Artist’s impression of Gem Residences in Toa Payoh.
Gem Residences, an upcoming condominium in Toa Payoh, is set to become the first residential project in Singapore where residents can use ez-link cards to pay for the usage of certain services and facilities.
“By registering their ez-link cards as their access keycards to common areas and lifts, as well as at intercoms, Gem Residences dwellers will not need to carry a separate condominium access card,” said EZ-Link and the condo’s developers in a joint statement.
Located near Braddell MRT station, the 578-unit project is being built by Gamuda Berhad, Evia Real Estate and Maxdin, with completion expected by 2020.
The ez-link infrastructure includes a smart locker system that allows residents to pick up parcels delivered to them while they are out. It can also be used to book and pay for certain services and facilities in the condo, such as car-rental, housekeeping, 24-hour concierge, vending machines and other self-service kiosks.
Residents can also use the same ez-link cards, or NFC-enabled smart phones powered by EZ-Link, to access their unit by upgrading to a smart door lock system.
In a report by TODAYonline, MQuest, the authorised firm that will design the cards for Gem Residences, noted that the residential access cards will come with a higher level of encryption than regular ez-link cards to prevent forgery.
Unlike most access card technology, these cards will require secure verification before access is granted, noted MQuest’s Managing Director, Lim Boon Seng.
Owners can also programme their cards to open specific doors at certain times. For instance, a resident could permit a maid to access the unit only from 7am to 9am.
Furthermore, the cards can be disabled in case of loss, and residents can request information on when these are being used, to check if someone is entering their home without their permission.
Romesh Navaratnarajah, Senior Editor at PropertyGuru, edited this story. To contact him about this or other stories, email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg
