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24th April 2024 Issue no. 702
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Hofstra University Standardizes on Boon Edam Security Entrances
Hofstra University, in New York, continues to roll out installation of turnstile entrances to eventually cover all of their residence halls for increased safety and security.
Located 25 miles east of New York City in Hempstead, Long Island, Hofstra University campus boasts 115 buildings on 240 acres, 1180 faculty members and over 7000 full-time undergraduate students. With so many students in a densely populated area of Long Island, Hofstra takes student safety quite seriously.
Prior to installing Boon Edam, student Resident Safety Representatives (RSR's) monitored thousands of students entering the residential halls as they swiped ID cards to enter through sliding doors. Tailgating was far too common, especially with large groups, and the RSRs were forced to intervene and stop fellow students from unauthorized entry. This was an uncomfortable and potentially dangerous situation.
The university decided to install full height turnstiles at entrances to residential halls and complexes to work with their existing access control system. "To date, seven turnstiles have been installed to cover seven residential towers", Bob McDonald, Associate Director of Public Safety, explained. "Our employees appreciate the greater control and our parents feel much more comfortable."
Hofstra University uses Boon Edam's full height turnstiles along with a card swipe access control system to manage and monitor the access of students and guests into residential halls. Students swipe their HofstraCard ID and pass through a turnstile, one at a time. Guests must sign in with the RSR at the front desk before being allowed to enter. Using full height turnstiles ensures that students or guests cannot jump or crawl through to the secure side. Handicapped students enter using their HofstraCard ID at a supervised automatic emergency exit door.
For entrances within residential complexes, Hofstra uses Boon Edam's transparent, Turnlock 200EL full height turnstile to create a security entrance with an aesthetic, open appearance. The clear Lexan panels allow light to pass through the entrance while the rugged engineering handles the high throughput. "Our students really like the transparent look of these turnstiles," said Resident Safety Coordinator Sasha Russell. "Also, having these at our entrances makes it much easier for our RSRs-now they can focus on processing guests and on other duties."
Due to the success of the Boon Edam entrances, McDonald and his team have plans to install Boon Edam turnstiles at all the remaining residence halls, bringing the total number of entrances covered to 11. "Once we saw the safety benefits for the students and the positive difference the turnstiles made for our employees, we began incorporating them into our future plans and budget," said McDonald.
"These Boon Edam turnstiles are really helpful in deterring unlawful, illegal entries. They have been extremely helpful, I would say."
27th May 2015