Physical Security in Warehouses: How ProdataKey Protects Manufacturing & Distribution
- ProdataKey
- 3 days ago
- 9 min read
The warehouse and manufacturing industry is a vital sector of the global economy today. It is responsible for producing, storing, and distributing the critical goods that fuel modern commerce. As an industry that plays such a vital role in the world market, it’s critical that facilities are able to function efficiently and safely, guaranteeing the protection of all workers and goods.
The following white paper dives into the role that ProdataKey (PDK) plays in protecting life and property in the warehouse and manufacturing industry. This article will explore notable threats to this industry, and how PDK’s cloud-based and integrated access control technologies stand out as exceptional solutions for these spaces.
A Brief Look Into the Warehouse & Manufacturing Industry
Warehousing and manufacturing are interconnected industries that enable the production and movement of goods through the global supply chain. Warehouses are dedicated spaces for the organization, storage, and distribution of products, while manufacturing facilities are where the products are made.
These facilities are known for their size and complexity. They contain vast amounts of resources, tools, and employees–requiring a large footprint for each facility. Sphere WMS, provider of a cloud-based warehouse management software, reports that the average warehouse size in the US is 17,000 square feet. This falls into the general category of small warehouses, typically ranging from 10,000 to 25,000 square feet. Alternatively, large warehouses can exceed up to 500,000 square feet, with large companies such as Amazon averaging 800,000 square feet per fulfillment center warehouse (according to BigRentz). As the warehousing and manufacturing industry grows, the challenges of keeping these operations secure and efficient become increasingly complex.
Security Issues in Warehouses & Manufacturing
The warehouse and manufacturing industry faces a variety of security threats that require robust and reliable physical security solutions. The following section will explore the three main complications for employee and property safety in these spaces: theft, employee turnover, and facility size.
Theft and Trespassing
Theft remains one of the most pervasive issues in warehouses and manufacturing facilities today. Because of their expansive size and the large volume of goods and equipment, these facilities become notable targets for both external and internal theft. According to the 2024 Annual Cargo Theft Report from Overhaul, warehouses face a higher amount of cargo theft than any other location across the United States and Canada, with a notable 33% of cargo theft taking place in warehouses alone.
Trespassers may try to enter the premises through potential weak points, like side entrances, loading docks, or gate openings. In addition to the threat of theft that this trespassing introduces, trespassing presents additional health and safety risks. Unauthorized individuals in a warehouse or manufacturing space may be exposed to dangerous equipment or tools that could cause notable harm to these individuals as well as the property around them. In order to avoid trespassing and external theft, facilities need to have strong security systems installed, particularly on perimeter entrances and exits.
In addition to external threats, theft from within also poses a notable problem–particularly with employees that have direct access to valuable equipment and goods. In order to avoid shrinkage from employee theft, warehouses need to monitor employee access, and ensure that only authorized individuals have access to important areas or resources. Tools like detailed audit logs and access reports can empower warehouses to track access to company property with greater accuracy and confidence.
Employee Turnover
Employee turnover is another notable issue that complicates security in this industry. The Horton Group reports that the turnover rate in the manufacturing industry increased from 25.6% in 2015 to 31.3% in 2019, an increase attributed to factors like health concerns, strenuous labor, and child care issues.
As employee turnover in the warehouse industry increases, so too does the overall number of employees in this industry. In the United States alone, the number of employees in this industry rose from 786,400 in January 2015 to 1,837,000 in January 2025, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
As the warehouse and manufacturing industry grows, the need to properly manage employee turnover increases–because improper employee offboarding can introduce a variety of security concerns.
When employees leave a company, security administrators need to ensure that their access to the facilities are properly revoked. With traditional lock-and-key systems, this requires keys to be collected from employees before they leave. This introduces notable vulnerabilities, as employees may leave without returning keys, or duplicate keys before turning them in.
Security administrators must develop robust procedures to ensure key return, or shift towards a form of credentialing that allows for access to be updated or revoked remotely. Cloud-based access control systems, for example, allow managers to disable key fobs, cards, wristbands, mobile credentials, or any other form of access credential being used without the hassle of retrieving the credential from the employee.
Additionally, as employees leave and are replaced, administrators need to be able to provide new hires with proper access to their facilities. For large-scale businesses that bring in many new employees in a short period of time, this can create many logistical challenges.
Securing Large-Scale Operations
The sheer size of warehouses and manufacturing facilities also presents a series of unique challenges. With some facilities covering hundreds of thousands to millions of square feet, physical security can be difficult to maintain. Facility size can range greatly depending on what the warehouse or manufacturing space is used for. Research from Sphere WMS shows a notable difference in the average warehouse size across different industries, with some industries averaging a maximum size of over 1,000,000 square feet per facility.
Securing various entry points across an expansive facility can be both costly and time-consuming, especially when using traditional wired access control systems. In addition to installing the security system itself, security administrators need to be able to properly monitor day-to-day access throughout the facility, which can be a difficult task without intuitive reporting features.
The challenges presented by facility size are exacerbated further for businesses that operate across several locations. Many manufacturing operations utilize several facilities, spread across cities, states, or even countries. Without a centralized system that allows for easy multi-site management, administrators are forced to manually juggle the unique access rules and compliance needs of multiple locations at the same time. In an industry where turnover is high and operations may run around the clock, the inability to easily manage access across multiple sites at once can introduce notable vulnerabilities that harm the business in the long run.
The PDK Solution
ProdataKey offers an elevated approach to access control that directly addresses the most pressing concerns in warehousing and manufacturing spaces. With easy cloud-based management, reliable hardware, and broad integration offerings, PDK is uniquely capable of securing even the largest, most complex facilities.
