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Company Focus
30-Year Blind Rivet Nut Specialist Rolls out by Dean Tseng, Fastener World
New Blind Rivet Studs for New Energy Vehicles Hunan Liangang Fasteners Co., Ltd.
Trustworthy & Steady Liangang Fasteners specializes in designing and manufacturing nearly 2,000 types of metric and UNC blind rivet nuts made of steel, aluminum and stainless steel. With a team that has been steadily operating for 30 years since the inception in 1992 and continuously joined by young technical personnel, the company can utilize years of experience to ensure supply of quality products and consistent lead times. It can also develop a complete line of special products as per clients’ requested applications. The company works with renowned brands from various industries, including Gree Electric Appliances, Mitsubishi Elevator, and ABB Group. It monitors the economic barometers, extending its market to solar energy, photovoltaics, new energy vehicles and other emerging industries. Quick in market development and steady in supplying quality products, it has taken a spot as a critical blind rivet nut supplier domestically and overseas, maintaining stable revenue growth annually.
Blind Rivet Studs Rolled out for New Energy Vehicles The company with a foothold in the market continues to innovate in product development. Even in such a conventional fastener industry, clients’ requirements on fasteners keep changing and becoming more stringent. To satisfy them, the company develops hundreds of new products every year tailored to their applications, and hones in on the required technology for coping with potential developments in emerging industries. The all-new blind rivet studs are mainly recommended for suppliers to new energy carmakers. They were rolled out to meet the demand in new energy vehicle market which is the primary target market for the company. This new addition was created specifically for emerging industries apart from fulfilling new applications of existing clients.
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Increased Equipment Investment, Upgrade and Overhaul The Covid-19 pandemic faced by all mankind thwarts the operation of businesses around the world. The company's order book was affected at the beginning of the year, and later came the surge of material prices and export costs. The company sped up developing new industries and new clients, while adjusting its product line to increase special products with higher added values. In 2022 the company will increase investment in equipment by upgrading and overhauling existing equipment in order to increase competitiveness by improving efficiency and reducing costs.
Expecting RCEP to Facilitate Developing Emerging Markets Despite the sales drop in the U.S. and Europe at the start of the year due to the pandemic, the company was able to maintain stability by product line adjustment and agile shipment scheduling. With RCEPT in effect on January 1, 2022, the company will further the development in the member countries. Covering the largest population of the world and the largest trade scale, RCEPT is the most promising free trade zone which the company thinks will be a boost for its business development.
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Company Focus
by Gang Hao Chang, Vice Editor-in-Chief of Fastener World
Best Choice for High Strength Steel Structure Fastening
Beijing Jinzhaobo High Strength Fastener Co., Ltd. Setting “Quality First and Honest Service” as its corporate policy and “100% Qualification Before Shipment”as its goal, Beijing Jinzhaobo High Strength Fastener Co., Ltd. has achieved record high sales in the supply of heavy-duty bolts, shear bolts, weld screws, and foundation bolts for years. Dedicated to China, Latin America, N. America, and Southeast Asian markets, Jinzhaobo not only reported steady growth in its annual revenue, but also made a significant progress in the improvement and upgrade of its facilities and software/hardware, including nearly 200 sets of machines and device for cold/hot forging, heat treatment, Dacromet, packaging, and hot-dip galvanizing as well as an independently operating laboratory. So far, its monthly capacity has reached the level of more than 2,000 tons.
Globally Approved Mature Technique Strict quality control and enhanced material traceability are both key factors for Jinzhaobo to gain full trust from customers. After it acquired the self-export permit in 2006, it was also awarded the honor of “Excellent Products of the Industry” with its “JN” branded products. Furthermore, it has been also approved by DNV ISO9000, CE, welding, SGS factory, FPC, and many other certifications. The quality of its products has been also recognized by China Quality Certification Centre. “Our biggest competitive edge is that we continue to focus on certain markets over the past 2 decades and explore technology/markets/ professional talents/lean manufacturing/R&D in this segment, which allow us to continually maintain our leading position in the industry.
Mature technique, stable quality, and efficient delivery are our goals. We hope that we can become the world’s most competitive solutions and products provider for steel structure fastening,” said Jinzhaobo Manager Gavin Hao. Well-known for its profession, brand, and scale production, Beijing Jinzhao has accumulated quite mature manufacturing technique for products that are compliant with U.S. A325/A325TC, European EN14399/EN15048, JISB1186, and AS1252 standards. In order to respond to broader market applications in the future, it has recently collaborated with upstream and downstream partners and has successfully developed a bolt for steel structure made from weather resistant steel type 3. It has been also dedicated to the continual optimization of customer structure, advancement of product level, shortening lead times, and increasing market shares. Manager Hao added, “Although the global pandemic remains severe and the risk of more volatile fluctuations of raw material prices and surging freight costs continue to devour profit gain, Jinzhaobo still reports a gradual increase in its entire order volume. In 2022 we’ll continue to keep good quality control and on-time delivery to get over current challenges together with our customers and suppliers. We’ll also further reinforce our internal management with scientific methods and introduce lean manufacturing in order to create an organization that responds fast and produces efficiently and make our contribution to the construction of safer and higherperformance steel structures desired by people around the world.”
