How we handle SLOs for SALTO KS
Part of our continuous effort to support growth while maintaining performance, reliability, and predictability is defining SLO’s (Service Level Objectives).
Part of our continuous effort to support growth while maintaining performance, reliability, and predictability is defining SLO’s (Service Level Objectives). Those are meant to define the expected service between the provider and the customer. They are specific measurable characteristics such as uptime, operations, and speed. For the cloud-based access control solution SALTO KS we will explain which SLO’s we measure and why.
Uptime
Up to now, our major focal point for measuring our overall Service Level Objective has been to look at the uptime of each individual service in our ecosystem and make sure those are at least adhering to our percentage of 99.9700%. The fact that we are meeting and exceeding that percentage for quite some time now is a great achievement of which we are very proud!
So?
Well, the high uptime percentage doesn't say that much about the customer experience. With a high percentage of platform availability, SALTO KS customers will be able to reach the platform and services, and the platform will do what it is supposed to do, but it does not say anything about the performance of individual functions a typical customer uses. We decided it was time we started looking at other things to measure.
What is important to the customers?
The operations of access control are of utmost importance for our customers. Fluctuations in individual response times of endpoints (i.e. the communication points that external software programs must send a request to in order to communicate with our API) that are used to control access rules like assigning a tag (physical credential), adding or removing a user from an access group, blocking a user, and configuring offline access for a lock have a big impact on the day-to-day experience of a client may have while performing their daily tasks.
Another important factor is the overall performance of operations that require a direct response from an IQ (Edge device), like activating an IQ in a mobile app, performing a remote opening, or generating a Digital Key. If it takes too long, users might consider it not working or at least bothersome. When changes have been made to access rules, we want to make sure that they are applied to the IQs involved as fast as possible, because only then they will have an actual effect.
Reporting
Last but not least, we want customers to be able to retrieve event information in a performant way. We have two different types of events: entries (basically openings and rejections from locks, so large volume) and incidents (alerts like doors being left open and lock tampering, so low volume).
We know that other things happen that could make or break customer satisfaction, like installing or restoring IQs, attaching locks, and receiving notifications and we do measure them, but the four categories mentioned above are what we consider most important for the largest number of users.
What do we want to achieve and measure?
For these four types of interactions with our platform, we needed to come up with response times or maximum duration times that would be considered “good” and “natural” from a user perspective, and we should then compare those to what we are actually delivering.
As a general point, we decided that we should be able to achieve our “good” performance goals at least 75% of the time. This would obviously mean we could score less during some peak hours, but overall the customer experience would be good. We decided to measure against that over a period of 7 days to be able to clearly see fluctuations during the week.
We set the following SLO’s for each of the four types:
- Access Control operations: response time should be less than or equal to 0,5 seconds.
- Synchronous IQ operations: response time should be less than or equal to 2,5 seconds.
- Sync performance: the duration should be less than or equal to 30 seconds for Local Access Management sync, PIN sync, and Accessor/Key sync combined, and less than or equal to 5 seconds for Offline Access Key sync.
Reporting: response time should be less than or equal to 3 seconds for entry reporting and less than or equal to 1 second for incident reporting.
These SLO’s aren’t just there to give a nice overview, they’re used in day-to-day monitoring of system performance. The team is on-call 24/7 to ensure the right user experience. The SLO’s, metrics and goals are reviewed by the teams recurrently to guarantee we live up to all expectations. The dashboards are shown in the Clay office where SALTO KS is built and can be viewed “live” from any location, to guarantee each of the team members are well aware of the performance of the platform and show the direct impact of their work.
So where do we go from here?
In the past, we have been working on defining ways to improve mainly our LAM (Local Access Management) sync process so we are able to set achievable goals per sync type and also per tenant in the future, whilst still being able to cope with our projected growth. We see that sync performance is heavily affected between tenants and although our performance is good most of the time, sometimes it can be a challenge. At least now we feel we can immediately see any effect on performance that has an impact on our user experience and shift our focus accordingly if needed. During the design of any new component, we now keep in mind the ability to measure its performance from the start so we won’t need to struggle afterwards.
