Ultramodern Two Drydock Outfitted With Cloud-Based Visitor Management
To attract high-end tenants, developers of the new multiuse building in Boston sought to offer the best in technology and security.
SIGNET chose the Automatic Systems SlimLane EPR (Extended Post Rounded) swing door barrier optical turnstile for its aesthetic appeal and the degree of responsiveness and customization it offered.
Once a busy manufacturing and shipping hub, steeped in industrial tradition, Seaport is now one of Boston’s hottest up-and-coming neighborhoods.
At the gateway of this revitalized waterfront area is the Two Drydock development, a new 13-story, nearly 300,000-square-foot multiuse building that exudes an authentic industrial look while also featuring boutique retail, a swanky rooftop terrace and a fitness center.
The structure stands as a beacon in the city’s Innovation District and is setting a standard for what’s to come next in Boston. To attract high-end tenants to this multitenant building, the owners and developers of Two Drydock sought to offer the best in technology and security.
The project was designed and planned out by the architectural firm of SGA together with consulting firm WSP and implemented by SIGNET Electronic Systems. Automatic Systems optical turnstiles proved to be an optimal solution for delivering an aesthetically pleasing environment coupled with best-in-class security.
Contactless Access Control
Because Two Drydock was envisioned as an intelligent facility with seamless integration between a variety of systems, Skanska, the developer, required that WSP and SIGNET provide a solution that enabled tenants and visitors to move about it with ease and a high level of security.
Skanska had just completed a new building in the Seaport and was searching for a way to reduce the front security desk program from the lobby and the cost of the front desk staff, so Two Drydock was planned to be an unmanned building.
Although this project was designed and planned before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Skanska wanted a solution that provided contactless access control for both tenants and guests from the parking garage using license plate recognition (LPR) camera technology, as well as from the front entrance with contactless turnstiles using either BLE technology or QR code for guests.
The turnstiles also needed to be integrated with the elevator destination dispatch system. And, because neither Bluetooth nor QR scanners could be mounted into the destination dispatch devices, the design team needed to integrate separate readers adjacent to the elevator call buttons and similarly at the garage access control points.
The unmanned building, in terms of security staff, needed to operate with a trusted, fully functional security solution that would also allow for a free flow of people. As a smart building, users’ mobile app credentials would have to be tied into the overall visitor management system in one application.
“SIGNET was tasked with taking Skanska’s vision and WSP’s design of a smart integrated building and turning it into a reality,” explains Jason Bianco, who served as the SIGNET integrator on the project. “To this end, the appropriate technology and software that supports custom integrations through a simple and reliable interface was selected.”
Optical Turnstile Integration
“SIGNET chose the Automatic Systems SlimLane EPR (Extended Post Rounded) swing door barrier optical turnstile due to both its incredible aesthetic appeal and the degree of responsiveness and customization it offered. This, combined with the UL-Listings and Warranty, made it the obvious choice,” Bianco says.
“It was very important that the turnstiles remain slim while also providing IP capability and accommodating different card readers in addition to the information that was being provided through the Schindler Elevator Destination Dispatch (EDD) System,” he continues. “This led to the EDD displays being integrated directly into the turnstile tops with the help of some additional customization work performed by Automatic Systems. The elevator ports in the lobbies also have contactless capabilities for floor selection which has proven to be a pandemic countering solution.”
Two Drydock is entirely cardless facility. When tenants present their credential, the dispatch automatically directs them to the floor they need to go to. They are able to utilize either a smartphone with a Bluetooth credential, a QR code printed out at the security desk, or a QR code sent through a Cloud-hosted visitor management system.
Visitors also enjoy a high level of convenient, yet secure access. Tenants can self-enroll their approved visitors who then receive a detailed instruction set, as well as a unique QR code sent to their smartphone.
The Automatic Systems solution enabled the opportunity for a tenant to have their own concierge without the need for security guards or robots. Tenants and users alike can rely on their single custom mobile app to interface with the building.
In addition, the mobile app also delivers them the convenience of smart parking technology. A Cloud-based visitor management system enables easy management of guest access and assigned smart parking. Additionally, the IT system is built on a converged network for future smart building integrations and is certified WiredScore Gold, which ensures that a building has the connectivity capacity for virtually any tenant.
“This custom app/EDD/barcode reader Cloud-based visitor management is providing the security and convenience that Two Drydock was seeking,” Bianco comments.
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Thank you for the coverage of this innovative optical turnstile project as part of a smart building design conceived by Frank Scala at WSP and Eric Svahn at SGA Architects.