An Brentwood company is relaunching one of its most successful products, aiming for the toy market - both children and executive.

Ivor Pontin, who lives in Blackmore and owns Pontin Engineering on the Hallsford Bridge Industrial site, believes the new Mastermaze about to go into production will be as successful now as the original version was ten years ago.

Based on the old 'ball into a hole' toy, Mastermaze presents a very formidable and complex challenge to the player, teaching patience and determination to the young, and bringing a touch of leisure relief to the harassed business executive.

Mastermaze is in fact owned by Ivor and his partner, Chelmsford based, Gerry Dale, who have set up Proto Magic Innovations Ltd to market it, but it goes back many years to when Ivor's son Paul was a schoolboy.

That was back in 1977 when Paul wanted to buy the game which was then being made by a Basildon retired engineer who was making the games in his garage, but was having technical problems.

Paul introduced him to Ivor who at that time had a small engineering design firm working in the old telephone exchange in Blackmore.

They solved the problems and production was resumed - with Paul now able to buy his own version.

Then the original producer retired and Ivor, with another partner, took over production.

They produced a number of improving versions of the game, and by 1980 had created something of a 'craze cult' with the games which were still popular both with children and adults who were competing with each other to see who could reach the centre in the shortest time.

But being largely of wooden construction the production costs began to outweigh realistic marketing prices and by 1991 the whole product was dropped with Ivor's firm moving onto other things.

Last year Ivor, an electronics design engineer by profession, teamed up with Gerry and they began to work on a new improved version. It is that version - Mastermaze 101 - which is now being launched.

"We know it sold very well before and now we have mastered the costings know it will again - but we believe that it is of a quality high enough not just to be an executive 'toy' but a promotional one as well," Ivor says.

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