In Canada, Hydro-Quebec’s Gentilly-2 nuclear generating station uses biometrics for security.
Hand readers physically restrict non-qualified, non-trained personnel from hazardous zones, and keep a log of personnel and visitors’ comings and goings. The product used is the HandKey hand geometry reader from IR Recognition Systems, the biometric component of Ingersoll-Rand’s (IR) Security & Safety Group’s Electronic Access Control Division (EACD). HandKey readers authenticate users by the shape and size of their hands, not their keys, cards or codes, are used at entrance turnstiles, the exit turnstiles and boundaries of administration and production radiological zones.
What they say
Louis Rivard, IT Systems Designer at the Gentilly-2 station, says: ?Every employee, even the chairman of Hydro-Quebec, as well as visitors to the facility have to enroll on the HandKey to be admitted to the site. We chose hand geometry for its ease of use, reliability, and high accuracy. Also, versus making our people have to give their fingerprints and or being forced to have retinal scans, the hand geometry approach was the easiest to introduce. In fact, at implementation, the employee response was excellent.? According to Rivard, the Canadian jurisdictional authority in nuclear matters was very satisfied with Gentilly-2’s initiative to improve its security with such a technological approach. The generating station was able to provide better compliance, easing the renewal of their operations permit. The station is looking to upgrade the system, keeping hand geometry to authenticate people. IR Recognition HandKey hand geometry readers are, in the US nuclear plant industry, used on 97 of 103 facilities. Visit www.irco.com
