The makers of a fire safety device inspired by a dancing daisy have celebrated a sales milestone.

Bosses at Fireco said more than 100,000 Dorgard products had now been sold from its headquarters in High Street, Brighton.

And they revealed a new device using the same sound-activated technology was set to hit shelves in two months.

Dorgard, which closes fire doors when a smoke alarm goes off, is now approved by 85 per cent of the fire authorities in the UK.

The idea came to managing director Neil Purssey in the early Nineties after he saw a toy that reacted to sound - in this case music.

Neil was working in the interior design business when the sector was going through a slowdown and was looking for a product that would beat the recession.

At the time dancing daisies were all the rage and Mr Purssey thought it must be feasible to use the same technology to make something practical. He went back to his office and saw a fire door held open with a wedge. Within a couple of days Neil had a working prototype.

He said: "It was just an association of ideas - one of those things that leap to mind - I thought if sound can make a daisy move why can't it make a door move."

The Dorgard has been refined and developed to lift a rubber stopper and allow the fire door to swing shut at the sound of the fire alarm. It is used in care homes, hotels, universities and business premises. Most new buildings have a built-in automatic system but there are an estimated 55 million fire doors in the UK the device could be fitted to.

Production started in April 1997 and by the end of the first year, the firm had sold 1,500. Now production is up to 4,000 per month.

Previously, the manufacturing was done by another company but it was brought in-house to give the firm more control.

This has brought delivery periods down from 28 to two days.

Fireco has announced another product is to be launched in September which will wake deaf people in the event of a fire.

The device will trigger a vibrating pad under the user's pillow and set off strobe lighting to stir them.

Monday July 26, 2004