2016 in Review

2016: what a year. What. A. Year.

Last month, the eyes of the world were firmly fixed on the U.S. presidential elections as former first lady Hillary Clinton fought tooth and nail to become the nation’s first female president, but was ultimately defeated – in what can only be described as a bizarre twist worthy of an M. Night Shamalayan film – by real estate mogul turned controversial politician Donald Trump.

Critics of the “the Donald” reeled with shock and disbelief, while his many proponents rallied in support of the outcome, which has once again come under close scrutiny.

2016 will also be remembered as the year that we lost a number of greats from the worlds of screen and stage, including genre-defying transcendental musician David Bowie and British actor Alan Rickman, perhaps most famous for portraying the character of Severus Snape in the popular Harry Potter series of films. If, like me, you enjoy the Brits' particular brand of caustic and unsentimental humour, you will be particularly saddened by the loss of Andrew Sachs, who played Manual alongside John Cleese in the absolutely brilliant but sadly short-lived Fawlty Towers.

The late, great David Bowie By Photographer: Photobra|Adam BielawskiDerivative work: Y2kcrazyjoker4 - David-Bowie_Chicago_2002-08-08_photoby_Adam-Bielawski.jpg, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link

But there was also good news aplenty to be had in the Year of the Monkey. Most notably, for Team CENTURION, at least, the high-profile acquisition of the company by global access automation powerhouse FAAC S.pa, whose far-reaching influence and significant resources promise to be beneficial for employees and clients alike. 

The NOVA remote has been updated with a stylish carbon look

From a product perspective, our focus in 2016 was on improving and enhancing our existing offering, especially from the point of view of making life easier for CENTURION installers by streamlining the installation process. The highly successful 5x Better campaign saw us take to the road to showcase the myriad improvements made to, among other products, the NOVA remote control and the RDO roll-up garage door motor.

Finally, 2016 saw CENTURION celebrate 30 years of providing peace of mind through industry-leading access automation solutions. From the humblest of beginnings, the company has grown to a global empire with 10 fully-fledged branches (including two beyond our borders), a vast global footprint spanning more than 70 countries, and a staff complement of just shy of 400 dedicated, talented and exceptionally passionate employees. Three decades have passed since CENTURION MD Pat Dickens toiled tirelessly in a modest wooden shed determined to bring his vision to life, and the fruits of his past and present labours could not be sweeter; the shadow cast by his enterprise so immense that competitors have no choice but to reside in it.

It is your continued loyalty and support that have enabled us to not only survive, but thrive, for the past thirty years, and for that we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Here’s to the next 30 years and beyond.

Have a safe and secure festive season. 

5 Things You Should Know About Your Garage Door (Before You Automate It)

You and your garage door have been seeing each other on and off for what, like, 10 years? You bump into each other every time you leave home. Heck, you’ve even introduced it to your parents. Things are serious, and it’s time to take the relationship to the next level: automate. But before you take that next big step, there are some crucial things that you should know about your garage door.

No, we’re not talking about whether it likes romantic picnics and long walks on the beach. We’re talking about things like:

1. What kind of door is it?

A typical tip-up garage door

Everyone has a type, am I right? Some like the strong, silent type while others get along just fine with the boisterous extrovert. When it comes to garage doors, it’s important to know whether you’re dealing with a tip-up, sectional or roll-up type garage door as this will determine what type of operator you’ll need to install. Sectional and tip-up doors can generally use the same type of operator (though with different rail kits), but roll-up doors will require a special roll-up door motor that sits inside or directly adjacent the drum. 

2. How well is it balanced?

A small child should be able to lift the door with relative ease

Probably also a good question to ask if you’re in the dating game! Most garage doors rely on counterbalance springs to do the lifting (not the motor!), and it’s important that these springs are well-balanced. A good rule of thumb is that, if your granny or small child is unable to open or close the door with relative ease, the springs are probably about as well-balanced as Christian Bale’s character in American Psycho. The door also shouldn’t rise or fall more than about 100mm if left in any position between fully open and fully closed.

3. Will there be enough space to install a motor? 

It's important that there is enough space to install a garage door motor

Hey, man, we all need some space every now and again, am I right? Garage door motors do, too! Especially when it comes to roll-up garage door operators, it’s important to first check that there’s sufficient space to fit the operator adjacent the drum. If there isn’t, you may need to get your hands on a special adaptor. 

4. Will it be a left- or right-hand installation?

This has nothing to do with the door’s political leanings, but it’s a very important consideration with regard to roll-up garage doors. You may find that your RDO has been factory-set to be installed on the right-hand end of your garage door (when viewed from inside the garage looking out), and some minor modifications are necessary in order to convert it to a left-hand installation. 

5. What are you looking for in a motor?

Much like a potential suitor, every garage door motor offers something unique in terms of specifications and functionality, and it’s a good idea to be clear on what you’re looking for. Are you after something very basic that opens and closes the door and nothing more? Or would you prefer something more feature-rich that can, for example, be locked electronically and has the ability to close automatically? Whatever your unique requirements, rest assured that, somewhere out there, there’s a garage door motor for you.

The CENTURION RDO II with onboard multichannel code-hopping receiver is available now from your nearest CENTURION branch or distributor. . 

What Would You Do if You Had More Time?

Ever since the ancient Egyptians first divided the day up into 24 more or less equal parts, people have been wishing for more time. Just one more hour to meet that impossible deadline. Just a few more to finish that assignment. But no matter how desperately we may wish for the sand to fall more slowly through that hourglass, time is the one thing that, thus far, Mankind has failed to manipulate.

What would you do if you had more time? Spend more time with the kids, perhaps. Or get more work done to really impress the boss. Or maybe it’s something as simple as finally finishing Call of Duty.

While we can’t give you more time, we can provide you with the tools to use the time you do have more effectively.

CENTURION’s 5x Better campaign is a unique drive aimed at making installers’ lives easier through user-friendly and intuitive access automation products. We took five of our product, made them better and, over the course of the next two months, we’ll be launching the new and improved offerings through a series of roadshows and product days hosted across the country.

Each product improvement focuses on a specific benefit to the installer.

Smarter – the SupaHelix

Designed as a replacement for the SupaNova multi-user receiver, the SupaHelix offers everything you could wish for in an access control solution: from intuitive and robust remote control programming, to a capacious memory (up to 10 000 individual remote buttons) and advanced onboard diagnostics and logging. It’s a complete access management toolkit!

Simpler – RDO II

The compact and reliable RDO roll-up garage door operator now comes with an onboard multichannel code-hopping receiver, making for supremely easy learning of individual remote control buttons.

Stronger – NOVA remotes

With an updated carbon look and durable silicone buttons designed to withstand a lifetime of pressing, the award-winning NOVA range of remote controls is likely to hold onto its title of South Africa’s favourite remote control.

Quicker – the Pinion SPYDER

The Pinion SPYDER is CENTURION’s innovative new solution to help installers get the all-important gap between the gate rack and the motor pinion just right, ensuring smooth and reliable operation and saving them valuable time onsite!

Easier – NOVA HELIX

Featuring link and master learning, lightning-fast response time and a built-in timer (to name but a few features), the NOVA HELIX range of remote control receivers puts a fresh new spin on an access control staple. Available in single- and multichannel variants.

Visit our website to find out when the CENTURION 5X Better roadshow is coming to your town.