Getting down to brass tacks

Bremner Music, the creators of the sshhmute practice mute, recently invested in a Kaeser Classic 460 / 50 W workshop compressor, to meet its requirements for a high quality and reliable supply of compressed air in the assembly of the practice mutes at its facility in New Plymouth.

It's a common problem often faced by brass instrument players; how to practice at odd times and in odd places with minimum noise and without changing the pitch or projection of the instrument. Trevor Bremner, an Australian and New Zealand Cornet Champion and teacher had faced this problem himself many times. It was his dissatisfaction with solutions currently on the market place that led him to invent the sshhmute Practice Mute.

Developed over several years in his New Plymouth workshop, the sshhmute Practice Mute is now in full commercial production and has been successfully launched to answer a market need for an effective mute for brass instruments in a price range to suit budding musicians and professionals alike.

In the initial stages of production, the two parts of the sshhmute practice mute were bonded together manually with solvents. However now sold in over 33 countries, as demand has grown for the product, Bremner Music realised they needed to invest in a plastic welding machine to accelerate the production process. A reliable supply of compressed air was required to power the new welding machine. Having heard that Kaeser compressors were known for their German quality and high reliability, Trevor Bremner contacted his local authorised Kaeser partner - Pace Power & Air for a solution.

Trevor and Betty Bremner, the designers of the sshhmute Practice Mute.

Pace Power & Air worked closely with Bremner Music to spec up the correct compressor for the application. They recommended and subsequently installed a Kaeser Classic 460 / 50 W workshop compressor.

The Kaeser Classic series workshop compressors are designed and built to the strictest quality standards, yet are priced to meet the needs of small compressed air users without compromising efficiency, reliability and durability. The compressor block forms the heart of these units and is manufactured at Kaeser's main production facility in Coburg, Germany. All Kaeser Classic compressors require minimal maintenance and are designed to provide years of efficient and reliable service.

Installed and operating now for almost 12 months, the Kaeser Classic compressor reliably powers the plastic welder that is used in the assembly of 5 out of 8 sshhmute Practice Mute models. Trevor Bremner said: 'The Kaeser compressor has proven to be a convenient 'plug and play' solution that is certainly living up to our expectations.'

The sshhmute Practice Mute is now sold in over 33 countries.

• CLASSIC series workshop compressors