PUBLIC ACCESS CONTROLLED

Jul 1, 2002 12:00 PM

At Merrill Field Airport in Anchorage, Alaska, the security system formerly consisted of a five-foot fence, several readers with one master code, and insufficient maintenance capabilities. This combination made controlling access impossible. Gate security was easily breached and inadequately controlled with garage door-type clickers, and customers needed to carry several clickers to pass through multiple gates. The airport access road intersects two taxiways, and drivers had been known to stray onto the taxiways and runways from these intersections.

Home to almost 1,000 general aviation aircraft, Merrill Field is rich in heritage and provides a central hub for business operations in Alaska. The airport recently installed an access control system as part of a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)-mandated runway incursion program.

“The public airport has multiple roads that lead into it,” says Pat Williams, integrated systems manager for supplying company SimplexGrinnell. “People turn in the wrong direction and onto a taxiway or sometimes on the runway.”

When the FAA mandated an access control system be installed, Merrill Field's security programs manager Bill Edwards put the job out for public bid. InfoGraphic Systems (Garden Grove, Calif.), Hattenburg & Dilley (an Anchorage-based engineering consultant firm) and SimplexGrinnell's Anchorage office worked with Edwards to design a system that met Merrill Field's requirements. Swanson General Contractors Inc., Anchorage, installed the system.

Merrill Field installed InfoGraphic Systems' SAPPHIRE Pro access control system with ACU-R2 Intelligent Control panels. Rolling vehicle gates with proximity readers — a fence on wheels with a motor that energizes when a card is read or access code is entered — were installed. If a bumper of a car or a person touches the gate, it will stop. All other vehicle gates have been chained shut.

“[The system] eliminated the problem of vehicles going onto runways,” Edwards says. “Customers need only one card to go through any number of gates, and we can get rid of the master code.

“We now have an emergency access code that is released to the fire and police departments and all law enforcement officials,” Edwards adds. “I can track who is using it and when, and I really like that.”

Two railroad crossing-style gates deter cars from driving onto the taxiways. Remote sensors control the taxiway arms while the system monitors arm positions. If an arm has been raised for more than five minutes, an alarm notifies the staff of a possible problem.

Those who frequent the airport regularly use cards and gate access codes to gain entry. Visitors are given a time-limited access code. Each reader also has a keypad for use by anyone without a card. Each leaseholder establishes a PIN for their gate and controls who has that number.

Fifteen pedestrian gates have also been installed at locations around the airport. Pedestrians must enter a code on a mechanical cipher lock to enter. The gates close automatically to ensure public safety. Merrill Field plans to raise its fence to seven feet to further deter trespassers.

“Since we've installed [the system] and the pedestrian gates, there has been a 50 percent drop in the vehicle/pedestrian incursion rate,” Edwards says.

If a gate is causing a problem, the maintenance staff is alerted and investigates. Previously, the airport maintenance staff had to physically test all the gates. If a gate has been open too long, Edwards works with the lease owners and maintenance staff to close it.

The system is networked with one head-end computer connected to the server over a wireless local area network (LAN). Staff can program a new card into the system in five minutes.

Edwards appreciates the ACU control panel's capabilities. “If the ACUs lose connection, they'll operate autonomously using the last information downloaded and continue to function.”

FOR THE RECORD

ABOUT THE COMPANIES

For information, please circle the appropriate Reader Service number (listed below) on one of the Reader Service cards in the issue or visit infoLINK at www.securitysolutions.com.

InfoGraphic Systems	22
SimplexGrinnell	23

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