Custom app for access and patrols at a port facility
Raising the security level to level two is not a notice but a series of actions on the terminal: additional checks, different access rules, monitoring of restricted zones. Those actions are carried out by people at a gate and on a quay, and you only know whether they were carried out if someone has recorded it there.
Why the terminal is the point of execution
Every ISPS-liable port facility works with an approved security plan, a designated port facility security officer and three security levels. The plan describes access control, restricted zones, staff screening, cargo handling and exercises.
The plan itself is fixed and usually in order. What is missing is the trail of execution. When raising to a higher level, additional measures must take effect within a short time, and these are carried out by the gatekeeper, the crane operator and the crew guarding the quay. Without a record there, confirmation to the officer is a phone call.
The same applies to day-to-day operations. A lorry driver without an appointment, a contractor who wants to enter the terminal unaccompanied, a gate left open: those moments happen at the gate and disappear into a guard log that nobody reviews.
How we build this
The action at the gate is the unit here. If it is recorded who entered and which measure is active, accountability follows from that.
We look at how much time there is per vehicle, who is on duty and what is being written down now. That shapes the design more than the plan does.
Who receives notice, who confirms which measure, and within what time. That is the core, and it is rarely set up.
On a quay, in a shed or between containers the network drops out. The app keeps working and synchronises later, with the actual time.
We run an escalation drill and measure how long it takes for every measure to be confirmed. That figure is your actual response capability.
What the app does in practice
The app does little, and that little has to work in rain and in the dark. Which components you need depends on the size of your site.
Checking access at the gate
Scan a pass or search by name and see whether this person or vehicle may enter here, in which zone, and until when. Green or red, not a list someone has to search through.
Level change with confirmation per measure
When the level goes up, everyone is notified and each operative confirms their measure. Afterwards, it is on record how quickly everything was in place and who did what.
Patrols along restricted zones
For each patrol, which points are due, with a tag at the object. A ticked-off round without proof of presence is just an assertion when it comes to supervision.
Deviations recorded immediately
An open gate, an unaccompanied visitor, a skipped check. Each of these becomes an action with an owner, rather than a line in a waiting log.
Fully offline operation
Checks, patrols and reports continue without a connection and sync later, with the actual time recorded.
Integration with the gate and security plan
Passes and barriers already exist; we integrate with them through integrations. The register side runs on ISPS software.
Who we build for
What happens on your site determines the focus. Four situations.
Terminals and loading and unloading
Heavy traffic and many external drivers. Speed at the gate determines whether the check gets done or the queue grows so long that people are waved through.
Industry with its own quay
Little traffic but the same requirements. There is no gatekeeper, so the check falls to someone who has other duties as well, and they need to fit it in between tasks.
Port operators with multiple facilities
The level often changes for the entire area while each facility has its own plan. You want to confirm per facility and see across the whole where things are not yet in place.
Contractors and maintenance on site
Work on installations brings people in who need supervision. This is where access control is most often stretched in practice and where recording delivers the most value. If your site also falls under the Wwke, a second accountability runs alongside it.
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The app is the field side of your security plan and does not change that plan. What it records ends up in the register you account from.
Why Appfront
A level increase is a sequence of actions
We have each measure confirmed by the person carrying it out. A message to the group is no proof that they are actually active.
Supervision asks for evidence, not a plan
We build the trail of checks, patrols and drills, because that is what gets requested and what paperwork alone does not provide.
No signal on a quay
Offline is the baseline. An app that stalls between containers gets replaced after a gatekeeper's shrug.
The gate holds third-party data
Drivers and contractors are not your staff. We show only what the check requires and keep visitor data for a limited period.
Security and privacy
A device at the gate holds the key to your site: who may enter where, which zones are restricted and which measures apply at which level. That's exactly the overview someone with bad intentions is looking for. We tie permissions to the user rather than the device, show each role no more than the check requires, limit offline storage to that shift's duty, and ensure a lost device can be disconnected remotely.
Registering people also calls for restraint. Drivers and contractors are not your employees, and what you record about them you process on the basis of a legal obligation, not because it is convenient. We therefore do not display document numbers where a name will suffice, and we set an explicit retention period on visitor data rather than keeping it indefinitely. The evidence the app produces, on the other hand, must be tamper-proof. How we handle security ourselves is set out in our information security policy; reports from outside come through our vulnerability disclosure policy.
Frequently asked questions about the port security app
No. Gates, passes and barriers remain; we connect to them. What the app adds is the reason behind a permission and a record of what was checked: which zone, on the basis of which screening, until when, and who assessed it.
When the level changes, those affected receive a message with the measures that apply to them, and each implementer confirms that their measure is active. Afterwards you can see how quickly everything was in place and which measure lagged behind, instead of relying on a round of phone calls.
Yes, that's the starting point. Checks, patrols and reports are stored locally with the actual time recorded and sync as soon as there's a connection. Between containers and in warehouses, no signal is the normal situation.
Usually, yes, under their own roles and with access only to the facility where they work. What you want to avoid is your security evidence sitting in your security provider's system, because you are the one who has to account for it.
As little as possible: enough to account for access and no more. We do not display document numbers where a name will suffice and we set a retention period on the data. What is permitted precisely depends on your security plan and the privacy rules; agree that in advance.
This app is the field side. The ISPS software is the register of measures per level, screening validity, exercises and reporting to the supervisory authority. They share one data source.
Yes, and that is often the second benefit. An exercise consists of actions on the site, and you record those with the same app: who took part, what went wrong, and what was done about it. That material ends up in the file you provide for inspection on request.
That depends on the number of gates and facilities, whether it needs to integrate with existing access installations and whether visitor registration is required. Access control with patrols is usually quick to deliver; integrations with gate equipment take more effort. We'll give you a reasoned estimate after the discovery phase.
Do you know how quickly level two is actually in place?
At the next exercise, ask how long it took before each measure was confirmed as active. If nobody knows, that is the work to be done. We build this as a standalone app and as part of a broader custom app or custom software project.