Slippery Rock University, Access Control and Security System Upgrades

Burns collaborated with university leaders to review security systems and procedures. The campus-wide assessment produced recommendations for a comprehensive, centralized access control system.

Slippery Rock University is an 8,500-student university and member of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE). The campus ranks among the safest in the state.

All students and staff rely on three separate cards for campus services, facility access, and academic registration. The university was seeking a centralized facility-access system that would provide enhanced security measures, enabling students and staff to use their ID cards for multiple uses.

In partnership with SRU security staff, Burns developed a five-year road map for an integrated access card system. The strategy incorporates:

• “Smart Card” technology selection for a centralized facility access system
• Plans for timing, staging, and budgeting
• Alignment of administrative systems and processes based on latest best practice
• Badging program protocols and campus identification requirements to enhance security-measure consistency
• Guidance for integration of facility access controls with camera surveillance infrastructure, enabling SRU security staff to remotely initiate building lockdowns

The assessment was completed in August 2022.

Burns provides specialized engineering expertise for complex higher education, research facility, laboratory, and critical infrastructure projects.

Learn more about Burns’ higher education and security solutions.