Students without keys
Keyless de Key
Housing corporation De Key and GuestCompass ran a pilot program with 'keyless' doors. Thanks to these electronic door locks, students can open the doors of their residential complex and their own apartment using their smartphones.
GuestCompass & De Key
De Key has been using GuestCompass for several years for over 20 residential complexes with 7,000 student apartments. With GuestCompass, De Key provides students with customized housing information, such as waste management, facilities, and planned maintenance work. But with this pilot, the collaboration takes it a step further: with GuestConnect from GuestCompass, student residents can now enter their building and own apartment without keys.
De Prins Hendrikkade
The De Key complex on Prins Hendrikkade, where this 'keyless' pilot is running, comprises 130 student apartments. Together, they accommodate a staggering 2,000 tenant turnovers per year, as they house international students who study in Amsterdam for relatively short periods. This means an average of four key handovers take place twice a year! This used to be an incredibly time-consuming task, as an appointment had to be made for each student upon arrival and departure. Thanks to this pilot, that will soon be a thing of the past.
Short stay student en sleutels
In the complex on Prins Hendrikkade, GuestCompass initially connected 10 short-stay student apartments to the GuestConnect platform. This is a brand-independent authentication platform in which we not only control access to doors but also provide home automation. Think of features such as lighting, thermostat control, energy consumption, curtains opening/closing, etc. Since the Prins Hendrikkade complex consists of both old and new buildings, we were able to test different scenarios and locks simultaneously. The pilot showed that the keyless system offers many advantages.
Keyless voordelen voor de student
Two weeks before their arrival, students receive an email with a registration form. After registration, the student gains immediate access to the doors of the complex and their own apartment. In the app, this is clearly visible as the keys change from gray to blue. An additional advantage is that students can check via the app a week before their lease contract expires how long the keys will remain functional. And since students always have their smartphones with them, they don't need to worry about forgetting or losing a key.
Keyless access management benefits
For building administrators, the benefits are actually even greater:
- No key handouts
- It's visible from the office if students have arrived
- No more drilling cylinders because a key is lost
- Cleaners get access on the cleaning day and don't need to pick up keys
- You can see if the cleaner has already been there
- Students know exactly when the lease period is over, which was often unclear in the past
The technology behind GuestConnect
The GuestConnect authentication platform can open doors using various protocols. Depending on the situation, we make a choice in that regard. For instance, front doors in residential complexes often already have an electronic lock, allowing students from their rooms to open the front door when someone is at the door. These front door locks don't need to be replaced but are connected to GuestConnect. If many doors in close proximity need to be connected, such as the apartment front doors and bedroom doors on Prins Hendrikkade, we use the KNX protocol. KNX is an open standard for building automation. For standalone doors that need to be electronically opened, we use an IoT device (Internet of Things).
GuestConnect opens electronic doors
a brand-independent authentication platform
Results of the keyless pilot
The pilot is a great success. The technology works well, students are satisfied with the convenience, and administrators report that they spend much less time on questions and arrangements. The next step is to make four existing residential towers and a new residential complex keyless!
Feel free to email or call us if you want more information or if you're also interested in a pilot. We'd be happy to tell you more about the keyless options as well as the home automation solutions.
