Check the Motor!

His hair may have been a little darker and fuller, the smile lines at the corners of his mouth – like tattoos of happy memories – a little fainter, but there can be no doubt that the man in the photograph wearing the smart navy-blue shirt and piebald tie is CENTURION MD and founder Pat Dickens, a man who, as a fresh-faced young engineer from Kimberly, dared to dream at a time when dreaming was all but outlawed. 

Could the man in the photo, taken from a sizeable stack that marketing director and Pat’s brother-in-law Richard Rohman lovingly keeps in his desk drawer, have known that, some day, his gate motors would be used on virtually every electric gate in South Africa? And would he have believed it if someone had told him that, in the near future, his solutions would automate the entrances to apartment complexes, office parks, airports and palaces? There’s no way of knowing for certain, but the man in the picture has a fire in his belly, a fire that he would not allow financial hardships, economic recessions or the hordes of naysayers that told him it couldn’t be done, to extinguish.

As CENTURION’s co-founder and someone who has been with the company virtually from the very beginning, Richard Rohman appears in many of the grainy old photographs, sometimes mustachioed and sometimes sans facial hair. Now in his fifties, Richard is as much an energetic firebrand as he was in those early days. He has since traded in his box-shaped Volkswagen Jetta for a vehicle that epitomises Richard's love for adventure and the outdoors, and nowadays one is more likely to find him poring over an Excel spreadsheet than fiddling with a multi-meter, but Richard was absolutely indispensable in securing CENTURION’s legacy as the undisputed leaders in gate automation and access control. 

Another picture shows the SupaSlida, the seminal sliding gate motor that laid the foundation for future successes such as the D5, of which there has been some 700, 000 sold to date. With the release of the D5-Evo – the evolution of the D5 footprint which added an intelligent LCD interface and sophisticated motor control, among other features – CENTURION achieved superstar status within the world of access automation. The original D5 slider built upon a bedrock of reliability, and the Evo’s addition of futuristic technology launched the brand into the stratosphere.

From the lush mountains and valleys of the Mpumalanga province to the vast open planes of the Free State, from Tswhane to Table Mountain, South Africans – and people the world over – simply love the green CENTURION motors. So the next time you’re out and about, be sure to #CheckTheMotor!

The A to Z of Centurion Systems

A is for Anne Dickens

MD Pat Dickens’ loving wife and one of the true pillars of CENTURION, Anne studied English and art but soon found herself drawn into the exciting world of access automation. Back in those early days, Anne did everything from making lunch for the then-small team to doing stock-taking, and through her relentless vigour and passion for getting things done directly contributed to the company’s success.

B is for bollards

Following the recent acquisition of CENTURION by Italian manufacturer FAAC S.pa, we are now a proud stockist of the FAAC range of highly robust and reliable bollards for residential, commercial and industrial vehicular access control.

C is for convenience

What can be more convenient than having your gate open for you at the press of a button? No more straining your back pushing open heavy gates, or getting out of the car in the pouring rain and ruining those brand new sneakers.

D is for D-Series

Intelligent, feature-rich and user-friendly, the D-Series range of gate operators – which includes the legendary D5-Evo slider – ushered in a new era in gate automation. With a futuristic LCD interface and advanced diagnostics, the D5-Evo is in a league of its own.

E is for efficiency

CENTURION gate operators have been designed to be supremely light on juice, and won’t run you up a huge electricity bill, even with heavy use.

F is for FAAC

As of July, CENTURION is officially part of the FAAC group of companies. FAAC is the largest manufacturer of access automation equipment in the world.

G is for GSM

CENTURION’s ever-expanding range of GSM products enables you to control – and monitor – a variety of electrical appliances from just about everywhere via your mobile phone. Open your gate, switch on an alarm and even answer your intercom from wherever you are.

H is for H-bridge

The controllers used in our newer gate operators include H-bridge motor drive circuits for the ultimate in motor control.

