Home safe home

Wherever they are, at home, in a hotel room, in an office, people need to feel safe. One man has taken it upon himself to carry the responsibility of securing homes and their inhabitants by giving them the most sought after feelings in the world: safety and security. He has done so not only to Egyptians but to people all over the world and has done this job for decades.

This man is none other than Dr. Samir Ezzat Aref, the chairman of board of the Ahram Security Group, who shares with he Magazine about his long, successful journey to provide people with the feeling of protection they seek.

It is a sign of an extraordinary person when someone, especially a child, who doesn’t need to work begins working at the young age of six. Well, Dr Samir Ezzat Aref did just that, making his debut at the age of six, accompanying his father to his workshop. Nobody pushed him to follow the footsteps of his father. He was driven only by his passion and his interest in the art of making a lock.

Ezzat Aref created Ahram Security Group in 1945 as a family business. Five years later, Samir, then a six-year-old child, started working at the age of six in what was then a small workshop with no more than three to four workers in Rod El Farag, Cairo. He was there watching and learning the skill. Later, the business grew to having 1,200 laborers working in three huge factories located in 10th of Ramadan City. Samir grew with the business and became a legendary and global pioneer in the business.

Originally, the business was known as Ahram Locks before the name was changed to Ahram Security Group.

“We started with manufacturing locks,” said Dr. Samir Aref. “I want to tell you that locks were originally invented by the ancient Egyptians thousands of years ago. We started with simple locks in the fifties in our workshop, and then my father developed it [the company] until we became the biggest manufacturer in the Middle East and Africa and proudly became one of the biggest 20 factories in the world.”

He added, “We have expanded a lot since 1945 and there were many stages of development. At the beginning, we started producing one model of locks and our production was only 10 locks per day. Today, we export our locks to 35 countries all over the world and our locks are available everywhere in the world and Egypt. You can find our locks in the famous Burj Khalifa Tower in the UAE, in Cairo International Airport, in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and in other ministries and hotels. About 80 percent of Egypt uses Ahram locks that come in more than 1,000 models. The models have different systems including mechanical, electrical, and more recently digital, as we have developed new smart locks as well,” Aref explained.

The “king of the lock” Aref reveals that their products are pure Egyptian made. “They’re all our creations, 100 percent” he said. “We do our own designs, our own engineering, and our own manufacturing from A to Z.”

Aref also admits that sometimes customers request special requirements and specifications for interior design purposes. “It is not only the locks, but door handles and hinges as well. The door handles are our latest creation, which we started late last year. Interestingly, we exported our first door handles to Italy, the country known to be the mother and pioneer of locks and door handles,” he said.

“Furthermore, we have produced multi-point locks that provide super protection and our new smart and digital smart locks which offer the convenience of opening doors with your mobile. This can be installed for a lock that is not only for security, but for beauty as well,” he continued.

Aref also said, “For the door handles, we have three brands: Ahram, AFM, and Sicuro. Sicuro is our latest creation with an artistic feature, so it is not only functional but has an attractive design as well.”

The highly experienced and creative Aref never stops innovating and developing the business. He recently released the “master key” for personal use: one key to open all your doors.

“Our lock products are based on safety and security,” he explained. “A few years ago, we came up with our latest innovation, the ‘master key’. It is just one key that would be used for all doors. Just one key would open the outside house main gate, the front door, your garage, and the rooms. If you have other properties in different cities or even countries, it would still be that same master key that would open all your homes, rooms, and even your office. This master key will save you the hustle and confusion of carrying around different keys for every place you own. It will simply open all the doors of your life. We design that in Egypt, and we export it as well. Let me tell you that we have installed this master key at Burj Khalifa. Not many people know about it, but we will promote it even more very soon.”

He continued, “Recently, we introduced the digital and smart locks that enable you to open your door with your mobile giving you increased convenience. The digital system allows you to open your lock from your own mobile or by using a card.”

“We overcame the challenge of the industry by perfecting precision and micro-engineering,” he explained. “The composition of each lock and the cylinder needs 80 different parts, which we manufacture, and we need hundreds of mechanical machines to produce each part and collect and produce the final version of the lock. We only import the raw materials of the metals, then we start our own manufacturing process, which includes collecting, manufacturing, producing, and selling inside Egypt and overseas to Africa, Europe, and South America. All this process takes place according to our own designs, which are internationally certified, so our products are 100 percent Egyptian technology in the highest quality.”

“Lately, we introduced our fire-rated locks. In any huge building, like a hotel, one of the main requirements is that both doors and locks are anti-fire,” he said.

“We are also investing in our people as we invest in machines. Ahram has been a brand for almost 75 fruitful years, and we believe the coming 75 years will even be more successful. We will continue to secure Egyptian homes by increasing the rates of safety and security according to the 21st century with updated art and technology through smart and digital solutions. We also serve Egypt's giant real estate projects,” Dr. Samir Aref concluded.