The world has changed over the last three years.

Global trade has fragmented, posing new challenges for manufacturers. The distribution of technology has spread significantly in the last ten years.

We’re seeing advanced equipment not just in city centres and first-world countries but in our homes, our streets, and our countryside. The increased investment in developing markets introduces new challenges for infrastructure, including vandalism and tampering.

This not only delays projects but increases the cost dramatically. Securing high-value assets has become a vital part in ensuring that the electrical infrastructure can withstand these challenges and overcome them.

Electrical manufacturer Allbro invests 10 x more in research and development than we do in marketing. The reason for this becomes obvious when looking at the new products we’ve released over the last ten years, products that speak for themselves.

Using experience gained from more than 40 years’ manufacturing with glass reinforced polyester, lessons learnt while pioneering composite manhole chamber design and trial and error in the developmental stages of brand-new innovations, we begin each new venture with both expertise and a fresh approach. We want to offer innovation that radically improves how our customers do things.

With more than 100-million enclosures in service globally in some of the toughest environments, our track record has been proven over and over again.

With the price of steel and shipping continually increasing, the need for non-steel enclosures that can withstand the harsh conditions of mining and industrial environments is higher than ever before.

Electrical systems have three main factors that contribute to their malfunction, which is temperature, water, and dust. Protection against these cannot be overlooked as they are essential in making a resilient enclosure. Enclosure ranges like Allbrox™, Okari® and AllRobust™ make the case for GRP solutions.

They not only protect against water and dust ingression but are also resilient against most chemicals. The lifespan on our GRP enclosures far outlasts that of our steel counterparts.

Example:

When it comes to the AllVault™, nothing has been made like it before. The market required a secure enclosure that advanced at an accelerated rate to meet the demand for something truly incredible. Multiple sheets of sheet moulding compound (SMC) give the AllVault™ it’s impenetrability.

It’s been tested against crowbars, sledgehammers, blow torches and bullets.

Internal hinges circumvent a weak spot that could threaten the overall security. Concealed mounting ensures that pole-top or wall-mounted enclosures cannot be tampered with. The SMC material does not interfere with the transmission of signal through the enclosure, unlike its steel counterparts.

The AllVault™ also provides increased protection for installers, maintenance teams and residents in the area. Electrical fires can cause significant damage to infrastructure and homes, with the devastation spreading quickly if not contained in time.

SMC is not only IEC 62208 compliant with a V0 rating but has been tested against a four-minute burn to establish its true flammability. Unlike other thermoplastic enclosures, SMC enclosures retain their dimensional properties at 200˚C and are not themselves flammable, ensuring that the enclosure does not become an added fuel source in the event of fire.

The Allvault™ meets an exceeds the IK10 rating, knocking it out the park with what we call the IK10+++ rating. SMC can withstand temperature fluctuations from -50˚C to 200˚C, broadening the range (and location) of possible applications. The AllVault™ is astonishingly versatile and durable.

When looking at producing an enclosure that provides ultimate security, you want to create something that can withstand not just today’s attacks, but next year’s attacks, and the attacks in five years’ time. You want to create something that protects against threats that aren’t present yet. Allbro has done just that with the AllVault™. A virtually impenetrable enclosure able to withstand even the harshest environments. It is truly a one of a kind.

Example:

Although first world countries have developed world-leading camera technology, it was a South African company that created the first really meaningful innovation for mounting them. The first of its kind, Camera-Den™ is manufactured locally and patented worldwide.

The camera’s mounting area is separate to the cable connection housing. The installation process is much faster, and the commissioning and maintenance is also vastly improved. The Camera-Den™ is so different from anything that has previously existed that it is difficult to even call it a junction box.

South Africa has its very own home-grown manufacturer providing solutions that are competitive on the world stage.

We at Allbro believe that you can have a local product and still expect stellar performance. Allbro takes great pride in the innovations that we’ve developed over the last ten years, pushing the boundaries of what is being offered for mining and industrial markets.