Mul-T-Lock Technologies Ltd - Experts & Thought Leaders

Mul-T-Lock and Leeds Lock Centre are marking more than 20 years of working together, reflecting a long-established partnership shaped by technical expertise, professional trust and a shared commitment to well-engineered mechanical security. Leeds Lock Centre has been part of Mul-T-Lock’s authorised locksmith network for over two decades, supplying and fitting its products across domestic, commercial and specialist applications. Over that time, the relationship has developed in line with changes in both regulation and criminal attack methods, with product decisions guided by practical experience and performance rather than trend or aesthetics. Recognised security standards Most recently, Leeds Lock Centre has introduced MTL™300 Break Secure® 3XP Pro cylinder into its retail premises. The cylinder has been developed to respond to the increasingly sophisticated techniques used in forced entry and has been independently tested to meet the latest revisions of recognised security standards. Says Dennis, Martin and Antoaneta at Leeds Lock Centre: “We’ve been proud partners of Mul-T-Lock for over two decades, and the introduction of the MTL™300 Break Secure® 3XP Pro is a perfect example of why. This lock meets all required standards and offers the highest level of protection against emerging security threats. It’s a solution we’re confident recommending to our customers because it combines robust engineering with the peace of mind that comes from knowing their properties are well protected." Internal locking mechanism Built on the established MTL™300 platform, Break Secure 3XP Pro features a sacrificial front section designed to break away under attack, preventing access to the internal locking mechanism. It exceeds BS EN1303 Grade 6 requirements for durability, having passed one million accelerated operation cycles, and has been tested against current TS 007 3-star attack methods. It also meets the latest SS312 Diamond standards and has achieved Secured by Design accreditation, confirming its suitability for use across a wide range of applications. Dimple key technology Alongside physical resilience, Break Secure 3XP Pro uses patented dimple key technology with controlled key duplication, helping maintain long-term access management. Compatibility with existing MTL™300 master key systems was also an important consideration for Leeds Lock Centre, allowing the product to be specified without disrupting established system designs. Nigel Taylor, Director and Head of Locksmiths at ASSA ABLOY UK & Ireland, commented: “Our relationship with Leeds Lock Centre is built on long-term collaboration and honest feedback. They assess products based on real experience, which is exactly the perspective we value. Their decision to adopt Break Secure 3XP Pro reflects the work that’s gone into developing a cylinder that meets current standards and anticipates how those standards and attack methods continue to evolve.” With more than 20 years of partnership behind them, Mul-T-Lock and Leeds Lock Centre continue to work closely as the security landscape changes, ensuring product development, specification and recommendation remain firmly rooted in tested performance and professional judgement.

Mul-T-Lock’s MTL™500 platform has been selected by DES Locksmiths for its Golden Key initiative, a programme focused on strengthening accountability, traceability and long-term security within master key systems. The Golden Key was developed in response to post-Grenfell fire safety concerns, addressing how emergency services access communal areas in high rise residential buildings. Introducing patented control Historically, fire brigade keys were widely available to purchase, which led to instances of misuse and unauthorised entry. DES Locksmiths launched Golden Key Secure using Mul-T-Lock’s patented MTL™500 platform to create a controlled, high security system that allows fire brigade access while ensuring each housing provider retains its own dedicated key system. “The starting point for Golden Key was a clear risk where fire brigade keys had become too widely available, leading to unauthorised access,” said Nicky Crossman, Company Owner at DES Locksmiths. “We needed a system to maintain immediate access for emergency services, while introducing patented control.” Accountable access management “Golden Key with Mul-T-Lock’s MTL500 platform achieves this through a high security master key structure, where emergency services hold a specific access key and each housing provider retains its own dedicated system. This ensures access remains restricted, consistent and traceable over time.” At the core of the initiative is Mul-T-Lock’s MTL™500 mechanical platform, which supports structured key hierarchies and controlled duplication. It allows complex master key systems to expand over time while remaining compatible with existing infrastructure, making it ideal for environments with evolving access needs. Using a patented system, keys can only be duplicated through authorised channels, with clear record-keeping ensuring secure, traceable, and accountable access management. Secure access solutions The Golden Key system has already been implemented with more than 10,000 properties converted, particularly within social housing.  This is following early engagement from housing providers who highlighted the risks associated with uncontrolled key access. Fire services across London, Essex, Surrey and Oxfordshire carry the Golden Key, with further rollout planned across additional regions. Collaboration with authorities including the Metropolitan Police has also helped establish coordinated, secure access solutions. Formal agreements with the London Fire Brigade are expected to be the first initiative of its kind in over 30 years. Ensuring emergency services Dan Dodds, Mul-T-Lock Regional Sales Manager concludes: “The Golden Key initiative shows how important it is to get key control right from the start. It’s about having a clear, well thought-through approach from day one, rather than trying to fix things later.” “It demonstrates how Nicky and the team at DES have taken a real issue and turned it into a solution that genuinely works, not just on paper. And our MTL™500 solution sits behind this, helping to keep the system effective, whilst ensuring emergency services can get in when they need to. It’s a simple, practical answer to a real problem."

