Safeguard Tools with a Tap

Tools often go missing from job sites. When multiple people are using the same tools, or tools will be locked up overnight for the next day’s crew, it’s easy for things to get misplaced (with no idea who to ask) or even stolen.

That’s why the team at Tapplock, located in Toronto, has developed the Tapplock one+ and Tapplock lite. The smart padlocks use fingerprint technology to safeguard tools.

“Users of traditional keyed and combination locks often lose the key or forget the combination code,” said Gloria Lopez-Gil, Tapplock’s public relations manager. “That leaves the users only one option: to cut the lock off. With Tapplock, all that is needed to unlock your Tapplock one+ is your fingerprint. You’ll never leave your fingerprint behind.”

Tapplocks can be useful in a wide variety of industries, from utilities and manufacturing, to education and construction. Around 10 percent of its users are in the construction industry.

How Tapplock Works

Instead of relying on keys, Tapplock’s fingerprint locks allow users to load up to 500 employee fingerprints for the one+ model and up to 100 employee fingerprints for the lite model. Tapplock one+ includes access to Tapplock’s enterprise management platform. Tapplock lite uses Tapplock’s consumer app.

From within the enterprise access control platform, available via Tapplock’s mobile apps for Android and iOS, users are able to see all of its Tapplocks on a map. The company plans to make its enterprise access control platform available on desktop computers, as well.

Using this platform, employers can deploy or revoke employees’ fingerprint access remotely, and manage users by groups with certain groups of people able to unlock only certain Tapplocks within the organization. For example, the user could set parameters that certain fingerprints only work within certain hours or on certain days for a specific group of locks.

The platform also allows users to track access history with its audit reports feature.

“When inventory or supplies go missing, account managers need to be able to hold employees accountable,” Lopez-Gil said. With Tapplock’s audit reports, managers can view timestamps of each unlocking and geo-location information dating back to the first unlock. “Traditional keyed and combination locks have no way of recording unlocking times, leaving companies accountable for anything that were to go missing.”

It’s also possible to receive mobile notifications for account-related events through the Tapplock enterprise platform.

“Often, employees in a construction-related field have access to costly tools and machinery,” Lopez-Gil said. “The ability to receive mobile notifications when someone unlocks/locks your Tapplock can help control inventory management immensely.”

The platform also allows employers/account managers to select the unlocking method, either by fingerprint, Bluetooth and morse-code. This is helpful under circumstances in which one unlocking method may not work. For example, if the user’s hands are too sweaty for fingerprint unlocking.

Tapplock Stats

According to Tapplock, the padlocks identify users accurately 99.999 percent of the time and unlock within 0.8 seconds. Tapplock employs an adaptive algorithm so the lock will unlock even faster and increase in accuracy each time it is used.

The padlocks are made secure on the software side of things via enterprise-level encryption and cyber security protocols. On the hardware side of things, the waterproof locks are equipped with reinforced stainless steel shackles and Tapplock’s proprietary anti-shim technology.

“It will take a powerful bolt cutter to get through the shackles of Tapplock one+,” Lopez-Gil said. “We are also in the works of releasing a shroud to place overtop the shackles to further protect user belongings.”

Tapplock one+ offers a one-year battery life, or roughly 3500 unlocks, before recharging is required, and the Tapplock lite offers roughly 1200 unlocks before recharging. Battery life is visible from within the Tapplock app, and the lock will blink red when power is below 10 percent. Should a Tapplock’s battery drain on the job, an 8-second boost using a portable battery pack will be enough to unlock the Tapplock. It takes around two hours to charge a Tapplock one+ and one and a half hours to charge a Tapplock lite.

The Tapplock one+ is available now. The Tapplock lite is available for pre-order, and is expected to ship in April of this year.

For more information, visit tapplock.com.