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ASSA ABLOY


In The Boardroom With...

Mr. Sean McGrath
Director of Marketing
ASSA ABLOY
Door Security Solutions
www.assaabloydss.com

Security professionals throughout the country have been lining up to catch a tour through the ASSA ABLOY Mobile Innovation Showroom, a 53-foot trailer that has traveled from coast-to-coast since the start of the year showcasing technological advances and sophisticated designs that are reshaping the doorway security industry. For those yet to attend one of the truck stops, Sean McGrath, Director of Marketing for ASSA ABLOY Door Security Solutions, offers an overview of the Mobile Innovation Showroom.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: Let�s start with the basics. Please give an overview of ASSA ABLOY Door Security Solutions.

Sean McGrath: ASSA ABLOY Door Security Solutions provides end-users with unsurpassed security, life-safety and aesthetic solutions as well as essential support services to ensure well-functioning doorway systems. This is all accomplished by combining the strengths of industry leading door and hardware brands: ADAMS RITE, BARON, CECO Door, CORBIN RUSSWIN, CURRIES, GRAHAM, HES, MAIMAN, MARKAR, McKINNEY, MEDECO eCylinders, NORTON, PEMKO, RIXSON, ROCKWOOD, SARGENT, SECURITRON and YALE.

ASSA ABLOY Door Security Solutions brings products from each of these brands together to create openings that address challenges common to many end-user environments such as schools, healthcare facilities, campus settings, retail establishments, government, military and office buildings.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: What is the ASSA ABLOY Mobile Innovation Showroom?

Sean McGrath : Over the past few years, ASSA ABLOY has introduced a number of products that greatly enhance the security, life safety and aesthetic features of doorway openings. We wanted a venue to show these innovative technologies to end users, customers, architects, designers and security integrators. Trade shows allow us to display just a few of these products and reach a small audience. What we needed to effectively demonstrate our capabilities was a traveling road show that would bring all the products together and reach a wider audience in all corners of the country. From that need, the ASSA ABLOY Mobile Innovation Showroom was created.

We purchased a trailer and retrofitted the inside by installing numerous full-size doorways, mounted working models and over a mile of wiring to accommodate our large selection of electromechanical locks and access control devices. The Mobile Innovation Showroom is organized into sections that highlight technological advancements ASSA ABLOY has achieved in many facets of the door and hardware industry. We have sections for security, life safety and aesthetics with subsections that touch upon green design, energy efficiency and product training.

The sections are arranged to tell a compelling story about how the door and hardware industry has evolved into a hi-tech, design-oriented field.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: How does the story unfold?

Sean McGrath: The most basic function of a lock is to provide security. So the most logical starting point is to present an overview of what we call the Security Continuum which describes the wide range of locking technologies available today.

We start with the simple, yet always critical function of mechanical key systems. Included in this discussion is an explanation of the different levels of protection, the importance of maintaining key control and the emergence of eCylinder technology that gives cylinders audit trail features and the ability to update access privileges without changing the key system.

Offline keypad locks represent the next step in the security continuum. Like, eCylinders, these devices feature audit trail and basic programmable access control capabilities. These locks come in a variety of forms including the popular Yale inTouch lockset. The inTouch has a digital touch screen similar to a smart phone. Programming and day-to-day use of the lock is simplified with an interactive, voice-guided system.

The next rung up on the technology ladder is integrated Wiegand locking devices. These products, offered by CORBIN RUSSWIN, HES, SARGENT and YALE, have open-architecture platforms that facilitate seamless connections with a building�s host system to provide online access control.

Going a step further, we have found end users are demanding greater use of open standard technologies that ease the integration of doorway components with security system software. We now offer locks that lower the cost of near-online or online access control by leveraging the existing IP network infrastructure (WiFi or LAN) in the building. This eliminates the need for expensive redundant security system wiring. It also spreads intelligence and decision making abilities to the lock on the edge of the network, allowing more system redundancy than in the past.

The apex of the security continuum is our Hi-O or Highly Intelligent Openings that feature hardware components with brains. Just as USB made our computing lives easier, intelligent components plug together and automatically configure themselves to a �plug and play� opening. This is enabled by �CAN-bus� open technology�the same technology that helps the car manufacturers plug electronic components into each other and give the driver warning lights on the dashboard if the fuel level is low, if seatbelts are unfastened, or if the tire pressure is suboptimal. In the future, building owners will get the equivalent of the engine warning light from the opening if it is in need of adjustment or imminent service. An opening is a lot cheaper to fix on Friday before it breaks than it is on Saturday when it stops functioning altogether.

