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Case study

When doors are cloud-operated

When doors are cloud-operated When doors are cloud-operated
“We are passionate about modern digital solutions. Cloud and automatization of employee attendance management go hand in hand, allowing a company like ours to clearly optimize costs while increasing employee satisfaction. We are very proud of our partnership with Špica.”  Davor Jakulin , Owner and CEO of ATech elektronika

Solution: Time & Attendance and Access control

In a nutshell: 

  • In 2022, ATech upgraded all entrances to the company with new controllers and connected them to the Door Cloud solution.
  • With Door Cloud, identification and opening the door are made easier and can be done by simply using a smartphone.
  • The company has chosen integration with the GoSoft business information system to speed up and automate attendance recording and the preparation of employee payroll data.

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ATech elektronika d.o.o.

  • Industry: production of electronic and mechatronic solutions
  • Year of establishment: 1990
  • More than 110 employees
  • More than 50 markets

About the company and its vision 

ATech elektronika d.o.o. boasts more than three decades of experience in the field of custom electronic solutions, to which it has in recent years added mechatronic solutions. The company is present in more than 50 markets and is partner to many large companies for which it manufactures semi-finished or finished products, and produces electronic and mechatronic solutions ranging from intelligent controllers to IoT solutions. As a contract manufacturer with own development, the company covers all stages from the development of advanced solutions to their realization. Today, it works with many renowned companies and brands such as Akrapovič, BSH, Danfoss Trata, Fotona, Hyla, Iskra, Johnson Controls, Kolektor, Špica International and others. ATech has also received numerous awards and prizes for innovative products and solutions. In recent years, it has also focused its development in the field of medical equipment.

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The challenge: modernizing business operations

At a time when people can enter as well as start and drive modern vehicles without a key, it is reasonable to ask why not apply the same principle in buildings and workplaces. ATech therefore wanted to upgrade the existing access control solution with a more seamless user experience – opening the door with a smartphone in your pocket. 

A commitment to continuous improvement

ATech elektronika has been using access control and clocking systems for two decades. Initially, the company only tracked employees' times of arrival and departure, whereby these were not linked to other solutions in the company. In the spirit of striving for continuous progress, the company upgraded its clocking terminals and introduced Time&Space solution a decade ago, and then in 2022, it upgraded all entrances to the company with new controllers and connected them to Door Cloud, a cloud-based solution that makes identification and opening the door easier, using only a smartphone.

“The motivation to upgrade lies in our desire for continuous improvement. We were attracted by the new technology that allows you to open the door via a mobile app. Today, doors can be opened with mobile phones, and a central system records the presence of employees, whereas tomorrow smart wearable devices may take over the role of access control,” said Aleš Miklavc, Head of Technology and Maintenance at ATech elektronika.  

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Door Cloud has proven itself successful in practice

The company, which operates at two locations, has decided to introduce cloud-based access control. It has also connected the doors and/or accesses at a remote location not connected to the company's network to the cloud, and now it can manage the sliding doors and accesses using a mobile app. 

During the test period, the Door Cloud solution was used by 10 employees, who were impressed with it and sparked the interest of the rest of the employees. “Managing doors and access via a mobile app is really practical. You could say the company's doors have simply got smarter. Even if an employee forgets their ID card at home, they can use their smartphone to open the yard door, enter the company, etc.,” explained Miklavc, who was delighted to see that the solution works absolutely flawlessly, adding: “Now all employees want to use this solution. We have decided to roll it out gradually. A third of our employees will start using it in 2023, starting with managerial employees and later expanding to production.” 

Door Cloud access control works with standard electric locks and does not require a special smart lock. The company can use any lock that can be controlled by an electrical pulse, making the service compatible with general door openers, maglocks, different ramps, gates, etc. Thanks to advanced online and offline features of Door Cloud, card readers can be eliminated at some or all access points. Users have the choice of identifying themselves by employee ID or mobile phone. But practically everyone is now using mobile phones. 

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“We were drawn by this new technology that allows the doors to be opened via a mobile app and that enables even more accurate working time records. Even if an employee forgets their ID card at home, they can open the front door, enter the company and workplace by using a smartphone.”  Aleš Miklavc, Head of Technology and Maintenance, ATech elektronika d.o.o.

Go readerless!

Thanks to advanced online and offline features of Door Cloud, card readers can be eliminated at some or all access points. Instead of IDs, users are identified using their mobile phones. Normally, Door Cloud mobile application and door controller communicate with each other online. If the connection between the two is interrupted, the system automatically switches to Bluetooth communication, without the need for special readers. 

Or keep the cards

Door Cloud allows both cards and smartphones to be used on any door. Mifare, iClass, NFC and other popular RFID radio identification formats are supported by connecting HID or compatible readers. Classic Wiegand, DataClock and more advanced OSDP connection standards are supported. Biometric readers that emulate standard reader interfaces can also be used. The latest HID Mobile Access readers are also supported, offering yet another possibility for replacing cards with smartphones. 

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Seamless integration into existing IT environments

ATech elektronika has integrated the latest Špica solutions with the GoSoft business information system, which has further sped up and automated attendance and time recording, as well as employee payroll. The company carried out the integration.. “Špica support department provided us with integration schemes, so we integrated the solution ourselves, set up the HR portal and added users. We also plan to take care of creating and assigning cards and digital credentials to employees ourselves in the future – during the test period, this is still being taken care of by the provider. Migrating these solutions to the cloud was not difficult at all, and I would also like to commend Špica’s responsiveness. Špica provided the right answer to each of our questions within 24 hours,” Miklavc concluded. 

Davor Jakulin, owner and director of ATech elektronika, said that given the long-standing cooperation between the companies, they had not considered alternative solutions at all, as they were familiar with the products and were able to see their quality and reliability for themselves.


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“We have been working with Špica for 30 years and this has been a two-way relationship. Not only do we manufacture some of the clocking product families for Špica, we are also Špica’s customer, using its clocking and access control solutions. We are therefore a development partner that closely monitors the use of the products in practice and, as a result, we also make our own suggestions for existing and new solutions, improving them further,” said Jakulin, adding: “We are definitely satisfied Door Cloud users”.

Results

  • The company has chosen integration with the GoSoft business information system to speed up and automate attendance recording and the preparation of employee payroll data.
  • Employees open the doors using their mobile phones, which has significantly improved the user experience itself.
  • Cards used to identify and open the door have been almost completely replaced by phones, much to the satisfaction of employees.