While most people began working from home early in the year, orders for optical turnstiles, which are typically installed in the lobbies of commercial buildings, continued at a steady pace through the summer and into the fall, indicating a strong interest in creating safe and secure lobbies using a touchless security entry solution.

Demand for touchless entry drives turnstile sales

Optical turnstiles have been gaining in deployment since 9/11 due to their ability to deter casual intrusion in a lobby setting and relieve busy guards by detecting tailgating attempts using near-infrared detection sensors housed inside the cabinets. They can have barriers that either swing or slide, or they can be barrier-free. But in all cases, they operate automatically and do not require a user to touch them. Due to the pandemic, the desire to update buildings so that main entrances and lobbies are secure, while also touchless, has been one of the main reasons that interest in optical turnstiles continues to be healthy.

Over half of Boon Edam's entrance products are automatic and meet the requirement for touchless entry. As a result, the company was able to quickly adjust its operations to supply these turnstiles to organisations looking to immediately upgrade their facilities. Boon Edam’s most popular optical turnstile is the Speedlane Swing, featuring a slender cabinet style and swinging glass barriers. Another turnstile, the Speedlane Compact, which has a smaller footprint, was launched in the summer of 2020.

"The year 2020 was terribly challenging for businesses and people around the world," said Valerie Currin, CEO and Managing Director of Boon Edam Inc. "We are grateful that our factory has been able to continue operating safely during Covid-19, and we anticipate continued strong demand for our turnstiles into 2021 as our customers prepare their facilities for the 'return to work' phase while maintaining both safety and security."

Growing production space 

To fulfill the increase in Speedlane Swing turnstile orders in 2020, the Boon Edam manufacturing facility in Lillington, NC upgraded its operations to accommodate an additional turnstile production line, all while maintaining safe working conditions for its employees during the pandemic. The new turnstile production line enabled production staff to nearly double the business’ capacity each month and uphold promised lead times.

Managing Director of the Manufacturing Business, Patrick Nora, commended his team for their ability to pivot so quickly to meet demand: "People have moved around the facility and performed jobs they’ve never done before. We’ve implemented policies that, while necessary, have not been comfortable for anyone. The team has worked overtime to ensure on-time delivery to our customers was never threatened. I couldn’t be happier with their efforts."