Picture this scenario: Your trusted store manager John Doe has keys to your store. John has the ability to lock and unlock the store, arm and disarm the security system, and gain access to the safe. In essence, all of the store’s money lies in your trusted manager’s hands. But wait – it turns out that John shouldn’t be trusted after all. You find out late in the afternoon from another store manager that John took money without authorization and hasn’t shown up for two days.
Traditional Rekeys
After your fury somewhat subsides you terminate him, but he still has the most valuable item in your store – the keys. John has unlimited access to your store and everything in it. Because he has already taken money from the store, you fear that he will come back and take more. This means that you now need to go through the cost and hassle of rekeying your store to protect your assets. Your store is on a managed key system; so a technician will need to perform an emergency after-hours rekey to temporarily secure the store. Once your key system vendor ships new cores, the technician will return to install the permanent key system. This is going to cost you a lot of money – not to mention hassle that nobody has time for.
We see this scenario play out on a daily basis. Rekeys are a necessity for any company in the retail or restaurant industry; however, they can also be a costly hassle. Many organizations opt to have their locations on managed key systems. Managed key systems allow for a higher level of security, and are also easier to control and administer versus haphazard systems on every store. The only downside to them is that emergency rekeys can be expensive.
An emergency rekey involves the following steps:
- 1st trip to provide temporary keys and cores
- Purchase of temporary keys and cores
- 2nd trip to install the permanent keys and cores
- Purchase of the keys and cores
A retail location with 2-4 exterior doors will, on average, spend $200-$250 per rekey. Some retail and restaurant locations have high turnover and rekey their locations on a somewhat regular basis. For nine rekeys, this would total anywhere from $1,800 to $2,250. This cost adds up quickly over multiple locations.
Rekeys With the InstaKey Security System
Now picture this scenario: After terminating John, you march over to the safe (in all your furious glory – no need to wait for that to subside) and get a rekey packet out of the safe. You turn the key in each lock…and you’re finished. No technician is needed, no new cores are ordered, and minimal hassle was incurred. Then you call your key system provider and tell them to send you another packet to store in the safe should another rekey be needed. Here’s the real kicker – this cost you 75% less than a traditional rekey.
InstaKey is a powerful alternative to the traditional key system while offering the same benefits. InstaKey eliminates core changes and after-hours locksmith services by utilizing rekeyable lock cylinders. What does this mean for you – you can rekey a lock without replacing the core. But there’s more than that – the keys used are restricted keyways that cannot be copied. Instakey also provides an added layer of security with the ability to track keys to personnel for an incident or audit by offering on-line software.
Because you only incur the labor cost for the initial installation of the cores, the cost of administering the key system is drastically lower than traditional key systems. After installation, the average cost of a rekey for a location with the same 2-4 exterior doors is around 75% less than the cost incurred with a traditional key system. The ROI is evident after the second rekey. Throughout the life of an InstaKey core (9 rekeys), you can expect to see a savings of $1,300 to $1,700.
The InstaKey program is designed to provide retailers the ability to rekey locations quickly and more importantly, to gain complete control of their key system program. Check out this video to see a rekey step by step. The cylinders used are high-security cores that use serialized and non-duplicable keys; these keys can be tracked by user via Instakey’s online database.
With the Instakey system, not only do you save money, but you gain peace of mind as well. If you want to make the leap to Instakey but the initial cost deters you, be sure to think through the long-term benefits and consider phasing it into high-risk stores first.
For more information, check out our comprehensive Key Systems 101 article or download our white paper.
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