Paxton10 delivers reliable access management at Royal Connaught Park

Located in Hertfordshire on 100 acres of parkland, the grounds of Royal Connaught Park feature a private swimming pool, a health and fitness suite and an outdoor tennis court.

On-site parking is essential, with upwards of 100 residents entering and leaving the premises every day. Members of the facilities management team wanted an access control system that offers a remote management feature. This would then save time in terms of visiting each residential block. Taking into consideration the apartments’ high-quality branding and premium décor, the team also required an aesthetic and durable access option.

Harlow-based installer Gamma Systems was established in 1999. The business specialises in the installation and maintenance of door entry, access control and CCTV systems. Importantly, the company’s knowledgeable engineers have been working with and installing Paxton’s products for two decades now.

Andrew Barrs, servicing and maintenance co-ordinator at Gamma Systems, explained: “Originally, we looked at a Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) solution, but due to the car parking facilities being located underground, the phone signal would be really poor. It just wouldn’t have worked properly.”

In practice, a GSM sends signals and communicates with mobile phone towers to grant access to end users over the phone. Alternatives, such as the Paxton10 system, involve the door controller being networked, communicating over IP and avoiding the use of a phone signal altogether.

Training course

Barrs continued: “Recently, I was on a Paxton10 training course. When we found out that the GSM system wouldn’t work well in an underground area, I recalled that training and the Paxton10 solution. I felt that its web-based nature and features, among them remote management, would be very helpful on this site so we recommended it to the end customer.”

In fact, Royal Connaught Park would be Barrs’ first Paxton10 installation. With able support from his team of experienced engineers, Barrs found the Paxton10 solution easy to install and equally simple to configure.

He commented: “The Paxton10 installation process is all self-explanatory. Our team just completed the process almost without realising we had done so as it really is a straightforward task.”

Currently, Paxton10 is securing five car park entrances at Royal Connaught Park. More than 100 users are enrolled on the system. If the site manager needs to add extra end users, they can programme the key fobs on site.

Licence-free Bluetooth smart credentials have been added to Paxton10 for those residents who prefer to use their smart phone or smart watch to gain access to their car parking space. This is available to them at no additional cost.

To ensure that all end customers enjoy the best possible experience with their service and Paxton10 as a solution, Gamma Systems takes care of all system maintenance and technical support. This encompasses the programming of key fobs or issuing the aforementioned smart phone access credentials.

Comprehensive and intuitive

Paul Mcevoy, site manager at Royal Connaught Park, stated: “The Paxton10 system is fantastic. It’s really easy to programme and works extremely well.”

Gamma Systems has also installed a handful of Paxton10 cameras on site, in turn maximising Paxton10’s functionality of being able to combine access control and video management on one single platform. This realises a somewhat more comprehensive and intuitive access control experience for the residents of Royal Connaught Park.

The potential exists to expand Paxton10 to the other 14 blocks in the estate, which will allow the system administrator to manage all of the car parks contained within the development on one system.

The products used for this project include the Paxton10 server, the Paxton10 desktop reader, Paxton10 door controllers (12 V 2A PSU) and also Paxton10 vandal-resistant readers.

*Further information is available online at www.paxton-access.com