Access control solutions specialist the Urmet Group has been chosen to secure the first two residential buildings at the prestigious King’s Cross Central scheme in London.
King’s Cross Central is a major mixed-use development site in the heart of London and plays host to offices, restaurants and shops, new homes and a university.
Planning permission for 50 new and restored buildings in addition to 20 new streets was granted back in 2006, in turn rendering this exciting new development the largest single-ownership project to be master-planned and energised in central London in over 150 years.
It’s so extensive that there’s even a new postcode for the development: London N1C
Up to 2,000 homes and serviced apartments are being built at the King’s Cross Central site. The accommodation on offer includes affordable and private housing, supported homes for the elderly and student accommodation.
The Urmet Group has now been appointed as the access control solutions supplier for the first two residential buildings at the 67-acre development. The company initially supplied the first residential space, namely Building R4, which consists of 117 apartments. It’s now supplying a second apartment block – Building R5.
Residents moved into Building R4 last month, while its R5 cousin is due to be completed early next year.
Specifics of the contract
When researching available products on the market, main contractor Carillion specified that it wanted a system capable of doing more than just opening doors via a handset. There was also a desire to be able to manage other services within the building with whatever solution was selected.
Referencing its latest full IP video door entry and access control system, IPervoice, Urmet Group convinced Carillion – noted as one of the UK’s leading construction companies – that this system is simple to install, adds greater flexibility for the building owner and would be the correct choice for such a high volume, landmark residential scheme.
Commenting on the installation, John Goodman (Carillion’s senior m&e manager responsible for the project) explained: “We chose Urmet’s IPervoice product due its flexibility and functionality. This solution is setting the standard for IP-based audio and video door entry systems.”
Goodman and Co were also impressed by Urmet’s IT networking understanding which is “crucial” to the success of this project.
IPervoice not only allows the system to be programmed and configured in advance, and all of the operations to be controlled via its embedded web server, but also offers an array of additional – and key – benefits.
PC concierge switchboard, Resident and Visitor Lift Control
The IPervoice system implements the concierge switchboard function by using a PC and a specific software application.
A touchscreen PC can then be used to manage the switchboard while a night bell system allows the operator or security officer on duty to answer calls from any network VoIP telephones within the building.
Another key feature of IPervoice is its added layer of resident security with ‘Resident Lift Control’. When entering the building, residents simply present their proximity token to any reader. This then calls the lift to the ground floor and automatically takes residents to their own floor.
A similar function, operated via a remote lock release button on the video monitor in their apartment, also allows residents to send the lift to the ground floor when someone calls them.
The ‘Visitor Lift Control’ then only allows the visitor to select the floor they are visiting, which means they’re actively prevented from entering the rest of the building.
Focusing on Concierge Lift Control
Similarly, the ‘Concierge Lift Control’ function of the IPervoice PC-based switchboard front-end means that the concierge can control which floor the lift is called to and when.
For example, after a visitor or resident has gained access to reception, the concierge can ask them which floor they want, call the lift to the ground floor of the building and then ensure the lift automatically selects the correct floor.
Buildings R4 and R5 also feature 260 Signo video mono monitors, 13 Elekta steel panels and 51 additional IP readers.
This project is a classic example of the manufacturer working with members of the supply chain to ensure that the whole project is delivered as the developer initially wanted.
Aside from Carillion, the other major partners involved are the Argent King’s Cross Limited Partnership (asset manager, and backed by the Argent Group plc), BAM (construction services), BAM Nuttall (civil engineering), the Kier Group (building and civil engineering), SES Engineering Services (building services), Chubb Fire & Security (security installation on Building R4) and Kings Security Systems (security installer for Building R5).
Mark Hagger, sales and marketing director at Urmet, said: “The fact that our IP-based system was installed gave the building owner true flexibility and future scalability – something that’s critical to the demands of today’s modern and changing access control market in which those same building owners increasingly want more value for money.”