HES KS100 wireless server cabinet locks enable national data center to offer cabinet-level access control with detailed accountability
Involta is an award-winning national provider of IT intelligence and end-to-end infrastructure, including fiber connectivity, managed services and colocation in their enterprise-class, multi-tenant data centers. With centers located in Arizona, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio and Pennsylvania, Involta serves a wide range of client sectors by offering a lineup of scalable, reliable, best-in-class services to meet the growing demands of their customers.
The provider has five facilities in Ohio; a brand-new, purpose-built facility in Independence; a world-class enterprise facility in Akron; two diversely connected facilities in Youngstown; and an operations management agreement for the WēConnect Community Data Center near Columbus. Altogether, Involta owns more than 5,500 fiber route miles throughout Ohio.
Driven by customer request, Tom Lang, Involta Data Center Manager for the Ohio Region, began searching for a way to provide enhanced, customized security for their servers. A customer from the financial services sector had very specific regulatory and business requirements to meet, including a detailed audit trail at the server cabinet level.
“Key locks or combination locks are good to a point, but they don’t tell us who accessed a cabinet, when, or why. This request required a better security solution,” said Lang. “I did a lot of research and realized that ASSA ABLOY has a vast portfolio of brands and we use a lot of their hardware in other areas of our data center spaces. It was a no-brainer to work with the people at ASSA ABLOY.”
With customers looking for more flexibility, control and accountability in regard to their cabinets and suites, Mike Mullen, PSP, CWTS, EM Sales Specialist at ASSA ABLOY, presented the HES KS100 wireless server cabinet lock solution. Mullen worked with Lang to set up a demonstration of the system, integrating the lock into their existing access control management, training, and overseeing the first phase installation of the locks.
The wireless locks also feature high-security asset protection with lock latch bolt status monitoring and online/offline transaction audit trail capabilities. The system supports HID 125kHz proximity or 13.56MHz iCLASS contactless credentials.
“Our typical footprint for a shared space includes 30 cabinets. It can comprise of 30 different companies or any mix of customers and numbers of cabinets for each,” said Lang. “Customers currently making use of the wireless cabinet locks have chosen to place the locks on the front and back of the cabinets. So we’re deploying two HES KS100 wireless locks per cabinet, potentially reaching 60 wireless locks per shared space.”
Involta takes pride in offering a complete and secure lineup of scalable, reliable, best-in-class services to meet the evolving demands of its customers. This includes a range of colocation services, a 24/7/365 network operations center (NOC), and a range of managed technical and cloud services.
“We’re beginning to showcase this capability on our client tours, it allows us to show great flexibility in providing different options when it comes to the security for customers’ physical assets within our space,” said Lang. “We’re seeing a lot of interest in the wireless cabinet locks within the shared spaces. Since the system is so simple and powerful, many customers are asking about it and reevaluating their security needs.”
In terms of an integrated security approach, Involta facilities are built-in secure structures in geographic safe zones. Multiple layers of security, including video surveillance and biometric access control, ensure that access is granted only to appropriate individuals. Access is logged and retained, and the data centers have no exterior signage. Additionally, all Involta staff is industry-trained and follows stringent security procedures.