72 • SAFES&SECURITY
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The security of remote access
If you’ve ever been locked
out of your house or car,
you are familiar with
that feeling of frustration
— always at the most
inconvenient of times. It’s
even worse when you’re
staying in a holiday home
and have to hunt for help
in unfamiliar territory.
» » NICK COWLEY, MANAGING
director of PVCu windows and doors
expert Euramax, explains how integrating
remote access into holiday homes can
save the frustration for both holiday
makers and those that manage them.
The staycation era is truly upon us. The
BBC reported that the UK is the second
biggest buyer of touring caravans after the
US, as more holiday makers are choosing
to become tourists in their own country in
favour of heading overseas.
With one third of British families opting
for at-home breaks, the holiday home
market is bursting with potential. But with
an influx of properties to manage, how can
we make things as seamless as possible?
ACCESS DENIED
Whether it’s a retirement earner or
second income, many owners let out
their holiday homes. But while owning an
at-home getaway can be an easy way of
boosting your bank balance, managing the
property isn’t always so simple.
Quite often, holiday homeowners don’t
live an easy commute from their property,
which can present a logistical challenge
and cause undue hassle. When giving
guests access to the accommodation,
many use mini key safes and keypad locks
with a combination that can be changed
for each guest.
However, this solution does not
guarantee maximum security as it affords
guests to duplicate keys or share codes.
If the keys are lost or misplaced, it can be
difficult to rectify the situation without
having somebody present onsite.
Remote access is often associated
with industrial processes, allowing
plant manufacturing facility managers
to monitor production lines across the
globe. However, holiday home builders
can take inspiration from this method of
supervision and create systems that help
owners keep track of who is entering and
leaving their property, wherever they are
in the world.
GOING REMOTE
It’s time to ditch the keys and novelty key
rings. Digital locks have become a popular
way of transferring access to guests without
hassle — and they can do much more than
simply opening and closing the door.
Guests receive a unique access code via
their smartphone, which remains active
for the duration of their stay. Authorised
users simply point their phone in the
direction of the door lock to gain access.
Property owners receive greater peace of
mind, as the technology allows them to
receive notifications when their guests
check in, unlock the door and check out of
the holiday home.
Maintaining the property can also
be optimised using smart technology.
Homeowners can assign different codes
to site managers, handymen or house
keeping staff to give easy access in the
event of an emergency repair or to track
how long they’ve been at the property.
LOCKSMITHJOURNAL.CO.UK | MAY/JUN 2019
Sponsored by Mul-T-Lock
Of course, most smart door locks can
be overridden by a master key, allowing
the owner to maintain full access to their
property in the event of an emergency
such as a power cut that might disable the
electronic smart door lock system.
GET SMART
While smart technology and remote
access streamlines holiday home
security, there are many other qualities
that owners seek when selecting a new
door.
By partnering with industry experts
like Euramax, which specialise in
manufacturing windows and doors for
holiday home properties, owners can
make sure that their doors look great, are
energy efficient and able to incorporate
smart technology — whether that’s
during initial installation or retrofitted in
the future.
With remote access technology,
property owners can manage their
caravan or holiday home no matter where
they are in the world. Smart locking
systems are not only an effective way
of monitoring who arrives and leaves
the property, but they also make our
staycations run a lot more smoothly —
with no more unfortunate lock-outs and
desperate waits for the bathroom.
www.euramax.co.uk