June 17, 2025

Case Study: OneAmerica Tower

blog | OneAmerica Tower

OneAmerica Tower is a landmark 38-story Class A office skyscraper at 200 North Illinois Street in downtown Indianapolis. In a recent emergency evacuation, the property’s security and management teams—led by CSO Jason Whitaker—relied on BluB0X’s cloud-native access control and video platform, BluSKY, to lock down the building, account for occupants, and maintain real-time situational awareness entirely off-site.

Building Overview:

Height & Stories: 162.5 m / 533 ft tall, 38 floors above ground (plus 3 basement levels)  
Floor Area: Approximately 1,199,993 sq ft of office space  
Completion: Built in 1982, originally known as the AUL (American United Life) Tower  
Owner & Principal Tenant: OneAmerica Financial Partners, Inc.  

One American Square Campus & Tenants:

The Tower anchors the One American Square campus, featuring over 700,000 sq ft of premium office and amenity space near Monument Circle and the Indiana Statehouse  

Home to OneAmerica Financial’s corporate headquarters, along with law firms, financial services, and professional offices

Amenities include concierge services, fitness center, dining emporium, the private “Skyline Club” on floor 36, and on-site parking

Property Management & Asset Services:

Property Manager: Dawn Young, CPM® at Cushman & Wakefield, oversees day-to-day operations  

Director of Building Management: Robert Smith, CPM®, RPA® at Cushman & Wakefield  

Asset Services Lead: Cheri Shepherd, Executive Managing Director, Asset Services, Cushman & Wakefield Indianapolis  

Emergency Evacuation & Response:

Trigger: Suspicious activity reported inside the Tower led to a full evacuation.

Remote Command: CSO Jason Whitaker and his security operations center initiated a building lockdown via BluSKY from their off-site location.

Lockdown Time: All doors, turnstiles, and elevators were secured within one minute of the lockdown command.

Occupant Accountability: BluSKY’s integrated database instantly generated lists of employees, visitors, and vendors who were in the building at the time of evacuation.

Video Integration: Despite relying on a local Milestone VMS for primary recording, BluSKY’s cloud video interface provided live camera feeds off-site, ensuring continuous situational awareness.

BluSKY Integrated Platform Features:

Unified Dashboard: Single-pane-of-glass control for access control, video, alarms, elevator dispatch, and tenant management

Interactive Floor Maps: Real-time device status and camera pick-points plotted on the building’s digital footprint

Alarm Management: Centralized alert triage with automated escalation workflows

Elevator Control: Destinations and dispatch overrides directly from the same interface

Automated Reporting & Analytics: Pre-scheduled occupancy, evacuation, and security incident reports delivered via email and accessible on demand

Results and Benefits:

 
Rapid Mitigation:

Building secured in under one minute, minimizing potential risk.
 
Complete Visibility:

Security leadership maintained full situational awareness—even while off-site—ensuring confident decision-making.
 
Operational Continuity:

Tenants and ownership observed the system’s performance in real time, reinforcing confidence in their investment.
 
Automated Insights:

Pre-configured evacuation and occupancy reports eliminated manual processes, allowing the asset manager to focus on strategic tasks.

Testimonials:

 

“BluSKY’s mobile and web interface allowed us to lock down the entire tower instantly—even while we were off-site. It was the difference between uncertainty and control.”

— Jason Whitaker, Chief Security Officer, OneAmerica Tower
 

“The integrated reporting is phenomenal. I don’t have to remember to run any report—BluSKY does it for me on schedule, and I can share results with our major tenants effortlessly.”

— Elvis Hernandez, Asset Manager, OneAmerica Financial Partners
 

“Working with the BluB0X team—and specifically leveraging BluSKY during this incident—highlighted the true value of a cloud-native platform. Their responsiveness and feature set are unmatched.”

— Dawn Young, CPM®, Property Manager, Cushman & Wakefield
 

“Our role as account manager is to ensure the system meets the customer’s evolving needs. Seeing BluSKY perform flawlessly under pressure validates our roadmap and keeps everyone aligned.”

— Jesica Trejo, Manufacturer’s Account Manager, BluB0X

Conclusion:

OneAmerica Tower’s evacuation response underscores the strategic advantage of BluB0X’s BluSKY platform for large, multi-tenant commercial assets. By delivering rapid lockdown, precise occupant accountability, and unified management tools—all accessible from anywhere—BluSKY not only mitigates risks during emergencies but also enhances day-to-day security operations, tenant satisfaction, and asset value.