LSC along with our partner brands Silca and ABUS sponsor the MLAA’s John Andrew Apprentice of the Year Award. Every year the MLAA across Australia and New Zealand run a competition to select the best final year apprentice, the competition is tightly fought, and is quite prestigious. The test covers picking, impressioning, lock-fitting, master keying, automotive, and general knowledge. The prize for each winner and their mentor is an all-expenses paid trip to Silca’s factory in Veneto, Italy and ABUS’ HQ and factory in Wetter, Germany.
In late September, the winner from 2023 who is Sam Ellison made the trip to Europe. Joined by Mentor John Hassler, the first leg of the trip was a visit to ABUS, focusing on their headquarters, then on to the traditional Diskus production plant, followed by a visit to ABUS Security World.
ABUS Security World is the ultimate security experience where you can immerse yourself in the entire word of security in one place! Each winner enjoyed a guided tour through the mobile and home security environments, and the ABUS museum which showcases the history of ABUS since its foundation in 1924.
With ABUS celebrating 100 years, the hospitality was dialled up to the MAX. The visitors received some extra special exclusive ABUS 100-year merchandise and gifts.
The next part of the journey for the group was to head to Italy to visit the team from Silca. The factory tour started with a look at factory one where 1 million key blanks are produced each day! The group were amazed at all the steps used to create a key blank from the raw materials to the nickel plating and quality assurance testing.
From Factory one we made our way across to Factory two, to see the engineering and design hub for Silca machinery. Here they produce 1000’s of machines per year, all hand finished by Italian artisans. We got to see everything from Bravo duplicators, Futura Pro code machines to Unocode F-Series, the new Quattrocode D-Series, and the mighty Protech being assembled, quality tested, calibrated, packed and made ready to ship out.
The group were spoilt on the final day of the tour with a trip to Venice and experienced a number of Italian delights including coffee, pizza, pasta and prosecco.
We thank both Silca and ABUS for their hospitality, generosity and time.