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Beijing Jinzhaobo contact: Mr. Gavin Hao (Manager)
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Email: info@jzbolts.com
Special Feature Trex® Universal Fastener Installation Tool More than a decade ago, Trex expanded its Hideaway® Hidden Fastening System with the introduction of the Universal Fastener, which can be used with most major competitive deck boards. This product was designed in conjunction with contractor feedback to deliver a fast and easy installation while eliminating the excess waste of carrying several product lines’ hidden fasteners. To further help building professionals optimize both cost and time efficiency, Trex has introduced the new Trex® Universal Fastener Installation Tool, an innovative accessory designed to increase application ease and accuracy, while reducing installation time by up to 50%. Created with both professionals and DIYers in mind, this tool cuts installation time in half by allowing the installer to fully actuate the fastener in one easy step. Utilizing a nose cone to make sure the bit hits the fastener head, as well as a unique drive angle, the installer can now fully tighten each clip while easily sliding the next board into place. Lightweight and durable, the tool also features a rotatable handle that allows for both pushing and pulling from a variety of angles, along with a handy bit holder on the underside. The new Trex tool delivers a simple installation process that allows for a clean, superior, fastener-free deck surface. The Universal Fastener also makes it faster and easier to replace damaged boards – even those in the middle of a deck – resulting in less time spent on callbacks.
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Filler-free Rust Preventative Cap A simple concept of shielding bolts and nuts brings the birth of a preventative cap named "Mamoru-kun" made by Kyowa Rubber in Japan. The installation is completed simply by screwing in the cap along the extra length of the bolt. High watertightness (IPX7 grade) prevents the bolt from rust and extends the life of infrastructure. Made of polycarbonate, the cap has the same level of transparency as glass does, so visual inspection is possible without removing the cap, while providing strong weather resistance. It has passed the NAS3350 vibration test.
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Innovation Alley
MacLean-Fogg Component Solutions (MFCS), a leading supplier of original equipment automotive components, announces the launch of the Threadstrong ® brand. “We are well known as the leading OEM supplier in North America for high performance, decorative wheel fasteners. It’s always been frustrating to us to see the aftermarket flooded with inferior, low quality and potentially dangerous replacement wheel fasteners of unknown origin. So, we decided to do something about it.” Said Brad Southwood, MFCS Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “No team is more knowledgeable about how to engineer and manufacture safe and durable wheel fasteners than the MacLean-Fogg team. We’ve been the leading supplier to many of the world’s largest automakers for over 40 years. We want the aftermarket consumers to know that when they buy a Threadstrong® wheel fastener, they can trust it was made in the U.S.A to all of the needed safety specifications.” Said Rob Whitney, President of the MFCS Fastener Division. “A lot goes into wheel fasteners that the general consumer probably doesn’t think about. Beyond just obvious considerations like material strength, corrosion resistance, and durability, there is a tremendous amount of engineering and quality control that goes into controlling the friction of the fastener’s load bearing surface against the wheel. Too much friction and the wheel fastener will torque down while still being loose against the wheel, creating a potentially unsafe condition. Too little friction and the act of torqueing the nut down can overstretch the stud creating a wheel stud failure. Can you trust that the replacement nuts you see online or in retail stores have the proper friction and coatings needed to assure a safe clamp? Our benchmark testing shows significant inconsistencies. What we do know is that Threadstrong® wheel fasteners will be safe to install and will work in the stated application.” Said Mark Raves, Director of Wheel Fastener Engineering for MFCS.
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Threadstrong® Line of Made-In-USA Aftermarket Wheel Fasteners
Special Feature KYOUJIN High Strength Thermoplastic Bolt Nippon Chemical Screw with over 50 years of history rolls out KYOUJIN Bolt which is made of thermoplastic resin fibers. (KYOUJIN means "rigid" in Japanese.) The features of this product are: 1. Strength: The highest strength of all the company's products. Tensile strength at 17,492N. 2. Lightweight 3. Insulated: High electricity resistance 4. Corrosion-resistant: No rust and no corrosion 5. Heat resistant: Low heat conductivity 6. Non-magnetic
Drivable Screw Nails Kankei has developed Double Lock Nail® harnessing the strength of a self-rotating screw and allowing the use of a nail gun to drive it in place. It can also be removed like a screw, not with a pry bar but by using a power tool. It exerts the fastening force of a screw and can be inserted with a nail gun, working both like a screw and nail. Unlike conventional screw nails, the entire Double Lock Nail® is embedded in the material when driven in, exerting full strength without creating open space between materials. This is achieved by fastening with the entire nail to create a strong grip without cracking thin wood. It can also be used to fasten C shaped steel and aluminum.
"Blanca" Heat Treatment Japanese Kamiyama Tekkosho made its first attempt into the heat treatment field in 2020 and developed "Zero Chromate", a chrome-free electroplating technology, and this time went on to develop RoHS and REACH compliant "Blanca" heat treatment used on SUS410 stainless steel screws. "Blanca" means "white" in Spanish. The name implies the visually appealing and damage-free heat treatment. It sustained 4,000 hours in a salt spray test. It prevents red rust and corrosion, can self-heal and fasten stainless steel plates.
