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Home safes, with their special anti-theft features, are increasingly expanding from institutional use to ordinary households. However, recent inspections by quality supervision departments have revealed that many security products labeled as safes, treasure chests, or privacy chests are not truly theft-proof, yet they are skirting the law in the market. In a filing cabinet store, a salesperson introduced a "multi-functional electronic treasure chest" produced by a Ningbo company. The user manual clearly states that it is "equipped with a novel anti-drilling and anti-pry lock, improving anti-theft performance by more than five times," while also claiming that the product only meets the company's standards. When the reporter inquired about the difference between a treasure chest and a safe, the salesperson said, "The functions are almost the same, just the thickness of the steel plate, and treasure chests are much cheaper." The negative consequence of this situation is that it provides opportunities for criminals. According to statistics from a public security department, safe burglaries account for a significant proportion of all theft cases.
Therefore, the editor of Henan Huadu Times Furniture calls on relevant departments to strictly control the production quality of safe manufacturers and prevent inferior products from entering the market. Units and individuals using safes must overcome complacency and eliminate wishful thinking; when choosing a safe, they must pay close attention to quality. The saying "buying a cheap safe isn't necessarily a good deal" illustrates this point. What is the current situation of home safes in China? The product quality of manufacturers varies greatly. Many manufacturers cut corners, producing inferior home safes, and even using deposit boxes, treasure boxes, and private boxes to impersonate safes. This creates many security risks in the home safe market. On the other hand, consumers lack sufficient understanding of industry standards and knowledge about home safes, leading to confusion and embarrassment when purchasing. The main unqualified items for safes include: resistance to damage. Resistance to damage includes two indicators: resistance to opening holes and resistance to opening the cabinet door. National standards require that most products sold on the market with a safety level of A1 should be able to prevent the cabinet door from being opened or a through hole of 38 square centimeters from being made in the cabinet door or cabinet body within 15 minutes of net working time using ordinary hand tools, portable power tools and grinding heads, or the combination of these tools.
The situation regarding products sold in the market is as follows: "Due to rising raw material prices, some anti-theft safe manufacturers are cutting corners, directly resulting in substandard security performance." It is reported that in the first quarter of this year, the Zhejiang Provincial Bureau of Quality and Technical Supervision conducted random inspections of 20 types of safes from 20 companies in three cities-Hangzhou, Ningbo, and Jiaxing-and the pass rate was only 60%. At the Huadu Group's testing laboratory, inspectors are conducting a destructive test on an anti-theft safe.
A 1.25-kilogram hammer and an ordinary chisel... In 3 minutes and 28 seconds, with a "bang," the safe door was pried open.
"According to national regulations, qualified products are not allowed to be opened within 15 minutes," said Cheng Min, a testing engineer at Huadu Group. "This product definitely does not meet safety standards."
Next, the inspectors conducted a hole-opening test, using tools such as an electric drill and a saw to create an opening of approximately 38 square centimeters in the top of the safe. Cheng Min stated that a 38-square-centimeter opening is large enough to reach in; the nationally stipulated time is at least 15 minutes, but it only took 4 minutes and 42 seconds on site. "The fact that the lock was opened in 3 minutes and 28 seconds indicates that the protective structure of the mechanical combination lock is not strong enough. The 4 minutes and 42 seconds to open the hole suggests that the board material is of poor quality and too thin," Cheng Min said.
The main reasons for the aforementioned substandard home safes include: poor process control in product quality. Some manufacturers do not pay attention to or understand standards, and do not strictly follow product standards in production. They lack effective quality control during processing and manufacturing, and product inspection is lax. Deviant product design concepts. Some companies prioritize appearance over internal quality during product development. Unprincipled cost reduction. General consumers have little understanding of the structural performance of security safes, making low-priced products very attractive in the market. Some companies, in order to win in the competition with low prices, do not hesitate to reduce costs, omit necessary protective devices, and some even cut corners, ultimately resulting in substandard products. For example, the thickness of the steel plate in a security safe is related to its resistance to damage and is a basic guarantee of theft prevention. However, some companies reduce the thickness of the steel plate and reduce the necessary protection of the locking mechanism in order to reduce costs, greatly reducing the anti-theft function of the product, resulting in a situation where the security safe is not actually theft-proof. In addition, experts specifically remind consumers to pay attention to the difference between safes and deposit boxes, two different types of products.
In recent years, safe deposit boxes, falling somewhere between security safes and cabinet furniture, have appeared on the market. Currently, my country lacks national standards for safe deposit boxes, which are categorized by lock type into mechanical and electronic combination locks. While safe deposit boxes and security safes look similar, the safe deposit box body is thinner, typically made of about 2mm thick steel plate or even sheet metal, making it easier to break and offering poorer security; it is not considered a dedicated anti-theft device. Security safes, on the other hand, have much thicker steel plates, typically 8mm-10mm thick for the door and over 6mm thick for the cabinet body, resulting in significantly higher security. Because safe deposit boxes and security safes are indistinguishable in appearance, some merchants manipulate product names and labels, using ambiguous language in product descriptions and introductions to confuse consumers. Furthermore, due to the structural differences, safe deposit boxes are much cheaper than security safes, making them very attractive in the market. Therefore, consumers should inquire clearly when purchasing security safes to avoid buying the wrong type, and the invoice should clearly state the product name. If you intend to store valuables, please choose a safe. It's generally best to avoid safes costing only 300-500 yuan, unless you simply want one for decoration; otherwise, it could lead to significant losses. Furthermore, Class A and Class B security safes weighing less than 340kg should have mounting holes, fasteners, and an instruction manual to guide you in securing them. Only by correctly installing them according to the instructions can the security safe truly function as a theft prevention device.
Quality inspectors remind consumers that anti-theft safes have three main security features: a fixing device, an alarm system, and a combination lock. All three should be used. When purchasing, don't just focus on appearance and price. First, check the surface for smoothness and evenness of the paint. Both the inside and outside of the safe should be treated with paint or powder coating for corrosion protection. The gap between the door and frame should be small, and the door should open smoothly. Second, check for mounting holes. After purchase, install and secure the safe according to the product instructions to ensure it effectively prevents theft.
Finally, the editor of Henan Huadu Times Furniture hopes that through our introduction, you can choose a safe and cost-effective home safe product to truly protect your financial security.
This article was written and edited by Henan Huadu Times Furniture Co., Ltd. Please indicate the source as http://www.chnhuadu.com when reprinting.