Spanish football side UD Almeria have utilised ASSA ABLOY‘s hybrid smart key and mobile solutions to digitalise access at their home stadium.
Stadiums require access technologies which are versatile, durable, reliable and easily scalable. Finding a single system which meets all these needs, and simultaneously offers digital devices for the wide range of opening types in a typical stadium, is not straightforward.
In many cases, security managers resort to running two security systems in parallel. This creates added workload and complexity, especially when they must deploy a mix of digital control and mechanical cylinders at different openings.
For a security upgrade at their 18,000-capacity stadium, Spanish football club UD Almería wanted to transition from traditional mechanical locks to digital access control.
They sought a solution which could accommodate these diverse needs and enable centralised management from a single, intuitive software interface. Ease of installation within existing stadium infrastructure and the ability to equip doors which receive lots of robust traffic were further criteria.
UD Almería chose ASSA ABLOY as partner to digitalize their access. Their SMARTair digital access system includes wireless locks for many access points and mobile keys or smart cards for user convenience. The same solution now also offers centralized management of eCLIQ smart keys, electronic cylinders and padlocks. This combined solution enables the stadium to secure all their different access points digitally.
By adding CLIQ devices within a SMARTair solution, organizations gain total traceability of access in a single system – saving security managers’ time and hassle. They can manage access even at remote locations with durable CLIQ cylinders and programmable keys, all from the familiar SMARTair interface.
In addition, the team at Almería benefited from technical support provided by ASSA ABLOY specifiers with expertise working on digital access solutions for complex stadium projects.
A complete solution for a challenging environment
The complementary benefits of SMARTair and eCLIQ ensure Almería’s needs are met without compromising on security or flexibility. Reliable, durable eCLIQ and SMARTair devices have low maintenance requirements, minimising ongoing costs. “With our SMARTair and eCLIQ system, I feel the stadium is well protected, day and night,” confirms Ignacio Martín-Calpena Miranda, Director of Facilities and Infrastructure, UD Almería.
All users and access points are managed online from SMARTair TS1000 Web software. Installed devices include SMARTair i-max escutcheons and knob cylinders for glass doors, plus SMARTair integrated wall readers for office turnstiles.
These are supplemented with eCLIQ smart key-operated digital cylinders, CLIQ Wall PDs and eCLIQ padlocks for gates and tool cages. This entire digital system operates without cables to or around any openings: both SMARTair and CLIQ devices are wireless and were installed quickly, between home matches, without invasive structural work.
The club security team chose SMARTair for real-time control and oversight of offices, locker rooms and physio suites. Here, authorised staff use customised RFID cards which double as ID badges or mobile keys in the SMARTair Openow app.
Visitors and external contractors receive time-limited access through mobile keys sent directly to their own app, streamlining convenient visitor management. Alongside this, eCLIQ cylinders protect technical rooms and interior service zones. Maintenance staff and security personnel, including police, carry an eCLIQ smart key programmed with individual access permissions.
“Managing SMARTair and eCLIQ doors within a single system, via TS1000, has greatly simplified our work,” adds Ignacio Martín-Calpena Miranda.
For added convenience, every CLIQ smart key also has an RFID chip inside which can be programmed to unlock authorised doors secured with SMARTair devices.
Aligning CLIQ with SMARTair gives facilities managers the choice of mobile credentials or RFID credentials (smart cards, fobs, or badges) for SMARTair devices, smart keys for CLIQ cylinders or smart keys with RFID tags for both SMARTair and CLIQ devices.
Retrofitting existing doors was simple: installers simply replaced the mechanical cylinder with an eCLIQ cylinder, without wiring or batteries. Power is carried to the cylinder via the user’s battery-powered key.
This hybrid installation ensures all Almería’s diverse access needs were met – only ASSA ABLOY could provide such a connected, unified system.
SMARTairÒand CLIQÒ: one solution, maximum reach
“When organisations extend their SMARTair digital access solution with CLIQ battery-free cylinders, they implement complete oversight for their premises, including any outdoor spaces,” explains Gabriel García, Key Account Manager at ASSA ABLOY Opening Solutions. “There’s no cabling and no more need for mechanical keys – just smart, flexible management.”
Both CLIQ electronic and electromechanical cylinders and the SMARTair out-of-the-box system are part of a suite of connected Digital Access Solutions from ASSA ABLOY.
When they are deployed together, security teams can manage even more doors from their SMARTair software interface. They can implement digital access almost anywhere, without drilling or causing damage to the building structure.
The broad range of openings already covered by SMARTair are supplemented with a range of more than 60 CLIQ and eCLIQ cylinder types, making every access point secure.
To learn more about the SMARTair/CLIQ integration at UD Almería, watch the video here.
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