From the electric strike of 1932 to today’s connected electric lock: electromechanical locking technology combines physical security with access control, building management and digital security processes. As integration capabilities increase, so do the requirements for reliability, escape-route safety, energy efficiency and retrofit flexibility. A modern door is expected to do far more than simply lock reliably. It must execute access decisions, enable remote control, communicate with security and building-management systems and still fulfil its mechanical function under every operating condition. For doors on escape and emergency routes, there is an additional and particularly critical requirement: safe and compliant egress must remain guaranteed in an emergency. The door is therefore evolving into an intelligent component of the building’s overall security architecture. The technical foundations of this development reach back much further than today’s digital access platforms might suggest. In 1932, the present-day ASSA ABLOY brand effeff patented its first electric strike. In 1978, ABLOY began developing high-security electric locks. Over the decades, the combination of mechanical security and electrical control developed into a distinct field of security technology: electromechanical locking. Today, it forms an important interface between physical protection and digital access control.

The Electric Strike Made Remote Door Control Possible

The electric strike represented a decisive step forward because it enabled a mechanically secured door to be released electrically in a controlled manner. The principle remains established today: the electric strike is installed in the door frame and supplements the mechanical lock with an electrically controlled release function. A door can therefore be opened, for example, via an intercom system, an access control platform or another higher-level control system. “When the ASSA ABLOY effeff brand patented its first electric strike in 1932, it set a new standard for intelligent building security,” explains Julian Riester, Director & Head of Product Unit eStrikes & egress at ASSA ABLOY Opening Solutions EMEIA. Electrically controlled opening and the possibility of remote operation established the basis for the further development of electromechanical locking technology. One of the continuing strengths of the electric strike is its ability to add a controllable electrical function to existing mechanical door systems. For installers and planners, this is particularly relevant when modernising existing buildings. Access control can therefore be retrofitted without necessarily having to redesign the entire door environment.

Product Variety Reflects a Wider Planning Challenge

The complexity of such retrofit projects is already evident in the number of possible door and lock configurations. ASSA ABLOY states that its effeff electric strikes are available in more than 10,000 combinations of strikes and strike plates, alongside additional customised solutions. This variety is more than a product statistic. For planners and installers, it illustrates a fundamental challenge in electromechanical security: electronics can often be standardised relatively easily, whereas doors cannot. The door leaf, frame, lock, rebate geometry, installation conditions and usage profile can vary considerably from one project to another. An electromechanical component must therefore not only be electrically compatible but also mechanically matched to the specific door configuration. Durability and service life are equally important. In heavily used office buildings, public facilities, hospitals or industrial environments, doors may be subjected to very high numbers of opening and closing cycles. ASSA ABLOY therefore points to high holding forces, extensive cycle testing and durable components. According to the manufacturer, effeff solutions are produced under DIN-certified and TÜV-audited conditions. For operators, the decisive factor is not simply whether a door functions correctly at commissioning. From a security perspective, it must continue to perform its intended function reliably after years of intensive use.

With the Electric Lock, Intelligence Moves into the Door

A further technological step came in the late 1970s with the integration of electrical functions directly into the lock itself.
ABLOY began developing high-security electric locks in 1978, moving the electromechanical functionality deeper into the door construction. Modern electric locks can now be connected to access control, alarm and building-management systems. As a result, an individual locking device becomes a controllable and monitorable component within a wider security infrastructure.
For building operators, this significantly expands the role of the door. It is no longer only the physical state of the lock that matters. The door becomes part of a higher-level process in which access permissions, control commands and operational procedures can be linked. This is particularly valuable in buildings with large numbers of access points. Security managers no longer have to treat each door as an isolated unit but can integrate them into a common access and building-management environment.
“The long service life of our electric locks gives building managers the peace of mind that comes with products designed for maximum reliability,” says Mika Savolainen, Director & Head of Product Line Management ELMECH PU at ASSA ABLOY Opening Solutions EMEIA. According to Savolainen, these locks have demonstrated their performance over decades across a wide range of access control environments.

