In the world of prestige interiors and offices, hinges can be either featured or hidden and it is this latter aspect which is addressed by our new range of “invisible” hinges. These allow the door to be opened a full 180° whilst remaining very strong and unseen when closed. This is achieved by virtue of morticing the mechanism of a hinge into the door and frame and having precision engineered involuted arms or members.
The HES3D-190 suits substantial entrance doors to places like hotels, institutions and aspirational homes. The flawless smooth movement and rock solid engineering reflect well upon the prestige of the building and they are fully adjustable on three axes so that a perfect fit for the door can be maintained from installation on through many years of service.
For many designers the 190 variant would be massive overkill for interior doors – which is why we also have it’s smaller relation the HES3D-120 which looks to all intents and purposes like the HES3D-190 but is about half the size. Not only does it retain its big brothers good looks but also all of its functionality. Allen keyed screws allow the hinge to be adjusted up, down, left, right, in or out. It is designed for doors up to 30kgs when two hinges are used and predictably the solidity of the mechanism is remarkable. The load of the door is distributed between seven links which allow the arms to move sweet-and-free and completely without play.
In use it has particular advantages. The body of the hinge is not as deep as other hinges in this class which may have positive ramifications for the type and design of door used.
Like its bigger brothers, installation is a one man job. The two halves of the hinge are installed on door and frame and then simply brought together on a locating pin to drop into a slot with gravity. A simple enhancement like this can really reduce the hassle on a multi-door installation. The HES3D-120 comes in either a silver or champagne gold finish at a very competitive price.
Contact us for details.
This novel component is a significant aid to panel builders seeking to improve the look of their enclosures, while saving time on the assembly process. By providing a quickly placed corner fillet the radius adapter is not just a quick easy way to get a sealing strip around awkward square corners, but also enables fitting of screw retained covers with self-tapping screws, directly into the moulding which provides an integral support for a 4.8mm dia self-tapping thread.
The radius adapter simplifies installation for clip-on sealing-strip by creating a radius within 90° inside corners of cabinet door frames. It is easily installed and kept in position at the flange of the housing by the clip-on U-part of the sealing profile. This black finished moulding naturally complements most edge fitting profiles and does away with the difficulty of installing stiff steel reinforced sections into square cut corners. It also saves cost by eliminating the need for fabricating rounded corners in the body of the enclosure, since by using the adapter there is no need for expensive welding and rework of sheet metal corner constructions. Assemblers can simply put the radius adapter into the angle (after the painting process) and fix with the U-shape carrier of the profile.
Our new motor transport vehicle fasteners include hinges, slam locks and quarter-turn locks to suit the specialist needs of this industry. These include a strong requirement for permanently secure fastening protected against vibrations and the mechanical demands placed upon these components by heavy duty use in challenging environmental circumstances. This could well include dust, mud, rain, heat and abusive treatment, even vandalism.
The 12-660TR screw-on hinge in steel or stainless steel is a rugged example suited to doors and access panels; such door/panels also need secure closure which we can provide in the form of the 12-081TR vibration-proof quarter-turn lock in stainless steel or the 12-250TR self-locking quarter-turn with slam cam action, again in stainless steel.
We are delighted that our Business Administration Apprentice – Frankie Browning has successfully completed her Intermediate level Apprenticeship. Frankie worked extremely hard to complete all aspects of her apprenticeship qualification in good time, and was recently presented by Terry Cantle with £100 of gift vouchers and her certificates as a reward. It was great the way that the local Way to Work office really helped us in guiding Frankie through her apprenticeship so that she has now become a valuable and important part of the Panel Fittings family. We are so pleased with the results that we are now looking to recruit a second apprentice in order to further build the customer support team.
Re-development of a run-down waterfront area in Cape Town South Africa into prestigious shops, hotels, flats, cafes, etc. called for a range of public information kiosks with compact concealed hinges to permit access for installation/maintenance. Here at FDB Panel Fittings we were delighted to provide our 4-100 90 degree weld-on hinges with central guide which resist sagging during adjustment.
The situation called for double-sided kiosks with back to back 55 inch LCD screens mounted in a 2.4m high by 1m wide housing just 200mm deep – so internal space was at a premium and strength/rigidity essential. Aesthetic design was paramount in the presentation of this installation which was intended to offer a larger than life interactive experience to visitors and to suit the contemporary styling of the wider development itself.
It is satisfying that we were able to play a small but significant part in this successful project by supplying from our comprehensive range of specialist panel hinges.
This novel component is a significant aid to panel builders seeking to improve the look of their enclosures, while saving time on the assembly process. By providing a quickly placed corner fillet the simple radius adapter is not just a quick easy way to get a sealing strip around awkward square corners, but also enables fitting of screw retained covers with self-tapping screws, directly into the moulding which provides an integral support for a 4.8mm dia self-tapping thread.
