Australian-owned electric locking manufacturer FSH Fire & Security Hardware today announced that its MEM Lock (Mechanical Electro Magnetic Lock) has won on the ABC’s prestigious New Inventors show (episode 16), and also scored the show’s People’s Choice Award. FSH is one of the exhibitors at Security 2010 Exhibition & Conference, being held at Darling Harbour, September 1 – 3.
FSH’s MEM Lock was recognised for its ‘outside the square’ approach to engineering that combines magnetic and mechanical design principles. The MEM lock has a rounded tongue built into the armature and a circular, ball-bearing latch built into the magnet. When brought together, they form an additional mechanical seal that provides a substantially higher holding force than traditional electro magnetic locking devices, without compromising its safety ratings.
Some of the features that impressed the New Inventors’ judges the most was its small size – the MEM Lock is 75% smaller and lighter then similar magnetic locks yet provides a more powerful holding force of up to 700kg. They also recognised the technology’s green credentials, as the MEM Lock’s current draw is 40% lower and the carbon foot print in manufacturing is 63% smaller than that of power-hungry traditional magnetic locks.
FSH’s Managing Director Trevor Mackle, who presented the MEM Lock on the New Inventors, commented: “We submitted our MEM Lock to the ABC about 12 month ago, and we’re honoured to be chosen from about 1,000 annual submissions to present on the show.”
He added: “The Building Code of Australia insists on an unobstructed head height or clear doorway of 1980mm but doors with traditional electro magnetic locks installed often breach those regulations. With their large size they tend to protrude into the door space. The mechanical component of our MEM lock enabled us to solve this problem by making security locking devices significantly smaller.”
FHS already scooped a Highly Commended Award for its MEM Lock technology at the Engineering Excellence Awards organised by Engineering Australia late last year.
A summary of the Trevor Mackle’s presentation on ABC New Inventors can be found here: http://www.abc.net.au/tv/newinventors/txt/s2896274.htm
