What does access control installation involve for a Tarzana business?
Access control changes the question from 'who has a key?' to 'who is allowed through this door, and when?' Instead of a brass key that can be copied at any hardware counter, each person gets a credential, such as a code, a card, or a key fob. The door's hardware checks that credential and decides whether to release. When someone leaves the company, you cancel their credential. You don't rekey every lock they ever touched.
A working system has several parts: a keypad or reader at the door, a controller that makes the decision, an electric lock (a strike, a magnetic lock, or electrified door hardware), a power supply, and a safe way to exit. Many jobs also add a door position sensor. Installation means getting all of those to work together on a real door, a real frame, and a real wall. Mounting a reader is the easy part.
We handle commercial access control from a single keypad on a back office door up to multi-door systems that tie several entrances together. If you want the wider picture of what we do for businesses, our commercial locksmith service in Tarzana page covers it.
Which type of access control fits your doors?
There isn't one right system. The right choice depends on how many people use the door, how often they change, and how much you need to know about who went where. Here are the common options.
We don't push the biggest system on a small job. Plenty of businesses are well served by one or two doors on a simple standalone setup. If what you want is a smart lock on a single suite door rather than a commercial system, that is a related but different job, covered under smart lock installation.
- Keypad access control: a PIN entered at the door. It is the simplest form of keyless entry for business use, with no cards to lose. It suits small teams, storage rooms, and back doors, but codes get shared, so they need changing when staff change.
- Card access system or key card entry: each person carries a proximity card. Every card is its own credential, so one lost card can be disabled without affecting anyone else.
- Key fob access control: the same idea as a card, but on a keychain. It is handy for people who already carry a ring of keys, and for shared gates and entrances.
- Combined keypad and card: a card plus a code, used on doors where you want a higher bar, such as a records room or a server closet.
- Standalone versus networked: standalone readers store their users at the door. Networked multi-door access control ties several doors to one administration point, so you manage everyone in one place.
Locked out or need a locksmith now?
We answer around the clock, every day of the year.
Call (213) 577-1366How we install an access control system, step by step
The order matters. Most problems we get called to fix later come from skipping the early steps, especially the ones about power and exit. This is how we run an electronic access control job.
- Talk through the doors. Which doors need control, who uses them, what hours, and what should happen if the power fails. You can start this by phone at (213) 577-1366.
- Look at the site. We check the door material (wood, hollow metal, aluminum storefront, or glass), the frame, the swing direction, the existing hardware, and where low-voltage wire can realistically run.
- Choose the locking method for each door: electric strike, magnetic lock, electrified lever, or an electrified exit device. Different doors in the same building often get different answers.
- Plan power, exit, and failure behavior before any drilling. That means where the power supply lives, how people leave, and whether the door unlocks or stays locked when power drops.
- Install the hardware. We prepare the frame or door, mount the lock, run the cable, set the reader or keypad, and wire the controller and power supply.
- Program the credentials and schedules, such as which people, which doors, and which hours.
- Test every door and every credential type, from both sides, including a power-loss check and a check that the door closes and latches by itself. Then we walk you through adding and removing users so you aren't dependent on us for everyday changes.
Electric strike or magnetic lock: which is right for the door?
Electric strike installation replaces or modifies the strike plate in the door frame. The latch still holds the door shut, and the strike releases it when the reader says yes. It keeps the door's mechanical lock in place, which many owners like, and it usually stays locked when power is lost, while people inside can still leave by the handle. The frame has to be cut for it, so the frame material and condition matter.
Magnetic lock installation puts an electromagnet on the frame and a steel plate on the door. It holds only while powered and lets go when power is cut. That makes it a common choice for glass doors and for frames that can't be cut. The catch is that there is no mechanical latch involved, so a safe release for exit is not optional. It needs a request-to-exit device and, where local fire and building rules require it, a connection to the fire alarm. We raise this before we start, not after.
The decision also depends on the door itself. A strike or maglock is only as reliable as the door that carries it, so a sagging door, a worn closer, or a bent frame gets fixed first. Our commercial door hardware work covers that side. If a door needs a code-compliant exit device, see panic bar installation.
Locked out or need a locksmith now?
We answer around the clock, every day of the year.
Call (213) 577-1366What affects the cost of access control installation in Tarzana?
We don't quote numbers on a web page, because two businesses with the same number of doors can have very different jobs. These are the factors that move the cost up or down.
Usually the more economical route is a standalone keypad or reader on a door that already has sound hardware, rather than replacing everything at once. You can grow into a networked system later if you need one. We'd rather tell you that than sell you more than the doors need.
- How many doors, and whether they share a wiring path or are spread out.
- Door and frame type. Hollow metal, wood, and aluminum storefront each take different hardware and different prep.
- Lock method: a strike, a maglock, or electrified door hardware.
- Credential type and quantity: codes, cards, or fobs, and how many people need them.
- Standalone or networked, and whether you need records of who entered.
- Wiring: the distance from reader to controller, and whether walls and ceilings are easy to reach.
- Backup power, if you want doors to behave a certain way during an outage.
- Condition of existing hardware, closers, and frames that must be fixed for the system to work.
- Exit and fire-release requirements for the specific door.
How does access control handle employees, turnover, and shared doors?
