To answer this question, let’s look at what the pen and paper log books offer? It no doubt offers ease of set-up. And that’s just about everything it offers. A plain paper with some vertical lines or an off the shelf printed log book is all that is needed from the word go. However, the benefits of quick set up and cheaper costs outweigh its risks.
Now, what are those risks you might want to ask? I’ve highlighted just a couple of them here.
The receptionist has to make a phone call to inform the host of the arrival of his guest. While this may seem plausible and even desirable for a small office, in a large office where staff roam about – the new norm in work culture – it is virtually impossible to get hold of the person with the first call. Often times, the guest has to wait not knowing if the host has received the message from the Receptionist. And if there is a long queue, then the wait only gets longer.
Anyone can sign in to the building to meet anyone they wish. As long as there is a visitor and a host name in the paper pass, the person is let through. In most cases, the visitor himself makes a call to the host to pick him up from the reception reducing the need for further checks by the Receptionist. Needless to say that the security of the building is compromised in such cases.
And by the way, did I mention that the log books can easily be lost, damaged or tampered with?
Now, how do we go about solving this problem?
Most organisations overdo this – I mean throw in complex systems with umpteen bells and whistles that makes it a nightmare for the Visitors – to visit the premises; Hosts – to receive the visitors; and Receptionists – to manage the whole process and paper work. You’d often hear from these people: what happened to the good old days of a pen and paper log book?
What is needed is a simple system that has the ease of a pen and paper visitor log book, yet have robust security controls. The Receptionist and the visitors should really feel that the system is simple to use and delighted that the pen and paper logs books have been done away with. The facilities manager and the security manager should feel that they are in control. The whole thing works like a clockwork without the bells and whistles.
Imagine a visitor walking in, and instead of writing onto a piece of paper, types into a computer terminal (a touch enabled device will do no harm). The system then prints a paper pass, sends an Email and SMS notification to the host, keeps a record of the building passes issued and monitors the check-in and check-out times of the visitors. The security manager can pull out reports at will. Wouldn’t this be cool?
This is exactly what we provide with Vistas Visitor Access System. And it doesn’t stop there. It provides a great visitor experience and just enough controls to ensure that the system and in turn the building is secure. It requires virtually no training to get started as everything’s intuitive and nothing’s out of place.
The set-up of our Visitor Access System is fast (in most cases, it can be done in a couple of hours if the basic infrastructure already exists). We understand what we are competing against – the humble pen and paper log books. Hence we offer the solution for a low annual subscription fee which comes with complete support, updates and free upgrades. Or if you prefer, get a lifetime license and pay only an annual support fee. The decision is yours.
We’d be delighted to organise an online demo to showcase the software and, if possible, direct you to sites where our system is live.
Drop us a line if you are interested: info@frslabs.com. We look forward to hearing from you.
