Smart access for education sectors

In Singapore, secondary education is mandatory for all children aged 13 - 17. The system believes in providing a holistic and nurturing environment for students to develop into confident learners and leaders.

Due to the pandemic, the government implemented regular home-based learning for all secondary and tertiary educational institutions. Coupled with the impending shift towards digital literacy, this has also led schools to make the decision to provide personal learning devices (PLDs) for students.

Access issues faced by educational institutions

This particular school loans laptops to its secondary one and two pupils. There are cabinets in each of the 14 classrooms that hold these devices, including a few mobile carts for transporting the laptops to various rooms. 

Physical keys to each of these cabinets and carts are managed by Desktop Engineers (DEs). The DEs then manually record each loan and process the devices for the students. Teachers are unable to access the cabinets for security purposes.

This leads to a few pain points:

1. Managing multiple keys to different cabinets. 

2. Human error in manual records. 

3. The need for manpower to access cabinets and perform records.

4. Running the risk of unauthorised duplication of keys by DEs.

How iglooworks addresses pain points

iglooworks provided the ideal solution with its hardware and software solutions to address the school assets' security. 

The school implemented 20 Padlocks, enabling them to grant access to laptops in all 14 classrooms via remotely generated PIN codes. 

There is no need for the DEs to be near the Padlocks to ensure that the access codes work.

Full-time teachers downloaded the mobile app to gain access via Bluetooth keys. ICT staff were able to assign time-sensitive access to specific teachers on a yearly basis, manage ad-hoc changes via the dashboard and onboard new staff members with ease.

Additionally, DEs ensure greater security on the access of the assets. They can view activity logs to trace which staff member has accessed which cabinet or mobile cart, leading to increased transparency and accountability.

The Benefits

As the school is able to efficiently grant access to the cabinets remotely and securely, they no longer need to rely on physical key exchanges.

As a result, they are able to reduce the time spent (15-20 minutes) for every physical key unlocks, which can accumulate to at least an hour per day. In addition, the ICT staff are able to grant One-Time or Duration PIN codes to substitute teachers easily without compromising on security.

With such a hassle-free and contactless way of granting access, the ICT department has currently over 106 users since the implementation of the solution in late 2019 and is well-received by staff and teachers alike.

For more information, visit the iglooworks website here.

Summary