We have also defined some SLO notifications in Datadog, all based on the numbers above (and some more detailed ones). Whenever we see an increase in failure to achieve our intended performance, our ‘Core team’ is notified so we can investigate. From what we see now these are temporary states that recover within 5 to 10 minutes and are caused by the incidental increased load. We will be turning these in the coming weeks so they are not generating false alerts before we will increase the audience for them. For the operations mentioned above, all our SLOs are performing around or above 90%, exceeding our 75% target by quite a lot.
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How SALTO’s energy efficient smart access solutions contribute to building sustainability
Sustainability starts with building entry systems.
Environmental awareness among hotels, workspaces, residential living, and most smart buildings is driving significant change in the industry. Sustainability practices are now widely viewed as critical factors in the successful facility management of smart corporate and hospitality buildings.
Smart building strategies include energy efficient access control solutions. Electronic locking systems can help solve challenges in operational efficiency, security, maintenance costs, occupancy, and sustainability.
What energy consumption solutions are in place to reduce the impact on the environment?
Energy usage is one of the highest operating expenses for work spaces, shared living spaces, residential and the hospitality industry. In recent weeks, the prices of gas, coal, and electricity have risen to their highest levels in decades. The energy crisis is due to an ongoing shortage of energy across the world, which is affecting many countries.
- On average, 90% of wasted electricity usage comes from the guest room, which can be a property’s most unmanaged resource.
- A room heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system can represent 70-90% of that wasted electricity!
Smart access control and in-room sensors can bring a completely new level of intelligence to a building, and, in the process, provide information that can improve efficiency and operations. Sensors are able to detect a wide range of events and can seamlessly integrate with incumbent access control and energy-saving devices.
The SALTO Universal ESD system, plus existing integrations with SALTO technology partners, allows any type of building to optimize energy consumption by turning off lighting and adjusting climate control systems when guests or users are not in the room for extended periods.
The hotel industry has historically had a significant impact on the environment through its consumption of both energy and water. As the industry is bouncing back from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, supporting sustainable initiatives is of growing importance to the hospitality industry. An energy management system can reduce a property's energy costs by 15-40% with an estimated three-year return on investment. Without such a system in place, a hotel may be at risk of unnecessarily consuming exorbitant amounts of energy.
Using smart technologies and energy efficiency programs to save energy in buildings.
A key element in a comprehensive energy efficiency program involves specifying equipment, data-driven methodology to analyze building energy consumption, and energy efficiency savings estimates and products that meet certain energy efficiency standards and sustainability policies. SALTO solutions, technology, and products meet all of these requirements.
In innovating to meet social and environmental challenges, SALTO’s Environmental Product Declarations (EPD), recently achievement of a silver rating in the EcoVadis evaluation ranking and 100% carbon neutrality for our factory headquarters and global office networks are some examples of sustainable innovation examples. These achievements are a major step forward in making keyless smart access technology sustainable.
Our commitment to sustainable practices.
SALTO is committed to designing and creating environmentally sustainable smart locking technology. By quantifying the environmental impact of our electronic door lock models, we ensure our partners and customers meet the standards required for their projects both now and in the future.
SALTO signed up to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to aligning its operations with Ten Principles universally accepted in the areas of human rights, labour safety standards, environment, and fight against corruption, and adopting measures in support of the objectives of the U.N. 's SDGs.
Find out more about how we accelerate our own progress to net zero while helping our customers do the same here.
Contact our sales teams who are happy to start your sustainability journey embracing sustainability as opportunity.
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Intelligent & Secure lock openings with Digital Key
Make your doors smart with Salto’s digital key electronic locking technology.
Salto’s smart door locks allow users and system administrators to send and receive Digital Keys that can open any door or gate equipped with a Salto smart lock, cylinder, wall reader, padlock, or locker lock using their iOS or Android Bluetooth LE or NFC-enabled smartphone.
