Mr. Lagimodiere installed his first touchscreen operated detention grade door control systems (DCS) in a provincial prison in Regina, SK in 1987. 30 years later the technology has remained essentially identical.

Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC’s) are deployed throughout most prisons and detention centers to control the locks. They must be programmed and installed by specialized contractors. The owners are required to invest in cumbersome controls equipment with the associated temperature controlled electronics rooms to house them. Many physical security technology manufacturers had pushed IP to the edge with their Ethernet ready devices by 2013. There has been a steady push by owners to replace their analog camera systems with digital alternatives over the past decade. Reduced life-cycle costs have been realized as a result. When would a digital lock solution be introduced? In 2013, Mr. Lagimodiere charted a course to eliminate PLC’s by embedding the control electronics into the locks themselves thereby creating a “smart lock”. Mr. Lagimodiere approached the world’s largest producer of detention grade locks – Southern Folger based in San Antonio, Texas with the concept. And so began a 4 year R&D effort to produce the world’s most resilient PoE+ detention grade smart lock.