Access and badges are two of the biggest changes at the Lab that occurred in the past two years. Learn what you need to do to get through the gates (and which gates to use), and get into buildings in this interview with the Lab’s senior security manager Blair Edwards.
Depending on the COVID conditions in our communities, more people will return to work at one of the Lab sites in the coming weeks. While the Lab’s gates will look familiar, Lab access and badge use has changed in the past two years. In this conversation with Blair Edwards, Senior Security Operations Manager, Security and Emergency Services, we looked at some of the most apparent changes that people returning to a Lab site will notice.
Elements: What are the three biggest changes in access and badges since March 2020?
Blair Edwards:
- The biggest change is you need your badge to access the Lab’s hill site. And when I say access that means to enter at the gate and to enter in all buildings that have access control systems. This is a really big change for those who have not been on site for two years. Of course, the Lab’s off-site locations also require badge access.
- The second one is site security training. We have a training class for new employees that reviews security at the Lab. Everyone is invited to take the class as a way to understand these changes. The course is SES-0200 and takes about 15 minutes.
- The third thing is there are expiration dates on your badge. Go ahead and look at your badge. If yours does not have a date on it, you will get a notice in the next few months that you need a new badge. Your badge will continue to work without a date, so don’t worry about it. But when we ask you to come to get a new badge, make an appointment. If you are an affiliate, your badge will expire at the end of your appointment. And the badge office is open by appointment only.
Elements: What will be different for those coming on site?
Blair: We only have two gates for entering the Lab. Blackberry Gate is open 7/24 for all badge holders and non-badge holders such as visitors, deliveries, and construction vehicles. There is now a badge holder lane at the Blackberry gate. Strawberry Gate is only for badge holders and is an exceptional choice for badge holders, especially those whose destination is in zones, 3, 4,5, and 6. Strawberry Gate is open Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.
When you pull up to the gate, have your badge in hand and your window rolled down to hold your badge near the electronic reader. You also need to display your parking permit as you enter the gate. The security officers will be looking for parking permits, and if you don’t have one and you are eligible you can make an appointment at the badge office to pick one up. Remember to display the parking permit when you park as well to avoid a ticket.
Grizzly Gate is not open to incoming vehicles, but vehicles, pedestrians, and bicycles can exit through Grizzly. Pedestrians and bikes can also enter at Grizzly Gate by calling the Site Operations Center at 510-486-6999.
Once you are through the gate, you will need your badge to enter buildings that have access control systems 24/7. All badge holders automatically have access to the majority of the Lab buildings during normal business hours M-F 0600am-0800pm. The exceptions are those buildings that have specific training requirements, such as Building 88 and Building 6. If you need access to those buildings, you will need to submit an access request via access.lbl.gov, complete the required training, and have your access request approved by the security access manager (SAM). We will be increasing access control systems installations to buildings and rooms over the next few years.
Some buildings have interior doors that have access controls. If you need access to that space, you can go to access@lbl.gov to request access to a specific space in a specific building.
There are no changes to keys. Keys will still function if that is how you accessed a space. If you have building keys and do not need them any longer, or have received keys from someone who has retired or left the Lab, call the SOC at 486-6999 and we can arrange to have them picked up.
Elements: What more do you want employees to know about badges and access as they return to Lab sites?
Blair: Our culture has changed in the past two years, and at the Lab as well. The big change is the use of your badge. It is no longer something you can stuff in a drawer. You need it to get into and around the Lab.
Security and safety have always been important at the Lab, and the badge culture allows us to improve both. If there is an emergency in a building, we can see who has badged into it and send them a LabAlert message to see if they are safe. We couldn’t do that before. Using badges was also part of our COVID controls. We used badging in at the gates to control the number of people accessing the Lab and ensuring they met COVID requirements.
Using your badge for entrance into a building doesn’t mean you can’t be helpful. If you are first at a door, go ahead and badge in at the reader, and then be a good Lab partner and hold the door open for those behind you – but remind them to badge in so if there is an emergency we can account for them. By using our badges we can maintain a safe environment for our people and our resources. And we have cool lanyards in the Badge Office. Feel free to pick up one or two at your badge appointment.
There are important numbers to remember. If you ever have a problem getting into a building or a room, contact the Site Operations Center at 510-486-6999 and they will dispatch a security officer to assist you. If you are unable to get a badge appointment and need one right away, contact the Site Access Office at 510-486-4551.
MORE INFORMATION
- Site Access Office 510-646-4551 or siteaccess@lbl.gov
- Site Operations Center (SOC) staffed 7/24 at 510-486-6299 or soc@lbl.gov
- Learn more about Building and Room Access
- Add additional building or room access to your badge
- Make a Badge Appointment
- Learn more about Site Security
- Take the new Security and Emergency Services training