Summary
More than 30 major projects backed by Greater Manchester's Good Growth Fund are delivering new office, mixed-use and co-working space across all ten boroughs. Occupiers are now specifying access control systems during initial fit-out planning rather than treating them as add-ons after lease signature, driven by the operational complexity of modern buildings.
Hybrid working has widened unpredictable access patterns, while multi-tenant developments require shared entrance management without cross-business access. Traditional lock-and-key systems cannot answer basic security questions: who was in the building when, whether revoked staff retain access, or visitor movements beyond booked areas.
Retrofitting access control after a fit-out is considerably more expensive than specifying it correctly at design stage, in both cabling costs and operational disruption. Proper integration with fire alarms and CCTV is essential for safety and functionality, and systems should allow in-house permission management for new starters and contractors without repeated specialist call-outs.
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Common questions
- What is this article about?
- Greater Manchester's expanding office pipeline is seeing access control systems specified alongside electrical and data infrastructure from the outset, rather than retrofitted later. The shift reflects hybrid working patterns, multi-tenant buildings, and the need for real-time occupancy records and instant permission revocation.
- When was this published?
- This article was published on 16 July 2026.
- Who published this article?
- This article was published by Business Manchester.