Florida Resort Uses Access Control System For Key Management

The Shores Resort & Spa is a stylish and luxurious retreat in Daytona Beach, Fla . Their approach is to offer impeccable service that will refresh and relax their guests. Every aspect of a visit to The Shores is meant to be completely stress-free. For this reason, when The Shores needed to install a comprehensive access control system for key management, the resort looked to Morse Watchmans.

"We have been using Morse Watchmans KeyWatcher since early 2007," said Jamie Conrey, director of engineering. "We made the initial selection based on their overall solution to safeguarding against lost or stolen keys. The system allowed for more accountability, storage, more flexibility, more scalability and more convenient accessibility than any other we looked at."

For The Shores, loss prevention is one of the most significant areas of concern. Availability of keys must be tightly controlled, and in the case of any incidents it is essential to have a data trail to identify who has taken out a particular key at a certain time.

"With KeyWatcher, we can keep all keys in one area and eliminate the problems of everyone having keys to all areas and associates taking keys home," Conrey said. "The tracking and reporting function is a huge asset to us. It has assisted us with detailed reporting, which allows for accountability in loss prevention. We have integrated the system onto our network through Microsoft Outlook -- reporting systems are instantaneous via e-mail, which has proven to be an invaluable resource and management tool as well as assurance regarding liability issues."

KeyWatcher is configurable with a range of modules including credit card holders and lockers to secure items that need to be tracked. Access control modules available include the built-in keypad, fingerprint reader and mag or prox card reader, or the unit can be integrated with many other access devices. An illuminated two-line by 16-character LED display prompts users and provides on-site audit trail data. Fully scalable, KeyWatcher uses minimal wall space and can be networked to provide full reporting and email alerts via a browser interface.

For any technical support issues that have arisen at The Shores -- "usually due to operator error", Conrey said -- Morse Watchmans has been "very responsive. They have well surpassed our expectations."

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