What does access control installation mean for a Claremont business?
Access control replaces a metal key with something you can manage: a code, a card, a fob, or a phone credential. The door still has a lock, but a reader or keypad decides who gets through and a controller keeps the rules. For a business, that means you can add an employee on Monday, remove one on Friday, and never wonder how many copies of a key are out there.
People call us about this for a handful of reasons. A key went missing and the owner is tired of rekeying every time. A shop grew and now has a front door, a stockroom, and a back office that need different people. A property manager wants keyless entry on a shared door. Or an older system quit working and nobody remembers who put it in. Each of those is a different job, so we start by asking what the door has to do, not by pushing a product.
This page covers commercial and shared-space work. If what you want is a keypad or smart lock on your own home's front door, the smart lock installation page is the better fit. For the wider picture of what we do for businesses, see our commercial locksmith services in Claremont.
Which access control hardware is right for your doors?
Most systems are built from the same few parts. It helps to know what each one does before you compare quotes, because two proposals that look different on paper are often the same design with different names.
- Keypad access control: a code entered at the door. It suits a low-traffic door with a small group of people and nothing to carry. The weak spot is that codes get shared, so they need changing whenever staff change.
- Card access system or key card entry system: each person gets their own card, and a lost card can be canceled without touching anyone else's. It also gives you a record of which credential opened which door and when, if the system is set up to keep one.
- Key fob access control: the same idea as a card, in a form that sits on a key ring and tends to survive daily wear better than a card in a wallet.
- Electric strike installation: the strike plate in the door frame is replaced with one that releases electrically when the reader approves a credential. The existing latch does the holding, so it works well on doors that already close and latch properly.
- Magnetic lock installation: an electromagnet on the frame holds a plate on the door. Cut the power and it lets go. It can work on glass doors and frames where a strike will not fit, but it needs careful life-safety planning, covered below.
- Electrified hardware: lever sets and exit devices with the electronics built into the door hardware itself, useful when the door's existing hardware is due for replacement anyway.
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Call (213) 577-1366How does a door access control installation work, step by step?
Here is how a typical job runs, whether it is one keypad or a multi-door access control system. The order matters, because most expensive mistakes in this trade are made before anyone picks up a drill.
- Walk the doors. We look at the door material, the frame, the hinges, the closer, and how the door is actually used day to day. A door that sticks or does not latch squarely needs attention before any electronics go on it.
- Agree the rules. Who needs to get in, through which doors, and when. Employee access control is mostly this conversation: owners, managers, staff, cleaners, delivery people, and anyone who should not have access at all.
- Decide how people leave. Free exit in an emergency is not optional, so we settle how each door opens from the inside before we pick a lock type.
- Choose the hardware and power. Strike or magnetic lock, fail-safe or fail-secure, keypad or card or fob, which controller, what power supply, and whether there is battery backup.
- Plan the wire path. Power and signal have to travel from the controller to the reader and the lock. On a finished building that route is often the slowest part of the job, and we plan it before cutting anything.
- Install and test every door. We mount the hardware, prep the frame, connect the exit and door-position devices, enroll credentials, and test each door, including what it does when power is cut.
- Hand it over. We show you how to add and remove users, what the system does in a power outage, and who to call if something misbehaves. David, who owns the company and leads our technicians, oversees the plan and the finished work.
What affects the cost of access control installation?
We do not quote numbers on a web page because the range between a simple job and a complex one is too wide to be honest about. What we can do is tell you exactly what moves the cost, so you can see where your own job sits. A written quote comes after someone has looked at the doors. A phone estimate for this kind of work would be a guess.
- How many doors are involved and how far each is from the controller.
- The door and frame: solid wood, hollow metal, aluminum storefront, and glass each take different hardware and different prep.
- Strike versus magnetic lock, and whether the door needs new hardware to work with either.
- Credential type. Keypad-only systems have fewer parts than card or fob systems, and a single standalone keypad on one door is usually the lighter-cost option.
- Wiring. An open ceiling or an accessible conduit is simple; finished walls, masonry, and long runs are not.
- Power and backup: a basic power supply versus battery backup that keeps doors behaving predictably during an outage.
- Software and management: a standalone reader you program at the door versus a networked system managed from a computer or an online account.
- Adding to an existing system versus starting new. Matching an older brand sometimes limits what is available.
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Call (213) 577-1366Electric strike or magnetic lock: which should you choose?
Both release when the reader says yes. The difference shows up when the power does not. A fail-secure device, such as most electric strikes, stays locked when power is lost, though people can still leave through the hardware. A fail-safe device, such as a magnetic lock, unlocks when power is lost. Which is correct depends on the door and the building.
Exit is the real constraint. Doors that serve as exits must open from the inside without special knowledge, and in many buildings they must do so under rules set by fire and building codes. Requirements vary by occupancy and by the authority that covers your building, so we plan the exit first and the lock second. If your door needs an exit device as part of the design, that is its own piece of hardware; see our page on panic bar installation.
If the door itself needs work first, such as a worn frame, a sagging closer, or a lockset that is not staying aligned, we would rather say so than put electronics on top of a problem. Our commercial door hardware page covers that side of the work.
Can you repair or upgrade an existing access control system?
Yes, in most cases. Access control repair is often less dramatic than people expect. The usual culprits are a failed power supply, a magnetic lock whose plate has drifted out of alignment, a worn strike, a reader that took weather or a hard knock, a loose connection at the door hinge, or a controller that lost its settings. We trace the fault before recommending parts. If a component is discontinued or locked to one manufacturer, we say so up front.
