Dual Security
Technoology protects Fifth Avenue towers in downtown Calgary
- By Kim Rahfaldt
- Dec 01, 2008
Brookfield Properties is a commercial
real estate corporation that
owns, develops and operates premier
assets in the downtown cores of highgrowth
North American cities. Signature
properties define the skylines of many
major metropolitan cities, including New
York, Boston, Washington, D.C., Los
Angeles, Houston, Toronto and Calgary.
Brookfield Properties’ distinguished
portfolio of properties attracts major
financial, energy and professional services
corporations that have high credit ratings
and maintain long-term leases. The
company’s performance through the years
is distinguished by strong, consistent
financial results and a track record of
steady growth.
A Commitment to Quality
Commitment to excellence is reflected in
the high quality of its properties and security
management systems. In the early
1990s, an AMAG access control system
was installed to provide security in two of
the towers that constitute Fifth Avenue
Place in downtown Calgary, Alberta.
Upgrades occurred over the years, and the
dual 36 floor towers have now deployed
AMAG’s Symmetry Enterprise Security
Management System.
“Fifth Avenue Place was happy with
their older system and were eager to
upgrade,” said Blair Robinson, an account
manager at Stanley Security Solutions.
“They needed a reliable, scalable system
that Brookfield Properties’ staff thought
was user friendly. They have been
extremely satisfied with Symmetry.”
Symmetry monitors access control,
door alarms and anti-passback for parking
gates. It also tracks vehicle movement
and activity.
Turnstiles are located at the base of the
West Tower and are integrated with
Symmetry. Employees and authorized visitors
swipe their card, and the turnstiles
allow entrance from the lobby into the main
building area. Limited access is given to
the server room to provide extra security. A
redundant server ensures the integrity of
the security management system.
Brookfield Properties implemented
Symmetry’s Threat Level Manager module
in the areas of the building complex that
demanded heightened security. For example,
in the event of a fire alarm, the control
room officer would immediately implement
a Level 2 security status. As a result,
parking gates and stairwells are disabled to
provide an additional level of security.
Tenants find the reporting capabilities
an invaluable tool. Cardholder reports
keep audit trails up to date. History
reports provide information about room
traffic and access level authorization.
“Although we don’t know exactly what
incidents have been prevented because of
our Symmetry system, the alarm reporting
and response has kept a secure work environment
for our tenants,” said Colin Best,
Brookfield Properties’ manager of security
systems.
Elevator Control
Symmetry controls elevator destinations
among tenants. Users swipe their card
across the programmed reader located in
the elevator cab. The swipe switches the
relays and authorizes access to the appropriate
floors for that person. The user then
only has access to the floor buttons where
they are permitted.
“One of our tenants, which occupy
multiple floors, restricts elevator access 24
hours a day,” said Andrew Hibbs, Brookfield Properties’ access systems
administrator. “Our other tenants have
open elevator access during business
hours and restricted elevator access after
business hours, which shows the flexibility
of the system.”
Manning the System
Symmetry is monitored in the security
control room 24 hours a day. The security
control room monitors all building locations
except for the major tenant’s floors
that have their own partition. Brookfield
Properties’ security desks are stationed in
the west and east towers. The major tenant
also monitors Symmetry 24/7 at a joint
security station.
“We are very satisfied with AMAG’s
Symmetry System; it helps us meet our
security goals and at the same time serve
our tenant’s security needs,” Hibbs said.
“We haven’t had a request on the system
that AMAG can’t handle.”
Hibbs schedules different levels of
training for the security system that
includes a detailed list of teaching points
and action items for different scenarios.
Officers are dispatched to investigate
alarms and must be properly trained
to handle myriad possible situations.
Each security officer tested receives a
certificate verifying that he or she has
been trained.
“The system is extremely user friendly,”
Hibbs said.
Expansion and Upgrades
Stanley Security Systems offers a wide
array of integrated products, systems and
services delivering efficient solutions for
complex, IT-based security applications.
Stanley’s enterprise approach to security
is what has made it Brookfield Properties’
integrator of choice since the late 1990s.
Fifth Avenue Place and Brookfield
Properties have expanded the Symmetry
Security Management System many times
over the years. Most recently, they have
started to upgrade their panels to
Symmetry M2100s and are looking to add
intercom integration into their next system
upgrade.
With this level of satisfaction,
Brookfield Properties will be recommending
the AMAG Symmetry Security
Solution for many of the other buildings
in its portfolio. AMAG is confident that
these future systems will be as effective,
scalable and user friendly as this
Symmetry system is
for Brookfield’s Fifth
Avenue Place complex.