THE GEORGE APARTMENTS:
Transforming Multifamily Security with LocklyPRO
Managing access across a luxury multifamily community should never stand between a resident and their home. Yet at The George Apartments—a premier residential building managed by Van Metre Management Company in Wheaton, Maryland—a failing legacy fob system brought daily operations to a grinding halt. New key fobs could no longer be programmed, leaving apartments vulnerable, onboarding stalled, and building staff facing a mounting administrative headache.
To solve the crisis, property managers brought in Duncan Robinson, owner of FlyLock’s Washington, DC/MD/VA territory and head of the network's top-performing commercial security franchise. The challenge: retrofit nearly 200 doors with interconnected, ADA-compliant hardware, establish an in-house master key system, and navigate active resident schedules—all without disrupting daily life.
How FlyLock and LocklyPRO delivered seamless smart access, superior security, and property management efficiencies
The Challenge: When Legacy Access Fails Modern Multifamily Need
Multifamily operators frequently face the "fob bottleneck". At The George, the building's legacy access control system was not just aging—it was failing:
Unprogrammable Credentials: Replacement fobs could no longer be written to the system, locking out incoming tenants and leaving units unkeyed.
Strict Regulatory Demands: The property required interconnected, ADA-compliant lock hardware that satisfied single-motion emergency egress regulations.
Scale Under Pressure: Nearly 200 occupied doors required retrofitting and master key rekeying on a tight schedule with minimal disruption to residents and pets.
Smart Property Installation: 3 Tips from FlyLock’s 194-Door Rollout
Tackling a large-scale hardware retrofit requires a repeatable game plan. FlyLock implemented three best practices that every smart property owner and installer should adopt:
Pilot the First Two Units to Resolve Cosmetic & Fit Nuances: Before dispatching technicians across all floors, Robinson’s team installed two initial Lockly Guard Duo units. This pilot phase allowed the technicians to address paint lines and cosmetic patches left behind by the old fob readers and fine-tune their tooling.
Standardize In-House Master Keying: Rekeying an entire building to a master system often delays commercial projects. Because Lockly uses standard commercial cylinders, FlyLock completed all rekeying in-house—a process so straightforward that even interns pinned cylinders quickly and accurately.
Execute in Streamlined, Coordinated Phases: Once the workflow was dialed in, installations moved with rapid consistency, keeping resident disruption to a minimum and finishing the job strictly on schedule.
Special Features: Why Lockly Guard™ Duo 679D Fits Multifamily
To secure the building, FlyLock deployed 194 Lockly Guard™ Duo 679D interconnected smart locks. Built specifically for multifamily and commercial applications, the Guard Duo combines key architectural advantages with modern access tech:
Patented PIN Genie® Keypad: Digitally shuffles PIN numbers across four rotating circles, making it virtually impossible for onlookers or camera surveillance to guess access codes.
Biometric 3D Fingerprint Sensor: Capacitive, fast-reading fingerprint recognition stores credentials locally for instant, keyless entry.
Dual-Locking Interconnected Latch: Provides the security of a deadbolt and latch while allowing single-motion emergency egress, maintaining strict ADA compliance.
Flexible Multi-Modal Access: Residents and maintenance personnel gain entry via 3D biometric fingerprint, PIN Genie®, encrypted mobile eKeys, Bluetooth/Wi-Fi, voice assistant control, or physical key.
Real-Time Visibility: Offers unlock history, door status notifications, and mobile app-driven access audits.
Champions on the Ground: Word-of-Mouth Praise
The success of an access migration comes down to how it feels for the people living and working with the hardware every day:
"I thought this was going to be a nightmare because there are so many units. Thank you for making my life easier."
— Polly Smith, Building Manager, The George
For Duncan Robinson and his crew of 15 commercial technicians, hardware reliability was the standout metric:
"Every day brings challenges—locks that don’t fit, bolts and latches that won’t align, unexpected site issues. The installation at The George went very smoothly, and after that experience, I plan to keep using Lockly. My techs are confident with it, and that matters.
Lockly was always responsive. If I called or emailed, I got an answer quickly. When a box went missing from the shipment, Lockly just said, ‘Don’t worry, we’ll take care of it.’ That’s huge for a small business like ours."
— Duncan Robinson, Owner, FlyLock
The LocklyPRO Difference:
Total Access for Connected Real Estate
Unlike conventional consumer lock companies that white-label third-party hardware, LocklyPRO is the only vertically integrated IoT door access control manufacturer. Mechanical engineering, firmware, mobile applications, and enterprise support are developed entirely in-house.
Remote, property-wide credential management for rapid tenant turnover.
Real-time audit trails and building-wide door access logs.
A single ecosystem connecting residential unit doors, common areas, and perimeter access under the Lockly Total Access™ umbrella.
Looking forward, properties like The George can layer on LocklyOS™—Lockly’s centralized cloud management platform that enables:
Experience the future of access control for your project!
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