Nestled in the scenic countryside near Umberleigh, Northcote Manor Country House Hotel & Spa combines award-winning accommodation, fine dining, and a tranquil spa. This 18th-century country house is devoted to providing elegance and security for its guests. Partnering with local locksmith experts, Keyhole Surgery upgraded its security management by installing a Mul-T-Lock MTL™300 master key suite. MTL™300 master key system Mul-T-Lock’s MTL™300 master key system offers ideal security for Northcote Manor’s 16 guest rooms. The suite enhances safety across the hotel, giving management precise control over key access while ensuring guests' peace of mind. Richie Herkes, General Manager of Northcote Manor Country House Hotel & Spa, commented, “At our beautiful Georgian manor, dating back to Tudor times, we’re committed to providing our guests with a serene and secure environment.  We trusted David to deliver an upgrade to our room security’s existing system that could accommodate." Additional security layer With the Mul-T-Lock MTL™300 master key suite, management can establish a hierarchical access structure "He recommended the Mul-T-Lock MTL™300 master key suite as a secure yet discreet access management across all rooms and common areas, improving our operations without compromising style.” With the Mul-T-Lock MTL™300 master key suite, management can establish a hierarchical access structure, ensuring only those with the appropriate permissions can enter restricted room areas at any given time. The capability to manage multiple permission levels adds a critical layer of security, minimising unauthorised access and enhancing operational efficiency. Easy installation improves overall management David Pearcy of Keyhole Surgery explained why the MTL™300 was the ideal choice for the upgrade, “For a distinguished property like Northcote Manor, it was essential to implement a high-security solution that wouldn’t interfere with the building’s stunning historic appeal." "The Mul-T-Lock MTL™300 suite provides the right balance with a cylinder design that is easy to install on existing doors. The master key system allows staff to access essential areas quickly and efficiently, reducing the need for multiple keys and improving overall management.” Secure and flexible access management system The Mul-T-Lock MTL™300 master key suite minimises keys in operation for Northcote Manor The Mul-T-Lock MTL™300 master key suite minimises keys in operation for Northcote Manor, while maintaining a secure, flexible, and efficient access management system specifically designed to give authorised personnel-controlled access to the hotel’s rooms and facilities. Ian Thresher, Mul-T-Lock regional sales manager for the South-West, shared his thoughts on the partnership, “Northcote Manor’s decision to work with Keyhole Surgery as an established Mul-T-Lock authorised dealer and to implement the MTL™300 master key suite reflects a forward-thinking approach to hospitality security." Precise security management "MTL™300 offers an elegant, streamlined solution that aligns perfectly with the hotel’s dedication to both guest comfort and operational excellence." "By reducing key clutter and enabling precise security management, this system helps Northcote Manor retain its renowned beauty and charm safely for many, many years to come.”

