GSA’s first Cloud-based physical access system implemented at federal building in Des Moines, Iowa

Neal Smith Federal Building in Des Moines, IA

BridgePoint Systems, a provider of smart card readers and enrollment software for Physical Access Control Systems (PACs), announced on Jan. 24 that the Neal Smith Federal Building in Des Moines, IA, has implemented its TrustAlert PACS (formerly called TrustZone PACS).

BridgePoint and its partner, EmbarkIT, installed the new system ahead of schedule and within the facility’s budget parameters, says a news release issued by BridgePoint on Jan. 24.

TrustAlert PACS is the only single-source Public Key Infrastructure (PKI)-enabled system that meets current and future federal standards and guidelines including HSPD-12 and FIPS-201-2. Recently certified to operate on a GSA network, BridgePoint was the only firm capable of delivering a single, tightly integrated PACS solution, says the news release.  

BridgePoint utilized the Neal Smith Federal Building’s existing infrastructure to install the TrustAlert PACS, while using a Cloud-based protocol. This eliminated the need for locally-based IT server and system resources. The new Physical Access System is much more energy efficient than the previous security system because it leverages the General Service Administration’s (GSA’s) Wide Area Network (WAN) and remote IT infrastructure, which are located in Kansas City, MO.

Among its many requirements, the facility needed a system that would comply with federal security regulations and was approved by the GSA. In replacing its 10-year old legacy system, the 400,000-square-foot Neal Smith Federal Building also wanted to implement a new system that would be interoperable among its 40-plus agencies and more than 500 employees who were already using a Personal Identification Verification (PIV) credential. The new system would require the participation of 300 other non-PIV employees who would soon transition to using the PIV-based system.

To ensure business continuity without any disruption, EmbarkIT and BridgePoint personnel installed the new TrustAlert Physical Access System in four days, doing most of the work during the off-peak, evening hours. The system also required the installation of 23 BridgePoint TrustPoint readers on parking gates, elevator controls and automated doors, said the news release.

In advance of the system going live, GSA and EmbarkIT personnel were able to use BridgePoint’s TrustAlert Enrollment system to enroll all employees and contractors who required building access, setting up different levels of security clearance and access permission. By enrolling people in this manner, the facility increased its level of security access control and created a long-range plan for ensuring that everyone would soon be on-board to use the system.

According to Neal Smith Federal Building’s project management personnel, BridgePoint TrustAlert Physical Access System addressed the facility’s need to meet security and operational goals, all the while lowering the facility’s carbon footprint, said the release.

The project management team was pleased with BridgePoint’s plan, which included enrolling all participants in advance. The project lead was especially impressed with BridgePoint’s diligence in ensuring that the system was properly tested by IT staff and approved by the GSA -- long before implementation.

“We are honored to have been selected as the PACS provider of choice by Neal Smith Federal Building’s project management team,” said Thomas Corder, president and CEO of BridgePoint Systems. “Working in conjunction with Embark IT, the facility’s certified 8(a), IT contractor, we carefully considered the building’s current system architecture. This installation was particularly innovative in that it took advantage of a Cloud-based network to address the facility’s energy conservation requirements, while still maintaining the sophisticated security practices that were mandatory for a project of this kind.”