Georgia Tech documents nearly 40,000 door openings in nine months

A campus that holds operations to a research standard

Georgia Tech applies the same rigor to its operations as to its research. So, when university leaders reviewed campus security, they set a clear goal: retire physical keys and move to a fully keyless campus supported by wireless access control.

“At Georgia Tech, we want the latest and the greatest to be at the forefront of everything we’re doing, both on the academic side and on the operational side.”

Establishing a hardware baseline before wireless deployment

A keyless campus depends on hardware that can support it. Before the university could order a single wireless lock, they needed to know which lock sat on each door, whether the existing hardware was compatible with the new system, which openings carried fire ratings, and whether every life-safety opening closed and latched as intended.

Hardware data for existing openings was fragmented across original construction documents, past renovation records, and lock shop knowledge, with no single verified inventory. Without opening-level data on lock type, hardware compatibility, and fire ratings, every undocumented opening carried a risk.

The project team faced three potential problems.

• An incompatible lock discovered after the order
• A hardware conflict in the middle of a project
• A delay that rippled across campus

“From a planning perspective, I need to understand exactly which type of locks they are and if they’re compatible with the type of locks that we are going to order. And if they’re not, then there’s obviously going to be a conflict sometime in the future.”

Georgia Tech recognized that modernization had to start with understanding.

“Access control should be frictionless, in my opinion. But to reach that goal, we first needed to make sure we understood our foundation.”

Commissioning a campus-wide door opening survey

Georgia Tech had already chosen its destination. To map the ground between the campus as it stood and the campus it wanted to become, the university brought in the Openings Studio Professional Services team for a consultative, data-driven survey of every door opening.

“This project was essentially to survey all of campus to get an account of all the locks and see what our security was like. So, moving forward, when we want to implement better access control, we can do that more easily.”

Opening-level data capture and verification

The Professional Services team built a complete record of each opening, one door at a time. The team completed five tasks at every opening.

• Documented the door, frame, hardware, and access control components with photos, including hanging and securing hardware, openers, closers, and accessories.
• Measured the opening and identified its handing to simplify future maintenance, repairs, and upgrades.
• Verified fire ratings, fire labels, and STC labels where applicable.
• Tested all hardware to confirm it functioned as intended and that each secured or life-safety opening was self-closing and positive-latching.
• Tagged the opening with a trackable QR code linked to its digital record.

As the survey progressed, the team uploaded every photo and measurement to Openings Studio, ASSA ABLOY’s BIM-enabled software platform for door hardware specification, opening coordination, and lifecycle management. Beyond surveys, the mobile app also supports fire door inspections and pre-occupancy verifications. All opening information is stored securely in the cloud and is accessible by staff from the desktop, smartphone, or tablet.

Surveying an occupied campus without disrupting operations

The hardest part of the work was access. Classes, research, and daily operations continued throughout the survey, and the team could not disrupt any of them.

Daily stand-up meetings kept the Professional Services team aligned with the university’s facilities group, lock shop, and access control department. Together, they worked around active classrooms and labs, balanced competing campus priorities, and kept the survey moving forward.

“You can’t do anything on a team if you don’t collaborate, which requires constant communication and trust. That’s something that I had with the ASSA ABLOY team through the whole process.”

Nearly 40,000 openings documented ahead of schedule

The team surveyed nearly 40,000 openings in nine months, well ahead of the projected timeline. Georgia Tech now holds a complete, verified record of its opening infrastructure, and that record changes how the university plans and maintains its campus.

• Planning with confidence: Project teams can confirm lock compatibility before ordering, rather than discovering conflicts mid-project.
• Faster maintenance: When a component needs replacement or inspection, staff can scan the QR code at the opening or pull up the record remotely, which reduces downtime.
• Documented life safety: Fire ratings, labels, and closing and latching function are recorded opening by opening.
• A clear roadmap: The survey gives the university a defined path toward wireless access control.

“This project is a strategic enabler for us. It positions Georgia Tech to deliver on its mission of excellence, innovation, accessibility, and impact, and it gives us the foundation to modernize access control for years to come.”

From a verified baseline to a keyless campus

Georgia Tech set the vision and committed to understanding its own campus before changing it. With every opening documented, the university can now confirm lock compatibility before placing orders, identify which openings need hardware upgrades first, and phase in wireless access control based on verified data.

The same record will continue to support maintenance and life-safety documentation as the campus moves toward a fully keyless future.