ZEUS keyless is the new locking system for the International Group BayWa AG, located in Munich / Germany. Based on a transponder based electronic solution, it secures their employees and infrastructure in their Corporate Headquarters. 

In 2010, the BayWa AG Group Management in Munich replaced their 30 years old locking system at their Corporate Headquarters by a mechatronical solution. The new solution was necessary because of a growing demand for security and flexibilty. Accordingly, the concept and implementation of the new locking system was individual and adapted to the BayWa needs, taking into account the size, structure and usage of the building. 

In close cooperation with ISGUS-security Ltd in Warngau near Munich, the managing team in the Facility Management Department decided to go for the electronic locking system ZEUS¨keyless, which is able to monitor up to 60.000 transponder keys and doors. 

In spring 2010, the system was implemented in their building in Arabellastrasse in central Mu-nich. Currently about 1200 employees are using the locking system for about 270 doors. The operators can now count on a very high level of security and flexibility for the administration of access authorizations. With the new system, sensitive areas with increased security requirements are no longer a risk. ZEUS¨keyless protects the main entries of the buildings, meeting- and server rooms and also provides the required security concept for the boardroom and executive suite. 

The Customer 

The internationally operating BayWa Group has its focus in the retail and service sector. The headquarters of the parent company founded in 1923 are located in Munich. Today the business’ focuses of the Group are agriculture, construction and energy. Including their franchise/ joint ventures, the Group has currently 3 000 distribution centres sprad over 15 countries. The main sales areas are in Germany, Austria and Eastern Europe. 

The Project 

The BayWa AG Group Headquarters are located in the Arabellapark in Munich. All departments such as Finance, Investor Relations, PR/Group Communication, Group Marketing, Group Development, Legal Department, Revision, Human Ressources, IT, Group Logistics and Organisation, Central Controlling and Corporate Real Estate Management are located there. In addition, the management of the Agriculture and Fruit segment as well as the Construction / Engineering / Energy sectors are located there. About 1200 BayWa employees are working in the building, and additionnal building space is rented out to external companies which are lawyer’s offices, a publishing house and a consultant company. 

The Scope 

Until 2008/10 the BayWa Headquarters were using a master key system with classic keys as locking medium. The biggest challenge for the operators of the old system was the loss of keys and accordingly no guarantee for uninterrupted control of access authorizations. Over decades the mechanical locking plan was maintained and had to be extended many times because of lost keys. 

With the new system from ISGUS-security ltd., the following targets were expected to be met by a new and intelligent locking system: 

• Replacement of the mechanic locking system. 

• The main problem which was the loss of keys should be solved and no longer be a security risk. 

• High sensitive access areas e.g. doors to Director’s offices or to the IT Department should receive individual authorization profiles. 

• The floor entry doors from the elevator area to the individual departments should be secured as well - with easy-to-use locking hierarchies and user profiles 

• Individual areas like Engineering, Security and Revision should be allocated to groups, allowing a logic structure and administration of locking plans. 

• The locking plans of the system were to be hold on the server with the possibility to make changes on access profiles at any time. 

• Real time operation of the system was a basic requirement. 

• Tenants in the building should be added to the locking system if required. 

• The constructional expenses for implementation of the system should be kept as low as possible 

The Solution 

In cooperation with the BayWa Department Facility Management, ISGUS-security Ltd. planned and implemented the ZEUS¨keyless locking system. All customer requirements could be fulfilled. The focus was on the reorganisation of access profiles. To cater for this, access authorizations can be stored either on the locking cylinder, or as an alternative, directly on the transponders. With this, in case of authorization changes, it is no longer necessary to walk to each door to make the change. 

Also, it is possible to write access authorizations on the transponders by use of profile registration terminals. Thus access authorizations can be programmed on transponders without temporal limitation and at a central place (e.g. reception area). Employees and doors are allocated to groups, which facilitates the administration of larger systems. Currently 12 access groups with different access rights are defined in the system, e.g. a ‘Director’s Group’, ‘Revision Group’, or the ‘Engineering Group’ with 50 doors to be monitored. 

Most of the external companies renting their office space from BayWa are also using the new transponder keys and appreciate the benefits of the electronic locking system for their organisation. 

The Hardware 

The system is composed of locking cylinders and wall mounted terminals, being able to read the existing RFID cards. The door cylinders are built up modularly and can be adapted to any existing door width. Transponder types for the following RFID reading technologies are available: Hitag1, all EM variants, Legic Prime, Legic Advant, Mifare Classic, Mifare DESFire, active radio transponders. For BayWa, the Hitag 1 technology was implemented. The battery powered electronics guarantees up to 50.000 operations. When the battery gets low, there is an audible signal with the last 1.000 possible operations. Even on an installed cylinder the battery can be changed easily. 

In view of further system extensions, all components have been provided with a radio chip for integration into a radion transmision networks with database connection, which might be added at a later stage. 

ZEUS keyless at a glance 

A modern door- and security management system like ZEUS keyless stands for high security with a maximum of flexibility. The modular structure of the cylinder for door widths of 35 - 140 mm saves time and cost during the installation. The use of the system is intuitive, easy and quick and supported by optical and audible signals. 

By means of flexible time ranges for permanent and/or temporary access and a „permanent door open” function, users are allocated to individual profiles for their acess authorizations. Each cylinder is provided with an event memory, where each door opening is protocolled. 

In the case of BayWa, the old locking system was fully replaced, but as an option the ZEUS¨keyless system could be combined with any existing key system, by implementing an electronic chip on the existing keys. 

ZEUS¨keyless is the interface to building engineering e.g. for operation of barriers, revolving doors, door strikes or elevators. An important feature is the possibility to integrate with other systems eg. Time Management or Canteen Data Recording. The allocation of access authorizations via profile registration terminals with temporal validation is another advantage of ZEUS¨keyless, and was one of the decision making points in the BayWa project.  

Customer Support & Prospectives 

BayWa AG with operations throughout Germany and Europe relies on the support & services from ISGUS-security ltd. Thanks to an excellent partnership, planning and implementation of the system was hassle-free and within the defined time lines. Direct and continous communication channels guarantee customer support within narrow time frames. Service contracts put the partnership on solid ground and set the course for future positive cooperations. [www.isgus-security.de]