Mobile access control solutions offer users a keyless experience, providing instant and mobile access without compromising security or convenience. By combining various technologies, Salto's smart locking solutions evolve from traditional access control to ACaaS (Access Control as a Service), enabling users to manage access rights quickly, wirelessly, and without keys. This offers greater security than mechanical keys by introducing digital keys and replacing traditional physical keys or smart credentials.
Implementing mobile credentials and digital keys.
Digital Keys are available across smart access technology platforms from Salto.
Designed to secure any door in a building and make access control more effortless and secure than ever, Salto Space offers a flexible access control platform with a unified software and hardware platform.
Experience unified, scalable security, integration support, and limitless features to manage your buildings’ operations with a virtually networked, data-on-card based locking system.
Salto KS (KaaS: Keys as a Service) is a scalable cloud-based Access Control as a Service (ACaaS) solution that’s built to fit your business needs, today and tomorrow.
Salto KS smart access offers multiple ways of opening doors, including digital keys. It supports a wide range of keyless access methods to improve user experience and the security of any type of building. It also delivers advanced security features on a fully remote and wireless cloud-based smart access management platform.
Salto Homelok - All-in-one smart access solution for residential living
Salto Homelok enables modern keyless living for residents, streamlines operations for managers and owners, and improves security across all types of residential properties.
A cloud-based smart access platform with intelligent, wire-free and virtually networked electronic locking SVN technology optimises hybrid deployments and enables the smart building ecosystem without needing infrastructure.
Benefits of mobile credentials for Access Control
Salto’s digital keys eliminates losing keys, added expenses, and frustration.
- Digital Key: Increases flexibility and improves security. Easy, efficient, and intuitive automated key delivery.
- Bluetooth LE, NFC and Apple Wallet: Proven mobile and secure technology to create a unique keyless experience anytime, anywhere, and on any device.
- Smarter access: Send or receive a Digital Key to open any door. Grant access or block users easily to specific timeframes and/or locations.
- Improved operational efficiency and significant cost savings: Traditional mechanical keys can be expensive to replace and maintain, and the cost of key cards or physical credentials can quickly add up. Operators can instantly manage access permissions to grant, disable and revoke access to optimize user experience and enhance security management.
- Mobile and card-based access control systems are the most secure way to give access to the right person at the right time.
JustIn Mobile Digital Keys: Using your smartphone for access
JustIN Mobile eliminates the need for physical keys or cards and all the associated costs and access management hassles.
The JustIN Mobile technology replaces the need for a physical access card by securely sending a room key “Over the Air” (OTA) from Salto’s Space, KS or Homelok smart access platforms to a registered and verified iOS or Android device. The phone then uses Bluetooth LE or NFC to send a signal to the door’s electronic locks.
Leverage the performance and usability of the fully native Salto JustIN Mobile key delivery experience into your mobile app. With the JustIN Mobile SDK, which is available for both iOS and Android, you can integrate JustIN Mobile for a fully customised mobile digital key integration into any third-party application. The JustIN Mobile SDK makes it easy and secure to incorporate smartphones into your access control solution.
Give workspace members, hospitality guests, or multi-family house residents the convenience of going keyless using their smartphones, enabling community-based access control solutions supporting user satisfaction, security, and safety.
Can’t get enough? Click here to learn about Salto’s smart access solutions.
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Salto ProAccess Space Software: Broadcast Notifications
Program your Salto ProaAccess Space access control management software to send broadcast notifications in the event of a lockdown emergency.
Program your Salto ProaAccess Space access control management software to send broadcast notifications in the event of a lockdown emergency.
No one wants to think of the unthinkable happening – an intruder in a school, inclement weather, and the like – but it’s best to be prepared, of course, in the event something does happen. Salto electronic smart access platform has the capability to enable AMOK lockdown mode, where authorized users can quickly and safely lock all locks in a building. Salto ProAccess Space software includes broadcast notifications, making it quick and easy to send immediate communication in the event of an emergency lockdown or pre-configured event.
