The Global Leaders in Door Hardware Innovation

In today’s interconnected world, door hardware has evolved far beyond simple locks and handles. The industry now combines advanced technology, sophisticated design, and engineering excellence to create solutions that protect people and property while enabling seamless access. This blog explores some of the most influential players shaping this vital sector, examining how their innovations are transforming our daily interactions with doors in homes, offices, and public spaces worldwide.

ASSA ABLOY

ASSA ABLOY is a well-known Swedish lock group with its headquarters in Stockholm, the capital of Sweden. ASSA ABLOY has acquired about 166 well-known lock companies in various countries around the world, providing the world with high-quality door hardware products.
Its brands include ASSA and BESAM in Sweden; ABLOY in Finland; VINGCARD in Norway; IKON in Germany; YALE, SARGENT, HID in the United States; VACHETTE in France and LOCKWOOD in Australia; GULI in China, etc.

The products mainly involve:

• Mechanical or electronic door locks
• hotel locks, door closers
• hinges
• emergency bolts
• channel control devices
• fireproof and soundproof doors
• automatic doors, etc.

Brands

1. ABLOY Founded in Finland, the main products include: mechatronic locks, cam locks, padlocks, office furniture locks, exterior door locks, lock shells, lock cylinders for various types of mortise locks, lift door closers, automatic door opening and closing devices, handles and pulls, etc.
2. ARROW Products: locks, cylinders, door closers, exit devices, and other door hardware.
3. ASSA is a company that develops locks and integrated security systems specifically for door applications.
4. Guli is one of the leading lock brands in China that first provided high-quality locks to domestic and overseas markets. Products include door locks, mortise locks and door closers, etc.

Allegion

Headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, Allegion is a global provider of commercial and residential security products and services. It owns more than 25 internationally renowned security brands: CISA, Interflex, LCN, Schlage and Von Duprin.

Its products mainly include

• mechanical and electronic door locks
• door closers and other building hardware
• doors and windows (including fire doors and automatic doors)
• security integration systems, etc.

Brands

1. CISA In 1983, CISA established a new factory in Spain. It was the first company in the world to produce electric locks and own its own patent.
2. Schlage was founded in 1927. Its main products include: mechanical locks, electric locks, escape devices, access control systems, and biometrics.
3. Briton was Founded in England in 1750. Main products include: door closers, locks, hinges, metal buckles, steel springs, floor springs, door hardware, and bathroom hardware.
4. LCN is one of the most prestigious door closer manufacturers in the United States and the only door closer brand in the world that uses cast iron cylinder bodies instead of cast aluminum cylinder bodies for its entire series.
5. Von Duprin invented the first escape device – the push-bar escape lock in 1908.

Dorma Kaba

Dormakaba Group was formed in September 2015 by the merger of Kaba Group in Zurich-Raumlang (Switzerland) and Dorma Group in Düsseldorf-Ennepetal (Germany). It provides customers with building hardware products, electronic access control solutions and automatic door system services.

Brands

1. Dorma, headquartered in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, is one of the largest manufacturers of door control systems in the world.
2. KABA is a global company headquartered in Switzerland and is the world’s third-largest supplier of security equipment. It is the world’s leading supplier of key blanks, key duplication machines, chip keys, and high-security locks. The group is also a global technology leader in electronic access control systems, door lock systems, hotel lock and key systems, security and automatic doors, and attendance systems.

Conclusion

As we’ve seen, ASSA ABLOY’s technological dominance, Allegion’s specialized security solutions, and dormakaba’s focus on architectural integration collectively drive innovation in door hardware. These companies don’t just manufacture products – they redefine how we experience doors in our daily lives. While competing fiercely, all three share a commitment to creating safer, smarter, and more convenient access solutions that will continue evolving our relationship with physical spaces in the digital age.