I've been tasked with setting up a time punch card machine for employees and also make sure security guards actually do their rounds. Right now, employees just manually fill in a time sheet and "say they do their hourly rounds". New management wants to be sure no one clocks in for someone else and security guards are doing what they are paid to do.
Since I will be upgrading their whole security system (including cameras), I was thinking of using access cards for the employees to clock in/out. At the end of the week, HR can simply export the data from the machine. As for the security guards, I want to put a magnetic (or RFID) strip by all the doors and areas that they must patrol every night. Each time they reach that zone, they need to scan the magnetic strip/rfid which automatically records time and date on their handheld device. BTW, I don't want to run any wires to those zones so passive devices must be installed in the zone. Then at the end of their shift, the unit is docked and data is sent. Is there an all in one solution for both time clock and security rounds? Eventually, we hope to use the same access cards to replace the current key card system to access different secured areas. This business is an apartment complex that currently has magnetic cards (like credit cards) to unlock all doors. A very simple off ebay card cloner can clone the cards. The door locks are not linked to a central system so if a card is lost, the programming machine must be inserted into the lock, wipe out all the active cards (except for the master), then reprogram new valid cards. If a master card is lost/stolen, then the programming machine has to "touch" every single lock in the building to have it reprogrammed. There is about 250 door locks yikes! The door lock system replacement will come later on.