The access control market has experienced significant change over the past several years, as new identification solutions have emerged and offered decision-makers a new way to authenticate identities. Radio-frequency identification, commonly referred to as RFID, is one of the technologies changing the access control landscape.
A new study by ABI Research said modernized uses of RFID, including access control, are helping drive the market forward. Analysts predicted traditional RFID operations will generate an additional $2.8 billion in revenue from 2012 through 2017. Modernized applications, however, are forecast to grow twice as fast and generate an additional $4.5 billion in revenue for the overall RFID through 2017.
"Despite the general economic malaise affecting much of the world, solutions and technologies that can deliver savings and provide wider benefit will attract investment," said John Devlin, practice director at ABI Research. "The business model and use case for RFID is now being better understood and real-world ROI can be demonstrated in a growing number of instances."
The report noted that RFID promises new opportunities for a wide range of industries and is not limited to just one.
How RFID can improve the access control industry
RFID technologies have a number of advantageous qualities, most notably the ability to track products and people at all times. This will enhance supply chain efficiency by ensuring only the correct products go to specific locations, while simultaneously ensuring only authorized individuals can gain entry to restricted areas, ABI Research noted.
"There will be an increasing need for companies and, in particular government organizations, to be able to track and authenticate their in-house assets and equipment as well as items and products provided and sold," Devlin said.
A separate report by GAO RFID noted that access control systems leveraging RFID technologies can be much more efficient and easier to use than legacy offerings, as the solutions can meet evolving compliance requirements while tracking employee activity. As a result, decision-makers can know where individuals are located at all times, allowing them to enhance loss prevention and keep workers on track to meet critical goals.
RFID technology is quickly becoming a popular choice for access control systems, as a variety of industries can take advantage of and customize the solutions to make security as robust as possible.