Coin operated vending machine maker Locwil has passed a milestone - no breakdowns on any of its products for the last 20 years.
The Wolverhampton company, which also makes locks, learned of the achievement following an audit by the Vending Association.
Locwil, which employs seven employees and four part time staff, is the only manufacturer of machines which feature special drawer mechanisms made from high pressure zinc die castings.
In the last 20 years it has produced around 100,000 units, which are used to sell condoms, tampons, soap and toiletries in washrooms, which have been manufactured using the same production process for the last forty years.
Shorrock Trichem's Washroom Service Division has bought over 500 vending machines from Locwil since 2000 and they have been used in a wide variety of venues from Manchester's Trafford Centre, to small cafes.
Paul Allison, technical director at Shorrock Trichem, said: "Their quality and reliability is un-surpassed within the marketplace."
Locwil's marketing director Stewart Wilson-Bett said: "In an age where everyone says nothing is built to last any more, we seem to be an exception.
"We guarantee our coin mechanisms for five years, but it's just academic, we think they are engineered to the very highest standards. We are proud of the engineering excellence in our products and the fact that they are all British too.
"We are able to sustain the highest possible standards of manufacture because we apply great attention to detail. The quality of our component materials is excellent; we have a highly skilled and diligent workforce and we will not compromise.
"There's no secret."
Every machine is fully tested five times to ensure it works.
In recent years the marketplace has seen the introduction of electronic machines.
This has further increased the appeal of Locwil's products with their lack of complication, durability and reliability.
"Vending machine operators are primarily looking for reliability to give them the best possible profit margins," said Mr Wilson-Bett. "Reliability is the core strength of our range."
The company was founded in 1983 in Wolver-hampton, and was born out of Lockerbie and Wilkinson, who had been manufacturing the same vending machines since the 1940s.
The original product was wooden with a brass, hand-cast mechanism. This was converted to a die cast system by Dyson Diecastings, part of Alumasc Precision, which manufactures parts for Locwil.
Locwil supplies vending products and coin operated locks to a wide variety of clients. The majority of the company's vending machines are on contracts with vending operators from across the UK. ..SUPL:
