda Technology Solutions.

Hackers and scammers have hit the ground running in 2021, launching an extensive new phishing campaign that targets the legions of PayPal users around the world. The campaign is being run on both text message and email channels and if you're a PayPal user, you may have already seen it. If you haven't, in the days and weeks ahead, you'll probably get a text or an email to the effect that the company has detected suspicious activity on your account.

It will say the company has taken the step of "limiting" your account, which puts restrictions on withdrawing, sending or receiving money. Whether you get the text or email variant of the communication, the scammers will "helpfully" include a link, and ask you to verify your account information in order to remove these restrictions.

Naturally, this isn't a legitimate PayPal communication and if you tap or click on the link, you'll be sent to a spoof page that looks like it contains a PayPal login box. Unfortunately, if you attempt to log in, all you'll be doing is handing your login credentials over to the scammers, giving them unfettered access to your account. If you maintain a balance in your PayPal account, it will be promptly drained. If you have bank accounts or credit cards linked to your account, you can expect them to be abused.

This isn't a new idea or a new type of campaign, but it is one of the first coordinated efforts we've seen in 2021 and as such, it pays to be aware of it.

If you get a communication regarding your PayPpal account and you even suspect that it might be true, rather than relying on the link supplied in the text or email, open a new tab and navigate to PayPal's login page manually. That's the easiest way to avoid this type of scam.

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