Streamlined Communication for Safety and Efficiency
In an emergency situation that calls for a building lockdown, ProAccess Space can be pre-configured for security personnel to quickly send broadcast notifications to multiple recipients with just a click of the mouse. For non-emergency scenarios, broadcast notifications can be sent out on an as-needed basis to share updates on temporary issues that might affect only certain areas of a building or user groups.
The ability to send broadcast notifications is an excellent tool as it provides the power to quickly and easily contact as many recipients as needed. This is an important feature for any electronic smart access control deployment but is particularly helpful for universities, schools, healthcare, corporate smart offices and the like.
About Broadcast Notifications
- Push Notifications – Send broadcast notifications via email. It is an action representing an occurrence or detection of some condition. Every alarm event has a trigger and once triggered an alarm event automatically executes one or several actions. Push notifications are a superior way to communicate with users as they are from secure and trusted email accounts and users recognize it as such.
- Customized Grouping – Create custom broadcast notification groups based on specific criteria. Notifications can be sent to only those matching these criteria. For example, in this pandemic era, these broadcast notifications can be sent to groups of individuals who accessed a certain room where an individual who has tested positive for COVID spent time.
- Webhook Local Branded Website/Custom Templates – Send broadcast notifications via your brand website or internal channel so that all credentialed users will know that the notification is from a trusted source and won’t question its authenticity in the event of an emergency.
The logic is quite simple:
- this Alarm notification has to be defined in the Alarm events section;
- it sends information via HTTP/HTTPS;
- its logic is similar to an Event Stream. When something happens (audit trail information).
Benefits of Broadcast Notifications
- Immediate email notification sent to all system operators in the event of an emergency lockdown.
- Generalized and customized recipient group configurations.
- Real-time notifications sent to specific groups via secure and trusted methods (mobile app, branded email template).
- Use for emergency notifications or for targeted needs like contract tracing.
Contact us if you have any questions on the Salto Space management software or visit our Space platform product website located here for information on all things Salto. We look forward to helping!
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Salto Systems develops and manufactures advanced and reliable wireless electronic locking and access control smart solutions that provide a smoother, more comfortable, and secure daily life for the people using our systems. We bring added value to our clients, making it easier for decision-making and smarter management of facilities. Our goal is to not only be within the top three companies in our sector in the world, but to also be your number one smart electronic access control provider. As an organization, we intend to create an ecosystem of end users, clients, partners, collaborators, and suppliers with whom we build long-lasting, win-win relationships guided by closeness, flexibility, integrity, and trust.
What is the Next Generation of Smart Locks - What is it?
In a new video collaboration by SALTO and Group337 we dive deeper into what we believe "The Next Generation of Smart Locks" will be.
In a new video collaboration by SALTO and Group337 we dive deeper into what we believe "The Next Generation of Smart Locks" will be. The purpose of this collaboration is to spark a conversation—a change. We are hoping to help start a new language for the industry, and if we agree that the smart lock industry has entered into its next generation, we should agree we need to look, say, and act next generation.
In part 1, we are diving into the difference between smart, connected, motorized, and mechanical and what the next generation of smart locks will need to stay relevant.
In part 2, we will tackle the value beyond locking and unlocking. And in the finale, part 3, we reimagine door openings and our relationship with entering and exiting.
We plan to cover the different verticals such as single-family, multifamily, and commercial locks. We will speak to all of them generically and high level enough that what we discuss applies to all use cases. There are fundamental functionality and value creation that work across all verticals in the Next Generation of smart locks, and we want to cover them here.
Of course, this is just the beginning, and we can't cover it all in such a short amount of time, but we will do our best.
All right, let's get into it part one.
It is important to note a clear difference between smart, connected, motorized, and mechanical locks. Unfortunately, we sometimes mix them all and conflate their abilities.
