Product category:
Access Control, Door Entry Systems
News Release from: Abloy UK | Subject: Cam locks and cylinder mechanisms
Edited by the Buildingtalk Editorial
Team on 23 December 2004
Abloy secures London's history
Museum of London to be secured by Abloy Security's highly versatile cam locks and cylinder mechanisms
The London before London gallery shows how the capital's inhabitants and landscape evolved during the half a million years prior to the Roman conquest of AD 43 The incredibly striking and elegant display is the most recent exhibit at the Museum of London to be secured by Abloy Security's highly versatile cam locks and cylinder mechanisms
This article was originally published on Buildingtalk on 1 Oct 2003 at 8.00am (UK)
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Challenging visitors' preconceptions about prehistory, the recently opened London before London gallery presents remnants of highly cultured societies in subtle, elegant showcases secured by unobtrusive Abloy Security locks.
"The locks don't get in the way of the interpretation of the gallery," says Hedley Swain, Head of Early History and Collections at the Museum.
"When visitors come in, the locks are effectively invisible".
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" They are an integral part of the displays that secure the gallery, but visitors don't need to know about them." Opened in October 2002, the London before London gallery had a target of attracting 25,000 visitors in its first month.
By November, 40,000 visitors had enjoyed the impressive display.
"It's been very well received by the public," Hedley reports.
"I think they've liked it because it's so light, open and elegant, which is part of the objective to dispel preconceptions that surround the dark and murky world of prehistory." Hedley says one of the big problems confronting the exhibit was finding the correct balance between access and security.
"We wanted the displays to be secure, but not ugly".
" We also wanted visitors to have as much access as possible, but ensure the displays remain safe".
" Finally, we wanted the showcases to be protected, but accessible to staff." The gallery closely resembles the Museum's World City exhibit, which is also secured by ABLOY locks and was opened in December 2001.
However, while the World City gallery is dominated by bold display cases containing items including paintings and clothes, the London before London exhibit contains smaller pieces, such as hunting equipment, jewellery and animal remains, which require a quite different approach".
"The conceptual idea is to show prehistoric London as a place populated by sophisticated people making very cultured things".
" The displays therefore need to be engaging and housed within cabinets that won't detract from the ability of the exhibit to captivate the visitor." The showcases' understated design relies on an incredibly strong, yet thin metal frame, which incorporates subtle door hinges and discrete furniture locks supplied by WG Pollards - a dedicated ABLOY Centre.
Each cabinet features a combination of cam locks - measuring just 33mm in length - and push-button locks.
The CL104 cam locks and OF400 push button locks are all keyed to an ABLOY DISKLOCK PRO master keyed suite, offering high security and controlled access to all the cabinets.
The operating mechanism ensures that keys can only be removed if they are in the locked position.
Set in a ground-floor gallery that covers 300 sq metres, the London before London exhibit contains six large plinths, wall displays and a variety of glass showcases and wall-mounted cabinets.
The spectacular 26-metre River Wall showcase, for example, displays a plethora of pieces rescued from the Thames and is secured by around 50 separate locks.
A further 30 showcases, each containing two locks, provide the Museum's curators with both access to the collection and a sense of security.
Versatility was a key component in the gallery's design and a prominent consideration when specifying its security".
" "Some objects are very valuable" Hedley explains, "but more importantly, there are artefacts in the gallery that are completely unique, including the only 6,000-year-old jade axe to be found in the capital." This makes the gallery a magnet for researchers from the UK's foremost universities and museums".
" "The collection is used as much for research and teaching as it is for display," says Hedley.
The showcases must therefore be secure and effective, but also provide easy access to the exhibit's artefacts.
Due to the latest rotating-disc technology, the ABLOY DISKLOCK PRO mechanism offers enormous master-keying capabilities whilst ensuring the cabinets' locks remain virtually pickproof.
This patented cylinder mechanism is further protected by a key registration system to ensure additional keys can only be cut by authorised signatories".
" "The master key system gives you extra security and a high level of key control," Hedley explains". Request a free brochure from Abloy UK ...
" "The ABLOY locking system has provided us with a secure access control system whereby staff are able to access only those cases and galleries that they are authorised to.".
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