Find news and information for the executive corporate security director, CSO, facility manager and assets protection manager on issues of policy, products, incidents, risk management, threat assessments and preparedness.
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S-10 ACCESS CONTROL TRENDS AND TECHNOLOGY 2016 JULY/AUGUST at the 2016 ISC convention in Las Vegas this past April. The same can be said for electric strikes, electronic standalone locksets and almost every other type of electronic security device. As opposed to mechanical products, electronic products normally have few moving parts. An electronic product is usually either operational or dispos- able. The result is that some of the specialized training formerly required in the mechanical security field is no longer as important. Mechanical repair work has been replaced by simple replacement of an electronic prod- uct that may have failed. Labor time formerly required for physically disas- sembling and repairing a mechanical security product is being replaced by labor time required to trace electronic problems and replacing the failed part. The evolution of mechanical security products to electronic security prod- ucts can be seen on many fronts. Less than 30 years ago every hotel room used a mechanical pin tumbler lock cylinder. Locksmiths were regularly called for hotel lock or cylinder repairs. Now, hotel locks using card systems have almost completely replaced metal key systems. Hotel manage- ment has the convenience of being able to control access to every hotel room from a central location at the front desk, a task which mechanical systems cannot deliver. Locksmiths specializing in automo- tive work has also been affected. Chevrolet made one of the first vehi- cles to use electronic security when the 1986 Corvettes had an electronic pellet mounted in the key head. Other car models soon followed. Today the majority of cars, trucks, and even some cycles contain electronic secu- rity. Wireless fobs lock and unlock the vehicle, completely eliminating the use of key and mechanical car locks. Another interesting example of disruptive technology in our industry is the pay phone. Baby Boomers will remember when there was a pay phone on every street corner, at every drug store, and at every filling sta- tion. Each pay phone had a coin box and a coin box lock. The advent of cell phones doomed pay phones to oblivion and also forced the end of pay phone lock production by at least one well-known lock manufacturer. Standardization of technology has also forced change. Every lock com- pany once had their own lock case dimensions. As a locksmith, I became adept at mortising doors to accept replacement locks. Rebuilding door closers was another vertical market for locksmiths. Every door closer had different hole dimensions, and it was simple and profitable to rebuild exist- ing door closers. However, modern hardware now uses identical hole patterns and mortise cutouts. Own- ers can now just replace old hardware with a screwdriver, not requiring the expertise of a locksmith. Mechanical locking systems will never disappear since there will always The evolution from mechanical security products to electronic security products can be seen on many fronts. Less than 30 years ago every hotel room used a mechanical pin tumbler lock cylinder. Locksmiths were regularly called for hotel lock or cylinder repairs. Now, hotel locks using card systems have almost completely replaced metal key systems. Image Courtesy of BigStock.com