ACCESS CONTROL
LIGHTBULB MOMENTS WILL SPARK MORE INNOVATION IN 2025
» 2024 WAS A SIGNIFICANT YEAR FOR Codelocks . After a sustained period of global growth , the company created a new board of directors and promoted senior leaders into new positions . Recently appointed UK Managing Director , Joanne Milne-Rowe looks ahead to 2025 and the trends that will spark innovation in access control .
2025 marks the half-way point of the decade and over ten years since we introduced our flagship Codelocks NetCode ® Technology . The innovative , award-winning technology has driven a lot of the growth and change at Codelocks since its introduction . This got me thinking ; what will be the direction of travel for access control over the next 10 years ?
NetCode ® didn ’ t emerge out of nowhere 10 years ago . It was intentionally developed to meet the demand for greater control and the convenience to grant access remotely . Codelocks ’ product technicians have been adapting and refining the technology ever since then to support more products and applications developed to meet evolving global customer needs .
As product innovators , it ’ s important to expand our view and look outside of the world of access control and architectural ironmongery . This helps us understand the prevailing trends and what is driving change to people ’ s behaviours when it comes to access control . It also helps us to think about what the access control landscape might look like in the coming decade , when there will be a new generation of consumers with a different set of demands .
Preparing for a sustainable future
One of the major trends of the past few years is sustainability . As we progress along the Net Zero pathway , the 2030 and 2050 horizons are getting closer and closer . People , especially younger generations , are rightly concerned about the environmental footprint of the products and services they use . Their concerns are driving moves towards greater shared ownership and rental , rather than outright purchase . This means that less material and energy is used to build items like bicycles and even electric vehicles that can be easily shared , there ’ s also less to dispose of at the end of the item ’ s life . This will call for ways to control access to the shared facilities with remotely enabled locks and timing mechanisms to ensure their fair and equal use . Several Codelocks products are already being used in integrated projects like shared-spaces and click and collect lockers . One of our customers offers shared bike storage spaces that can be accessed via their app , for example .
Continuing the sustainability theme , we are actively looking extending battery life to last the lifespan of the product to reduce waste . Looking further ahead , there will be greater innovation in terms of powering electronic access control systems from energy sources like personal devices to operate battery-free locks more sustainably .
The impatience economy The growing rise of control and convenience plays into the trend that has become known as the ‘ impatience economy ’. This is where people ( understandably ) prefer quick solutions to traditional methods . Increasing digitalisation means that users expect self-service applications and automated access control without having to think about them – especially as AI will anticipate their usage , but more on that later .
Now , this isn ’ t exactly new . Being sent an access code to unlock a gym locker or tennis court , for example , is much faster than having to collect and return a physical key . It ’ s something we have become accustomed to . The convenience / impatience factor inevitably extends into other mechanisms , like connecting access control to payment technologies to streamline the entire process . Multifactor authentication is something we are all familiar with when making online purchases , and this will likely be used more and more to prevent fraudulent access to facilities .
The impatience economy also fuels a behavioural change to a 24-7 expectation . Particularly in the creative industries when you never know when inspiration will hit , roundthe-clock access to facilities like recording studios is expected .
Getting personal Greater digitalisation and self-service applications involve data . These apps will collect data about who is accessing locked facilities , when they use them , what they use them for and for how long , etc . The data paints a picture of the user that can be used to create a profile and anticipate their access needs . This is essentially how AI will be used to improve the customer ’ s overall experience . We can apply this to future innovations like an upcoming ‘ do-not-disturb ’ feature that we are excited about . More on this in 2025 .
Looking towards the future
By looking forward and exploring the implications of some of these megatrends , we get a sense of how our business adds value to our customers ’ lives . We are not just reacting to changes ; we are actively anticipating them .
As the decade enters its second half , we will see lifestyles and behaviours become increasingly bespoke , integrated and personalised . It ’ s up to access control innovators to remain agile and responsive to these behavioural shifts and welcome the lightbulb moments that will spark new innovations .
For more insight into Codelocks ’ award-winning locks and access control solutions , and advice on how to future-proof your organisation , www . codelocks . co . uk / contact-us
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DECEMBER 2024
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