ewz relies on KESO eCLIQ

Details

Property: ewz
Area: Critical infrastructure
ASSA ABLOY components: KESO eCLIQ

Challenge

ewz, the city of Zurich’s electricity utility, operates critical infrastructure with extremely high access control requirements. Security, traceability, and flexibility are paramount. Especially in areas such as high- and medium-voltage installations, transformer stations, and hydroelectric power plants, it must be ensured that only authorized persons have access.

The existing mechanical locking system no longer met these requirements. A mandatory requirement by the Swiss federal government, according to which only certified persons with valid documentation may gain access to high- and medium-voltage areas, provided a reason for the modernization. From the perspective of accident insurance companies, complete access documentation is also essential. It must be possible to trace and evaluate access to sensitive areas at all times. In addition, ewz wanted a solution with which access rights could be managed centrally and individually adapted if necessary. The surroundings in which many locking components were installed also placed high demands on the materials. In publicly accessible locations such as transformer stations, key depots, and distribution boxes, components are exposed to intense sunlight, extreme temperatures, humidity, and dirt from road dust and exhaust fumes every day.

Solution

With KESO eCLIQ, ewz found a locking solution that meets all their requirements and goes far beyond the capabilities of traditional mechanical systems.

Around 12,000 components have been installed so far. The solution is used in office and administrative buildings, substations, transformer stations, and hydroelectric power plants as well as in distribution boxes and employee lockers. The electronic locking system enables flexible and centrally controllable issuing of access rights. Individual keys can be enabled for precisely defined time slots or disabled immediately if required. This gives ewz full control at all times over who is granted access, when, and where. At the same time, integrated logging ensures that all locking processes are completely documented. The system can also withstand the physical challenges. The components used outdoors are weather-resistant, robust, and durable. They reliably withstand strong UV radiation, extreme temperatures, and the effects of dirt.

“With eCLIQ, we have found a future-proof solution that fully meets our high requirements in terms of security, transparency, and flexibility. We were particularly impressed by the simple management of complex access rights for a large number of components and user groups with the intuitive CLIQ Web Manager user software, which helps us to reliably comply with security-relevant specifications.” André Wrede, Locking Specialist at ewz