P&B Weir Electrical

Helping our clients to be more competitive

Background

P&B Weir Electrical is a major supplier of electrical safety equipment for the rail and electricity supply industry. Its customers include electricity generating, transmission and distribution companies throughout the UK and beyond.

The issue

The company manufactures, amongst other things, clamps for earthing during the installation and maintenance of power cables. A new, higher standard for such clamps was to be introduced, and P&B Weir Electrical had developed an improved clamp that was expected to meet this standard. They wanted to protect their investment in the improved clamp by preventing unauthorised copies of it from being marketed.

The solution

Withers & Rogers identified that the improved clamp had new technical features, which could potentially be patentable, and a unique appearance that could be protected by way of a Registered Community Design. Consequently, we were instructed to file Registered Community Design and patent applications. These were filed very quickly to ensure that protection was in place ahead of trials of the new clamp by a customer.

The outcome

P&B Weir Electrical now has a granted Registered Community Design for the new clamp, which will deter competitors from producing identical copies of the clamp. A UK patent application is also pending, which should deter competitors from exploiting the technical advances made by the company in the development of its clamp.

At worst, this should delay competitors' entry into this market as they develop their own products, and at best it could lead to substantial royalties for P&B Weir if they are able to license the new technology.

This will delay competitors’ entry into this market as they develop their own products and it could also lead to substantial royalties for P&B Weir if they are able to license the new technology.

What the client says

"Withers & Rogers’ clear advice and swift action was invaluable in securing Intellectual Property protection for our improved clamp and we are confident that this protection will be a major commercial advantage as the new standard is adopted."

Geraint Evans, Managing Director, P&B Weir Electrical

“Whilst W&R are instructed directly through our external Australian attorneys, we find W&R understand our patent portfolio and our cases are not treated as simply foreign referrals. It is invaluable having direct access to W&R if we have any queries on our EP/UK portfolio and related strategies.”

John Walker, Senior Manager, CSIRO - Intellectual Property Portfolio Management