Access Control Specialists

Yes you can! If you use the on-line thermostat control available through the 2GIG panel you can reduce your heat or cooling when you leave and then turn it back to your comfortable temperature 30 minutes before you go home so you return to comfort.

The department of energy estimates you can save 10 to 15 % of your heating and cooling costs by changing the temperature by 15 degrees for eight hours each day. See the article here.

Your alarm panel would pay for itself if your average energy bill is $200 a month. What a deal! Call us today.

Our film of the guys stealing wire from our recycling barrel enabled local law enforcement to track down and arrest the perpetrators. They will be be taken out of the pool of possible thieves in the area for a while.

Thanks to the Botetourt County Sheriffs Department for their work and success on this case. Keep in mind that it would never have been solved without the video record. They would not have know where to start or who to look for with out the documentation.

Call to have CCTV installed at your business today!

Many areas are seeing an uptick of home and business burglaries in the Roanoke area and the New River Valley. We can provide a 2GIG alarm panel kit with three door window contacts, one motion detector and one key fob remote control. These alarm panels do not need a phone line as they use the cellular control channel. The monthly monitoring fee is $20 a month including the cellular line. We do not require a contract so you can Fire us if you want! Not like the others who have 5 year contracts.

3-1-1 Alarm Kit!

We also sell you the equipment, the others lease it. The above package is just $500 plus tax installed in the Roanoke and New River Vally areas. Call for pricing further out. We are licensed in Maryland and West Virginia as well as Virginia.

No hidden fees no hard up sell. This will provide you with protection and is expandable to control electrical devices in your home or business.

Give me a call (Jeff) at 540 Three Zero Nine 7233.

We have these guys stealing some recycled wire we were saving to take in. Looks like a crime of opportunity. They stopped at the shop to change drivers, Perp one must have a suspended license and didn’t want to drive to court, and noticed our stash of wire in a couple of recycling cans. They decided to come back after court and pick it up…guess they will be going to court again!

This is just some cameras we have on returns and for testing. If you need real cameras to protect your valuables, give us a call for a free estimate!

Two guys robbed a gas station in Buchanan VA last week. They cut the phone line so our security system didn’t go off. We have fixed that issue for the next time. It’s always good to have a cellular backup on an alarm or even a cellular primary line. It’s faster and harder to circumvent! The following is film of them breaking into the ATM in the store. Check it out and see if you recognize them.

This is the raw video with more of the robbery. A little shorter but in fast motion.

It’s time for us to start on the access control at the new Radford University Home for the Business College. Since I’m an alumni of the college this job has extra meaning for me.

We will be doing the exterior doors and some of the interior ones. We are installing CBord equipment for the college and providing the locking devices and power supplies.

There are many types of readers on the market. It can be difficult to decide which technology you should use. We recommend that you start with the type of media you want to use. The options are swipe card, proximity card, smart card, bar code or biometrics. Keypad were left off this list because they are to easy to circumvent and should only be use for PIN input after proper media has been presented to the reader.

The two most used are the prox card and the swipe card. The swipe card is older technology and mostly used when there are other needs in the organization for the swipe magnetic strip. An example would be colleges where the cards are used for food service, the library and other related functions. Most card systems use the prox reader. The other methods are usually used in high security and government areas where cost and management time are not an issue.

The prox cards contain an antenna with a unique identifier encoded in the card. The reader is a transmitter receiver that sends out energy and cuase to the card to state it’s identification which is then “read” by the reader. The reader then transmits the information to the control panel where it is verified by the hardware and software. This occurs in an instant and the door then opens or the reader indicates failure with a red light and a beep.

One reason folks choose Proximity cards is that they can be printed with pictures and information about the cardholders. We can print cards or provide printers and supplies for you to print your own. There are also key fobs available if you prefer. They have the antenna imbedded in plastic and can be placed on a key ring or purse.

Hid is the leading manufacturer of Proximity readers and they make many styles. The rule of thumb is the larger the reader, the greater the read distance for the card. The 18 ” readers when power at 36 volts can read a regular proximity card up to 3 feet away! We stay away from many of the smaller cheaper readers due to the lower read range and the fact that HID warranties most of their readers for life.

Thinline II HID Proximity Reader.

We generally use the Thinline II reader since it is a the size of a standard outlet or light switch box and has a good read range. They make a mullion style of the reader for storefront door applications.

We will further explain the other types of readers in a future post!

We are going to start providing security systems, cameras and access control in the Blacksburg, Christiansburg, Montgomery County area. We do commercial, industrial and educational customers. Give us a call at 540-309-7233.

Good news for Tyco stockholders if Schneider electric Acquires Tyco. Good news for ADT customers? That remains to be seen.

There’s still a place for a small company like Access Control Specialists. If you want to work with the little guys, give us a call or shoot me an email.

We are returning from ISC West where we saw some great new products. Alarm.com has come out with a module to control lights and thermostats in you home using the same Internet and smart phone interface as for the alarm. you can schedule your thermostat to turn down when you arm the system and back up when you disarm.  this is just one of the new upgrades. Call us for more information.

We found some new access control solutions as well as new camera ideas. We look forward to sharing those with you soon.