Background:
Keeping your church’s facility secure and efficient has never been more top of mind. Having web-enabled, cloud- based access control integrated with your church’s events is one of many ways to assist with this.
St. John Neumann Catholic Church is located in the Diocese of Austin, Texas and consists of multiple buildings spanning across 27.7 acres. 
Jason Cournoyer, Facility Manager, St. John Neumann Catholic Church faced significant challenges with an outdated security and event management system. The manual-intensive process, lack of remote access, and limited flexibility in scheduling and canceling events (and respective door schedules) posed constant roadblocks to efficient facility management. Jason oversees five staff members to help with operating, maintaining and cleaning the facilities. His role varies in responsibilities as do many facility managers in the church world.
The Challenge:
- The old system's limitations in scheduling and remote access made managing events and security a cumbersome, labor-intensive process.
- Last-minute changes and cancellations were particularly problematic, often requiring physical presence at the site.
The Outcome:
St. John Neumann Catholic Church upgraded to eSPACE and integrated Brivo's hardware to enhance their facility management. This integration brought about several significant improvements:
- Streamlined Event Scheduling: The integration with eSPACE’s Event Scheduler allowed automatic updates of event changes, significantly reducing manual labor.
- Advanced Security Management: Brivo's door access system offered flexibility in scheduling and quick responses to event cancellations, ensuring security without the need for manual intervention.
- Efficient HVAC Control: The integration with Pelican thermostats automated the HVAC process, saving considerable time and effort.
Jason commended eSPACE for their responsive and effective support. When faced with an issue in the integration process, eSPACE quickly addressed and resolved the problem, smoothing out the interface and ensuring everything worked as expected.
“If you're on the fence, just take the leap. The benefits are undeniable,” says Jason. He encourages skeptics to engage with existing users to witness the system's effectiveness first-hand. The integration has not only made his role as a Facility Manager easier but also simplified processes for the entire staff.
Closing Thoughts:
Security as well as technology is always adapting. As the level of risk increases from a technical view, so do the capabilities of the tools we use to mitigate against such risk.
Sometimes adopting technology and changing the status quo requires making large decisions. Working through the steps to streamline the access of his building, we commend Jason for taking the necessary steps to be a good steward of his church’s facility.
Security and safety are topics that are here to stay. Do you have a long-term proactive plan for your church or parish?
