Lock Inspection Systems

Welcome to NewsChek, the first edition of the new Lock Inspection Systems newsletter. NewsChek has been created as a result of market feedback to keep our customers and stakeholders right up to date with industry activity, technology and regulation concerning product and brand protection.  As the leading supplier of metal detection systems, Lock is perfectly placed to provide this service, and NewsChek will be emailed directly to you, and also be posted on our newly enhanced website.

Metal detection first emerged as a technology in the middle of the twentieth century, and Lock introduced its first metal detector in 1962. Since then the company has established an enviable position as an innovator and technology leader in the field Our R&D department is recognized as the world’s foremost authority on the subject - boasting a long history of ground breaking new developments.

Lock first introduced integrated electronic circuits in 1972 on its METALCHEK 8 series. In 1982, the first 1MHz METALCHEK9 detector was introduced for the pharmaceutical industry giving unprecedented sensitivity levels. Lock’s pharmaceutical metal detectors continue to set the benchmark today, and have secured Lock’s position as market leader in the industry. In 1989, Lock launched the world’s first generation of digital metal detectors, the METALCHEK10, which paved the way for a raft of new developments further improving the performance and functionality of our equipment, not least of which was the arrival of fully automated product setup.

Having entered the digital age, Lock’s product development activities accelerated to a new level, the 1990s seeing the introduction of the ADC (Analogue Digital Conversion), unique software that raised the METALCHEK’S performance to yet higher levels. ADC remains the only software available in the market to provide, in real time, a clear visual representation of ferrous, non-ferrous and stainless steel contamination in addition to product effect. It is also a powerful training tool, enabling metal detection to be easily understood by the user population. The potential of ADC to fully utilize the high levels of sensitivity engineered into its detectors has been relentlessly exploited by Lock resulting in the introduction of its multifrequency detector (the 3f) in 2005, followed by the 875 kHz (hf) and 3f/hf detectors for the food industry in 2007.

In 2005, recognizing the need to make use of the data captured by its inspection systems, Lock introduced Datachek, a software and network protocol allowing the control and management of inspection data to be performed from a central location ensuring full product traceability for the manufacturer – an essential element of modern QA systems.

Lock has been active in other areas. We remain absolutely committed to providing class leading service to our customers, and as such we are the only company in the world to have successfully achieved Atex qualification and 21CFR, Part 11 compliance from an independent assessor.

2008 sees the introduction of the MET 30+ UNIVERSAL, incorporating new UNIVERSAL hardware and software alongside the features of ADC, hf, 3f and 3f/hf. The MET 30+ UNIVERSAL is 30% more sensitive than its predecessor, and offers the most comprehensive performance package available from a metal detector today.