Matrix Air: the thinnest door fitting on the market
IFSEC Global: What products will you be showcasing at IFSEC?
John Whitby: We’ve got three main products on the stand.
The first is the Bluetooth Smart Key. This is where we’re giving people the ability to use their smart device, not just for access control, but we’re embedding this technology into the automatic door operator itself, so it’s seamless access control without any door readers.
That actually forms part of our VIP stand promotion. We’re inviting our VIPs to download a special app so they can interact with the door itself when they visit our stand.
One of the things that happens time and time again is that architects spend years on projects designing everything to the nth degree, but access control right at the very end is just a black plastic box. So what we’ve tried to do is integrate that directly within the automatic doors.
Which brings us on to the second thing, the Matrix Air access control fixtures and fittings, which we’re in the process of launching. Again, a key benefit of that is being more sympathetic to the design integrity of the building rather than really standing out.
That’s why we developed the Matrix Air, particularly the door fitting itself. The key feature is having a fitting that would be the thinnest on the market – the thickness of an iPhone.
IG: And why does it need to be so thin?
JW: The other door fittings out there have a similar design but they also have what we’d call a backpack on top of it. We wanted to hide that technology so people can look at the door and think “that’s a really nice door handle”.
But it also has all the access control functionality that you would expect.
The other product we’re focusing on is our integrated access solution. Lots of companies do access control or door automation but bringing the two together in a seamless integration is something we feel our customers have been requesting for a very long time.
IG: Why did customers want this end-to-end solution?
JW: It’s often a question of whose responsibility it is and people will look at each other and say “it’s their fault”. Our access control is all integrated, so if there is an issue, they know who to come to.
IG: Where does DORMA UK sit in the access control market and to what customers are you pitching your products?
This is the first time DORMA UK has done IFSEC but DORMA has a long history in access control. The big thing for us is focusing on the past, the present and the future. We have more than 30 years of experience so we do have a lot of very longstanding, impressive customers like the European parliament.
Access control has barely changed in 20-30 years. People are still using cards or key fobs.
Now with smart devices we’re essentially carrying around a computer, so we’re looking at that wondering what else we can do with that device. How can we use it, not to replace access control, but to enhance it?
The first time we showed Matrix Air was a security fair last year and one thing that took us by surprise was the level of interest from architects and specifiers. We’ve been talking to more of them to find out what it was they liked about it and how did they want to work with it?
As a technological solution, access control often tends to get bumped into mechanical-electrical or security contracts, this is actually something that hopefully we can explain in more real terms so it can become integrated into the design philosophy of the building.
IG: What are your plans for IFSEC?
JW: The stand will showcase the integrated access control solution and will be a fully working environment. We’ll have a range of automatic doors, including one door with a very high level of security and emergency escape solutions, showing how it can be integrated into an access control environment.
So customers can download the app and get a real feel of everything from our past, all the way through to our current range and what we’re launching, and get an idea of where we see the market going in the future – not just from a technology point of view but from a physical security of the door point of view as well.
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