Scottish Power, one of the UK's leading suppliers of gas and electricity opted for BSB Electronics Progeny P3.net access control system when it was time to update its access control arrangements at their Cathcart site in Glasgow.

Installed by Pointer, BSB Electronics’ P3.net on line access system was fitted to 60 doors over a period of 6-8 weeks during which there was a gradual change over from the previous system which had been in place for over 15 years.

Some 2,500 staff use the Cathcart building on a daily basis and in addition there are multi site users who are granted access to Cathcart on an individual basis. Consequently 3,200 cards were programmed.

Scottish Power’s Facilities Account Manager, Edith Barrowman, and Stuart Maxwell from Pointer worked closely with BSB Electronics’ Progeny Support Team to make sure the installation went smoothly. One of the main challenges for the team was the requirement to keep the previous system ‘live’ with only one or two doors being changed over at any one time. At the outset this requirement seemed daunting but, as Pointer’s Project Manager, Stuart Maxwell explains, “There were very few problems thanks to weekly progress meetings. Thanks to good planning, effective teamwork and ease of installing the Progeny system, we found the issues we envisaged never actually transpired. Pointer’s experience of installing the Progeny kit also helped make the project run smoothly - we have used the kit on previous installations across the UK.” Edith Barrowman from Scottish Power agrees that forward planning was a key factor in the successful installation. She says, “Keeping to the plan and getting everything done at first fix were also key elements helping to make it a smooth transition from one system to another. Communicating with staff was also essential to the success of this complicated installation. ”

Edith was impressed by the easy to use Progeny SQL server software which she says is very user friendly. She adds, “Effective management of the cancellation and issue of proximity cards is crucial to the success of any access control system and the Progeny software certainly supports high levels of control. It also offers diagnostics and it is easy for us to customise reports that suit our specific needs.”
BSB Electronics’ Progeny 2052 HID proximity reader and proximity cards were used for the P3.net installation which is integrated with 100 or so intruder and fire alarms. Existing locks, RTE and emergency break glass were retained. Multiple
access levels have been applied and currently approximately 30 access levels are used.

The Progeny SQL server software allows interactive floor plans with alarm points and doors to be shown. There are a number of fire exit doors which are 24hr and a number of passive infra-red detectors which are set automatically by the software/hardware in conjunction with wired relays. Floor maps are used to enable operators to determine which doors or alarm points are open at
a quick glance.