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    1. Access & Identity
    2. Access Control

    R.I. Retailer Implements Access Control System for Corporate HQ and Distribution Center

    Feb. 1, 2005
    Rhode Island-based retailer chooses GE system in efforts to control shrinkage, intrusion and access
    Related To: GE Infrastructure, Security
    The Ocean State Job Lot security team, from let to right: Mal Porter, executive sales engineer of Advanced Alarm Systems, Tom Nelson of Ocean State Job Lot, and Kevin Fitzpatric, director of operations of advanced alarm systems
    The Ocean State Job Lot security team, from let to right: Mal Porter, executive sales engineer of Advanced Alarm Systems, Tom Nelson of Ocean State Job Lot, and Kevin Fitzpatric, director of operations of advanced alarm systems

    Austin, Texas - Rhode Island-based Ocean State Job Lot, one of the nation's largest closeout retailers with 75 stores, is implementing GE's Secure Perfect access control system at its new 1 million-square-foot corporate headquarters and distribution warehouse.

    "We developed a bid specification in conjunction with Security Design Inc. of Ashland, Mass.," said Tom Nelson, director of loss prevention and safety for Ocean State Job Lot. "We went out to bid with the RFP and multiple vendors responded with enhanced solutions. We decided that the proposal from Advanced Alarm Systems would deliver the best solution at the right price. The system proposed would be fully integrated by going with the GE option, from intrusion detection to alarm monitoring and access control."

    The system includes GE's Secure Perfect software, which integrates all aspects of access control at the three-story warehouse and corporate office complex. Ocean State Job Lot will also use GE surveillance equipment, including GE cameras and digital video multiplexer recorders with Ethernet (DVMRe) capabilities. Their legacy intrusion system also integrates smoothly into the Secure Perfect system.

    Eventually, Ocean State Job Lot's new facility will have its own alarm monitoring central station system. The control room will be monitored 24/7. Nelson will be linked to the main control room system and he will be able to access the system from his office, home, or remotely via laptop.

    The new system will be integrated into the company's IT backbone and linked to the older building via fiber optics.

    "We wanted a system that would grow with our needs," Nelson said. "In our existing building, which is located next to the one that is currently being built, we do not have access control. Our in-house security cannot cover every door all the time. With the new system, we will be able to control which person is allowed through which door and in what timeframe. This far exceeds our previous capability."

    There are 132 doors and 38 controlled access points at the new complex. Executives on the third floor of the new building will use both proximity cards and keypads for access. All other employees will use proximity cards.

    "Ocean State Job Lot is implementing this system to control shrinkage and employee access, and to provide a sophisticated accounting of employee whereabouts," said Kevin Fitzpatrick of Massachusetts-based Advanced Alarm Systems. "They will also be creating an 'executive island,' with stricter access control measures in place."

    The GE installation is the second phase of the project and is expected to be completed by February. Phases 2, 3 and 4 call for further expansion of the GE equipment, which will occur as the company grows, Nelson said.