Jimmy Goh, owner of San Francisco’s Metro Locksmith, understands many people don’t associate locksmiths with the installation of intercom and other low-voltage security equipment. However, his firm has been installing Aiphone intercoms since 1990. And he’s not alone – many more San Francisco locksmiths are expanding their services beyond helping people locked out of their cars or changing home locks.
Most often, Goh’s intercom projects involve multi-tenant condominium and apartment buildings with three to 12 units.
“Aiphone intercoms are perfect for a city like San Francisco where so many of us live in multi-story buildings,” he said. “Aiphone makes the installation of an audio intercom a snap with a two-wire connection. And video intercom installations are well within the range of an experienced locksmith.”
Goh said many of the Aiphone systems he installed 20 years or more ago are still working. Often, the only reason building owners change out an older system is to take advantage of enhanced performance and new features.
When asked what he likes most about Aiphone, he immediately replies “reliability.”
“The reliability of Aiphone products means we won’t be receiving costly service calls to repair a problem,” Goh said. “Our reputation is on the line with each system we install. We don’t worry about our Aiphone installations.”
And he said he’s not concerned about the added competition from other locksmiths getting into the security business. The San Francisco locksmith community is a tight group and works to help each other through the sharing of information about products and installation tips.
“Education and training are the key to getting into this part of the business,” Goh said. “It’s a matter of taking classes and working with manufacturer’s sales and support people to fully understand how a product works. I’m glad I took that first step 30 years ago.”
So are we. Thanks for your continued support, Jimmy.
