NESTECH Corp. Thrives in Markets Overseas with Smart Access Control System and Innovations in NFC and Edge Computing Technologies

In the early days of NESTECH's establishment, it mainly acted as an agent for oversea electronic locks. At that time, the use of electronic locks with passwords instead of keys was becoming popular. Later, customers such as oversea resorts and B&B operators pointed out that changing passwords for different visitors was still a bit troublesome. This drove NESTECH to consider the feasibility of investing in product development on its own. In the field of IoT, NESTECH started from scratch and invested a lot of time in researching software app development and the integration of hardware and firmware to connect the virtual key app to the hardware. After much efforts, NESTECH's first generation of IoT products were launched. Since then, the needs raised by customers in subsequent cooperation have also influenced the development concept of NESTECH's products and technologies.

With the global economy's continuous development, the IoT Service Hub has also launched an "international matchmaking service mechanism" in recent years. Based on Taiwan's soft and hard power, the IoT Service Hub seeks to attract more international collaboration cases on board and thereby export Taiwan's strong smart manufacturing solutions to oversea partners. For example, NESTECH is a mass production consultant in the IoT Service Hub. In addition to the know-how of smart access control systems, NESTECH also has a solid technical foundation and rich market experience overseas because of its deep involvement in this field, and can assist in international case development and manufacturing.

The latest "Cellbedell NU1" smart access control system launched by NESTECH is mainly aimed at commercial spaces. It allows users to conduct access control on their smartphones. Users can even unlock the door through a QR code through a lens on the door lock, without the need for Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or other network communications. The Cellbedell system mainly operates based on NFC technology, and for access control systems, whether the response is fast enough will directly affect user experience. To achieve more ideal performance and product experience, NESTECH builds the entire system with edge computing technology (VaaS, virtual key as a service). VaaS is a computing model built in between the two ends (i.e., the cloud and the client's end). It can process large amounts of data. By distributing data processing to devices closer to the sources of data instead of concentrating it on the cloud, the model has greatly improved the data processing efficiency of the access control system and has effectively reduced related costs, too.

After the Cellbedell system adopted this technology, it can not only process data in real time and speed up the opening of the door, but also ensure security during data communication process to prevent data from being stolen or manipulated. This reflects NESTECH's continuous efforts to maintain its competitive advantage in the industry through technological innovation, and how the company seeks to "improve the safety and convenience of people's lives" as its core of development.

"Currently, the access control front desk system and door lock system in a hotel appear to be the same set of system, but in fact there are usually 4-5 manufacturers providing services at the same time," said NESTECH Technical Director Mr. Hui-Feng Chen. The hardware in door locks is the niche of traditional industry players. The electronic components on the door lock are from one manufacturer, and the information kiosk is from another manufacturer. There are also the PMS system and OTA booking system in this setting, so the whole system is quite complicated. It is thus very challenging to make a solution simple and easy to use. The complexity of the supply chain also reflects the layers of interests in the travel accommodation market.

Therefore, in addition to its joint development of door locks with DormaKaba, a major OEM brand, NESTECH's access control system is also integrated with PMS system providers such as Cloudbeds to achieve information interoperability. This integration strategy not only makes the result more convenient, but also enables the access control system to bring more benefits to industry players. For example, hotels can integrate access control and PMS systems to implement self-check-in service or remote management, which can greatly improve customer experience and reduce management costs.

In terms of business promotion, NESTECH firmly grasps every opportunity and has actively participated in various exhibitions, competitions, and mentoring/accelerator programs to look for market opportunities. When selecting accelerator programs, the NESTECH team will choose those which are technically relevant to the product, such as Qualcomm's accelerator program, the 5G technology coaching program by Orange (telecom operator), or the accelerator program under the renowned National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University. From these coaching programs, they can not only obtain substantial technical assistance, but also be introduced to more international resources.

"The commercial access control system is a market where we really need to find local manufacturers to work together; it is unlikely to bypass local players because the information system services are only part of the process; thus, finding a local player is the best strategy for market entry." Based on the company's development experience, NESTECH CEO Ms. Jia-Jia Yeh gave this advice to those who also wish to develop new markets overseas. Participating in international exhibitions can increase your brand visibility. If local players can lead the way, it can effectively connect the cooperation network and bring more opportunities.

NESTECH's achievements overseas can be attributed to several factors:

1. It designed the product to meet the specs required by the international market from the very beginning;
2. A flexible API interface is left for the product to facilitate access to different systems;
3. The company actively sought out and made good use of cooperation opportunities and resources; and
4. The company sought to establish strategic alliances with established local industry players.

In fact, NESTECH's access control system has been applied in a variety of commercial space scenarios, including office buildings and hotels. Whether it is an office building of a large enterprise, a hotel, or an employee dormitory, NESTECH's access control system can provide strong support and convenience. NESTECH's goal is to devise an advanced access control system in every scenario and allow all users to enjoy the benefits of their technology and the safest and most convenient access control solutions. In the near future, they aim to redefine Cellbedell as a virtual key management and access control system (VaaS). In other words, Cellbedell will no longer be a mere door lock, but a smart key platform that can manage and connect all the access control systems which one has at hand. For example, it can be applied in the management of lockers and even the control of personnel entering and exiting the event site. All these are possible scenarios within the broad scope of "access management."

For the future, NESTECH is confident that, with the rise of IoT, commercial space access management and self-check-in in hotels will become more common, and access control system will become an indispensable part of people's lives. In this regard, NESTECH plans to further optimize the access control system's performance and efficiency, and explore more fields of application.