Kee Klamp

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Type of pipe fitting

title: "Kee Klamp" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["structural-engineering", "engineering-companies-of-the-united-kingdom"] description: "Type of pipe fitting" topic_path: "engineering" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kee_Klamp" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Type of pipe fitting ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox product"]

Field	Value
title	Key Klamp
image	[[File:Basic kee klamp.jpg
caption	Basic fitting
inventor	George H. Gascoigne
and colleagues
launch year	1934
company	Gascoignes (Reading) Ltd.
available	Available
::

The system was devised in 1934 and is made by a subsidiary of KIG Holdings. The fittings are mostly supplied to third parties for sale to fabricators, with a small proportion of sales being made internally to specialist divisions of the company.

History

The system was developed in 1934 by George H. Gascoigne and his colleagues in Reading, England for making cows' milking stalls. It was advertised to industrial chemists in 1944, and used for storage systems in factories in the 1960s. By 1980 it was available in Canada, as noted by the Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy

Components

The system comprises unthreaded cast iron or aluminium structural tubing and slip-on structural pipe fittings. The galvanized malleable fittings provide resistance to corrosion and are secured to the tubes using set screws by use of a hex key.

Some cutting or bending of the tubes may be required while installing the system, according to site-specific circumstances. Skilled labourers such as welders are not required, but the material costs are higher for the Key Klamp system. A contractor at the Long Island Rail Road described the system in 2007 as being "very simple to install".

Usage

This may look suspiciously WP:PROMO but in fact I simply think the wording of the '50s advertising makes interesting reading! ::quote

|quote = Also cow stalls, bank operated yard yokes, calf penning, bull corner yokes and bull pen railing. |source = Leaflet for Kee Klamp cattle control system, Mid-1950s |width = 40% |align = right |qalign = right |quoted = 1

Example uses of various derived systems are in guard rails and market stalls. More unusual uses have been seen in home shelving, kite buggying and the Rover chair. Parkour and Ninja Warrior training facilities have also benefited from the reliable and quick to set up Structural Pipe Fittings.

In 2003, the company and a former competitor stated that such fittings were not being used in some countries in Europe, in favour of welding. This was due to lower labour costs. For uncomplicated installations, welding may be a cheaper solution than Key Klamp, depending upon usage.

Market dominance

In 2003, the system dominated the UK and EU markets, with a share of 7080 per cent. (The fittings market was worth £58 million in the UK in 2003.) The premium branding the product is said to hold is due to KIG offering incremental services. Some customers inherently prefer using such fittings, while others prefer welding. The choice of system is often made during initial design of an installation.

The system is marketed for specific uses under various names, including a low-cost brand called Tubeclamp and a high-end brand called Interclamp. Specialist divisions of the company exist which fabricate finished structures, although such internal sales of the fittings constitute only a fraction of total fittings sales.

Between 1998 and 2003, volumes of Key Klamp sales increased. The value of total annual sales remained static throughout this period, associated with an overall price reduction of 2030 per cent. During this period, the price reduction of a complete system including the tube components was 510 per cent.

A business acquisition by KIG of no frills competitor FastMat (a subsidiary of Access Technologies) in 2003 led to a report being filed with the UK's Secretary of State for Trade and Industry under the Fair Trading Act 1973. The report concluded that the merger should not be referred to the Competition Commission due to the relatively inexpensive cost of entry to the market by others. Most suppliers of competing products to the UK import their fittings from low-cost Far East contract manufacturers.

References

"An alternative to welded platform handrail systems". Offshore magazine.
(25 May 2005). "Aluminium tube fittings". ferret.
(20 April 2005). "Base Mount Structural Pipe Fittings accommodate toe boards". [[Thomas Register]].
(9 July 2007). "Railroad Chooses Rooftop Fall Prevention System". EHS Today.
(21 May 2003). "Completed acquisition by KIG Ltd of FastMat Ltd and Access Technologies Ltd". [[Office of Fair Trading]].
"Leaflet for Kee Klamp cattle control system. TR GRL/P2/A44 mid 1950s". [[The National Archives (United Kingdom).
Njoku, Jude. (22 March 2011). "Another shopping mall underway in Surulere". Vanguard Media.
Adam. (6 July 2006). "Key Klamp Shelf (not on the cheap)". adambyers.com.
Pollock, Chris. (10 February 2011). "Floating Bathroom Shelf Made with Key Klamp and Lack Components". IKEAHackers.net.
danur. (2003). "Construction amateur du char à cerf-volant". [[free.fr]].
"DIY Versatile Parkour Gym Equipment".

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