case study

Integrated Security Management System Offers Flexibility for

Liberal Arts University
The Academy of Art College was established in 1929 by Richard
S. Stephens, a fine art painter and creative director for Sunset
Magazine. He opened the new school in a rented loft in the
heart of San Francisco to teach advertising art. In 1992, Dr. Elisa
Stephens, granddaughter of the school’s founder, succeeded her
father as president. In 2004, the name of the school was changed
to Academy of Art University in recognition of its depth, scope,
and quality of education.
The Situation:
With an enrollment of more than
18,000 students, AAU is the largest
private school of art and design in
the country. Since there are so many
buildings and thousands of people
coming and going each day, keeping
track of that many was a major
challenge. One factor to consider
was the number of buildings. The
campus comprises administration
and classroom buildings, as well as
residence halls, dining facilities, and
computer labs. Fine art galleries, open
to the public, offer more than
70 exhibitions each year to showcase
student creations in painting, sculpture,
jewelry and fashion. Yet another
museum houses a unique collection of
rare and vintage automobiles
worth millions.
Another consideration was geography:
AAU facilities are scattered across the
entire city. “We like to say that San
Francisco is our campus,” said Mike
Petricca, director of campus safety.
“Being in an urban setting, we have
some concerns about gangs and other
criminal activity, and have experienced
some major losses from theft in the Microbiz recommended Honeywell’s
past. Because we’re serious about Pro-Watch® Corporate Edition security
protecting everyone on campus, we management system because it offers
wanted a system that would lock down effortless badge management and
all our buildings with a single keystroke. controls the 200+ proximity readers
installed on all exterior doors of AAU
buildings. Pro-Watch integrates
seamlessly with the VISTA® intrusion
“The Honeywell access control
control panels that protect the galleries
system has given AAU the ability
and other facilities, allowing the entire
to effectively manage people on
system to be managed from a single
campus, but it lets them stay
command center on campus that’s
flexible depending on the scenario.”
staffed 24/7—and an internal fiber optic
Dave Chritton
network helps them avoid thousands of
Senior Systems Engineer
dollars each month in phone line fees.
Microbiz Security Co.
The Solution:
The Academy’s risk management
plan relies heavily on access control
to protect staff, students and visitors
throughout the urban campus. AAU
turned to security integrator Microbiz
Security Co. to design and install a
security system that would offer a
reliable way to protect people and
property, as well as easily process
thousands of student badges each
semester.
At the beginning of every semester,
each new student is issued a dual The Benefits
technology iClass card—a process that
Petricca says takes only seconds. In In addition to streamlining the process of managing access control, the Honeywell

addition to being used to grant access
to AAU buildings, the card can be
used at Point of Sale terminals at food
service venues across campus, as
identification to board the free city-wide
shuttle AAU provides for its students,
and even for time and attendance. A
card can be disabled with one click if
system reduced crime on campus immediately, which contributes to the culture
of learning, serving, and creating. AAU is a high energy, vibrant community
dedicated to providing a robust creative education, and it’s important to AAU
administrators that students feel a sense of belonging in the school. “A large part
of that feeling of community is making sure our students feel safe,” said Susan
Toland, executive office strategist for AAU. “In addition to the security component,
it’s also important to consider the customer service benefit we receive from the

a student fails to pay tuition or drops Honeywell system. That helps us make the best of the university experience and
out of classes, and at the end of each ensure maximum participation.”
semester, all student cards are turned
off until enrollment begins again for
the next term.
VISTA Keypad
The Products
For prospective students, campus
visitors, and contractors, temporary • Pro-Watch® Corporate Edition security

badges are handled with Honeywell’s management system

LobbyWorks® Visitor Management • LobbyWorks® visitor management system

System. The badges can be • VISTA® control panel and keypad
programmed with unique criteria to
allow short-term access to certain Pro-Watch® Corporate Edition LobbyWorks
buildings at specific times, but data on
each card is retained in the system
so a permanent card can be produced
instantly if a need arises in the future.
 Pictured above from left to right: Michael Petricca, Director of
Campus Safety (end user), Academy of Art University;
Norma Schiller, National Accounts, Honeywell (manufacturer);
David Chritton, CFO, Microbiz Security Company (integrator)

For more information:

www.honeywell.com/security

Automation and Control Solutions

Honeywell Security Products Americas
2700 Blankenbaker Pkwy, Suite 150
Louisville, KY 40299
L/AAUCS/D
1.800.323.4576
December 2014
www.honeywell.com © 2014 Honeywell International Inc.