We have added to our sales team recently and would like to welcome:- the excellent Charlotte who has already been helping customers select their panel fittings needs – and our office pet ( and marine expert! )  Mr.Sharkbait Hoohaha –  who we are training to specialise in locks to IP67 – as he is able to inspect them in a submerged environment.

Charlotte is fitting in well by adding to her knowledge of locks, latches, handles, sealing and electrical protection equipment – you might guess she has full set of our Panel Fittings and Electrical Knowledge Base documents as homework reading!

Nemo/Sharkbait on the other hand is keeping the office amused with stories of his journey and all the turtles he met on the way…….

Our FDB Electrical range of FDB27/M and FDB27 (MOD Spec) are designed to deal with the problems of providing power safely in out of the way places. These rugged protection units have until now generally only been available for military application but with the growth of private and commercial aerospace and the need for safe industrial power in all situations, these units have recently become readily available online at www.fdbonline.co.uk for much wider categories of projects.

For standard electrical protection in accordance with MOD specifications the FDB27/M is particularly suited to use on Army communications vehicles. It comprises a range of special purpose RCD units for protection of supplies, with in-line filters, and manufactured in accordance with MOD specs – there are six standard variants according to voltage/current rating.

Where a higher level of both electrical earth monitoring and RCD protection are required in accordance with MOD specifications then the sister FDB27 (MOD Spec) is ideally suited to use with ground support equipment – there are more than 100 variants of this earth leakage/earth monitoring device typically used for the safe provision of power to personnel and plant in RAF/RNAS/NATO hangers and similar locations

Our Knowledge Base free downloadable documents in pdf format provide a useful insight into the world of panel fittings and electrical protection with information gleaned over many years they distill our very practical approach to these subject in providing high quality, high performing hardware and devices to the electrical industry.

We presently have the following Knowledge Base documents available:

Locking devices – Hinges – Seals and gaskets – Continuous hinges –

Multi-point locking – Swinghandles – Compression locks – D-Snap technology –

Gas struts – Residual current devices – Earth continuity monitoring

Or please do contact us to discuss your related requirements.

Our 60mm butt hinges are now available ex-stock from the Online Store in self-colour or black zinc die. These commonly used hinges are easily fitted externally on wall mounted enclosures or other cabinets and access panels which require full 270° opening and lift-off capability. Their robust construction means they are suitable for a wide range of industrial environments where their internal fixing further deters tampering and aids security.

Butt hinges are now available from the Online store at www.fdbonline.co.uk.

Despite signs from the weather at the moment suggesting that we are nowhere near summer, it is part of our planning to think ahead on these things and allow for annual holiday factory shutdowns or reduced staffing levels at many suppliers – in just a few months – so those customers with long supply chains or summer delivery dates might like to give a quick thought now to the idea of checking any scheduling and perhaps placing a call-off order on your panel fittings or electrical protection devices to cover the summer production so that you don’t get caught out later.

We are delighted to help with scheduling on all products so that customers do not suffer an interruption of supply – please do give us a call or drop us an e-mail

Our offering of  pedestal hinges is now available at the Online Store as a useful option for specialist panel builders where a wide door needs extra support and 180° opening capability.

These robust external pedestal hinges are manufactured in zinc die with black finish and feature internal fixings which deter tampering. They come with 60mm or 104mm length arms and are available ex-stock from www.fdbonline.co.uk.

We hear quite a lot about re-shoring of manufacturing to the UK, Europe and the US – and certainly from the interest and business levels we see reported at exhibitions and the trade media this seems to be a time of growth for UK manufacturing companies – who are often now stretched to increase output on the same staffing levels – and this is where our Rocfast assembly and logistics program can come to the rescue – by speeding specification, dealing with assembly and packaging followed by delivery direct to production facility or installation site worldwide.

Our Rocfast team can effectively support the connection between design, purchasing and production by dealing with the detail of your panel fittings needs – saving time, money and mistakes.

The Rocfast program focuses primarily on lock assembly including all major industry brands – it includes all ¼ turn favourites with appropriate keys, with IP rated sealing if required, with cams of all types, traditional L or T handles, swinghandles and compression locks as applicable. This specialist service program can efficiently deal with modern modular component systems or traditional single kit formats and with one-off or scheduled program deliveries as well as separate packaging of locks/backnuts/keys etc to suit logistical requirements. Where required complete fitting kits can be supplied including lock/s, hinges, gasket, and with lock cylinders+keys forwarded to a separate destination if desired.

Typically this could involve a careful investigation of the specification and supply parameters so that for example a suitable assembly of ¼ turn camlock, budget lock or stainless steel lock might be identified – coupled with perhaps a piano hinge or internal weld-on hinges – packed together with a precut length of clip on sealing profile – with packs to be delivered in batch quantities.

Contact us to discuss your assembly and logistics requirements.

A couple of our senior people – Gary Miles, MD and Sophie Carter, Marketing/Sales – paid a visit to RailTex yesterday and enjoyed the “buzz” at the NEC. The rail industry is an important one for us as we have many standard locks,  vibration proof locks, compression locks and hinges – including a range of stainless steel products which are used on rolling stock as well as on trackside cabinets and available from our Online store. Sophie and Gary were impressed by the busy show with many large stands – but also with a growing support from smaller suppliers.

It is among these many suppliers that our Rocfast assembly program has been so popular since we are able to assemble to specification and deal with kitting, packaging and logistics all under one umbrella, enhancing quality and speeding the supply chain. For more in depth information and to download our Knowledgebase documentation please see our main catalogue and for your custom rail hardware please speak to our experienced sales team.

We have an excellent range of IP 65 locks available at the Online store including combination locks, stainless steel locks, shuttered locks and compression locks for anti vibration applications. To match these we also have a wide range of cams in steel and stainless steel so that enclosure and panel builders can get the gasket compression and door fit just right.