Guardall N.A. rebranded as Verex

MISSISSAUGA, Ontario-A two year license that allowed Guardall North America to continue to use its name after its parent company Williams PLC demerged has nearly expired, requiring the access control manufacturer to come up with a new name. The company will now be known as Verex, a name that will be unveiled during the ISC Show in Las Vegas early this month. "The strategy was to come up with a name that was modern, short and didn't create any language problems," said Ron Flook, general manager. "We were looking basically for a name that had a technical orientation to it, but at the same time was generally unique." When Williams PLC demerged, it had five companies that used the Guardall name. Four companies that used the Guardall Ltd. name that focused on the European market became part of the Kidde fire business, while Guardall North America joined with the company Chubb because their products are similar. Company officials began preparing for the name change, which needs to take place by November of this year, about six months ago. Flook said officials looked at core brand values and words like experience and excellence when crafting the name. In the end, Verex, which includes a dot over the letter v to add impact to the name, won. "The dot has no meaning," said Christophe Bouchaud, director of sales and marketing. "We just put it there because it's interesting." While a name change can have a dramatic impact on most companies, Flook expects it to be minimal for newly named Verex. The Guardall name is well-known in Europe, but it is relatively new and unknown in North American, which is a newer market for the company. "Changing brand names can be enormously difficult and costly for companies that are large and have well established names," said Flook. "The Guardall name is well established in some parts of the world." In March, nearly everything will be rebranded with the Verex name, including manufactured product. For now, the company will continue to use the www.guardall.com domain name, but that domain will eventually be inherited by the four other Guardall companies that now operate under Kidde's umbrella.