SnapKey vs Traditional Key Management – How to Save Time and Money

Many businesses still use key cabinets, lockboxes, or physical key fobs to manage access. But these methods have serious limitations – especially when it comes to security, traceability, and compliance.

SnapKey solves these problems without requiring replacement of your existing locks.

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Traditional Methods and Their Problems

1. Physical Key Cabinets

How it works: Keys are stored in a central cabinet. Employees pick up and return keys manually.

Problems:

• ❌ No real traceability – who took which key?
• ❌ Keys can "disappear"
• ❌ Requires physical presence
• ❌ Time-consuming coordination
• ❌ Impossible to time-limit

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2. Lockboxes

How it works: A box with a code lock is mounted at the entrance. Anyone with the code can retrieve the key.

Problems:

• ❌ Shared code = no individual traceability
• ❌ Codes get shared (intentionally or not)
• ❌ Codes rarely changed
• ❌ Cannot be time-limited
• ❌ Compromised code = compromised security

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3. Physical Key Fobs

How it works: Electronic key fobs are programmed to specific locks.

Problems:

• ❌ Requires physical handover
• ❌ Lost fobs must be reprogrammed
• ❌ Time-limited access requires manual handling
• ❌ Expensive administration with many users
• ❌ Limited traceability

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SnapKey: The Modern Solution

SnapKey replaces all the above methods with one unified platform:

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Complete Comparison

Feature	Key Cabinet	Lockbox	Key Fobs	SnapKey
Individual traceability	❌	❌	Partial	✅
Time-limited access	❌	❌	Manual	✅ Auto
Revocation without rekeying	❌	❌	❌	✅
Onboarding	Hours	Minutes	Hours	30 sec
CER/NIS2 compliance	❌	❌	Partial	✅
Works offline	✅	✅	✅	✅
Requires physical presence	✅	✅	✅	❌
Audit reports	❌	❌	Manual	✅ Auto

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Typical Scenarios

Scenario 1: New Technician Needs Access

Traditional:

1. Coordinate time for key handover
2. Technician drives to office
3. Signs receipt
4. Picks up key from cabinet
5. Drives to location

With SnapKey:

1. Send digital key via SMS
2. Technician activates the key and opens the door

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Scenario 2: External Contractor Visit

Traditional:

1. Agree on meeting time
2. Show up to let them in (or share code)
3. No traceability on when they left

With SnapKey:

1. Send time-limited key (e.g., 09:00-12:00)
2. Contractor lets themselves in
3. Key expires automatically
4. You see exactly when they were there

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Scenario 3: Employee Leaves

Traditional:

1. Collect all keys (hope they return them all)
2. Rekey locks if suspicious
3. Change codes on lockboxes
4. No guarantee access is removed

With SnapKey:

1. Click "Revoke" in dashboard
2. The keys stop working when the lock system receives the change – a phone key typically within about 30 seconds
3. Traceability of the openings the lock system reports

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Economic Comparison

Annual Costs with 50 Access Points

Expense	Traditional	SnapKey
Key cabinets and maintenance	€2,000	€0
Coordination time (estimate)	€6,500	€650
Rekeying when lost	€1,300	€0
Key copies and fobs	€1,000	€0
Compliance documentation	Manual work	Automatic
Total estimate	~€10,800	~€4,500

Prices are examples. Contact us for a specific quote.

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Compliance Advantage

With CER directive and NIS2, businesses with critical infrastructure must document:

• Who has access to what
• When access was granted
• How unauthorized access is prevented

Traditional Methods

❌ Requires extensive manual documentation ❌ No automatic log ❌ Difficult to prove compliance during audits

SnapKey

✅ Automatic access log ✅ Exportable reports ✅ Ready for audit in minutes

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Migration from Traditional Methods

SnapKey integrates directly with existing iLOQ locks:

1. Keep your locks – no replacement needed
2. Import users – from HR system or manually
3. Set up access profiles – define who has access where
4. Phase out key cabinets – gradually or immediately

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FAQ

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Ready to Upgrade?

Book a free demo and see how SnapKey can replace your key cabinets, lockboxes, and physical fobs.