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NASA, the Marine Corps and other federal agencies rely on a homegrown technology company in Walkersville to keep intruders out of their facilities.

Galaxy Control Systems manufactures access control components and systems for the security industry. The company started in Frederick in 1974 but in 1978, as part of its growth, moved its sales offices to Walkersville. After a fire at the Frederick plant in 1987, the company decided to move manufacturing to Walkersville.

Building security involves much more than just locks and keys these days, to ensure only authorized personnel have access to certain areas. Galaxy develops software to manage such access.

"The software definitely is ours," said Robert Sussman, operations manager.

"It has the capability of everything talking to it," he said. "The reader on the door is talking to the system that exists on the wall that's talking to a computer where you're putting in people's names and what their available access is through certain doors."

Galaxy sells its systems to dealers, who install them in commercial buildings, public buildings such as schools, libraries and hospitals, and government facilities.

Privately-held Galaxy, with about 30 employees, is in its third year of a seven-year contract with the National Guard to provide security systems in 44 states, according to Richard Caruthers, vice president of sales.

Among the military installations with new Galaxy products are Fort Belvoir and Quantico Marine Corps Base in Virginia. The company has also provided services for NASA and is working with Lockheed Martin of Bethesda to provide access control security for the Orion space shuttle now being developed in Houston, Caruthers said.

"We're securing all the buildings where that new space shuttle replacement is being built," he said.

The company also has more than 200 business partners domestically and in over 30 countries worldwide, Caruthers said.

The industry was "flat to 2 percent growth last year," said Mark A. Visbal, director of research and technology with the Security Industry Association in Alexandria, Va., a trade group that Galaxy belongs to.

Companies such as Galaxy fared somewhat better than those that provide fire and burglar alarms because of Homeland Security funding for the former sector, Visbal wrote in an e-mail. A directive signed by President George W. Bush rendered many installed access control systems credential readers obsolete, and they had to be replaced, giving the industry a boost.

"Even with President Obama's freeze on spending looming, access control falls under national security," Visbal wrote. "Also, Critical Infrastructure Protection (think oil refineries, chemical processing plants, the electric grid, the Internet, etc.) are all eligible for U.S. Homeland Security grant monies, so it's not just government facilities that are getting more secure. It is estimated that 97 percent of critical Infrastructure is privately owned," so the industry should continue to grow.

Still, the recession has taken its toll on Galaxy.

Galaxy's revenues last year were down about 18 percent from 2008, said controller Brad Winn, without providing specific figures. So far, this year's revenues are "about even" with last year's, he said.

Also, the company shed several jobs through attrition, Winn said.

Many employees have been with Galaxy since its launch, and its turnover rate is very low, according to Dana Deyton, an inside sales assistant.

Galaxy is celebrating its 35th anniversary in May with a dealer conference in Washington, D.C., in connection with the International Spy Museum, Sussman said. It will include a mini-trade show and access to new and innovative security products, according to company information.