Snorekil
ABOUT SNOREKIL
Snorekil, the simple plastic oral stop snoring device, has a long history. Many years of thinking, planning and experience are behind it. This is how, and why, Paul Cattel came up with the idea…
PAUL’S IDEA
In 1997, Paul was living and working in Canada as a dental technician. He saw the need for an effective anti-snoring appliance while working with snoring patients as part of the team (including doctors, dentists and sleep specialists) at Foothills Hospital in Calgary.
THE FIRST CUSTOM ANTI-SNORING DEVICES
Paul devised and custom made oral devices which proved very successful in helping patients to stop snoring, but they were expensive to manufacture and to buy.
After Paul returned to the UK from Canada, he continued to make individual anti-snoring oral devices for patients at his dental laboratory. What he really wanted was to produce an affordable, adjustable oral device that could be bought without prescription or the need for special fitting by a dental professional.
THE LONG (AND SLEEPLESS!) ROAD TO SUCCESS
Producing a device that was just right meant travelling back to Canada for several overnight stays at the hospital in Calgary to design prototype devices and work with the sleep specialists there. At the same time, Paul and his wife, Marie, were looking at all the other anti-snoring oral devices on the market and seeing what their product, now called Snorekil, could offer that was better.
Paul and Marie set up a business, Sleepworks Products, to manufacture and sell Snorekil.
Paul says: "We were so sure the Snorekil was going to be a great product that we invested the proceeds from the sale of our dental laboratory in research, development and manufacturing costs."
SNOREKIL IS FINALLY BORN
It took many sleepless nights in a laboratory, and many different designs, as well as numerous trips to the plastics company to develop the desired material; it had to be soft and comfortable to wear, but hard-wearing enough to last. A few prototypes went in the bin before that bit was right!
After all the hard work by him and his wife, Paul is delighted to announce: "We’ve produced a stop snoring device that we’re really proud of – and our achievement has been recognised! In 2006, the Snorekil won a prestigious award for innovation at the Geneva International Exhibition of Inventions, and a further award followed – a silver medal this time – at the British Invention Show in October 2006."
