Staying safe with Command Centre in a pandemic - Part 2

In our previous article, we looked at how an existing Gallagher solution can help sites manage their fast-changing security, hygiene, and communication needs. Here, we discuss some of Gallagher’s other features that may not be part of your current solution, but which can help protect people in situations like the current pandemic.

Enhance access control hygiene

Maintaining the hygiene of your access control hardware is good practice but is especially important in this current environment. You can enhance the hygiene of your access control system by implementing contactless access technology.

• Consider using a contactless biometric system such as the MorphoWave. 

• Gallagher’s Mobile Connect credentials allows for no-touch dual factor authentication, which helps to mitigate the health risks associated with shared access control.

Prevent spread

One of the key ways to prevent the spread of any virus is by reducing person to person contact. Many organisations are doing this by working remotely and cancelling large events or meetings. Here are some ways Command Centre could be used to limit contact between people on site:

• Command Centre’s Zone Counting functionality allows you to set an alert when the number of people in a physical area has exceeded a set limit. This limit may be decided by the company, or follow advice from government/health advisories.

• Tag Boards or the Mobile Evacuation function are also a great way to see, at a glance, the number of people on site, and who they are. Sites implementing policies to reduce occupancy on site may find these tools useful for monitoring compliance.

• A ‘self-isolating’ Access Zone could be created within Command Centre. Operators could manually place people into the ‘self-isolating’ Access Zones as a means of tracking the status of staff members who have self-isolated. Reports can then be run on these ‘locations’ to track the number of staff in this category at any time, or over time. This approach could be used in conjunction with a “Healthy for Work” competency that is assigned to all staff. If an employee is at risk, reports feeling unwell or is found to be symptomatic the removal of the competency ensures they are unable to enter the site and an alarm can be raised to alert the security team.

• Action on Access functionality provides the ability to set sophisticated access rules using simple actions, automating decisions about when and where a cardholder can access an area, and could be used for quarantine or social distancing purposes. For example, if a person has been in Area A recently, then they cannot enter other specified area(s) for a set period of time (e.g. 14 days).

• Sites may wish to monitor the length of time staff are spending on site or in a particularly hazardous area, using the Regulated Zone feature. Perhaps shift lengths are going to be shortened or more tightly enforced. Alarms can be raised if staff have not exited the designated area within a specified time, allowing a supervisor to follow up. This can assist in minimizing any risk to health and well-being.

Monitor contact and health

If an individual tests positive for the virus, it’s critical to act quickly and identify people they may have been in contact with.

• Command Centre is a useful tool for tracking an individual’s movements on site, and can assist authorities with contact tracing, allowing individuals who may have come into contact with someone who has the virus to isolate.

• The Visitor Management system can record more detailed information about who is visiting your site, which may help with future contact tracing.