Challenge 

Based in downtown Nashville, Tennessee, LifeWay is one of the world’s largest providers of Christian resources, including Bibles, Bible Studies, research, events, church supplies, digital services and more. LifeWay also owns and operates more than 170 LifeWay Christian Stores across the United States. 

LifeWay was already using LenelS2™ NetBox™ access control when the company decided to build a brand new headquarters. A couple of years before the planned move, LifeWay created custom reports in the NetBox system to track occupancy and parking garage usage. Although the company has 1,100 employees, data indicated that only 700 were in the building at any given time. “We leveraged data from NetBox custom reports to reduce the footprint of the building, saving a significant amount of money,” explains Tom Lamb, Engineering and Business Support Manager, LifeWay. 

At the new building, LifeWay wanted to provide a secure, yet seamless experience for employees and visitors through unified management of access control, video surveillance and other systems including elevator controls and intercom. 

Solution 

LifeWay brought in systems integrator and technology provider ACT Security to expand the LenelS2 system at the new headquarters. “We were able to unify multiple systems under LenelS2 to provide optimal oversight across the entire property,” notes Alden Curtis, Commercial and Residential Security Consultant, ACT Security. 

Upon arrival to campus, employees present their badges at the employee garage entrance, which is secured by a gate arm as well as a roll-up gate. The roll-up gate is scheduled in the NetBox system to be up during peak commuting hours to speed up flow in and out of the garage. Integrated Stentofon intercom systems allow security to buzz employees in if they forget their badges. One floor of the garage is designated for visitors and scheduled to be open only when the campus bookstore and lobby are open. 

The nine-floor building includes an Otis Compass destination dispatch elevator system that integrates with the NetBox system. Employees present their badges at turnstiles with screens that indicate which car to take. The system learns individual usage patterns and groups people by floor, reducing stops and transit time. More than 15,000 visitors per year also attend events at the conference center on the second floor. During larger events, guests receive temporary credentials and take a designated guest elevator that goes exclusively between the first and second floors. 

In the new, open work space, employees move around and work in the places that best suit their needs. No matter where they are, they can send documents to print on the network and use their badges to print at the nearest printer. 

The LifeWay security team monitors any events triggered from doors, cameras, alarms, elevators and intercom directly from the unified NetBox system interface. “It’s very easy to use, so we spend minimal time getting our staff up to speed,” observes Lamb. 

Results 

LifeWay’s new headquarters is a model of security integration and innovation that maximizes security and convenience for employees and visitors. With multiple distribution centers also utilizing LenelS2 systems, LifeWay is in the process of rolling out NetBox Global for centralized management. In addition, LifeWay looks forward to other integrations such as tying the lighting system into an alarm function in the NetBox system. “We like the NetBox system because it’s an open platform that allows us to continue to expand our capabilities,” notes Lamb.