If we are honest, most of the electronic locks on the market today are not smart. What they are, is connected. We went from mechanical to motorized, motorized to connected, and we still haven't gotten to what we all want, which is smart.
But we are getting there. One of the most significant barriers to our industry boarding a rocket ship and seeing that hockey stick growth and adoption we all expected to see by today is that we have not innovated the smart lock (enough). We have only iterated the mechanical lock. Motorized and connected were feature iterations off of mechanical. So think about it, we as an industry said, "what if the door opened itself? Well, if it's locked, that won't work, so let's automate the unlock function." So we went and took the same mechanical lock that we had before, updated it a bit, and integrated a motor into it.
Is it an advancement? Yes, no doubt. But it was not very smart.
Then the market and ecosystem said, "We'd like to take your motorized lock and have our system lock and unlock it. We want to control it." We also said, "wouldn't it be cool if we could lock and unlock via our phone or watch?" 100%.
And we were happy to do it, so we took the same motorized lock and added some radios and gave the ability for it to connect to other systems... introducing the connected lock.
Some marketing departments and analysts got excited and dubbed it "smart locks," but unfortunately, once the cool factor wore off and the inability to drive a consistent experience became a reality, what we ultimately had was a connected lock that, frankly, wasn't so smart.
But that is ok because, like many things, the market is shifting. New technology is being introduced.
As a result, new players are interested in the market, and end-user demand has increased, resulting in a renewed interest in smart locks.
So what does the next generation of smart locks look like?
- It is a reimagined platform—all of it, including the hardware.
- It is not a feature of a mechanical lock like a brass finish. It is its entity.
- Some use cases and end game functionality are unknown, which is ok because it is part of an ecosystem. It is an ingredient to a much larger solution.
- It is a software product with hardware that supports the experiences desired by end-users versus administrators and installers.
- It has safety at the core and safety as table stakes. It is a given and includes cybersecurity as well as hardened physical security.
- A team supports it focused on it day in and day out, not as a side hustle.
- It is a product line understood by leadership with the same importance and expectations as its mechanical brothers and sisters.
- Business plans are not predicated solely on yesterday's metrics.
- Distribution and hardware sales are not the only measures of success. It is time for a new spreadsheet.
- Hardware is used to grow the platform's adoption to unlock software potential exponentially, not get in the way of said growth.
The smart lock is this and many other things. But, more or less, the smart lock of today and tomorrow is a complete re-imagination. And those with curiosity and imagination will unlock it.
Contact us if you have any questions on the SALTO product range or visit our website located here for information on all things SALTO. We look forward to helping!
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SALTO Systems develops and manufactures advanced and reliable wireless electronic locking and access control smart solutions that provide a smoother, more comfortable, and secure daily life for the people using our systems. We bring added value to our clients, making it easier for decision-making and smarter management of facilities. Our goal is to not only be within the top three companies in our sector in the world, but to also be your number one smart electronic access control provider. As an organization, we intend to create an ecosystem of end users, clients, partners, collaborators, and suppliers with whom we build long-lasting, win-win relationships guided by closeness, flexibility, integrity, and trust.
Add smart access technology to locker rooms
Besides privacy, security is one of the most crucial factors in a locker room, as lockers are primarily designed to keep personal belongings and valuables safe while people work, study, exercise, and use other facility amenities. When considering a locker lock solution, it is important to consider security, convenience, effective management, and ultimately what is best for your guest experience and property operations. With the SALTO XS4 Locker Lock, smart access technology is expanded to locker rooms adding both ease and efficiency to the entire guest digital experience, from checking in to checking out.
“With the world becoming more digital every day, the need to introduce the latest technology into the workplace, retail market, healthcare, and education sectors has never been greater,” says Aznar Sethna, CSMO SALTO Systems.
Most recently, the SALTO XS4 Locker Lock was awarded ‘ 2020 Product of the Year’ by Security Today magazine in their annual competition. Read ahead to find out more about how you can add smart access technology to your locker rooms.
