2019 Access Control Trends: What's Next in the Year Ahead?

It's the time of year where security publications and thought leaders make their annual predictions about the industry at large. The general idea behind gathering this input is to serve as a measurement for how we're performing against these trends, and as we continue to develop products and services in line with the feedback we receive from customers and partners, we're poised to make a great splash this year.

Some of the biggest trends that are gaining momentum in regard to access control include the continued adoption of cloud-based products, the rise in popularity of mobile credentials and biometrics, and increased collaboration between manufacturers.

We're also witnessing increased integration across products, such as between locks, readers, intrusion and video systems. In its 2018 annual access control statistics survey, Security Sales & Integration reported that 36 percent of installs include video or intrusion, which is one trend we're seeing greatly from customer demands (and it's one of the key goals we've established to better integrate our products).

This year, Vanderbilt introduced a number of integrations for ACT Enterprise and also updated the product to include a mobile app and rules-mapping engine to deliver more flexibility to customers. Vanderbilt has also worked hard to integrate our own product portfolio, creating the ability for customers to leverage a cohesive solution through SPC Connect and ACT Enterprise that provides a more unified access control and intrusion detection system with additional features. Vanderbilt also recently welcomed an integration with Allegion US to expand the reach of Vanderbilt's SMS to secondary doors through Allegion's Von Duprin Remote Undogging (RU) and Remote Monitoring (RM) options. All of these integrations (and many more that were announced last year) touch on the fact that integrations and partnerships, along with the relationships being built, are a continuing trend.

Another trend that will continue: more acceptance of cloud-based access control and video management solutions. We will always see customers that want to invest in more traditional access control solutions — and that will continue to be a large percentage of sales in our business — but we will see more of a willingness to adopt cloud products with all of the benefits they provide, such as quicker installation time, automatic software updates, flexibility and mobility, managed services and increased cybersecurity. 

Mobile access control is also in high demand right now from end users looking for a way to incorporate their mobile phones with certain access levels within their organization. In today's world, a mobile phone is a constant, and it's natural for businesses to see this as an opportunity to enhance flexibility by integrating mobile access into offices at varying levels. Additionally, biometric readers can help achieve similar flexibility, while also offering an added layer of security for protection. There's been a sizable shift away from cards and card readers to these alternative methods of access as a result of an increased focus on addressing vulnerabilities in a timely manner.

As we expect the rest of 2019 to offer continued growth in technology innovation, access control will be at the center of the expansion within the security industry. Look to Vanderbilt and its partners to push the envelope with regards to integrations that deliver more options for customers to create a comprehensive security plan for their organizations.