At this year's IFSEC 2013, ASSA ABLOY willoffer a complete range of door solutions focusing on the slogan "Access Your World" In a wide-ranging interview with SourceSecurity.com, Chris Bone, VP Access Control, ASSA ABLOY EMEA, discussed ASSA ABLOY’s product roadmap and outlook on technology trends in access control. Besides shedding light on the main product lines that it will be showcasing at IFSEC 2013, including the Seos ecosystem and Aperio range, he indicated that digital keys are likely to witness an uptake by next year with greater availability of NFC-enabled mobile phones. He also mentioned that the company will have greater focus on escape route management in access control. At this year's IFSEC 2013 show, ASSA ABLOY, the world's leading lock group, is preparing to offer a complete range of door opening solutions focused on the needs of its customers adopting the slogan "Access Your World". Keen to retain its position in areas such as access control, identification technology, entrance automation and hotel security, it will be showcasing forward thinking solutions from leading brands HID Global, ABLOY, Yale, Mul-T-Lock, Traka and effeff in an exhibit area double the size of its previous stand. Chris Bone said: “We continue to expand the technology that we can apply to a number of applications and the depth of the product range for the different mechanical applications." In the interview, Chris highlighted a number of specific products to be showcased at IFSEC 2013 which he feels will draw much attention from visitors at the show. One of these was ASSA ABLOY's Seos ecosystem. With NFC (near-field communication) being one of the hottest topics within access control, the award winning Seos™ ecosystem of interoperable products and services for issuing, delivering and revoking digital keys on NFC mobile devices so that they can be used to open doors in a number of applications, stands out amongst all the NFC solutions currently on the market. Uptake of digital keys over mechanical ones with more NFC-enabled phonesAs the NFC topic continues to gain momentum, SourceSecurity.com asked Chris when there was likely to be a large uptake of digital keys over mechanical ones. He said that there were two key factors which would be driving this. Firstly, there needed to be an increase in the availability of NFC -enabled mobile phones in use and secondly, people would need to change their mindset on buying virtual keys, in the same way that people adapted to buying MP3 instead of physical CDs. Potentially, he said that we could see a shift beginning to take place in the second half of 2014.Growth of Aperio technology: wireless integration into access control systemsAnother key product which Chris mentioned was of course ASSA ABLOY's long standing Aperio product range. Since its inception there has been rapid growth within the product family. In 2011, ASSA ABLOY added 6 products to the offering; in 2012 22 products were added and so far this year it has added 4 products to the offering. As a smart wireless technology that enables mechanical locks to be wirelessly linked to a new or existing access control system, Aperio now allows a wide range of access control providers to cost-effectively integrate non-wired doors with mechanical locks into access control systems. One of the new products within the range which Chris was most excited about is the Aperio™ L100 Lock. This sophisticated solution, the latest in wireless access control technology for security doors, provides a highly cost effective, straightforward alternative to a wired high-end solution as no cabling or alterations to the doors are required during installation. Residential solutions from Yale on showFor the first time at IFSEC, ASSA ABLOY will also be showcasing residential solutions from Yale, the leading global residential mechanical locking business. Chris Bone said: "We will have our digital door locking range (DDL) featured at IFSEC this year which is like Aperio for residential applications. The range has provided huge growth for us in the UK, Scandinavia, the Americas and many other countries. So, the future of using mechanical keys at home is certainly in question as that gets a lot of market take up." Also on the stand will be Traka Touch - a standalone key management solution that operates independently of a company’s IT system via an embedded Windows software and SQL Server database. No server is required to maintain its database. HID will be showcasing its award-winning iCLASS SEO platform for mobile access and highlighting its broad portfolio of physical access control, secure issuance and card personalisation solutions.Product development roadmapBeyond the IFSEC 2013 show, Chris gave a view on what ASSA ABLOY's product roadmap for the next 12 months would look like, with a particular focus on the expansion of the Aperio range: "We will continue to expand the mechanical depth of the product range to take those technologies and apply them to different mechanical locking solutions. We started off with a cylinder and an escutcheon now, we have a mortise lock and in development we have lots of other mechanical devices which will have Aperio technology embedded in them.The primary focus over the next twelve months is to continue to expand the range because when a customer moves away from mechanical keys, he does not just want to do it for his office doors, he wants to do it for his cabinets, lockers, IT racks and whatever the mechanical locking problem that he might have. We will continue to do this and increase technology breath with additional RFID technology and improved battery life functionality and things like that."New focus on escape route management in access controlHe also noted that over the coming year, particularly in Europe, there would be a renewed level of importance in escape route management. "What used to be an ignored area of the building, where it had a mechanical crash bar and virtually no monitoring or controlling, with the EN standards which are being ratified at the moment, this is going to change completely. It will become very important for access control security systems integrators to provide a fully compliant, controlled and monitored escape route system. At the IFSEC show we will be highlighting a new solution for that as well. I think it is really important because it will bring not only additional monitoring but additional security to escape routes which is not there at the moment." "IFSEC is not about the UK anymore; we see IFSEC as a truly global show, and the international visitor counthighlights that. A major strategy for us is to grow our global presence especially in the emerging countries" IFSEC investment in line with ASSA ABLOY global growth strategy   When asked about his thoughts on IFSEC, Chris said: "IFSEC is not about the UK anymore; we see IFSEC as a truly global show, and the international visitor count highlights that.   A major strategy for us is to grow our global presence especially in the emerging countries. We expect to see a lot of visitors at IFSEC from emerging or emerged, as they sometimes are, global countries to show our products as well."IFSEC 2014 move to LondonAs IFSEC will be changing locations and adopting a 3-day format, we asked Chris for his take on it: "I think time will tell. I do think it makes a lot of sense. There are a huge number of decision makers based in the Southeast, I think you will get a lot more end users and security consultants attending and there will be more international visitors attending. From that perspective it is probably a good move. From the more traditional side, the NEC has always been a good location as it is so central in the UK but I think it is well worth exploring what we can do from a London base.”