Site security in a CLIQ®

Abloy have a long history in locks and security, and it’s something they continue to excel in. Rather than complicate site security technology and processes, they aim to deliver an elegant solution which can both overcome climatic and user challenges and offer asset owners real time control over who is on site at any given time. TowerXchange caught up with Steve Wintle, Head of CNI at Abloy UK, to find out more about how their CLIQ^® technology can deliver site security, operational efficiencies and critical asset management insights.  TowerXchange: Please introduce Abloy, your history and footprint.

Abloy was founded in 1907 has grown to be recognised as a clear, innovative leader in security solutions. Since the foundation of ASSA ABLOY in 1994, Abloy has successfully continued to develop and maintain a market leading portfolio of security products and a strong focus in many vertical segments, especially in solutions for critical infrastructure. With operations in over 90 countries, Abloy is a true international provider of security solutions providing global solutions and support services to organisations around the world, of which the communications sector is possibly the most obvious in terms of crossing borders across all continents. Telecommunications infrastructure is therefore in need of a provider of security solutions with a customer-centric focus, who can genuinely work across the same borders and continents can offer major benefits both from a learning and support perspective.

TowerXchange: Would you say that site security is becoming more important to tower owners? If so, why?

Security of sites is naturally important but the control of access and management of who has access to remote sites is possible becoming more of a driver for various reasons. Theft or malicious damage is not necessarily carried out by the organised criminal or terrorist, although these concerns shouldn’t be underestimated. The biggest challenge to site security for operators and tower owners is more likely from the inside, either from disgruntled employees or the uncontrolled access of contractors. 

The worst example of this is where a grounds maintenance contractor needs to access a secure area which could contain high voltage or data cabinets to sign an attendance book, putting the individuals at risk from a health and safety perspective. This is also a potential risk for accidental or deliberate damage, producing potential customer lost minutes (CLM) and poor reputation of the service provider. In our experience a lot of infrastructure customers are carrying a huge security risk simply because there is an extortionate number of keys in circulation with little or no control of who has those keys and certainly no information of who is accessing sites or when they may have accessed those sites. 

TowerXchange: Please tell us about how Abloy’s products and services can feed into critical data gathered around asset management and reporting – how can this help deliver site efficiency?

Abloy developed a technology back in the 90’s that brought intelligence to a mechanical key, which back then was considered ahead of its time. Today CLIQ^® technology from Abloy provides the perfect solution, ideally suited to national infrastructure and providers of international services because you can now control a key and its access rights anywhere in the world from anywhere in the world. This is a major differentiator in that the physical security of the product won’t be compromised as the CLIQ technology provides convenience without compromising control or reducing security. Sadly over the years companies have had to compromise on security in favour of convenience and, in the long run, have suffered from not being able to provide adequate security levels to protect a critical asset. The Protec2 CLIQ^® from Abloy is tested to the very highest security standards, recognised internationally and now delivers significantly more benefits than just security. CLIQ technology provides companies with greater control to maintain regulatory compliance, reducing potential CML and improving and supporting a company’s reputation. Health and safety incidents can be reduced through integration with permit-to-work ticketing systems, ensuring only qualified and competent people can physically access sensitive or dangerous equipment.  In terms of operational savings through efficiencies, the most obvious example is when an engineer turns up on site with the wrong key and has to travel back to base to get the correct key. Of course what often happens to try and counter this is that everyone has more keys then they need (or should have) so sites are left vulnerable. The CLIQ solution not only allows changeable access rights of a key at any time, avoiding the need to carry large numbers of keys, but also provides an audit trail which can be used in a number of different ways – in some cases simply to provide verification that a contractor did actually attend a site when they said they did. With standard reporting tools the data collected by the CLIQ solution could then provide automated reports to the business which, if requested by regulators, can be produced simply and accurately at the touch of a button. So the key has now become much more than just a key, it could be described as an IoT or a connected device.

TowerXchange: For tower owners with tenants, field operatives and third party teams accessing their towers, how can Abloy help to mitigate the risk of multiple stakeholders accessing their assets?

Controlling the access to remote sites is no longer an issue, the usual conflict of service providers or maintenance crews turning up at the same site at the same time is completely inefficient and can put individuals and business at unnecessary risk from injury and service disruption causing CML and revenue loss. Integration is “key” pardon the pun, no single solution can efficiently prevent this clash but integrating CLIQ with permit to work, ticketing systems can completely mitigate the risk of the wrong people turning up at the wrong time. We often see cases where there are serious health and safety risks, for example someone working at height who is possibly not trained to do so, whilst a grounds person is cutting the grass below them and crane is lifting a new antenna into place. All these scenarios happen but by integrating with CLIQ, tower owners can ensure these conflicts no longer take place.

TowerXchange: We’re seeing many MNOs across Europe carving out their towers either to run as a towerco or to sell, how important is it to audit security at this point in time? 

In the past it’s been a real challenge primarily because the access gate for a tower is often a simple padlock, which is all that is required, however to be able to audit or control access in remote or harsh environments would require expensive and unreliable electric locking system with online access control. Protec2 CLIQ requires no power to the padlock yet the technology still provides controlled and flexible access whilst gathering data for auditing purposes without the need for expensive installation, power and data. All the power and data is carried in the key hence why the CLIQ key is no longer just a key; it is an integrated device. With low energy Bluetooth technology in the key, the key communicates with a tablet or smartphone using AES encryption. Using CLIQ web managers OS system also means tower owners can visualise on maps the security status of each and every lock on each and every site at any time.

TowerXchange: MNOs and towercos plan to roll out 5G technology, what are the implications for site security, and how can this be managed?

More points of presence in smaller units means a different type of security or lock type. This is where a global manufacturer with a vast array of locking products such as ABLOY is able to provide a solution anywhere in the world or have the R&D resources to develop new locking types that suit smaller or different applications still manageable and controllable on the same key and using CLIQ technology.

TowerXchange: We’re seeing an increasing number of points of presence going up in urban areas. What are the unique security challenges presented by urban infrastructure and how can Abloy help?

I see it less as a challenge and more of an opportunity. Having a global presence means, we are continually learning by working closely with customers across all national infrastructure sectors, around the world. We understand the security requirements and bring cross-sector learning to all national infrastructure verticals. The biggest challenge as I see it is managing larger numbers of access points, but this again is where CLIQ solution with cloud hosted web manager and integrated mapping would make it significantly easier to manage the increased number of access points with far greater efficiencies, maintain health and safety as well as regulatory compliance.