In my last post about integration partnerships, we talked about why technology partner relationships have become such an important part of Suprema’s strategy and introduced our integration with essentry, a company that automates the access governance process for visitors to provide the highest level of security. This time, I want to look at another partner, SPRNGPOD, and how it helps simplify visitor access for multi-tenant properties.

Consider a typical apartment building. Management grants continuous access to verified residents, but those residents also have visitors who need occasional access. When a dog walker, DoorDash driver, or somebody’s dinner date arrives at the building, unless there’s a full-time door attendant, the person they’re visiting is the one who lets them in.

This creates an access control challenge: How do you give residents an easy way to manage their own visitors without making the property less secure or forcing building management to become involved every time someone needs access to the building.

One answer is SPRNGPOD.

Two Complementary Technologies

SPRNGPOD is a cloud software company that brings multiple building technologies together within a common platform. Unlike Suprema, it doesn’t manufacture access control readers or biometric devices. Its platform manages experiences such as visitor registration and intercom communications and connects those interactions to the access control hardware and software that secure doors, gates, and elevators. Suprema’s BioStar Air is a cloud-based access control platform that manages access through connected Suprema devices. Together, the SPRNGPOD platform and BioStar Air bring visitor interactions and building access control into a complementary solution.

There’s also a practical business fit. Suprema and SPRNGPOD already work with many of the same manufacturers’ reps, distributors, dealers, and integrators. That shared channel makes it easier to bring the two solutions together when a customer needs both access control and visitor management. 

Giving Residents Control Over Their Visitors

The integration gives residents a simple way to personally manage their visitors’ access. Let’s say Apartment 418’s housekeeper comes every Tuesday between 10:00 am and noon. The resident can arrange recurring access for that time window and limit it to designated doorways and elevators connected to Suprema’s access control system through BioStar Air.

For example, the resident provides the housekeeper with a recurring PIN. When the housekeeper arrives, they can scan a QR code posted at the reader and enter the PIN on their phone to request access. The SPRNGPOD platform records which resident generated the visitor PIN and to whom it was issued, helping building management trace how visitor access was granted if questions arise. Another option is to give the housekeeper the SPRNGPOD app. Using it, they can unlock specified doors based on their permissions. This, too, provides an access record.

In this example, the housekeeper might use the parking lot entrance, then take the elevator to the fourth floor during the permitted hours. The same permissions would not give access to the gym or mailroom. The result is a recurring visit that does not require the resident or building manager to arrange entry each Tuesday.

For the occasional visitor, like a friend stopping by for lunch, the resident can issue a one-time PIN instead. Once the friend has entered the building using the QR code and typing the PIN into their phone, it no longer works.

Our integration with the SPRNGPOD platform is equally useful for unexpected visitors.

A person arriving at a secured entrance can use the SPRNGPOD intercom app to contact, see, and speak with the resident they’re there to visit. The resident can then grant them access by remotely unlocking the Suprema-controlled door using their cellphone.

Bringing Similar Flexibility to Commercial Properties

The SPRNGPOD platform is also useful in multi-tenant commercial properties – another market that both Suprema and SPRNGPOD support. Building tenants can host clients, vendors, and contractors while building management maintains control over shared common areas.

In this use case, employees send a visitor registration link by email to a person they are expecting using the SPRNGPOD platform. Through the web link, the visitor enters the required information and verifies their mobile number with a one-time PIN sent to their phone. Upon arrival, the visitor goes to a kiosk or panel, enters their mobile phone number, and their host is notified. The visitor can then be granted access through the appropriate Suprema-controlled doors, turnstiles, or elevators to reach their destination, with the specifics dependent on how the property has configured its integration with Suprema.

Looking Ahead: An AI-Powered Visitor Experience

SPRNGPOD is taking this concept a step further with Valerie, its AI-powered virtual concierge. Valerie is a lifelike avatar on a large digital display inside a building’s entrance, giving visitors the experience of approaching a virtual receptionist instead of interacting with a kiosk. Visitors can have a natural-language conversation with her as she determines who they are there to see, confirms whether they have an appointment, contacts the host employee, and provides directions on how they should proceed to their destination within the building.

Suprema and SPRNGPOD are also exploring how Valerie could incorporate facial authentication in the future so that a known employee or frequent visitor – such as a registered contractor – could be authenticated as they approach. In this hypothetical experience, Valerie could personalize her interactions with them, while Suprema handles authentication and access beyond the welcome station. Unknown visitors, on the other hand, could be greeted by Valerie, who would confirm their appointment and notify their host.

Multi-tenant buildings are shared environments, but access decisions are often highly individual. Connecting SPRNGPOD with Suprema gives property managers and tenants a simpler way to manage access on their own terms without compromising security or complicating the visitor experience.