After spending countless hours developing the idea in suburban garages, three friends are set to unveil a new invention - a bar table with a difference.
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Gerringong resident Darren Ritchie and friends Mick Lamb (from Avalon) and Taran Singh (from Bowral) have developed a new type of gas appliance.
"It's a bar table with a gas fire in it," Mr Ritchie said.
"When we initially set up our fire table at the testing laboratory for Australian Standards they were blown away, because they had never seen anything like our table before.
"The fire is visible all around and instead of all the heat going straight up and dissipating into the atmosphere, it's redirected down around the people standing around the table at about knee height.
"However, you can leave your drinks on top of the table and they won't get warm."
Mr Ritchie, 54, and Mr Lamb are both Qantas long-haul flight attendants, and friends for 30 years.
They also formerly worked as gas fitters.
Mr Ritchie said Mr Lamb initially devised the idea.
"I reckon we first started talking about it 15 years ago, sitting around a fire while in Western Australia," he said.
Mr Ritchie claims what sets their appliance apart is that the heat produced is supplied at around ankle height and travels up from there, enveloping the patrons in a bubble of warmth.
"Most outdoor heaters are above head height and therefore most of the heat is dissipated into the atmosphere," Mr Ritchie said.
Mr Ritchie said the start-up business had a final inspection to complete for Australian Standards, and if the product met the benchmarks would be given the final stamp of approval.
"We have got our patent sorted out," he said. "We have just got our product through Australian Standards and we have our intellectual property covered."
Mr Ritchie said they were expecting the first of their production run to be ready in the coming weeks.
"At present we are getting our first 10 built in Mittagong and we are looking to get them placed and into the market," he said.
"We're trying to look for places where we can present them, in bars or pubs somewhere, and get the word out of what we've created and go from there.
"At present it's for a commercial environment, but easily transferred to a domestic environment as well."
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Brendan Crabb
I'm a member of ACM's national property team, covering the Illawarra and South Coast. Based in Albion Park, NSW, I write about exciting, interesting or just downright quirky properties that have been listed for sale, major sales, market trends, auctions and more. One of my favourite aspects of being a journalist is I believe everyone has a story to tell. What's yours?
I'm a member of ACM's national property team, covering the Illawarra and South Coast. Based in Albion Park, NSW, I write about exciting, interesting or just downright quirky properties that have been listed for sale, major sales, market trends, auctions and more. One of my favourite aspects of being a journalist is I believe everyone has a story to tell. What's yours?
