Until recently, most people have associated automatic gates with the wealthy or with commercial and multi-family complexes. Gated communities, apartment complexes, mobile home parks and storage facilities remain a staple of the access control industry, but the last ten years have seen a new trend toward the installation of gate systems on single family dwellings. A simple residential system can be had for as little as $ 2,500.00 in some parts of the country and many middle class homeowners are buying systems during construction of their custom home or shortly after moving in. Security consciousness, stronger targeting of the residential customer, and affordability are several issues that are driving this trend.

Security consciousness

Americans are steadily becoming more security conscious. Burglar alarms are more popular than ever although people have seen their limitations and residential burglary is hard to stop. Prevention is the key and most law enforcement professionals will tell you that burglars are opportunists. While an automatic drive gate will not keep a persistent intruder out, it will make the average burglar pass by your home and go where there is no delay in approaching or leaving the house. There are true security-style automatic gates, like those used in prisons or on embassies overseas, but they are quite expensive. Most homeowners find that a residential duty, wrought iron style automatic gate is perfectly adequate as a burglary preventative.

An automated gate is a great start but there are also several controls available that enhance the security of an access control system. Most homeowners want to use a hand-held remote control, like those used on a garage door as their primary control. In addition a simple programmable keypad that uses a four digit code is usually requested. Some of these are even wireless and communicate with the same radio receiver that the hand held remotes use.

On any residence that uses the driveway as the primary entrance, houses on acreage for example, customers will often request some kind of voice communication between the gate site and the dwelling. The simplest type of control that achieves this is a simple intercom with a master station in the house and a remote station at the gate site. These differ from a regular simplex type intercom in that they also have a door-release/gate-activator button on the face of the master station. These are hard-wired to the gate site and need to be pre-wired into the dwelling or retrofitted. There have been attempts at affordable wireless systems, but so far none have been very successful. There are also intercom systems that have a small camera in the gate-station and a small monitor in the master-station, aiding further in identifying the visitor. These intercoms are surprisingly affordable, with the trenching often being the costly portion of the installation.

The next step up the ladder in voice communication/gate control is the telephone-entry style of intercom. These differ from the plain simplex intercom in that they interface with the telephone system in the dwelling. In single family applications, these units do not need an independent dedicated telephone service at the gate site, they are simply an extension of the phones in the house. These units use a distinctive ring so you know that it is someone calling from the gate rather than a regular phone call. The beauty of these systems is that you do not have to run over to a master intercom station to talk to the visitor, you simply pick up any telephone in the house. The gate is then opened by pressing a pre-programmed number on the telephone handset. These systems are also hardwired, although a retro-fit can be easier than that on an intercom since you only have to run the wires between the gate-site and the network interface of the phone system. This network interface or "D-Mark" as it is known in some regions, is usually on the outside of the house.

The less expensive telephone-entries are simple and usually do not contain a keypad while the more expensive units have an onboard keypad and many programmable features. Some of these features include entry codes, time-period blocks for certain codes, the ability to be remotely programmed from any telephone, the ability to be programmed by computer software and the ability to hold the gate open for pre-determined lengths of time. Most of these units also can be wired with a wide angle pinhole video camera as well.

The flip-side of security, of course, is emergency vehicle access and there are items as simple as a padlocked Fire Department lock-box that opens the gate as soon as the padlock is removed or as sophisticated as sonic or strobe readers that pick up the yelp siren or the strobe used on emergency vehicles. There are also several kinds of sensors, like photo-eyes or inductive loops buried in the drive path, that can prevent the gate from closing on a tailgater or a vehicle that is stopped part way through the gate opening. These used to be called safety devices although the industry is moving away from that terminology and they are now called reversing sensors. Also, virtually all gate operator circuit boards now carry input terminals for these types of controls. Modern operators also have built in sensor circuits designed to stop the gate motion if the gate encounters an obstruction, such as a vehicle, a pedestrian or a pet.

Other controls you may see used, though usually on commercial systems, include card readers and/or keypads with audit-trail capability, proximity readers, bar code readers, or true telephone entry systems that require a dedicated phone service so the visitors can dial up many different residences.

Targeting the residential customer

The older generation, particularly those who are retired, present a great marketing opportunity for access control. These folks often have the money for an access control system and security and convenience are key issues for retirees. Many of these people are moving to rural locations and a custom home on acreage is the ideal impetus for an automatic gate purchase. A motorized gate can be just as important to them as a motorized garage door. A lot of rural homeowners also need to keep pets in and pests out. Deer love to eat expensive landscaping, and they are a huge problem in some parts of the country. A deer fence needs to be quite high, seven feet is considered the minimum, so this means any gate that accompanies the deer fence must be just as tall. There are also health reasons that drive the need for a gate system, many elderly people have trouble getting in and out of their vehicles and they can use the help that an automated system provides, particularly in bad weather.

The Baby Boom generation presents a huge marketing opportunity as well. They are a large group and most people this age are in their peak earning years. These folks are beginning to retire and their desire for more convenience and security is almost as great as that of their parents' generation. Many Boomers are building custom homes loaded with amenities and a lot of people in the industry believe that an automatic gate has the potential to be marketed much like whirlpool tubs or home theater systems have been. There is also a certain status component connected to an automatic gate, it is not unusual to sell more than one in the same neighborhood.

Affordability

While these systems are rarely considered cheap, they are probably more affordable than ever before. Equipment prices have not gone up in years and there are more units being sold than ever before. Gate operators still cost a lot more than garage door operators. A key reason for this is the extra costs associated with building the gate operators to be weatherproof, while a garage door opener is built to be inside a building. The other significant feature is economy of scale. It is estimated that there is somewhere around a 1000 to 1 ratio between garage door units and gate operators manufactured in the U.S. As demand increases, so does production and economies of scale should begin to kick in.

There is also the issue of competition driving price down. Automatic gates are installed by many different kinds of companies including fence contractors, garage door companies, ornamental iron contractors and alarm/security contractors. Each industry brings its own strengths and weaknesses to the process. Many fence contractors, for instance, are very good with the gates themselves but they are weak in the area of controls and wiring. Security companies, on the other hand, are excellent with controls but can find it difficult to deal with fabrication and installation of the gates themselves, few burglar alarm companies keep a welder on staff. These issues have driven an increase in specialty contractors that do automated gate systems exclusively, although these companies are rare outside major urban centers.

For those who cannot locate a local installer or for those who like a bargain, there is also a new trend developing in the do-it-yourself world. Using websites and e-commerce, several companies sell gates and automation equipment directly to homeowners and general contractors. Residential systems often use only basic controls and nearly all gate operators are now solid state, so control wiring is within the reach of anyone with a little mechanical savvy and some patience. There is at least one American company with a website offering completely integrated, prefabricated systems in kit form. With all these options available, competitive pricing and the desire for security and convenience, automated drive gates are within the reach of a significant portion of homeowners. Thirty years ago, motorized garage doors were considered a luxury amenity and they are now practically standard equipment on new homes. If this sort of trend continues, the automatic gate market should grow for a long time.