It was a good year — for many even a great one. But more and more, when it comes to access control it is a tale of two markets: the small business and small/medium enterprise SMB/SME market and the large enterprise.

Here’s the good news: Not a single person interviewed for this article said business was flat or declined in 2016, or expected it to decline in 2017. In fact, many reported double-digit growth and a continued strong business outlook, both residentially and commercially.

It was the story of 2016: growth — sometimes stellar, sometimes slight, but mostly steady.

Talking about the connected home today can be a challenge when you are faced with the question “What is the connected home?”

For a market characterized as stable, code-driven and conservative, 2015 seemed to be a turning point for many in the fire detection business, marking the true end of the downturn and the return to growth.

The access control market has been historically slow to change. Complicated systems, proprietary products, and large card populations have been a tempering force on an otherwise dynamic industry.

The economy is up and so are sales and expectations. But it’s an election year; there is more competition than ever in the residential space; and dealers are working hard to embrace the changes in the marketplace.

Driven by value-added services, more savvy end users and thinking beyond security, the video market continues its steady climb to new heights.

Both the residential and commercial markets saw growth this year, due in large part to economic recovery, huge growth in interactive services/integration and increasing user awareness on the home side.