One of the most critical components to commercial security today is being able to control access to your building. Surveillance cameras can only get you so far- there is a pressing need to have an access control system so that you can lock and unlock your doors in order to let your employees get in and out. When you are deciding on your readers and credentials, you should take into consideration everything from biometric fingerprint scanners to key fobs to smartphone apps. Another thing that business owners looking to up security should keep in mind is that while a key card system may not seem as cool or flashy as other types of credentials, they are still a reliable staple of commercial access control. Read on to learn more about 4 types of key card systems to secure your entry doors. Affordable Lock & Security Solutions provides security control systems in the Tampa area. Call Affordable Lock & Security Solutions to install an access control system Tampa business owners trust! 

 

Entry Doors at Tampa – Types of Key Cards

 

There are four main types of key card systems to secure your business entrances.

  • Wiegand Cards- These are one of the first types of key cards that were developed for a keycard system, and Wiegand cards are named after their inventor. John R. Wiegand had discovered in the 1970’s that specially annealed wire made of iron, cobalt, and vanadium will immediately switch polarity when they are passed through a magnetic field that is sufficiently strong. A sensor coil nearby will pick up on the rapid change as a high-voltage pulse, which can translate into data if multiple wires are pulled through the field. Wiegand cards cannot be erased or reprogrammed by magnetic fields, and are also more durable than other types of key cards since they don’t have a microchip or any other fragile components. While more sophisticated systems have been developed today, most readers will still convert the data to a Wiegand number.
  • Swipe Cards- Using the same technology that a credit card does, magnetic stripe cards can be swiped across a magnetic reader to transfer information. The black stripe can hold a much longer data set than a Wiegand card, and while the overall principle is similar to a Wiegand card, the magnets are not permanently encoded, so they can be rewritten as needed. However, magnetic fields or general wear-and-tear can corrupt the data strip. This is a common access control system Tampa businesses use. 

 

Securing Your Entry Doors at Tampa

  • Prox Cards (RFID)- Contactless credentials generally utilize Radio Frequency Identification to transmit data that is stored on a microchip. Prox cards are proprietary, so there are no established standards or compatibility between manufacturers. They are also quite vulnerable to being copied or rewritten, although the copier would need to get very close. 
  • Smart Cards- The term “smart card” generally refers to high-frequency RFID cards that utilize Near-Field Communication to transmit data. These cards can be more secure and are not as easily copied as the older prox cards, but also have a smaller working radius in door locks.

 

Contact Us Today

 

There are many types of key card systems to secure your entry doors. Call Affordable Lock & Security Solutions today to install an access control system Tampa business owners trust! 

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