Chubb Locks is a former brand name of the Mul-T-Lock subsidiary of the Assa Abloy Group, which manufactures locking systems for residential, secure confinement and commercial applications. When the brand licence expired in 2010 the name ceased to be used, with the same locks sold as Yale or Union locks.

History

Chubb was started as a ship's ironmonger by Charles Chubb in

Winchester Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, and then moved to

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

, England, in 1804. Chubb moved the company into the locksmith business in 1818, in

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands of England. Located around 12 miles (20 km) north of Birmingham, it forms the northwestern part of the West Midlands conurbation, with the towns of ...

. The company worked out of a number of premises in Wolverhampton, including the purpose-built factory on Railway Street, still known today as the Chubb Building. His brother Jeremiah Chubb then joined the company, and they sold Jeremiah's patented detector lock. In 1823, the company was awarded a special licence by

King George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...

, and later became the sole supplier of locks to the

General Post Office The General Post Office (GPO) was the state postal system and telecommunications carrier of the United Kingdom until 1969. Established in England in the 17th century, the GPO was a state monopoly covering the dispatch of items from a specific ...

(GPO), and a supplier to

His Majesty's Prison Service His Majesty's Prison Service (HMPS) is a part of HM Prison and Probation Service (formerly the National Offender Management Service), which is the part of His Majesty's Government charged with managing most of the prisons within England and ...

. In 1835, they received a patent for a burglar-resisting safe, and opened a safe factory in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 1837. In 1851, they designed a special secure

display case A display case (also called a showcase, display cabinet, shadow box, or vitrine) is a Cabinet (furniture), cabinet with one or often more transparency and translucency, transparent tempered glass (or plastic, normally Poly(methyl methacrylate), ...

for the Koh-i-Noor diamond for its appearance at The Great Exhibition. In the late 1960s, the company, working with Smiths Industries, introduced its first

automated teller machine An automated teller machine (ATM) is an electronic telecommunications device that enables customers of financial institutions to perform financial transactions, such as cash withdrawals, deposits, funds transfers, balance inquiries or account ...

(ATM) called the Chubb MD2. The MD2's first customer was National Westminster Bank, who installed their first Chubb ATMs in 1968. In August 1984, the company was purchased by

Racal Racal Electronics plc was a British electronics company that was founded in 1950. Listed on the London Stock Exchange and once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index, Racal was a diversified company, offering products including voice recorders and ...

under the chairmanship of Ernest Harrison. After the group was floated out from Racal, in February 1997 it was bought by Williams plc. In August 2000, they were sold to Assa Abloy. In 2006, Chubb was merged into the group Mul-T-Lock within Assa Abloy. The Chubb Electronic Security subsidiaries produce smoke detectors, fire alarms, burglar alarms and glass break detectors. In 2010, the "Chubb Locks" brand licence expired, and Assa Abloy decided not to renew. The products are still sold, but rebranded as Yale and Union locks, other well known brands owned by Assa Abloy.

References

External links

Mul-T-Lock website
(formerly used the Chubb name)
Archive images
from the Express & Star Lock manufacturers Manufacturing companies based in Wolverhampton Racal English brands {{manufacturing-company-stub

History

See also

References

External links