The radius adapter simplifies installation for clip-on sealing-strip by creating a radius within 90° inside corners of cabinet door frames – it is easily installed and kept in position at the flange of the housing by the clip-on U-part of the sealing profile. This black finished moulding naturally complements most edge fitting profiles and does away with the difficulty of installing stiff steel reinforced sections into square cut corners. It also saves cost by eliminating the need for fabricating rounded corners in the body of the enclosure, since by using the adapter there is no need for expensive welding and rework of sheet metal corner constructions. Assemblers can simply put the radius adapter into the angle (after the painting process) and fix with the U-shape carrier of the profile.
The new D-SNAP technology handbook available free illustrates how this innovative fixing and assembly system for the sheet metal and panel building industries can save time and money without using tools for construction of enclosures and mounting of hardware such as handles, hinges etc.
Snap technology provides a unique alternative to traditional fastening methods. It is currently used in the assembly process of industrial enclosures and has the potential for use in many other areas; for example, household appliances, industrial machinery, HVAC equipment, automotive and furniture industries. Fasteners that incorporate snap technology can be manufactured easily, and are very secure and extremely economical. They also offer a high load-bearing ability. Snap technology offers many advantages when compared with traditional fastening techniques. For high-volume production it is possible to incorporate snap technology into products for blind assembly, and then to integrate the products into an automated assembly process using robots.
Because it can be installed as a single piece, the snap fastener offers advantages for the user. The main advantages are time and money savings in the assembly of enclosures and switch cabinets. Additionally, when the need for the costly storage of panel parts is eliminated, the overall manufacturing process speeds up. Also, storage outlay for fasteners used in process is noticeably lower, since the snap fasteners are delivered as pre-assembled components and are immediately ready for installation. Over and above this, the user profits from the superior functionality afforded by a system where no parts can get lost after installation.
Combining snap fasteners with functional components such as locks, hinges, handles etc., – plus the special design of the snap fastener itself creates a much larger range of applications that can go beyond just the joining of panels.
Notes by Terry Cantle – free copies of the D-SNAP technology handbook may be obtained from by contacting us here or by telephone on 020 8568 1616.
As long-time suppliers to the specialist enclosure and panel fittings market, we at FDB have greatly added to and consolidated our range in recent months and are delighted to now stock and supply to ISO 9001 an extensive range of locks, handles, hinges, seals and other panel hardware from stock at competitive prices with the benefit of our popular Rocfast custom assembly and packaging service. The Rocfast system hand-holds customers from specification to delivery so that components are assembled and packed to suit specific production needs – so saving you time and money.
The Rocfast service covers all products encompassed in our profile – this includes: budget locks, camlocks, compression locks, knob locks, rod locks, spanner locks, waterproof locks, toggle latches, concealed hinges, flush hinges, butt hinges, lift-off hinges, ‘piano’ hinges, stainless hinges, weld-on hinges, earth bars/busbars, flush handles, grab handles, lever handles, tee handles, paddle handles, padlocks, support stays and seals/gaskets.
Contact us to see how the Rocfast system can make your life easier!
This concealed pin hinge is ideal for nested doors such as 19” cabinets and wall mounted racks. It is also suitable for quick access side panels on stand-alone cabinets. The space saving design enables a simple clip-in fitting at both the top and bottom of the door with “no tools”, while a manually operated sprung pin allows for easy and quick installation/removal. The ingenious simplicity of this hinge assembly ensures that with 2 of these low cost items per door and a 5 second installation, panel hinging may be quickly accomplished.
The hinge pin body incorporates an integral spacer/bearing washer for smooth operation and can be easily and quickly clipped into a 10mm dia hole with clever ramped clips to accommodate thicknesses from 1.4mm to 1.6mm. It is ideal for light duty panels or doors such as found on housings and 19” cabinets for electronics, e.g. for computers/servers in telecommunications, internet etc from factory and building control systems to aerospace, military and astronomical observation.
In a nice touch of detail design we can make operation of many cabinet locks really much smoother with this Slide Shoe for cams. This simple 2-part plastic shoe fits easily over many standard lock cams for single quarter turn locks and multi-point locking systems, thus maximising gasket pull-down while minimising the scraping effect on a cabinet frame, with the operator benefit of an easier smoother mechanism.
The Slide Shoe features tool-less assembly with a positive locking design. It is ideal for new assembly but may also be retro-fitted with due attention to clamping of door gaskets. The Slide Shoe has excellent sliding properties as proven in laboratory tests of 20,000 cycles and its electrical insulation properties further enhance the safety of equipment housings.