An access control upgrade is a different conversation. Typical upgrades include moving from a shared code to individual cards or fobs, adding a second and third door to a one-door system, or retiring an old reader that nobody can program anymore. Employee access control gets easier once each person has their own credential, because ending someone's access is a one-step change instead of a code change everyone has to learn.
Some businesses want a mechanical key override behind the electronics, or a mix of electronic doors and keyed doors. A master key system can sit alongside access control and keep the mechanical side organized.
If a failed system leaves you unable to get in, or unable to secure the door at night, call right away. We answer 24 hours a day, and our business lockout service covers getting you back through the door.
Locked out or need a locksmith now?
We answer around the clock, every day of the year.
Call (213) 577-1366Why have Wilshire Lock & Key install your access control?
We are a locksmith first, and that matters for this work. Access control is only as good as the door it is attached to, and a company that thinks in doors and hardware tends to catch problems that a company that only thinks in electronics misses.
- In business since 1987, with decades of door hardware behind the electronics.
- A storefront at 10740 Wilshire Blvd in Westwood plus mobile service vans, so there is a real place and real people behind the phone.
- One company from first call to finished install. No dispatch middleman passing your job to whoever is available.
- David's oversight on the plan and on the work, so one person who knows the details answers for the job.
- Plain answers, including telling you when a simpler or lighter-cost setup is enough for the door you have.
- We answer the phone at (213) 577-1366 around the clock, every day of the year.
Are you hiring a legitimate locksmith? What to ask
California requires locksmith companies to hold a license from the Bureau of Security and Investigative Services (BSIS), called a Locksmith Company (LCO) license. Ask any locksmith company for its license number before work begins, and expect a straightforward answer. That is a fair question for anyone working on how people get into your building.
What does access control look like around Claremont?
Claremont is a mix of settings, and the right setup changes with each. In Claremont Village and Village West, the typical access control question comes from merchants and office tenants: a back-of-house door that should not be propped open, a stockroom that only two people should enter, or a front entry that needs a keypad after hours. For storefronts, the frame and glass usually decide whether a strike or a magnetic lock makes more sense, and if the door itself is giving you trouble, our storefront lock repair page covers that.
Around the Claremont Colleges area, off-campus student housing turns over regularly, and landlords there often deal with rekeying whenever tenants change. For a shared exterior door on a multi-tenant property, keypad or fob entry lets a manager change who has access without handing out new keys each time. If that sounds like your situation, our locksmith for landlords page covers the broader picture.
Older neighborhoods bring a different concern. In the Russian Village District and other historic areas, owners often want to keep original or period hardware, and that holds even when a building is used as an office. In some cases a strike in the frame or a discreet reader beside the door adds control without replacing the original lockset. We would look at the door in person before promising that, because every old frame is different.
Claremont's foothill position also shapes the work. Hot, dry summers and strong Santa Ana wind events mean wind-driven debris and heat expansion of wood doors. Both matter for access control. An exterior keypad or reader should be mounted with that exposure in mind, and a wood door that swells or shifts in the heat may not meet its strike or magnetic lock cleanly. We check the door's fit and alignment during the survey, not after the electronics are on.
For work in ZIP code 91711, we schedule the survey and the install as separate steps. Claremont is about 44 miles from our Westwood storefront, so we plan each visit carefully, bring the parts we expect to need, and aim to finish the job without repeat trips.
Frequently asked questions
How long does an access control installation take?
It depends on the job. A single standalone keypad on a door that is already in good shape can often be handled in one visit. A multi-door system involves wiring, a controller, and testing each door, and usually needs a survey first. We can give you a realistic schedule once we have seen the doors.
Can you add access control to my existing doors?
Usually, yes. Wood, hollow metal, and aluminum storefront doors can all take electronic locking, though the hardware differs. Glass doors and older frames need more thought. We check the door and frame first and tell you plainly if something needs repair before electronics make sense.
What happens to the door if the power goes out?
That depends on the lock type. A fail-secure device such as most electric strikes stays locked, while people can still leave through the hardware. A fail-safe device such as a magnetic lock releases when power is lost. We choose based on the door, how it is used, and the exit requirements, and we can add battery backup so the doors behave predictably.
Should I choose a keypad, a key card, or a fob?
A keypad suits a small group at one door and avoids carrying anything, but codes get shared. Cards and fobs give each person a separate credential that can be canceled alone, and they work better when staff change often or you want a record of who used which door. We can talk through your staff size and turnover to point you the right way.
How do I remove a former employee's access?
With card, fob, or individual code systems, you disable that person's credential and nobody else is affected. With a shared keypad code, you change the code and tell everyone else. This is one of the main reasons businesses move to credential-based entry.
Do you repair access control systems you did not install?
Often, yes. We look at the system, trace the fault, and tell you what is failing. Some older or proprietary equipment is discontinued or limited to one manufacturer's parts, and if that is the case we will say so, and explain whether repair or an upgrade makes more sense.
Do fire or building codes affect my access control setup?
They can. Doors that serve as exits have to open from the inside without special knowledge, and the rules differ by building type and the authority that covers your property. We plan the exit side first. Check with your landlord or your local building and fire authority if you are unsure what applies to your space.
Can I manage access control from my phone?
Some systems offer phone credentials or online management, and some are strictly local. Each has trade-offs around convenience, ongoing accounts, and what happens if the internet is down. We confirm what a specific product supports before recommending it.
Do you come to Claremont, and can I call after hours?
Yes. Our phone at (213) 577-1366 is answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and our mobile vans serve Claremont from our Westwood base. Installations are scheduled after a survey, but if a failed system leaves your business unable to lock or enter a door, call right away.
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Access Control Installation near Claremont
Reviewed by David, Owner & Lead Technician, Wilshire Lock & Key — in the locksmith trade since 1987.
Last updated 2026-10-11.