The selection of security technologies available today has created a wide variety of options to secure each opening. Whether combining multiple credentials, leveraging existing network infrastructure, integrating discrete components, or adding decision making capability, today�s doorways are allowing a much broader set of products. This allows for the selection of the right product to provide the right level of security within a given budget and a given level of risk.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: Continuing along, what is the next topic addressed in the Mobile Innovation Showroom?

Sean McGrath: Doorways are critical components of building security, but they also play a significant role in protecting the occupants within. So, appropriately, life safety is the next element of the showroom. ASSA ABLOY has a large stable of products that address common fire and life safety codes. We also offer solutions for more extreme conditions such as windstorms, rapid building evacuations�even microbes.


Large sections of the country must contend with threats from tornados and hurricanes. Wind debris missile impacts and drastic pressure fluctuations from these storms place incredible stress on doorways. This section of the showroom features openings that are tested to resist these powerful forces and protect buildings and occupants from windstorm dangers.

Next in the life safety area is our rapid building evacuation solutions for fires, power failures and other panic-inducing events that can impede emergency exit visibility. LiteGuide technology, including the Beacon exit device, uses visual and audible alerts to overcome panic and confusion and provide a clear pathway to safety.

Our products also deliver protection against dangers unseen, including microbes. Facility hygiene programs emphasize the cleanliness of high-touch building components such as doors, levers, exit devices, push plates and pull bars. MicroShield antimicrobial coatings inhibit the growth of microbes on the door and hardware surfaces, contributing to a cleaner facility.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: Security and life safety seem to take precedence in any discussion of doors and hardware. What other facets of doorways are highlighted in the Mobile Innovation Showroom?

Sean McGrath: Up until this point we�ve reviewed the function of doorways. The next section delves into form or, as we call it, Good Design. ASSA ABLOY believes form and function go hand-in-hand. A doorway should not only provide safety and security, it should also look great.

The Good Design section showcases our collection of decorative doors and hardware that enable a consistent look to be carried throughout a facility. Our large selection of decorative levers from CORBIN RUSSWIN, ROCKWOOD and SARGENT can be used on any doorway, regardless of the type of lock. The same lever can be used on a cylindrical lock, tubular lock, mortise lock and access control device.

We also display decorative wood doors from GRAHAM and MAIMAN that feature a wide choice of veneers as well as the ability to create custom designs. Together, the decorative levers and doors offer opportunities to create a cohesive design that lends artistic expression to any building.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: Green building standards are becoming increasingly important in the construction industry. Is this topic addressed in the Mobile Innovation Showroom?

Sean McGrath: Yes. Green building practices are the new norm in the construction industry. The Mobile Innovation Showroom displays doors, frames and hardware that address energy efficiency and materials and resources sections of these tough building standards, while still maintaining security, life safety and aesthetic needs.

One strategy for improving energy efficiency is to increase building envelope thermal performance. The building envelope acts as a barrier against the elements, keeping the external climate at bay and easing the amount of energy required for heating and cooling needs. The Mobile Innovation Showroom includes doors, frames, and gasketing from BARON, CECO, CURRIES, FLEMING, PEMKO, and McKINNEY that help block heat and cold penetration. These products lower the overall U-factor which is the measure of heat transmission from one side of an opening to the other. The lower the U-factor, the more effective the material is at preventing heat transmission.

Another goal of green building standards is to encourage the use of building materials that are made with high percentages of rapidly renewable or recycled material. Again, the Mobile Innovation Showroom features door and hardware products that meet these challenges. We offer products made with recycled steel, along with doors constructed from Forest Stewardship Council certified wood and agrifiber materials, such as wheat straw.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: It�s clear that doorways are becoming increasingly sophisticated in both design and technical capabilities. How are security professionals, end users, facility managers, architects and anyone else with an interest in doorways, expected to stay on top of all these developments and select the right opening to meet their needs?

Sean McGrath: That brings us to the last section of the Mobile Innovation Showroom: training and services. ASSA ABLOY has a nationwide team of sales representatives, specification consultants and technical experts to provide assistance throughout all phases of a project. We also have a training program run by respected industry experts. Our training professionals have developed a number of courses that teach everything from the basics of key systems management, to the finer points of online security. We offer hand-on installation courses as well as online tutorials. The goal is to prepare course participants for issues that occur in the field.

SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: How can readers learn more about the ASSA ABLOY Mobile Innovation Showroom or see a schedule of upcoming events.

Sean McGrath: Please visit www.assaabloydss.com for more information. We have events scheduled through October. The Mobile Innovation Showroom will also be on the ASIS show floor October 12-14 in Dallas. Anyone attending the show can visit our website and schedule a tour.