Where BLE technology meets locker locks
The capability of effectively extending real-time, online, and mobile-enabled smart electronic access control to lockers and cabinets has long eluded the hospitality market, until now. By incorporating BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) technology into electronic locker locks, SALTO KS now delivers a product that extends up-to-date comprehensive electronic access control to lockers, cabinets, and essentially anywhere on the peripheral.
The ability to deliver real-time smart access to locker rooms and cabinets wirelessly and to link it to guest services has been long anticipated, to elevate the guest experience and to provide personalized service and extensive amenities. Adding BLE capabilities to the XS4 Locker Lock solution not only offers the most up-to-date protection for lockers and cabinets, but it also enables guests and staff members to control these devices with their smartphones. The SALTO BLUEnet Wireless engine allows the operator to monitor live access control events and provides the ability to unlock the locker lock, change the opening mode, monitor live door status, or change physical access rules in the access plan—all wirelessly and in real-time. This technology can, therefore, be optimized by hotels and building management, to ensure guest satisfaction.
Automate and optimize your guest experience
One of the primary benefits of a smart electronic access control solution is the ability to easily incorporate mobile access use. This makes it possible to take advantage of all the features smartphones can offer. Being able to check-in and out, unlock a guest room, order room service, and make amenity bookings will all be possible for guests to perform via the guest mobile phone application.
“The new SALTO XS4 Locker Lock with embedded BLE technology makes this product an excellent solution for all of those projects that require a locking solution for a controlled, easy-to-operate, and fully-integrated mobile access technology system.” - Aznar Sethna, CSMO at SALTO Systems
Create a more seamless and secure stay
SALTO XS4 Locker Locks are highly durable and have been constructed to withstand the unique environments often found in locker rooms. Security, hygiene, and cleanliness are a crucial element in the maintenance of locker room spaces. Locker locks allow access to space underneath lockers, ensuring your whole floor space can be cleaned thoroughly and to an immaculate standard.
The SALTO XS4 Locker BLE is an ergonomic design based on the same housing and mechanisms of the original version. A locking thumb turn makes for easy use—even with wet hands. The outer thumb turn, with a red and green indicator for the availability of the locker, has an electronically-managed release. Ready-to-install into pre-existing doors, the XS4 Locker Lock BLE is designed to be the ideal product for the replacement locker lock and can be used to quickly secure any pre-existing cabinet.
And in times where contagious viruses and bacteria dominate the headlines, it is valuable that the XS4 Locker BLE comes standard with BioCote® Antimicrobial Technology that can reduce bacteria and viruses by up to 99.99%. This is especially crucial as Locker-room environments are often more susceptible to contamination.
The impact of SALTO BLUEnet technology
The advanced SALTO BLUEnet generation smart lock technology that SALTO has integrated into every SALTO XS4 Locker Lock BLE model also permits battery status management and audit trail recovery in real-time. With the same features as an online SALTO BLUEnet wireless door, users of the SALTO XS4 Locker Lock BLE can:
- Monitor online the status of the locker.
- Know if the locker was opened (i.e. card presented).
- Monitor online the battery status.
- Open the locker remotely.
- Perform an emergency opening.
The SALTO MyLock online configuration tool—which allows users to select and preview potential door configurations for access control projects prior to purchase—has added the new XS4 Locker Lock BLE to the platform. MyLock users can now visualize their next access control project that requires real-time wireless protection for areas like locker rooms, dressing areas, and cabinets.
To read more about SALTO KS, click here or follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn for the latest product features, team updates and news from the industry.
SALTO KS provides a flexible access control management system that requires no software installation or the added expense of a fully-wired electronic product. Modern cloud-based, wireless access control systems are easy and simple to use for businesses including Coworking Spaces, Coliving Buildings, Purpose Built Student Accommodation, Retail, Multi-Tenant Housing, Gyms and many more. Our best in class wireless access control solution and smart locks guarantee the efficiency for your business. Integrate smart locks, start easily managing wireless access control now!
