Fasteners

At the center of growth: Fasteners

Supply and demand have weighed heavily on the home improvement and construction industry in the past 18 months. And the role of the most common product at any job site — the fastener — has been through a tumultuous year. But also a year marked by growth, innovation and expansion.

Executives and experts who spoke to HBSDealer for this Fastener eBook special report made clear that supply chain disruptions haven’t stopped the industry from rolling out new features and benefits – mainly to address speed and efficiency. But there’s also stories of durability and availability that have factored prominently in 2021.

And no one said it was easy.

“It’s been an effort in agility all year,” said Hillman Group’s Tim Ferguson, vice president of fastening and the hardware segment.

Phil Lail, president of Pan American Screw, used the word “chaos” to describe some of the challenges facing the fastener market.

And at Midwest Fastener, Glen Gevaart, vice president of hardware sales, says in addition to responding to an influx of demand from new customers, the company revamped its entire construction fastener category during the pandemic.

Meanwhile, residential construction marches on through headwinds that include a labor shortage and volatile pricing. With supply bottlenecks pressuring sales upward, year- overyear median new home sale prices are up 18.7%. (Only 21% of current sales are under $300,000).

The stakes are high for suppliers. And many big brands are responding by reshaping their product mix — and reshaping their business — to steady the flow of construction.

HBSDealer’s 2021 Fastener eBook, containing more products, insights, videos and interviews, is available at HBSDealer.com/report.

Pandemic moves

One impact of the pandemic for Portage, Mich.-based Midwest Fastener has been an opportunity to revamp the entire construction fastener category, said Glen Gevaart, VP of hardware sales. The company’s improvements start with updating the opening price point BuildRight brand elevating the product mix with the newand-improved SaberDrive.

New to the line is the SaberDrive Platinum version that specializes as a deck screw. Included in the list of benefits is durability. It achieves 2,500 hours in the industry-standard salt spray test. As the name implies, the product is blasted with salt water until it rusts. A 2,500-hour rating is a long way from what used to be considered sufficient (500 hours) and is at the top of the range of what’s considered a high-quality fastener.

Speed wins

Across the board, the solution that everyone seems to be looking for these days is speed on the job site. “The guys on the job, they’re jammed right now,” Ferguson said. “With the labor shortages and pent-up demand for remodeling and new construction—they can’t afford to be slow, and they don’t have time for a call back.”

New from the Hillman Group for 2021 is the new Fas-n-Tite Fence Post Screw, which installs wire or panel fencing without a hammer or pre-drilling. Use in place of traditional fencing staples on wire up to 6 gauge. Easy to install and remove with a drill or impact driver, the Fas-n-Tite Fence Post Screw installs 10-times faster and is 3-times stronger than traditional fence staples. For all woods including pressure treated lumber. Hammer-free installation saves your fingers with the screws coated for corrosion resistance. They are available in 3 sizes for small tasks or big projects.

Application of analytics

At PrimeSource market analytics are playing an elevated role in providing the right product in the right place at the right price. with 34 distribution centers and more than 30,000 skus, is in the business of optimizing the offering for each customer.

“We can accurately identify the most popular products for any market,” said Brian Blevins, senior director of analytics. “But the golden ticket is found a personalized solution for an individual customer location… optimizing the product selection based on shelf space, local demand, and customer specialty. We call this tool PrimeSet and it’s already helping our customers offer better products while controlling costs.”

Made in USA

At SPAX, a brand of Altenloh, Brinck & Co. U.S., Inc., expectations call for significant growth in the fastener market over the next 12 months. And Eric Ashack, SPAX product manager, expects the SPAX brand to benefit from demand for American-made building products.

The company is also positioned to take advantage of job site trends, he said. “We’re seeing changes in pressure-treated lumber and an emphasis on matching that with coating technologies. Color is more of a player now in our industry. Contractors are looking for a great-looking finish for decks, as well as corrosion protection,” he said. “In addition, there are several new uses for engineered screw fasteners that can replace not only nails but also other hardware. Perhaps most important of all for the busy contractor, these new applications for fasteners can take less time and labor than traditional methods.”

Innovation hits the deck

The CAMO MARKSMAN System of MARKSMAN tools and Edge Screws is the solution to achieving a fastener-free surface on square decking. The MARKSMAN tools clamp to and space the boards and guide Edge screws into the side of the board, creating a strong connection with the joist.

Customers like it. “It’s pretty simple,” said Gordon South, owner of Wood Bully Ltd of Toronto. “You have the little spacers and run it along with the joist, use the spacers to keep the gapping consistent. Put a screw in each end of the tool, then you take your drill and the included specialized bit which is the perfect depth for it and then you fasten on every joist for a great looking deck.”

Growth story

At Big Timber Fasteners, a brand that’s part of the $8 billion The Marmon Group, (in turn owned by Berkshire-Hathaway) financial strength provides the necessities for growth: R&D, investment in factories, investment in inventory, and a knowledgeable field team.

“Our customers are telling us business is booming right now, and it has been since the early onset of COVID-19,” said Phil Lail, President of Pan American Screw “As families were ‘trapped’ in their homes under quarantine, they were wanting to improve their living spaces. Decks were being built, kitchens and bathrooms remodeled, and new construction was strong and robust.”