ABA Beats the Competition With Innovative High-quality Locks

The quest for ever-better security has driven the constant evolution of the lock industry, but in the past there was no major change in the working principles of locks-the so-called "heart of the lock." The changes involved only differences in materials, appearance, and more diverse applications for locks.

Now things are changing in a more radical way, thanks partly to ABA Locks International Co., a leader in Taiwan's local lock industry and once the world's top supplier of high-quality, reasonably priced locks.

ABA Brand Locks

Since its establishment in 1983, ABA has grown into a major brand of high-end locks for just about all applications: family, office, furniture, vending and gaming machines, transportation vehicles, security devices, weapons, and more. In recent years, the company has relied on its accumulated expertise and innovation capabilities to diversify into high-end industrial and 3C (computers, communications, and consumer electronics) locks.

The popularity of the company's own-brand locks as well as locks produced for big international brands has translated into an annual revenue growth of 10% to 15% for most of ABA's history, forcing a constant expansion of production in both Taiwan and mainland China.

The company currently offers several thousand models (over 10,000, if customized models are included) in five major categories: cam locks, lock cylinders/push-in locks, key switches, furniture and door locks, and locks for end-users. This makes ABA one of Taiwan's largest, most innovative, and most comprehensive suppliers of lock products in Taiwan.

Locks With "100% Taiwan-innovatedBlood"

The modest but ambitious Miko Lee, who founded ABA and currently serves as its president, never falters in his pursuit of "difference." As one of the island's most creative inventors of lock systems, he leads an R&D team that includes six other talented professionals and is, he claims, the best in Taiwan at inventing and improving lock products.

"When I founded ABA," he recalls, "my goal was clear but demanding-to make lock products with '100% pure Taiwan-innovated blood.' At that time, almost all local lock markers produced similar pin tumbler or wafer locks with basic operating principles that were invested by westerners a long time ago."

In pursuit of that goal, Lee always focuses on differentiating itself from its counterparts by offering the "world's only" or "Taiwan's only" products.

"Good results have proven that our direction is correct," Lee comments. "Our successful differentiation efforts have made ABA a famous global brand with a clear image of innovation in the minds of buyers and end-users worldwide, and have allowed us to avoid moving all of our production to low-cost countries to overcome fierce price competition. We do operate a modern and integrated factory in China, but that is part of our strategy to make ABA more flexible in both small-batch, large-variety production in Taiwan for value-added products, and big-volume production in China for mid-range products."

Core Competitiveness: R&D

Its outstanding ability to invent and innovate has allowed ABA to offer the world many of its first-ever products, including the PAGODA lock-cylinder system and a series of creative lock-application products. As a result, the company holds more than 120 patents around the world, many of them "100% pure Taiwan-innovated blood."

"I'm proud of every lock we've developed," Lee comments. "In addition to the unique innovations we've achieved in the past, we've also improved, refined, and upgraded numerous lock mechanisms to make them more functional, more convenient, and more competitive."

The PAGODA is one of the firm's most outstanding R&D achievements. This is a lock-cylinder system which can be used with all kinds of lock applications to provide the highest level of security. Basically, it is a special wafer lock-cylinder system that has unbalanced wafer designs but is much more innovative and safer than traditional systems.

In this system, when the key is pulled out the locking discs are biased to the original positions by means of a number of springs mounted between the discs. When the key is reinserted in the lock, the grouped locking discs mounted in the cylinder are pushed to the predetermined positions by the shoulders on the key.

The sizes of locks using the PAGODA system can be greatly reduced, and the keys can be set to allow them to be pulled out at any position. Other advantages of this innovative cylinder system include the ability to lock without using a key and greater flexibility, with more key combinations, bi-directional key insertion, and changeable core.

This unmatched security and convenience have enabled one automobile gear-lever lock maker using the PAGODA system to become a global brand in a short period of time.

"Codes-Back" Function

Another ABA "world's only" innovation is the "Codes-Back" function, which can be applied to various types of locks for user convenience and easy lock-system management. This has helped the company to outshine competitors in the global combination-lock market.

The "Codes-Back" principle is so simple that one wonders why nobody thought of it before: if someone forgets the combination to his lock, he (or the lock-system manager) can use an attached override key to retrieve it. When the override key is engaged, the original code shows up marked in red in red in tiny view windows, allowing the lock to be unlocked and a new combination set.

ABA has applied the "Codes-Back" mechanism to several of its new combination cable, pad, and cam lock models.

Codes-Back + Master-key System Lock

Using its Codes-Back function, ABA has developed another "Taiwan's only" lock model designed especially for lockers in schools, clubs, and similar establishments. This is a combination cabinet lock with "Codes-Back" and "Master-key" functions.

This allows a user who forgets the combination of his lock to open it with a master key and retrieve the combination with an attached override key.

The company has used the same concept in the development of a similar but higher-end cabinet lock that incorporates a "Code-Hidden" function to prevent other people from discovering the combination when it is being set.

Security, Heat Dissipation, and Ergo-economy

The "Scorpio" is another revolutionary security device that ABA has developed for notebook PCs. This device integrates three functions in one-theft prevention (the device can be secured with a cable lock or fixed to a stand on a display rack, among other places), notebook computer heat dissipation (installed in the front of a notebook PC and offering a six-degree incline to help heat flow away), and ergo-economy (the six-degree incline is the perfect ergonomic angle for computer users).

Other features of this innovative device include adjustable width (usable with 11- to 17-inch notebook PCs) and compatibility with the "Master-key" management system.

Constant Expansion

ABA currently runs two manufacturing facilities, one in northern Taiwan with about 100 employees and another in Shanghai with 300 workers. Combined monthly output is approximately 600,000 units of high-quality lock cylinders and finished locks, along with other lock-related hardware and accessories.

Lee is proud of his company, which he claims is Taiwan's most comprehensive and most capable supplier of total lock-system solutions, has the best working environment in the island's hardware industry, enjoys a superior corporate culture in which employees are encouraged to realize their full potential, and is one of the first 15 companies in Taiwan to win ISO 9001 certification.

The president is not satisfied, however, with the 10-15% annual growth in revenues, and expects to improve on that figure by using his strong R&D capability to develop cross-industry products.

ABA will keep its roots-and especially its R&D-in Taiwan, and we will never compete on the basis of low cost," Lee stresses. "We expect to grow rapidly in the next few years, and we will set up new subsidiaries in European countries such as the United Kingdom and Spain to further develop sales there."

ABA UFO INTERNATIONAL CORP.

P.O Box 13-222, Hsinchung City, Taipei Hsien, Taiwan

Tel: 886-2-2906-8181

Fax: 886-2-2903-1942

E-mail: mkt@abalocks.com

http://www.abalocks.com