Parkdean Resorts, St Margaret’s Bay

TLJ have successfully upgraded hotel locks at Parkdean Resorts’ site at St Margaret’s Bay in Kent. Following an online search, we were amongst a group of access control providers invited to quote for the job. The decision to appoint TLJ was based on several factors, not least that we were considerably more competitive than the nearest quote and below the figure Parkdean had in mind.

Unusually for Parkdean, the St Margaret’s Bay site features a 23-bedroom hotel. As part of a major refurbishment project, TLJ installed our Infinity electronic key card lock throughout the hotel, including staff and public access doors. Using RFID technology, this does away with metal keys and magnetic ‘swipe’ cards all together.

It was a pioneering change for the resort, having previously used old-fashioned mechanical locks, and is the first use of electronic key card locks anywhere in the Parkdean group. Installation was completed in January 2018, with the system going live on February 1st. We have also been invited to quote for several apartments and bungalows on the site towards the end of 2018.

Why Parkdean chose TLJ

Parkdean were experiencing a recurring problem of guests not returning keys to the St Margaret’s Bay hotel, or losing them altogether. This resulted in keys having to be re-cut or, in the worst cases, locks changed completely. If guests wanted more than one key for a room this was impossible, as only a single metal key was available. Added to this, the incumbent locks were prone to handles breaking and being generally unreliable.

From an operational point of view, the hotel has undergone a distinctive move ‘upmarket’. In respect of both the aesthetics of the door locks and the guest experience, it was clear that old-style mechanical locks and metal keys simply wouldn’t cut it. A modern, convenient, keyless electronic locking system was clearly the way to go.

TLJ’s electronic key card locks solved all these problems in one fell swoop.

To book at stay at any of Parkdean Resorts sites around the UK visit their website at www.parkdeanresorts.co.uk.

The refurbishment project here was a big investment for Parkdean. We have one of only two hotels in the entire group, so a lot was riding on it. We needed a locking system that would perform exceptionally well, be easy to manage, give the right impression to our guests and have great aftersales service. The best locking system in the world is useless without the right support!

Things got off to a great start. We checked out TLJ – and a few others – online. After narrowing our search down to two candidates, one of which was TLJ, we invited them both in for a meeting. I can honestly say that in my career of nearly 30 years I’ve never dealt with a better sales person than Scott from TLJ. He was knowledgeable, friendly, but never once pushy. He gave us sound advice on the kind of locks we needed, and even persuaded us not to buy additional access readers – effectively depriving himself of commission! But it’s that kind of honesty and integrity I appreciate. Along with the fact that TLJ were by far the cheaper quote, it sealed the deal for us.

When it came to the locks being installed, I couldn’t speak any more highly of the engineers. They were polite, friendly, finished the job quickly with the minimum of disruption, and trained us on using the system. They even cleaned up after themselves!

So would I recommend TLJ? Absolutely, 100%. I would say they did a fantastic job for us here at St. Margarets’ Bay, we are well happy!

Kelly Maggs, Parkdean Resorts Accommodation Manager