Assumption College, Kilmore, Victoria

Assumption College Transitions to SMARTair^® for Next-Generation Access Control

Located in Victoria, Assumption College serves a large secondary-school community with multiple buildings, high foot traffic of students, staff and visitors, plus evolving security and operational demands. The College recognised that its legacy mechanical key and wired access systems were no longer fit for purpose. To deliver a safer, smarter and more efficient access control environment, the College selected ASSA ABLOY’s SMARTair^® wireless access control platform, implemented by system integrator Rigid Solutions.

The Challenge

• With many doors across academic buildings, administrative zones, specialist teaching spaces and student-common areas, the College needed consistent access management and audit capability.
• Mechanical keys and mixed wired access panels created inefficiencies: lost keys, rekeying, manual oversight, limited audit visibility and significant maintenance.
• Installation downtime had to be minimal-interruptions to classes and campus movement were unacceptable.
• The solution had to be scalable, flexible and integrate with existing building systems (IT network, credential issuance, staff/student workflows).

The Solution: SMARTair^® Deployment

Assumption College selected SMARTair’s wireless, battery-powered escutcheons, wall readers and credentialing software as the core access control solution. Key aspects of the deployed solution included:

• Wireless installation of SMARTair locking devices (electronic escutcheons, cylinders, wall-readers) across campus doors-in many cases retrofitting existing doors without major structural change.
• Use of SMARTair management software to issue and revoke credentials, monitor access events, generate audit trails and manage access rights from a central point.
• Integration with the College’s credential issuance and staff/student-access systems, enabling one card or credential to be used across campus access points.
• Planning for scalability so the system can expand to new buildings, additional doors or future mobile credential capabilities as required.

SMARTair was the best choice for our campus because it gives us real-time control, seamless credential management and the flexibility to grow as our facility expands

- Scott Forsyth, BDM VIC/TAS – Commercial Access Control, ASSA ABLOY Australia.

We were able to install SMARTair locking devices in a live school environment with minimal disruption-classes continued, staff access remained uninterrupted and the upgrade was completed on schedule.

- Rigid Solutions (System Integrator): 

Why Digital Wireless Access Matters in Education

Educational institutions like Assumption College face unique access control demands. Digital wireless solutions such as SMARTair deliver critical benefits:

• Tracking & auditability: Every door event is recorded, credential issuance/revocation is centralised and administrators can monitor who accessed which area and when-enhancing security and incident-response readiness. 
• Ease of installation and retrofit: Wireless, battery-powered locks can be installed without major cabling or disruption to existing infrastructure. This is particularly important in live educational environments where downtime must be low. 
• Seamless integration: The ability to integrate with existing access credentials, student/staff databases, and building management systems ensures the solution fits within the College’s broader ecosystem and supports future growth.
• Scalability and operational efficiency: A wireless, modular system means future buildings, additional doors or changing access profiles can be accommodated with lower cost and complexity compared to mechanical systems.
• Enhanced safety and compliance: With centralised control and audit trails, the College can demonstrate compliance with safety, security and regulatory requirements more effectively than with manual key systems.

Outcomes & Key Benefits

• Assumption College now enjoys a modernised access control environment that supports flexible credential management across students, staff and visitors.
• Installation occurred with minimal impact on daily campus operations-thanks to wireless retrofitting and the expertise of Rigid Solutions.
• The College gained enhanced visibility of campus movements and access events, improved control over access rights and streamlined credential issuance and revocation processes.
• The solution is future-ready-able to scale as the campus grows or adapt to mobile-credential technologies when required.

Conclusion

By choosing ASSA ABLOY’s SMARTair^® platform and working with Rigid Solutions, Assumption College has upgraded to a next-generation access control environment-one that is secure, efficient, flexible and built for the future. The project demonstrates how educational institutions can move beyond mechanical keys and wired legacy systems to embrace digital access solutions that support both operational demands and student/staff safety.