Biometric access control

When someone leaves, their fingerprint or face comes off the system, and their access stops the same day. You don't need to change locks, collect remotes or wonder whether a copy is still out there. Removing a person takes a few minutes on the system's software or keypad, and we show you how when the system is handed over. If you'd rather not remove them completely, most systems let you limit their access instead, for example to weekdays or set hours. Where the system keeps records, their past entries stay on file after they're removed. This record helps later, if a question comes up about who was on site on a given day. For businesses with staff turnover, removing a leaver can be part of the same checklist as returning their keys and closing their email.

Yes, in most cases. Many properties use a fingerprint reader at the pedestrian gate and remotes or tags for the cars at the driveway gate. Others use a reader at the front door and keep remotes as a backup. The fingerprint reader and the remote receiver both connect to the same gate motor or lock, so either one opens it. On the site visit, we check your gate motor, intercom and any access control already in place, and tell you what can be joined and what would need replacing. If you use remotes, we recommend rolling code remotes, which change their signal each time and are much harder to copy. The written quotation lists exactly what each entrance will use, so you know before anything is ordered.

Most biometric systems we fit can keep a record of each entry: whose fingerprint or face, which door or gate, and what time. This record helps if something goes missing, if there's a dispute about hours, or if you need to know who was on site during an incident. Some systems show the record on a computer at the office. Others send it to an app, so you can check from your phone. For a business, the same record can feed time and attendance, so staff clock in at the door instead of on a separate machine. Not every reader stores records, and some only keep a set number of entries, so we confirm what your system will record before you commit. It's listed on the written quotation, along with how long the records are kept.

A fingerprint can fail to scan because of dirt, cuts, plasters, dry skin or wet hands. People doing manual work, such as builders and gardeners, sometimes have worn prints which read poorly. For this reason, each person should enrol at least two fingers, so a cut on one doesn't lock them out. Where it suits the site, a keypad code, tag or card can also work at the same door as a backup. Facial recognition readers avoid most of these problems, because they don't need a clean finger at all. Keeping the reader clean helps too, since dust and grease on the sensor cause more failed scans than people expect. We set up the backups when we install, and we show you how to add a second finger for anyone having trouble.

Yes. Fingerprint readers work outside when they're built for it and fitted with the right housing. Direct afternoon sun, driving rain and dust all affect a reader, so we check the spot before we fit one and use outdoor-rated units with a cover where needed. A reader facing west into the late sun may need a hood or a slightly different position. At a driveway gate, the reader goes on a pedestal where a driver can reach it from the car window, so nobody gets out in the rain. At a pedestrian gate, it goes at a comfortable height beside the lock. Facial recognition readers can also work outside, with the right lighting for night use. The written quotation lists the reader, the housing and where each one will go.