If your company has certain areas that you would like to isolate from the others, it’s a good idea to think about installing a master-key system. Do you have certain rooms that certain employees are authorized to access, but not others? A master-key system is the perfect solution to the problem, and you can create a beautiful hierarchy of access privileges. Special thanks to www.greshamlocksmith.org for all the useful information.

How does the master-key system work?

Basically, it uses the standard pinning principle, but takes it up a notch. Each chamber has master wafers or spacers, which represent an additional line that only the master key can open. That way, you can create different levels of access authorization, which can help you separate those employees who you want entering a certain room from those that don’t have your permission to do so.

How many access levels can you have?

That is entirely up to you and your preferences. A typical master-key system will have four different levels, which should be enough to cover all levels of authorization a company consists of.

What are the benefits?

Imagine a typical key ring in a typical company. That thing tends to be huge, with as many keys on it as there are trees in the rainforest. It’s simply impractical, since it’s difficult to carry around, and when you need to find a certain key, you can spend half an hour trying to locate it. It’s absolutely impractical and because it’s such a time-waster, all serious companies should avoid this traditional way of separating access privileges.

The master-key system allows for the same user with the same key to open various different doors within that same company, which adds a lot to the comfort level of each individual user.

Are there any risks or downsides?

If the key somehow gets lost, you can simply print out a new one and continue with the business as usual. But if it gets stolen, you may have to think about re-keying the entire company or store.

Master-key system makes the entire building more secure

Imagine that you would only have one key that opened every door inside the company. What if it somehow got into the wrong hands? The security of the entire building would get jeopardized immediately. With a master-key system, however, you won’t have to fear. Even if a low level key gets stolen, the thieves will only get access to those areas that are of lower importance, and that key won’t help them reach the areas which are the most vulnerable.

Also, the key manufacturers can’t just duplicate these keys whenever they want to, because their very design is registered and copy protected by law. If they tried to do it anyway, they would be facing some serious criminal charges.

What should you do before installing the master-key system?

If you’ve decided that the master-key system is the thing you’d like to use in your own company, that’s great! However, it’s important to think things through before rushing into anything. First of all, you need to ask yourself how many different access levels you’d like to have. Then, think about the future for a bit. Is this likely going to stay like that, or will the future demand a new access level to be added? It’s best to go with more levels from the very beginning to keep more options open.

Aside from that, everyone you hand out a key to will have to return it when they no longer work there, and its very important that your employees understand that. It’s also important to make key replacement a strict formality, because a locksmith needs to fill out a form if he ever wants to make a new one, and that form must be signed by an authorized person.

After all, these keys are the company’s property and not that of the employees, so such demands are perfectly understandable. But its still a good practice to have these terms laid out formally in writing.

Do you have any questions?

Your locksmith of choice will be more than happy to answer these for you.

Having a master-key system may be a bit too much for your home or a small company, but for larger companies it can truly make things easier and more secure. Given the benefits it offers, it’s rather cost-effective, so that qualifies it as a great investment to make in order to improve the security of your company and make matters more user-friendly for the employees.