Access Control System Installation
Access control is a door system first and a credential database second. Reader technology, lock behavior, free egress, request-to-exit sensing, fire-alarm interfaces, accessibility, power loss, and mechanical override all meet at each opening. GGIS documents those dependencies and the organization’s access policy before programming users or selecting controller capacity.
Where supported, OSDP is preferred to legacy Wiegand because it provides two-way communication between reader and controller. OSDP Secure Channel can protect that traffic with AES-128 encryption, while one-way Wiegand does not provide equivalent encrypted reader-controller transport. The protocol improves the design but does not settle code questions. Final locking hardware, egress, fire-alarm interface, and authority-having-jurisdiction decisions are coordinated with appropriately licensed or authorized trades and the AHJ.
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What we deliver
- Opening survey recording frame, latch, handing, existing egress hardware, power transfer, door condition, and mechanical-key operation
- Verkada, Avigilon Alta, Brivo, or HID-compatible architecture aligned with the customer’s identity, credential, and support standards
- OSDP specified where supported for supervised two-way reader communication, with Secure Channel considered for AES-128 protection
- Card, fob, or mobile credential lifecycle covering issuance, approval, replacement, revocation, visitors, and lost devices
- Reusable access groups organized by role, location, schedule, and holiday rather than unmanaged person-by-person exceptions
- Door position, request to exit, tamper, forced, held, and denied events mapped to explicit response and escalation procedures
- Controller, enclosure, network, power supply, battery, lock load, and expansion capacity scheduled for every controlled opening
- Remote release and lockdown functions documented with authority, feedback, egress, and approved life-safety behavior
- Final door matrix identifying reader protocol, inputs, lock interface, normal state, cable, power source, and AHJ dependencies
How we approach it
GGIS inventories each opening and develops a door and access-policy matrix with security, facilities, IT, and operations. Existing hardware, free egress, accessibility, lock power, fire-alarm relationship, and expected fail-safe or fail-secure behavior are recorded as coordination items, not guessed from controller software. Reader-controller transport is reviewed at the same time; OSDP is preferred where the selected devices support it. Final locking hardware and compliance decisions remain with appropriately licensed or authorized trades and the AHJ.
The approved tenant is organized by site, opening, schedule, holiday, role, credential format, alert path, and named administrator. Access is assigned through reusable groups with a visible exception process. Supported OSDP readers are configured for bidirectional status and, where applicable, Secure Channel rather than left in an undocumented compatibility mode. Directory or HR connections are mapped with clear source ownership, approval boundaries, synchronization timing, and a manual recovery path.
Readers, controller points, monitored contacts, request-to-exit devices, and power interfaces are landed against the authorized door schedule and labeled for direct tracing. Existing mechanical egress and fire functions are not altered informally. AHJ-required revisions are incorporated into the record.
At each door, commissioning exercises valid, invalid, expired, and out-of-schedule credentials along with door position, request to exit, held and forced alarms, tamper status, remote release, network loss, and battery-backed operation as applicable. OSDP status and Secure Channel operation are confirmed where included. Fire-interface and lockdown tests follow an approved sequence with the responsible stakeholders, licensed or authorized trades, and AHJ involvement when required; software testing is never represented as code approval.
Frequently asked questions
Why choose OSDP instead of Wiegand?
OSDP supports two-way reader-controller communication, enabling supervision and richer device status that one-way Wiegand does not provide. When supported and correctly configured, OSDP Secure Channel can encrypt that link using AES-128. Compatibility must be confirmed across the reader and controller, and migration should be tested door by door; simply reusing conductors does not prove that Secure Channel is active.
Do mobile credentials replace cards and fobs?
Not necessarily. Mobile credentials can simplify remote issuance, but visitors, shared-device users, restricted-phone environments, and workers without compatible phones may still need cards or fobs. A mixed program is common. We select reader capability and enrollment procedures around the organization’s population, security policy, revocation process, and existing credential investment rather than forcing one format everywhere.
Will doors operate during an internet outage?
Many controller architectures retain local rules and continue ordinary decisions when cloud management is unavailable, but behavior is product- and design-specific. Lock power and battery condition are separate concerns from internet connectivity. We document cached-rule capacity, network-loss events, remote-function limits, authorized fallback, and mechanical access, then verify the approved offline scenario at commissioning.
Who approves locks, egress, and fire-alarm behavior?
Those decisions are not made by GGIS programming alone. The selected lock and power arrangement can affect free egress, accessibility, alarm response, and operation during power failure. Final locking hardware, fire-alarm interfaces, and code treatment are coordinated with appropriately licensed or authorized door, electrical, low-voltage, and fire-alarm trades, with the authority having jurisdiction making the applicable AHJ determinations.
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Two ways to begin.
Schedule a Site Walk
Walk the space with one of our engineers. We document existing infrastructure, identify scope, and follow up with a project memo within 5 business days.
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Request a ProposalOr call (888) 597-GGIS — we respond within 30 minutes during business hours.