I is for innovation

Copyright: yarruta / 123RF Stock Photo

Compelling innovation is at the core of every product that we design, which is why a number of CENTURION products boast world-first technologies.

J is for Johan Lessing

Johan is CENTURION’s national branch manager and a veritable fount of knowledge when it comes to all things CENTURION. Johan started out in the technical department, but his legendary people skills, combined with his encyclopaedic technical and product knowledge, made him the logical choice for this role.

K is for keyless access control

The SMARTGUARD range of keypads – including the completely wireless SMARTGUARDair – deliver smart, keyless access control and can store up to 10 000 unique access codes.

L is for legacy

With a storied history spanning three decades, and with the humblest of beginnings, CENTURION has grown into a global access automation empire with nine fully-fledged branches and an exports market that currently services over 70 countries worldwide.

M is for marketing

Copyright: rawpixel / 123RF Stock Photo

We are very blessed to have a powerful in-house marketing team that includes talented designers, communication specialists, a Sharepoint developer and even a skilled researcher. With these powerful resources at our disposal, we are able to provide our clients – both internal and external – with truly world-class marketing collateral.

N is for Nick Dickens

It has been said that behind every great company is a great financial director, and we definitely have Nick to thank for the company not only surviving, but thriving, for the past three decades. Nick is CENTURION’ financial director, an accomplished touch rugby player, and all-round great guy.

O is for overcome

Over the course of the past few decades, South Africa has been battered by recession after recession and economic crisis after economic crisis, and yet CENTURION has managed to stay afloat and consistently grow despite these challenges. Tenacity seems to be ingrained in CENTURION’s DNA.

P is for Pat Dickens

Who else? Dickens patriarch, CENTURION founding father, talented engineer and one of the humblest people you’ll ever meet, Pat has been at the helm for the past 30 years. His vision, his dream, currently provides employment to some 400 individuals and peace of mind to countless home- and business-owners.

Q is for quality

The one thing we never, ever compromise on. CENTURION is accredited with the ISO quality assurance certification.

R is for Richard Rohman and Rob Dickens

Richard is CENTURION’s marketing and sales director. An energetic, passionate and immensely driven individual, Richard is one of the two founders of CENTURION, along with his brother-in-law Pat. An engineer by trade, Richard helped develop some of CENTURION’s very first electronic controllers.

Robert, the eldest of the three Dickens boys, is the company’s R & D director and also an engineer.

Known for his razor-sharp wit and supernatural technical abilities, Rob leads his team with remarkable aplomb.

S is for support

And world-class support, at that. The CENTURION technical call centre operates six days a week and offers competent technical support in multiple languages.

T is for Ian Tingle and Tim Dickens

Or Mr. T, as he is affectionately known around the office. Ian is another CENTURION founding father, and currently heads up the production team. Not only is he a fully-qualified engineer, he is also a passionate cycling enthusiast and, like the other directors, just a fantastic human being.

Tim is the youngest of the Dickens boys, and yet he brings a wealth of talent and experience to the table. Holding two engineering degrees, Tim is currently a network engineer in the company’s IT department.

U is for user-friendly

We design our products with our clients in mind, incorporating features such as LCD screens, setup wizards and removable terminals.

V is for V-Series

CENTURION’s range of strong and stylish swing gate operators. For the discerning homeowner.

X is for XTrac

Our quiet and reliable garage door motor for tip-up and sectional doors.

Y is for You...and YouTube

Copyright: studiostoks / 123RF Stock Photo

The most important person in our business, and the reason we do what we do and are where we are. Thank you.

And did you know that we have an active YouTube channel? You can find some truly excellent product tutorials on our YouTube channel, such as these ones created by Bronwyn Gore.

Z is for zeitgeist*

CENTURION is always firmly in tune with the spirit of the times, developing solutions that meet the market's current security requirements.

Z can also be for "ZoZo", which is the name of a company that manufactures garden sheds much like the one CENTURION had its start in some 30 years ago!