Door Industry Journal - Summer 2018

Also online at: www.dijonline.co.uk THE door industry journal summer 2018 10 Industry News New MD at Zero Zero Seal Systems is delighted to announce the appointment of Mandy Greaves as its new Managing Director on 1st July 2018. Mandy has been with the company for over 20 years, the last 10 of which have been as Commercial Director. Regarding her new appointment Mrs Greaves said: “I am really excited to accept this new challenge and look forward to continuing the success of the business.” She went on to say, “Zero has some great products and a fantastic team who are totally committed to providing unmatched customer service.” Mandy takes over from Ken Drake who is retiring in the autumn after 21 years as Managing Director. “I am looking forward to retirement,” said Ken Drake. “Mandy knows the business inside out and will continue to be ably assisted by Mark Lockley as Sales Director and Gavin Hogan as Operations Director. We have also just appointed Nicola Hewitt as Financial Controller to assist Mandy in her new role. It is exciting times for the company.” Master Locksmiths Association: moving to new premises soon The Master Locksmiths Association (MLA), the leading trade association in the locksmithing industry, is delighted to announce that, in this their Diamond Jubilee year, they will soon be moving premises, to a larger and more prestigious building in a far better location. Established 60 years ago, the MLA Group (now including subsidiary company Sold Secure) has seen a continuous growth in the number of dedicated locksmiths wanting to join the association, increased recommendations from authoritative bodies such as The Police, Home Office, British Standards Institute (BSI) to use the services of MLA members as well as Sold Secure Approved Products and a significant increase in the amount of testing performed. The MLA has grown to such an extent that its current headquarters in Daventry are no longer fit for purpose, so the time has come to move to a new location, somewhere that will strengthen and grow what the association can offer the locksmithing industry, it’s members and the general public. The Managing Director of the MLA, Dr Steffan George said: “With the phenomenal growth we’ve experienced over the past 10 years, with recognition and membership growing, and Sold Secure enjoying record year after record year, we’ve got to a stage where we have outgrown our existing premises and the logical step to continue our expansion is to move to a larger and more suitable Headquarters. “I’m delighted that in this our 60th year, we can take such an important step in the history of the MLA, something that will help to continue the successful growth of this Association.” The new premises are situated in Rugby, in the Midlands, very close to the M6/M1 intersection, making the new location very easily accessible to those visitors wanting to attend training courses and to help develop or improve locksmithing skills in the brand-new workshop; the workshop is promised to be bigger and better, offering more space to train and more places for people to relax in during breaks. The new Headquarters will provide its subsidiary company Sold Secure a far larger and completely confidential test lab, with additional space for further future proofing. The new facility will also provide the opportunity to bring the staff of both companies’ together in one office, thereby providing numerous operational efficiencies. It will not only have a brand new, state of the art training facility, but will also provide space for visitors to see the true breadth of services offered by locksmiths. For example, dispelling the myth that locksmithing is just about locks and keys, the MLA will prove to them that this is far from the truth, with a “21st Century Locksmithing” demo room, where they plan to have demo units of smart locks, CCTV, alarms, door operators and access control systems in addition to the latest mechanical security devices. The new premises will also have a small museum area that will pay its respects to yesterday’s locksmithing, without which we would not have found ourselves in this successful position today. The new Headquarters is the gift that Master Locksmiths Association and its members deserve to properly celebrate its 60th anniversary, a facility that will not only impress now, but will also offer prospects for its continuous growth and ongoing success in the future. We look forward to providing full details and photographs of the new facility in the very near future. www.locksmiths.co.uk