United States. The new student center at Columbia College Chicago began operations in the fall of 2019. The school has taken the initiative to improve overall safety, with the intention of maintaining an open feel to the campus. To do this, the architects designed the building with Speedlane Open turnstiles and a TQM manual revolving door by Boon Edam.
Columbia College Chicago has a closed campus. To enter any building on campus, students and staff must have a Columbia ID or visitors must have a valid appointment. The main entrance at the student center is the TQM revolving door that leads to a public lobby that includes a cafeteria and a lounge. Since the turnstiles are just after the security desk at the edge of this area, they serve as a visual and physical indicator of where the public area ends.
Next to the Speedlane Open turnstiles, which are notable because they have no locking barriers, guards watch as people pass through them to make sure everyone is scanning their IDs and that the IDs are valid, in which case the tourniquet shows a green light. In a situation where a red light is displayed and the turnstile shows alarms, the guard will verify the person's credentials and can try to solve the ID card problem.
"The decision was really about what creates the least barrier for those entering and leaving the building," said Andy Dutil, director of the student center. "We really don't want our students to feel like they're too guarded or that our buildings aren't accessible to them. So the design of the open turnstiles provided the best solution in terms of access control without being annoying."
Fast step with responsibility
Before the student center was built, students entering any campus building simply showed their ID to the security officer as they passed. Management realized that while this provided some level of security, it was not foolproof, especially when many people are entering at the same time for a class. The school's head of security made the suggestion to install a system that would allow for the rapid passage of authorized persons while maintaining responsibility around who enters and leaves the building.
As expected, there was a short learning curve for students using the new system. "This was the first system like this on our campus," Dutil said. "And the first days that the new center was open were also the first days of the school. There were a lot of new people on campus who required a little training from the guards and our student staff in terms of where to put their card, and not walk through before placing their card."
Dutil confirms that the access systems placed on the Boon Edam turnstiles are outperforming the systems placed on the campus swing doors for convenience and adoption. "Across campus, there's a card reader at every swing door entrance to a building where you present your card and a light turns red or green. But often the card reader is lost, or depending on the placement of the lights and the placement of the guard, it can be a bit unpredictable if the students walk next to it.
"But with the open turnstiles, the Speedlane Open, these are very visible and while they're not a total barrier to entry, they're something that's right in front of you. Because it is so remarkable and not easily overlooked, students have learned very quickly to get their IDs out. In fact, this was meant to be a test for the campus to make sure it would be viable and worthwhile for other buildings as well."
Advanced features
Turnstiles have provided additional benefits beyond basic campus security, according to Dutil. "One of the good things about a system like this is that we can count the visitors to the student center because we get the data from everyone who scans. So on a busy day for us it is around 2500 people throughout the day. That can vary depending on what's going on and what time of year it is. On weekends we are very slow, as there are no classes – maybe 900 to 1200."
"We're also a rental location, so we have times when the building is open to people who aren't from Columbia College Chicago for events or other functions. There's a very convenient touchpad right on the security desk called BoonTouch, where the officer can turn off the turnstiles during those times and then attendees can move freely without any alarm going off."
Finally, the TQM revolving door offers an additional benefit to the student center, located in a city known for bad weather. "Revolving doors are always preferred in a building like this that has a lot of traffic going in and out. We have a cold climate and a current blowing directly into our main space at that first floor entrance. The revolving door helps keep the building warm and saves energy and utility costs as well," Dutil said.
"Students feel safe and comfortable entering the building at night," he concludes. "Our building has many corners, and someone can end up alone in one space. So I think knowing that the only people who are in that building are the ones who are supposed to be there is helpful. Overall, our students appreciate the effort to try to keep them safer."
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