PassagePoint - Lobby Management with a Technical Twist

For innovators like Shaun Olson, President of STOPware, and the entire STOPware team, software development is about looking ahead. Their inspiration for STOPware's PassagePoint solution came from a realization that organizations everywhere had visitor and lobby management needs that transcended the "paper and pen" method. STOPware saw the process where visitors simply sign-in to be admitted into a facility as one that could be improved in terms of efficiency.

Saying "Goodbye" to the Paper and Pen Process

According to Olson, "Over five years ago, we recognized that the paper visitor logbook would eventually be replaced with a computerized process that stored the information in a database. We envisioned a database that would allow security personnel to generate visitor reports, search for specific visitors, and even prevent certain visitors from gaining access. The receptionist or the visitor would enter their name, a badge would come out for them, and the employee being visited would be automatically e-mailed."

STOPware's initial spark of creativity proved to be extremely influential. Even before they had finished developing PassagePoint, they had well-known customers knocking on their door. "Our first customer, Fujitsu, wanted our product before it was even finished," notes Olson. With such a fervent demand for the product, Olson knew that only an environment with the fastest application development would do for such an important deadline and for equally significant customers as well.

4D's RAD Tools Keep STOPware Ahead of the Game

For STOPware's rigid deadline, 4D's rapid application development saved the day. "We leveraged 4D's RAD tools to deliver PassagePoint version 1.0 on a tight deadline. After that initial development phase, other releases were very easy to deploy with the 4D Client/Server architecture." STOPware has been able to consistently implement their 4D solutions very quickly. The initial release took six months, with following releases taking six to twelve months.

STOPware offers its customers a completely integrated visitor badging and lobby security application. PassagePoint not only records the identity of the visitor and prints out a badge accordingly, but it also notifies through e-mail the employee who is expecting the visitor. The e-mail features are accomplished through 4D Internet Commands, a set of commands that give 4D developers a robust collection of communication utilities capable of working in either a Local or Wide area network. Other e-mail features found in STOPware are automatic reports that get sent each night providing such statistical information as total number of visits, and more. As far as security is concerned, STOPware utilizes 4D's connectivity plug-ins to communicate with Access Control systems. Said Olson, "By allowing our product to work with other security systems, we offer the customer a completely integrated system."

In addition, 4D's integrated Web-serving capabilities play a significant role in expediting an efficient lobby management process. By simply using a Web browser to log on to the PassagePoint "Intranet Module" with a password, an employee can pre-register visitors within a few minutes. This information is then saved within 4D, and reception can access it on the day of the visit. "This feature is very popular with large companies that have a lot of visitors," notes Olson. "When the visitor is pre-registered, it speeds the sign-in process and makes the visitor feel important."

After the guest registers, all the reception staff has to do is click on his or her name and the badge is printed on a direct-thermal label printer. Through 4D's label editor, customers are able to design their own badges as well.

With a partial list of customers that includes Adobe, Merrill Lynch, and the U.S. Department of the Interior, STOPware continues to supply top companies and organizations with productive ways of managing lobby processes. For Olson, 4D has provided him with the ultimate development environment and RAD tools with which to develop and deliver fast and reliable lobby security solutions.

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