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S-12 ACCESS CONTROL TRENDS AND TECHNOLOGY 2016 JULY/AUGUST be some physical fastening connection between a door opening and a door. However, it is how the door is controlled which is evolving. Whether it is an auto- mobile door, a residential door or a com- mercial door, electronics has emerged as a dominant player with an increasing role in how locking systems function. Census figures show that the coun- try's population has grown by 22.5 percent since 1990, which should be directly related to an increased requirement for sales and service of security products. Yet the number of locksmiths in business has not kept up with the population increase. The security landscape has become a quilt of high and low-end residential technology solutions, high-tech com- mercial applications and advanced video and alarm monitoring devices that now complement traditional mechanical security technology and locksmith services. Examples such as electronic automotive and hotel locks are tech- nologies that have already transformed and are ubiquitous in their use. It is the bigger picture which we must be pre- pared for. Kwikset and Yale are both currently selling residential electronic locks that do not contain a backup lock cylinder. A speaker for Allegion at a recent industry meeting stated: "Key- less is the Future". Is it possible that the locksmith shop of the future may not have a keyboard? Disruptive technologies are changing the security industry as we know it. Demand for the types of services for- merly offered by locksmiths is slowly declining. If a locksmith decides to stay the course, success will probably be as a sub-contractor installer for a large systems integrator or an access control vendor. There are no indications that the amount of key-dependent lock busi- ness we once knew will ever return. There are 124 million households and 18 million businesses in the country and everyone is a possible sale for an upgraded electronic secu- rity solution. As a locksmith, if oppor- tunities to sell and service CCT V, multi-door access control and wire- less are not currently on your radar, the soon should be. Access control opens you up to jobs with higher price tags and recurring monthly revenue (RMR). Remember, it was a local locksmith business that installed electronic secu- rity in the Trump Tower in New Jer- sey, as well as a local locksmith who installed electronic security throughout the Hancock Building in Chicago. With disruption comes opportunity, so embrace it. ■ Gale Johnson is the longtime editor-in-chief of Locksmith Ledger. He has more than six decades in the lock and security industry. Request information: www.SecurityInfoWatch.com/10297217