4 • FROMTHEEDITOR
There are set to be big changes in the Irish Locksmith industry this year, as Irish Locksmith Organisation( ILO) Chairman, Jack Nolan, explains in detail on page 12.
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JACK AND THE ILO HAS SPENT years campaigning for statuary regulation of the Irish locksmith industry and, after long negotiations with the Private Security Association of Ireland( PSA), as of February this year, all Irish locksmiths must now be PSA registered.
Mandatory PSA registration means all locksmiths must undergo a full security audit including Garda background checks and Revenue compliance. There are a host of aspects to this audit that are designed to protect the public and ensure high industry standards are maintained.
The ILO believes it will be good for both the industry and the customer. It will mean that the fly by night companies,
which do not act in the best interests of the customer or the profession, are no longer able to legally operate. And our‘ Day in the Life of a Locksmith’ on page 30 illustrates this growing problem, with two cases of poor workmanship encountered by Edinburgh locksmith, Andy Scott of XS Locksmiths. In his article, Andy also echoes the concerns of the industry about how such companies generate business through search engines and online listings. More and more locksmiths and customers alike are looking for a safe and credible method of finding a local tradesman, just one of the reasons The Locksmith Journal launched Mylocallocksmith. com in October 2015. On page 81, the website is reporting an increase in visits, with the locksmiths already benefitting from the leads they have received as a result.
Also recognising the power of the internet is Burton Safes on page 46, with the news of its recently launched website, following a complete overhaul of its previous website. The new site offers trade customers improved navigation, a search facility and clearly defined categories according to market sector broken down into product groups that can also be filtered by specification. The website refresh has been part of Steve Keogh’ s personal vision for the company since he took over as Sales and Marketing Director one year ago.
Becky Taylor, Editor
Kicking off coaching sponsorship deal
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BRITISH SECURITY SPECIALIST Squire has announced a sponsorship deal with RB Coaching to help develop the skills of budding young footballers across the Midlands.
Squire’ s support will enable RB Coaching to expand its 1to1, 8to1 and Futsal coaching programmes for aspiring 7 to 18 year footballers who are seeking individual improvement to their own game.
Based in the West Midlands RB Coaching has helped many players who are affiliated to professional clubs and grassroots teams fulfil their individual potential.
RB Coaching was set up three years ago by UEFA licensed coach Ryan Byrne, who is a former Nottingham Forest Academy player and semi-professional himself.
His personal development training technique is so popular, 29-year old Ryan now has seven coaches who train over 200 children across its three 8to1 academy centres in Solihull, Aston and Daventry, and its brand new Futsal development centre in Coventry.
Many RB members have gone on to represent professional clubs across the Midlands.
Squire CEO, John Squire was so impressed by the training his 11-year old son Arthur received from Ryan and his coaching team, that he wanted to support their business plans.
He said:“ I got involved with RB Coaching two years ago when we were looking for coaching for my son. We found it difficult to find good quality coaching and someone recommended me to Ryan.
“ Since then Arthur has progressed massively as a player and is now at a much higher level than before.
“ I could see the huge benefit it was to him and so, as a company, we wanted to get behind Ryan to help him expand his coaching network to enable others to become much better footballers.
“ There really isn’ t the infrastructure out there at grass roots football to enable this to happen.
“ What makes the real difference is the way RB Coaching engages both body and mind in their one to one training techniques, just like top coaches.
“ It’ s a great concept, that’ s why we’ re proud to help Ryan promote coaching to more youngsters of all abilities.”
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LOCKSMITHJOURNAL. CO. UK | JAN / FEB 2017 Sponsored by Burg-Wächter