A second security gatehouse with a state-of-the-art facial recognition system has vastly improved access to the Sardinia Bay Golf & Wildlife Estate.
The new entrance is situated on Sardinia Bay Road, a short distance from the existing gatehouse in Heron Road, just off Seaview Road, in Gqeberha.
Estate manager Hugh Wiblin said the third and fourth phases of development meant it had become necessary to create an additional entry points to ease pressure on the main entrance, which has been in operation since the start of the 100ha development.
“It’s got to the stage where construction to the initial phases is almost done. Just a few houses needs to be completed and only two more to be built.”
He said the new gatehouse has been given the go-ahead for two reasons.
“In the long term, with all the new development happening on the seaside of the estate, those residents do not have to drive through the entire estate to access their homes.”
It also created the opportunity for the estate to divert contractors, sub-contractors and maintenance teams to a different entrance, he explained.
“At the moment it creates quite a bit of pressure when you have around 200 people trying to sign in at one entrance,” said Wiblin.
What’s more, the facial recognition system would allow speedier access once all the data has been uploaded to the database.
Contact me please
Estate supervisor Rynhardt Mattheus, who overseas the technical aspects of the new system, explained that it would give them a full record of who had entered and left the development – plus additional benefits.
“I upload all the necessary paperwork into the system and these people then enter through a single-person turnstile where the facial recognition software will police who may and may not enter,” he said.
“In this way we have control over who comes in and out and, if there are any problems, are able to deny access to those people.”
Mattheus said it was a “massive upgrade” to the system that served the original gatehouse, both in terms of technology and speed of access.
Instead of vehicles queuing to sign in, drivers will now disembark at the new entrance, walk through the turnstile, put their face to the reader and, if access is granted, enter within 30 seconds.
The same system will be applied to the existing entrance for domestic staff and gardeners.
Another feature of the second gateway is that it is open at the top to allow higher vehicles access – especially during construction.
The gatehouse became operational in mid-February.