Employee access control is where a system pays for itself in day-to-day terms. Credential-based entry lets you give each person their own code or card, set the hours they can enter, and remove them the moment they leave. You skip the rekey, and you skip the hope that every copy of an old key came back.
Access control doesn't replace every mechanical lock, though. Interior doors, cabinets, and low-traffic rooms are often better served by a traditional keyed setup. A master key system can sit alongside electronic control on the doors that don't need a reader. We'll tell you which doors deserve the electronics and which don't.
What about access control repair and upgrades?
Access control repair is often a smaller job than people fear. The usual culprits are a reader that stopped reading, a strike that buzzes but doesn't release, a maglock that holds weakly because the plate is misaligned or the power supply is failing, a door that no longer latches because the frame has shifted, or a standalone keypad with dead batteries or a forgotten admin code.
An access control upgrade is typically moving from keys to cards, adding a door, or replacing an outdated reader. If a system was installed by someone else, we'll look at it and say honestly whether repair makes sense or replacement is the sounder route. Some systems depend on proprietary software or a dealer-only setup, and we'll tell you if that applies. If you are locked out of your business while a system is down, that's a different call, handled under business lockout service.
Locked out or need a locksmith now?
We answer around the clock, every day of the year.
Call (213) 577-1366Where we install access control around Tarzana
Tarzana is a mix of building types, and each one pushes the access control plan in a different direction. We serve the whole community, including ZIP code 91356, from our Westwood storefront and mobile vans, about 14 miles away.
Along the Ventura Boulevard corridor and the Tarzana Safari Walk business district, storefront doors are often aluminum and glass. That usually points toward a magnetic lock or a strike chosen for a narrow frame, with a proper exit plan. Near Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center, we already do medical office lock and rekey work, and the natural next step for many suites is controlling who can reach supply rooms and records areas, with a separate credential per person. On the north Tarzana flats along Victory and Vanowen, the first questions are the same as anywhere: what are the door and the frame made of, and where can the wire go?
Residential-scale gates are a real part of Tarzana too. Guard-gated communities such as Mulholland Park and Braemar Estates, off upper Reseda Boulevard, depend on gate hardware and access control that keeps working. On equestrian lots in Melody Acres, driveway and paddock gates may suit a keypad or fob in place of a hand-held key. Valley heat is hard on exterior electronics, and hillside properties south of Ventura add sun and canyon wind, so gate hardware and exterior locks weather faster than protected entries. We choose readers and mounting locations with that exposure in mind. For worn gate hardware that needs repair rather than new control, see gate lock repair. Condo and apartment buildings along Ventura and the 101 corridor often have shared entries where a fob system is worth discussing with the board.
Why call Wilshire Lock & Key for access control?
We've been in business since 1987, with a storefront at 10740 Wilshire Blvd in Westwood and mobile vans that come to you. You deal with one company, with no dispatch middleman passing your job to a stranger. David, the owner and lead technician, oversees the work, so the person who plans your system is accountable for how it turns out.
Our phone is answered 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, year-round, at (213) 577-1366. If something breaks after hours, our 24-hour locksmith service is there for the emergency while the real fix gets scheduled properly. California requires locksmith companies to hold a BSIS LCO license, and you should ask any locksmith you hire for it before work starts.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a keypad system and a key card entry system?
A keypad uses a code that anyone can share, while a card or fob is a physical item assigned to one person. Cards give you cleaner control over individuals, and keypads are simpler and cost nothing to hand out. Some doors use both for extra security.
Should I choose an electric strike or a magnetic lock?
It depends on the door. A strike works with a standard latch and a frame that can be cut. A maglock suits glass doors or frames that can't be modified, but it needs a safe exit release. We look at the door and the exit requirements before recommending one.
Can you add access control to my existing doors?
Often yes. The door and frame have to be in sound condition, and we need a practical way to run low-voltage wire and power. If the hardware is worn or the frame has shifted, we'll tell you what needs fixing first.
What happens to my doors during a power outage?
That is set when the system is planned. Strikes are usually fail-secure and stay locked, with the inside handle still letting people out. Maglocks release when power is lost. We discuss which behavior each door needs, and we test it before we leave.
How do I remove a former employee's access?
On a card or fob system, you disable that person's credential, and nobody else is affected. On a keypad, you change or delete their code. We show you how to do this yourself during the walkthrough, so you don't need to call us for routine changes.
Do you install access control on gates in Tarzana?
Yes. Gate hardware and access control service for guard-gated communities off upper Reseda Boulevard is part of our local work, and so are driveway and paddock gates on equestrian lots. Exposure to sun, heat, and wind affects which equipment we recommend.
Can you repair an access control system someone else installed?
In many cases, yes. We inspect it and tell you plainly whether repair or replacement makes more sense. Systems tied to proprietary software or dealer-only programming may have limits, and we'll say so up front.
Do I need my landlord's permission before installing access control?
If you lease your space, check your lease. Changing locks and drilling into a door or frame usually involves the property owner. We can talk through the plan with you, and with the landlord if needed, before any work begins.
More locksmith help in Tarzana
Access Control Installation near Tarzana
Reviewed by David, Owner & Lead Technician, Wilshire Lock & Key — in the locksmith trade since 1987.
Last updated 2026-10-11.