When Access Control Meets Life Safety

Electromechanical locking becomes particularly demanding when two different security objectives must be achieved simultaneously.
On the one hand, a door must prevent unauthorised access. On the other, it must enable occupants to leave a building quickly and safely in an emergency. Electronic access control on escape and emergency routes therefore cannot be considered in isolation. Mechanical locking, electrical control and life-safety requirements must be coordinated as part of one system. For such applications, ASSA ABLOY offers electric locks for emergency-exit and panic doors in accordance with EN 179 and EN 1125. These two standards highlight why the planning of an electromechanical door extends well beyond choosing an individual lock. What matters is the function of the complete door in its specific usage context. Under normal operating conditions, access should remain controlled. In an emergency, however, occupants must be able to leave the building in accordance with the intended escape-route concept. For planners, installers and operators, this creates a central requirement: security and safety must not work against each other at the door. Escape and emergency routes therefore demonstrate particularly clearly why electromechanical access control must always be understood as a system-level task.

Retrofit Capability Becomes a Strategic Issue

The digitalisation of access systems is not limited to new-build projects. A significant share of security modernisation takes place in existing buildings with established doors and mechanical locking systems. This is where electromechanical technology offers a structural advantage. Electric strikes can add an electrically controlled release function to existing mechanical locks. Electric locks, depending on the door configuration, enable deeper integration into electronic access structures. According to the manufacturer, the ABLOY portfolio includes single-point and multi-point locking solutions for different door types, application areas and security requirements. For planning, this means the question is not simply which technology offers the highest technical performance. Just as important is determining which solution can be integrated economically and structurally into the existing door environment.
For large building portfolios in particular, retrofit capability can therefore become a decisive factor in the overall digitalisation strategy for access control.

The Door Becomes Part of the Digital Building

As connectivity increases, the role of the individual security component also changes. Traditional mechanical locking technology was largely decentralised: a door was either locked or unlocked. Modern electromechanical systems extend this principle through digital control and communication capabilities. Electric strikes and electric locks can now form part of wider digital access solutions and interact with other building systems. This creates a fundamentally different security model. The door is no longer merely the physical endpoint of an access decision. It becomes part of a connected infrastructure through which access can be controlled and security-relevant processes coordinated. ASSA ABLOY identifies potential applications in multi-residential buildings, healthcare, offices, industrial and manufacturing environments, educational facilities, public institutions and critical infrastructure. The requirements vary significantly across these environments. In office buildings, flexible access management and user convenience may be particularly important. Hospitals add high-frequency use and complex access structures. Industrial companies and critical-infrastructure operators, by contrast, may place especially high demands on reliability, availability and integration into higher-level security concepts. Electromechanical components must therefore be both standardisable and adaptable to specific project requirements.

Energy Efficiency Is Becoming a Planning Criterion

As buildings become more digital, the number of permanently operated electrical components also increases. This makes the energy consumption of access systems a relevant planning consideration. ASSA ABLOY identifies low energy consumption as one of the development objectives for its electric strikes and electric locks. For its effeff solutions, the manufacturer also refers to EPD-verified construction. The power consumption of a single locking device may appear modest. In larger property portfolios with hundreds or thousands of electronically controlled access points, however, the cumulative impact becomes more significant. As a result, lifecycle considerations increasingly include not only purchase cost and security performance, but also energy consumption, material use, maintenance requirements, service life and replacement cycles. Electromechanical security technology is therefore becoming part of a broader discussion around building performance and sustainability.

Mechanics and Digitalisation Are Not Opposites

The development of electromechanical locking technology since the first effeff electric strike in 1932 demonstrates that digitalisation does not replace physical security. On the contrary, the effectiveness of digital access control continues to depend on a reliable mechanical foundation. A digital access system can manage credentials, transmit decisions and control functions. Yet the actual securing of the opening still takes place at a physical door equipped with a lock, locking mechanism and mechanical components.
The true innovation of electromechanical security lies in connecting these two levels. Mechanical engineering provides physical resistance and reliable locking. Electronics add remote operation, system integration and flexible connectivity with wider digital security processes. After more than 90 years of electromechanical development, the technology has evolved far beyond the concept of an electrically operated lock. The door remains a physical barrier – but at the same time, it has become an intelligent, connected component of a building’s security architecture.