Real-Time Knowledge and Control
Due to the presence of expensive goods and equipment, warehouses and manufacturing facilities require constant awareness of who is entering, exiting, and moving throughout the space. PDK makes this awareness a possibility through real-time reporting, providing instant insights into access activity. Security managers can spot unusual access activity at a glance, and use PDK’s detailed reporting feature to collect relevant information, such as a person’s name, their credential number and type, or the date and time of the credential scan.
Furthermore, with the use of door position sensors, users can easily see on PDK.io if a door is properly closed, propped open, forced open, or in any other state that requires immediate attention. And in instances of theft, facility managers can utilize these detailed audit logs to determine who had access to certain areas when goods went missing.
In addition to reporting, users can also receive push notifications directly to their preferred devices. These notifications can be entirely customized to the user's needs. For example, a security manager can receive a push notification on their phone whenever a perimeter door is propped open. This allows them to become aware of the issue and address it right away, eliminating the risk of any unauthorized individuals entering through the propped door.
Additionally, with the remote management capabilities introduced by PDK’s cloud-based solution, security managers can make any necessary updates any time, anywhere, and from any device. This includes updating access rules, customizing Groups, creating schedules, and revoking credentials when necessary. In an industry with high turnover rates, the ability to remotely revoke access credentials for former employees is a necessity.
A Solution Fit for the Space
The sprawling size of warehouses and manufacturing facilities can be challenging for many security systems to handle, but PDK has been engineered to work in these spaces with unmatched flexibility and durability. In order to facilitate easy device communication across large-scale facilities, ProdataKey offers its proprietary WiMAC™ wireless technology, eliminating the need for extensive cabling.
With the addition of WiMAC modules, PDK Red Controllers can instantly communicate with other controllers and a Cloud Node, PDK’s head-end unit, without any cabling necessary. This allows facility managers to secure large-scale facilities without extensive time and money spent on wiring.
Furthermore, as active workspaces that often utilize industrial equipment, manufacturing facilities require a security system with hardware that can withstand harsh environments. Luckily, PDK has a line of equipment that is built for durability: Rugged Readers. Constructed with a sturdy zinc alloy housing, these ruggedized readers ensure reliable performance in environments where dust, moisture, and heavy machinery are part of daily operations. With these readers, security administrators can rest assured that they won’t need to constantly replace the security hardware in their warehouses and manufacturing facilities.
Simple Multi-Site Management
For businesses that utilize multiple warehouses or manufacturing locations, managing security across all facilities can be an overwhelming task. PDK simplifies this challenge with simple, centralized management, making it easier than ever for administrators to manage access control for multiple locations from one unified platform.
Idahoan Foods, for example, is an enterprise food manufacturer that uses ProdataKey to manage security for five facilities spread across the state of Idaho. They are able to keep all of their employees and contractors in a single database, regardless of which location they work at. Additionally, the administrative team can view and control all doors across all locations from one system on PDK.io. Ultimately, for enterprise operations or growing businesses hoping to expand to more locations, PDK provides the scalability and ultimate multi-site control required to maintain security without complicating operations.
Integrated Security Systems
Access control is only one part of the security puzzle–which is why PDK integrates with other security providers to take a holistic approach to protecting life and property across all industries. The PDK.io platform integrates seamlessly with a variety of security tools, ranging from surveillance cameras to employee management platforms, reservation tools, and more.
For warehouses or manufacturing facilities wanting to add an extra layer of vision to their security, ProdataKey easily integrates with a range of video management tools. These systems allow access logs and video footage to be viewed together, making it easy to get a clear picture of any concerning access events. This is particularly helpful when addressing external and internal theft, as administrators can directly review video footage to determine who is responsible and what access points need to be strengthened further.
In addition to addressing theft, PDK’s integrations can also help warehouses and manufacturing operations deal with the complications of employee turnover. By default, PDK makes it easy to assign and revoke credentials for incoming and outgoing employees. And with the integration of employee management programs like Microsoft Entra ID, administrators can easily onboard employees and manage their permissions for multiple programs without switching between separate platforms. Any relevant employee information, from door access to email log-in information, can be stored and managed from one simple place, making it easier than ever for administrators to navigate employee turnover with confidence.
Lastly, PDK integrates with Zapier, the no-code integration builder, to give users access to a library of over 8,000 software-based automations. This integration allows administrators to create automated workflows that boost productivity, streamline business and security processes, and make life easier for all employees.
Smarter Access, Stronger Operations: PDK’s Promise
Warehouses and manufacturing facilities are among the most critical and complex environments to secure. They contain expensive equipment, valuable goods, and large workforces, requiring a security system capable of protecting both life and property with confidence. Facing issues like theft, employee turnover, and complex multi-location operations, this industry benefits strongly from the cloud-based solutions introduced by ProdataKey.
PDK provides simple management and real-time insights into access activity, making it easier than ever to stay ahead of any potential threats–from one location to hundreds. Additionally, user-friendly integrations allow administrators to create a security ecosystem customized to their unique needs. And with hardware options that allow for reliable wireless communication and durable performance, ProdataKey guarantees peace of mind for warehouses and manufacturing spaces at all times.
Strong security is the backbone for strong operations. By empowering warehouse and manufacturers with elevated control and seamless management, PDK helps businesses protect their people, their assets, and their futures.
ProdataKey (PDK) is a team of security integrators with decades of hands-on, in-the-field experience. PDK believes that the best technology is created by professionals who know what it takes to secure a facility properly and provide the end-user with a solution that instills confidence and safety.
PDK is passionate about creating technology to enhance the security, safety, and overall experience of both the professionals installing electronic access control and those that live with and use the system. PDK continues to create technology every day to enhance its products and the products of its technology partners.
