A Master Key system is indispensable in large facilities and multiple location businesses.

However, a poorly managed Master Key System can create more problems than it solves!

A Master Key System creates a hierarchy of keys and locks. This allows some keys to open all doors, while restricting access from other keys. This is very helpful for controlling access in a large enterprise.

Let’s look at a school campus as an example. With a custom created Master Key System, we can allow and restrict access to all levels of faculty. Administration, Custodians, and teachers can have access to everything they need and nothing they shouldn’t.

Often in the Master Key Systems we create for School Districts, Administration and Custodians need access to the entire facility. They are issued a “Building Master” which opens every door on their campus. Teachers, however, only need access to classroom doors and some common areas like work stations. They are issued a “Classroom Key” that operates classroom and common area doors. In most cases today, exterior door access is granted by electronic credentials to maintain a proper audit trail and limit non-audited access to the building.

But what about large districts with multiple campuses? How many keys do District level administrators or maintenance faculty have to carry? JUST 1! That’s right, another level can be created above the “Building Master” that is called a “Grand Master.” In a properly created Master Key System, the Grand Master operates every lock in the system. This “Grand Master” provides access to every lock in the system to District-wide faculty, while preventing campus faculty from accessing other campuses.

A visual description of how a basic Master Key System operates can make it easier to understand, so we have created a sample hierarchy chart below.

This is an example of a very basic Master Key System, but they can get much more complicated! Additional levels can be added, multiple keyways can be integrated, and locks can be “cross-keyed,” all of which increases the complexity of the key system.

One of the most critical elements to an effective Master Key System is accurately cut key! Even if you have properly keyed cylinders, if you receive poor duplicate keys, they will not consistently work across your facility.

The other critical element to a useful key system is accurately keyed or “pinned” cylinders. When a Master Key System is in use, it is imperative that OEM pins be used. “Universal pins” are not sufficiently close to manufacturer specifications for reliable operation when the complexities of Master Keying are added.

We manage Master Key Systems in operation on thousands of doors throughout North Central Arkansas. If you would like information about creating a Master Key System or correcting problems in an existing system, we will be happy to help you!

Give us a call