Access control decides who can open which door, gate or elevator, and when. For a commercial building in Alberta it replaces metal keys with fobs, cards or phone credentials that can be added or cancelled in seconds, and it keeps a record of every entry.
What a commercial access system should do
- Control every exterior door, parkade gate and elevator from one system, with schedules for opening hours and after-hours access.
- Give each person their own credential, so a lost fob or a departing employee is cancelled the same day without rekeying.
- Release exit-path doors automatically when the fire alarm activates.
- Keep working through short power outages, with backup power sized for the building.
- Let your property manager or office admin add and remove users from a browser or phone.
Built for Alberta weather
Exterior readers, strikes and gate operators have to handle deep cold, ice and blowing snow. Hardware rated for the conditions, heated or sheltered where needed, and checked on a maintenance plan keeps doors from failing in January.
Fobs, cards or phone credentials
Fobs and cards are simple and familiar. Encrypted credentials are harder to copy than older proximity fobs. Mobile access lets residents and staff use their phone, and it can run alongside fobs so people use whichever suits them.
Connected to cameras and intercom
Door events can pull up the matching camera clip, and visitors buzzed in at a video intercom are logged like any other entry. Forced-door and door-held-open alarms can go to our monitoring partner with the camera view attached.
Your system and your admin access
Hightower hands over admin access and full documentation on every project. If another company installed your system and stopped answering, we can take it over, regain admin access where you own the system, and support it.
Brands we install and support end to end include Kantech, Genetec, Avigilon, HID, CDVI, Dormakaba, ICT and Inner Range. If your building still uses Kantech's discontinued ioProx wireless fobs, we can plan the change-over.
Planning access control
List every door, gate and elevator that needs control, and who may use each one and when. Exterior hardware in Alberta has to handle extreme cold. Exit doors must let people out and release on fire alarm.
Credentials and admin access
Encrypted fobs, cards or phone credentials can be cancelled the same day someone leaves. We hand over admin access and documentation so your team can add and remove users without calling us for every change.
Related on this site
Read more: Avigilon vs Genetec, Kantech vs Genetec Synergis, all services.
Access control near you: Edmonton · Calgary · Red Deer · Kelowna.
More from Insights
- Reducing Costs with Scalable Access Control for Businesses
- Weather-Resistant Access Control Systems: Features and Benefits
- Commercial Security Systems in Alberta and BC
Need this for a commercial building? Request a quote, or call 587-920-1610 in Alberta or 236-473-1610 in BC.
Questions
Does Hightower work on this for commercial buildings only?
Yes. We design, install and support systems for commercial buildings only, including condos and apartments, offices, retail, industrial sites, schools and automotive businesses across Alberta and BC.
Can you take over an existing system like the one in this article?
Yes. System rescue is a core service. We regain admin access to systems you own, repair what we can, document everything and support it. See system rescue.
Where should I start if this is the system I need?
Start with our access control page, or request a quote. We have offices in Edmonton, Calgary, Red Deer and Kelowna.