This has been a busy month here at Locksmith Ledger magazine, as we spent a week in Las Vegas covering the well-attended ISC West conference that wrapped up at the end of March, and are now getting ready to head out next week for Security Hardware Distributor’s Association’s (SHDA’s) 2023 Industry Advancement Summit, April 24-28, in Orlando, Fla.

While it was great to catch up at ISC West with so many the security industry friends I have made over the past seven years covering the industry, I am excited for my first SHDA Summit, as it gives me an opportunity to meet many of the key folks in the locksmithing and security hardware sector. What is unique about SHDA’s summit is the format, which provides three days of invaluable one-on-one business appointments so SHDA member distributors can network and build relationships with manufacturer partners in one convenient location. This also gives us here at Locksmith Ledger the chance to get in front of these manufacturers and see what is new, while forming new relationships and getting to network with industry peers.

“This year, we are exploring ways to increase employee engagement and maximize performance,” SHDA said. “Cultivating and strengthening manufacturer-distributor partnerships is the name of the game for this year’s Summit.”

If ISC West is any indicator of the thirst for in-person shows as returned, 2023 is going to be an exciting year for security professionals. During ISC West I caught up with ISC Event Vice President Mary Beth Shaughnessy at the SIA Women in Security Power 100 Breakfast (Shaughnessy was among the 100 honored), who was ecstatic over the numbers and overall show enthusiasm.

“As the nation’s leading comprehensive and converged security trade event of the year, attendance numbers from ISC West were remarkable, proving our industry is resilient and continuing to grow,” she said, noting that there were more than 85 educational sessions and 660 exhibitors on the show floor.

Compared to previous ISC West conferences, this year’s numbers were impressive. ISC reported post-show attendance numbers at more than 18,000 attendees, an increase of 56.2% from ISC West 2022. Additionally, this year’s show saw an 89.6% increase from 2022 for SIA Education@ISC education session attendance figures.

As SIA CEO Don Erickson pointed out, “The value of this ISC West was seen also in the many meetings and special events that allowed the entire security ecosystem to come together on important topics like school security, standards development, cyber-physical security, protection of critical infrastructure and the growth of our industry’s workforce.”

Erickson is astute to point to the value of networking and meeting in person, connecting a face with a voice. This is why I am so excited to head to SHDA’s Summit next week, where I get to sit down one-on-one with many who I have been emailing and doing Teams calls with but have never actually met in person.

Yes, in person, and we are all thankful for it!

Paul Ragusa, Senior Editor