FreeMarkets Keeps Cool and Safe with Integrated Access Control System

Enterprise Networks & Servers, Jan 2004 by Fournier, Rick

"When the world's leading and largest companies rely on you to help them do everything from buying goods and services and managing suppliers to monitoring contracts and spending on a global basis, and billions of dollars of commerce are conducted using your software and services, security becomes paramount. As the leading provider of Global Supply Management solutions, FreeMarkets Inc. recognized early on the critical need to protect their clients' proprietary information.

"Our security absolutely has to be so tight," said Terry Jackovic, facilities operations manager at FreeMarkets. "We have a lot of clients who compete in the same arenas, so the security of information is critical to them."

FreeMarkets original security concern consisted of office space in downtown Pittsburgh. FreeMarkets moved into two floors of One Oliver Plaza in mid-1999 with 180 employees. Over the next two years, it expanded to more than 1,000 employees worldwide and occupied 10 floors of One Oliver Plaza, which was renamed FreeMarkets Center. This dynamic expansion added to the complexity of their security needs.

The company began to think globally on every operation, including security. They wanted a solution that could be managed efficiently over their existing high-tech networked systems. Their network was already tied into facilities in Europe and Asia with T-1 lines from Pittsburgh running the organization.

When FreeMarkets first moved to One Oliver Plaza, they had selected The Integrator by Galaxy Control Systems for security on the two floors that they occupied. "When an alarm was triggered after hours, I would get a call at home and the dispatcher would tell me what type of an alarm it was," recalled Jackovic. "This was manageable at first, but then we expanded our facilities worldwide. Then, when an alarm went off, the calls could be coming from anywhere in the world. With multiple time zones involved, we realized a critical need for 24/7 coverage of all satellite offices. We needed a central operations center."

In February 2000, InterTECH Security of Carnegie, Penn., became FreeMarkets' strategic security dealer. They assessed the company's needs and recommended an upgrade from The Integrator to System Galaxy. Though The Integrator was a robust system, System Galaxy incorporated the functionality of communicating over TCP/IP. The migration would also support multiple users, multi-tasking and integration with their Microsoft Windows NT clusters and Windows 2000 network, all critical aspects to resolving the global security initiative.

InterTECH worked with Galaxy Control Systems' Dan Gramlich, technical director, and Kevin Shank, senior software developer, to provide FreeMarkets with the overall system design and architecture. "Galaxy Control Systems is extremely reliable, and makes one of the most user-friendly electronic access control software packages I've ever seen," said Chris Wetzel, president of InterTECH Security LLC. "I've worked with many manufacturers over the years, and one thing that stands out is that they listen to their dealers and are willing to make changes - even custom changes that we suggest."

The installed system is comprised of a centralized Microsoft SQL 7 database, which works behind the scenes of the System Galaxy software. It also incorporates optional photo badging and elevator control capabilities. "One of the things we wanted to create was a centralized database and a single credential that they could use at any office," said Wetzel. "Now that they can add or delete cards from one location, it is easier to control the process. Someone in Pittsburgh actually has the capability to make program changes for all the offices worldwide. The satellite facilities can only make changes that apply to their own offices."

To achieve the desired system architecture, InterTECH Security's technology manager, Charlie Wetzel, managed the upgrade process from The Integrator to System Galaxy. Due to Galaxy's product design, the change simply required the change out of the motherboard for each installed panel. The new boards were flashed before installation and the upgrade of all 18 installed panels were achieved in a single evening without interruption to ongoing service.

The access control components of the system are central to its functions. There are currently a total of 158 card readers and 22 access control panels installed worldwide. Exterior doors to all the buildings are controlled by card access, using HID Prox Pro card readers and HID ISOPROX II proximity cards with photo and artwork.

The readers in the U.S. offices also had to comply with the American Disabilities Act. "When interfacing with doors that have automatic doors operators, the card access reader must either activate the manual button or automatically open the manual handicap button," said Jackovic. "There are different requirements for different countries, but in the U.S. we have them on every lobby door. To enter, the person swipes his or her card and then pushes the automatic door button to operate the automatic door opener."