Smart and secure
CEO Mark Bromley talks about how Avantis designed and manufactured Kubu lock to bring mass market smart locks for windows and doors into the glazing industry.
Smart technology has been around for years, but the glazing industry has been slow to develop products for the mass market. Now, Avantis has launched Kubu, a product that integrates door and window locking with smart home technology.
With Alexa and Google Home being a staple in many UK properties, homeowners simply expect more. Smart home technology has developed into the Internet of Things and homeowners want to be connected at all times.
Kubu is designed to be fitted in volume and as standard with every door that fabricators and installers sell. Manufactured by Avantis, we bring together our expertise in hardware, alongside our experience in the manufacture of electronic indicators and sensors.
To many people in the glazing industry who know us as a hardware manufacturer, the electronics side of our business is far bigger. In fact, one of our customers is Europe’s leading water filtration company, with electronic indicators and sensors that tell customers when the cartridges in water filtration jugs need changing.
The combination of mechanical engineering with technology is called mechatronics. Cleverly, Kubu combines the mechanical lock with an electronic sensor to create a simple and affordable solution for the mass market.
Kubu works as the lock in the door is equipped to take the Kubu module. The lock is fitted to doors and then connected to the Kubu app and the Home Hub, where homeowners can check on the lock status of their door.
The app’s main feature shows the door’s locked and unlocked status wherever you are. It will alert you if you leave your home with your door unlocked, and there are more features.
Quick and easy to fit, once inserted in the door, homeowners plug in the Home Hub and download the Kubu app.
This is perfect timing, with Alexa and Google Home showing the fast-growing appetite for technology to be a solid part of so many homeowners’ lives. It’s clear that homeowners want more information on their heating or who’s ringing their doorbell.
We’ve developed Kubu’s next steps to cater for this, thanks to our new vibration sense feature and partnership with Ring Doorbells. The new feature sends a notification to your phone if your door lock is being attacked and, using Ring, homeowners can take a look at the situation for themselves, no matter where they are. There’s also a new ‘crime in your area feature’, where you can see and be alerted to the crime activity within a 10-mile radius, and Kubu will also be available for windows.
As well as these exciting new features, we’ll be launching the Kubu Pro Network.
Kubu has a totally unique smart hardware offering for installers. By registering to become a Kubu Pro, installers can get access to an online portal via a dedicated Kubu Pro website, where they can receive free homeowner leads. Kubu Pro installers can also benefit from tailored and branded marketing materials along with VIP technical support.
With so many smart locks to choose from, customers will be looking for professional advice on how to select the right smart security. With Kubu Pro, installers have access to first class technical support from our hardware and locking experts.
But the best of all, they will be able to access Pro pricing, allowing installers to benefit from selling and fitting Kubu right there and then for homeowners.
There are no licence fees for Kubu Pro. By adding a simple, smart product to their range and joining Kubu Pro, installers can benefit from customer referrals, expert support, marketing literature and trade pricing to grow their business.
Pricing is vital for mass market products. We believe that the low entry point for fabricators and installers, alongside the low price of Kubu Hub and model for homeowners, makes a compelling reason for everyone in the supply chain to choose Kubu.