In 2020, returning to the workplace stopped being a simple question of when and became a far bigger question of how?
Two years on, one thing is clear: the buildings that brought people back first, and safely invested in technology and had smart access.
The shift from reactive to ready
During COVID, Facilities Managers, Landlords, Integrators and M&E Contractors had to rapidly rethink what building access even looked like.
- Keycards? Too easy to lose or share and acted as a transmitter.
- Reception desks? 2m rule and bottlenecks.
- Shared keypads? Definitely not.
And so, the switch began. From physical to digital. From outdated hardware to innovative mobile access technology.
Engineers got in first (literally)
Before anyone else could come back to the office, M&E contractors and integrators were first on-site. But even for the engineers prepping HVAC systems and building infrastructure, access was a challenge.
One senior contractor from TClarke said it best:
“Some sites are so large, we need to move between buildings by vehicle. The old fobs and access cards just didn’t cut it as everything needed to be contactless.”
With Sentry Interactive’s smart parking access integration, engineers gained instant entry – not just through doors, but barriers, bollards, and gates – without stepping out of their vehicles.
It was faster, safer and contactless.
Landlords: Ready for tenants. Ready for visitors
For landlords, the goal was clear: reopen safely, without sacrificing the tenant experience.
With Sentry Interactive, mobile credentials replaced keycards and streamlined front desk check-ins. Tenants could come and go safely, no cards or queues required.
And for visitors? Sentry Interactive’s mobile visitor pass made things simple and seamless.
Tenants could invite guests. The visitor scans the QR code with their phone on arrival and walks in. No app. No plastic pass. Just secure mobile access. It wasn’t just safer – it was better than what came before.
Facilities Managers: The space connectors
Facilities Managers oversee large scale sites that are made up of multiple buildings, car parks, outdoor spaces and anything in between. Think offices, airports, stadiums, universities and so forth.
Before the pandemic, IoT in commercial buildings was often about usability and efficiency. After COVID, it became more about interoperability, cost and ROI. The flexibility of remote communication with a building and its facilities delivers on all those fronts for facilities management companies.
Facility Managers needed visibility, control and automation. Sentry Interactive’s SDK embedded into their platform delivers this for access control.
Mobile access was just the beginning. From smart elevators to printer access and smart lockers, buildings became access ecosystems – fully connected, fully manageable, and built around the smartphone.
As one FM from CBRE put it:
“We used to talk about ‘future-proofing’ buildings. Now we’re living in that future and mobile access control was the first piece of the puzzle.”
What makes sentry different?
Most mobile access platforms are tethered to proprietary readers, expensive hardware upgrades, and painful install cycles.
Sentry Interactive mobile credential software isn’t.
It’s readerless, hardware-agnostic and a cloud-first solution that embeds within proprietary access control systems and third party applications.
That means:
- No new wiring.
- No reader replacements.
- No installation downtime.
Just software that integrates with your physical access control system and transforms it into a contactless NFC mobile-first access experience in minutes.
The smartest way back to work started with the front door
The pandemic exposed how fragile traditional building operations really were.
Now, the world’s smartest buildings are rethinking everything – from how we operate, consume energy, park or unlock a door.
Mobile access isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s the new default, and companies like Sentry Interactive are facilitating the transition with their innovative low cost and easy to deploy readerless software for legacy systems.
And for building operators ready to future-proof, simplify, and scale Sentry Interactive is how you start.
