Security · Quebec and Ontario
Electronic locks and electrified door hardware for commercial buildings
An access control system is only as good as the hardware that holds each door: electric strikes, magnetic locks, electrified exit devices and wireless locks, chosen door by door.
What electrified door hardware includes
The reader gets the attention, but the door is where access control succeeds or fails. A strike that does not line up with the latch, a magnetic lock on a door that has to let people out: these are the faults behind doors that stay unlocked, or that refuse to open when they should.
We select and install the locking hardware of each opening according to the door, the frame, the traffic and the way people must be able to leave: one door that no longer latches, or every opening of a building.
Doors on an exit route follow rules of their own. How such a door releases on a fire alarm or a loss of power is set by the building and fire codes, and we coordinate it with the building's fire alarm contractor and the authority having jurisdiction before the hardware is ordered.
- Electric strikesFitted in the frame, so that the lock already on the door keeps working mechanically. The usual choice for a hinged door.
- Electromagnetic locksMaglocks for glass doors, gates and openings where a strike cannot be fitted, always with the release devices the door requires.
- Electrified locks and exit devicesMortise and cylindrical locks and exit devices with electric latch retraction, with power transfer from the frame to the door.
- Sensors, exit buttons and powerDoor position switches, request-to-exit sensors and exit buttons, with power supplies sized for the locks, battery backup and the relay through which the fire alarm releases the doors.
- Closers and automatic operatorsClosers adjusted so that the door latches every time, and automatic door operators sequenced with the lock and the reader.
- Wireless and offline locksBattery-powered electronic locks for interior doors where pulling cable is not justified, managed with the same credentials.
Doors where electronic locks are installed
- Glass entrance doors and vestibules
- Stairwell and exit doors
- Suite, office and server room doors
- Gates, loading docks and service entrances
When a door needs attention
- A door that should lock stays open because strike and latch no longer line up
- Card readers are being added and the locks in place cannot be released electrically
- A glass entrance has no frame for a strike
- An inspection found a magnetic lock without its release devices
- An entrance must open automatically for people with reduced mobility and still lock at night
- Interior doors need an access record, but cabling each one is not justified
Often installed together with
Industries we install it for
- General contractors
- Property management
- Offices
- Retail
- Warehouses and logistics
- Manufacturing
- Schools and daycare centres
- All industries
A single door is a complete job for us. Readers and controllers are described under Access control.
How a door hardware project runs
The same four steps for one door and for the door schedule of a new building.
- Door-by-door survey
We look at each opening: the door and the frame, the lock or exit device in place, the closer, the traffic, where power can come from, and whether the door is on an exit route. On a new building we start from the door schedule and the hardware list.
- Hardware selection and quote
For each door the quote names the locking device, fail-safe or fail-secure, the sensors and exit devices, the power supply and the cable. Anything that needs the agreement of the authority having jurisdiction is raised before the order.
- Installation
Frames and doors are prepared, the hardware is fitted and aligned, and cable is run through the frame or a power transfer. On an entrance in use, the work is planned so that the door can be locked again at the end of each day.
- Testing and handover
Each door is tested for entry, for exit, on loss of power and on battery. Release on a fire alarm signal is tested with the fire alarm contractor, and the closer is adjusted so that the door latches by itself.
What you receive for each door
A lock is serviced years after it was installed, often by someone who has never seen the door. The record is written for that person.
- Hardware schedule as installedEach door with its locking device, its fail-safe or fail-secure setting, its sensors and its power supply.
- Power and wiring recordWhich supply feeds which door, the battery behind it, and where the fire alarm release is connected.
- Test resultsWhat was tested at each door, with the result.
- Demonstration and manualsHow each door behaves in normal use, in an outage and in an alarm, shown on site, with the manufacturers' documentation.
Questions about electronic locks and door hardware
What is the difference between fail-safe and fail-secure?
A fail-safe lock unlocks when it loses power; a fail-secure lock stays locked from the outside. Correctly chosen, neither one stops people from leaving. The choice is made door by door, according to what the door protects and how people must be able to get out.
Can an electric lock be added to a door without an access control system?
Yes. A door can be released by a button at a reception desk, by a keypad, by an intercom or by a timer. If you add access control later, the hardware stays in place.
How do electrically locked doors behave on a fire alarm?
It is decided door by door, before installation. Doors on an exit route release as the building and fire codes require; other doors can stay locked from the outside while opening freely from the inside. The connection to the fire alarm is coordinated with the contractor responsible for that system and, where its agreement is required, with the authority having jurisdiction.
Is a magnetic lock or an electric strike better?
Neither, in general. With an electric strike the mechanical lock keeps its role: people leave by turning the handle or pushing the bar, and the door can stay locked without power. A magnetic lock suits glass doors and gates, but it needs power to hold and devices dedicated to releasing it.
Can you work on existing doors and frames, including glass and aluminium?
Yes, in most cases. Hollow metal, wood, aluminium storefront and frameless glass each call for different hardware. Where a door or a frame is too worn or too light to hold a lock reliably, we tell you before proposing anything.
Do wireless locks replace wired doors?
For some doors. A battery-powered lock avoids cabling and suits offices, storage rooms and interior doors with moderate traffic. Busy entrances, doors that must unlock on a fire alarm and doors with an automatic operator are better served by wired hardware.
One door that will not lock, or a whole building of them? Tell us about it.
Describe the site and what you need. We reply in English or French.