Despite them being effective, turnstiles are considered among the most under-used tools for access control. This is surprising considering the simplicity behind the concept of security turnstiles. This concept is to make a pathway that only allows people with one-direction access or allows access for one person at a time. This is used to either keep tabs on the number of people going in or out of establishments or to limit access only to authorized people. If you’re considering using turnstiles in your business, you need to learn more about it first.
First of all, there are three turnstile categories you can choose from. These categories are mechanical, video and optical turnstiles. Mechanical turnstiles are used for physical access restriction. Video turnstiles on the other hand take note of people going in and out of establishments. Optical turnstiles work by providing assistance to security personnel or receptionists.
To help you decide which among these three turnstile types to invest in, you need to learn more about each of them. First, a mechanical security turnstile works by using ratchet mechanisms which allows the turnstile to turn only in one direction. Also, this type of turnstile only works after people insert either coins or swipe/insert access cards.
These types of stiles are typically used in train stations, while those that count people entering establishments are typically used in theme parks. Video turnstiles are typically seen in airports, where there is a need for stricter security, this type of turnstile not only counts the number of people passing through gates at certain times, it also records people going in and out of the gates, recordings that security personnel can access and review later on. Then there are the optical turnstiles. This uses the basic concept of turnstiles but adds a little technology twist.
The main difference that optical turnstiles have over others is it doesn’t have any physical mechanisms to prevent a person’s access. In fact, an optical turnstile is but a simple lane authorized individuals pass through. Authorized personnel are identified either by swiping access cards or fingerprint identification. Security personnel are alerted by loud alarms should there be an unauthorized entry attempt made.
As you can see, you won’t have difficulty choosing turnstiles to invest in, so long as you consider your needs and budget. There won’t be a shortage of security firms to buy these turnstiles from. However, you need to be careful about choosing firms to work with. Comparison-shop between two or three of these firms, taking your time doing some research on each of them before deciding which one to buy from.
If you want to know more about security turnstile then visit http://www.smartersecurity.com for more details.