Natural Oil Based Coating for Stainless Steel Screws The "KC18" coating announced by Kokubu Corporation is nothing like anyone would expect as it mainly consists of rice bran oil that enables acid resistance for the coating. Since ancient times, the Japanese has been using natural oils to prevent rust on swords and other iron objects.
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Salt spray tests reveal that KC18 can resist red rust for 2,016 hours. Cyclic tests show KC18 can prevent red rust for 16 cycles (16 hours of salt spray and 8 hours of drying). KC18 can not only be used as a lubricant in operation, but also improves thread fastening performance, while contributing to environmental protection.
"Instant Lock" The Advanex "Instant Lock" is a hardware to prevent nuts from loosening and falling. Mount it from below onto a hanger bolt and it is good to go without the need for maintenance. It can be mounted and dismounted single-handedly and effortlessly. It doesn't require any tools nor torque management. Currently it is used in installation to ceilings but will expand its application to other fields.
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Special Feature "TAFF®-A" Screw Series To improve automated screw fastening, Techno Associe rolls out "TAFF®-A" Screw Series, including mini-screws, machine screws, high strength screws and self-tapping screws. Customers can choose one of them according to the type of fastened objects and applications to solve the problems with automation and greatly improve productivity. The series can be used with electric screwdrivers, multi-knot robotic arms and production lines, and has achieved cost reduction in screw fastening. The series doesn't create gaps with the bits and therefore is suitable with automated screw fastening devices.
RT UNI-C Decking Screw The REISSER RT UNI-C is manufactured from corrosion- and acid-resistant stainless steel A4 directly at the company headquarters in Criesbach, Germany. It is a high-quality "Made in Germany" product ideally suited for permanent use in outdoor areas that are exposed to weather conditions, including in areas with special climatic conditions, such as those near the coast. Thanks to its diameter of 6.0 mm and length of up to 100 mm, the RT UNI-C is perfect for processing large board thicknesses. It is suitable for all types of wood — even woods containing a large amount of tannic acid and modified woods. The RT UNI-C was developed in order to make it possible to screw all common softwoods, hardwoods and tropical woods onto wooden substructures with additional large board thicknesses outdoors too, such as in the construction of bridges or platforms, but also in terrace construction as well as in gardening and landscaping. The RT UNI-C decking screw is equipped with a countersunk head with milling ribs and SIT® drive. The milling ribs ensure effective milled recessing of the head in wood and allow for absolutely flush countersinking. They not only guarantee an attractive final result, but also reduce the risk of injury.
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The existing thread under head allows the component to be pressed firmly into place and prevents the wood connectors from creaking or wobbling. The thread under head provides secure support and securely fixes the terrace boards onto the substructure. With the reinforced core in the special thread, the decking screw is more stable and robust and offers a high breakage resistance. After production, the RT UNI-C made of stainless steel A4 is pickled in the in-house electroplating facility, passivated and coated with anti-friction coating, which considerably reduces the screw-in resistance.
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Editorial
Editorial
2022 China Fastener Industry Watch:
Anti-dumping Tax, New Energy Vehicles, Fastener Bull Market
What crosses your mind if you were to go through the major events that have influenced or impacted China’s fastener industry last year? Inflation, power rationing, raw material price surge, supply chain blockage, labor shortage, global fastener demand... are all big topics affecting the world and linking back to the manufacturing economy of China. The one that is most heart-sinking to the Chinese people working in the fastener field is the latest development in EU’s anti-dumping measure on fasteners imported from China. Apart from that, the boom and pitfalls in new energy vehicles as well as the fastener market performance in China continue to attract attention from local business owners.
The following table lists the chronological timeline of EU’s anti-dumping measures on China during 2020 and 2022 Date
Event
Note
Responding to EIFI’s appeal, the EU initiated an anti-dumping investigation December 21, 2020 on iron or steel fasteners originating in China. CMCA Fastener Division President Conference.
Proposal made in the conference is that business owners should unite to take action against EU’s anti-dumping measures.
March 24, 2021
Meeting held in Jiaxing City of China to work out actions following up EU’s antidumping measures.
Government, association and business representatives state to cooperate in responding to the anti-dumping appeal.
June 17, 2021
EU starts import registration on iron or steel fasteners originating in China.
Products requiring import registration are certain wood screws, self-tapping screws, certain other screws and bolts with heads, and washers.
June 29, 2021
China starts a final review investigation on anti-dumping measures applied to carbon steel fasteners imported from EU and UK.
The fastener division of China General Machine Components Industry Association (CMCA) calls for Ministry of Commerce to start a final review investigation and to continue with the anti-dumping measures applied to carbon steel fasteners imported from EU and UK.
July 20, 2021
EU says in an announcement to not start temporary measures on anti-dumping procedures for certain iron or steel fasteners imported from China.
March 19, 2021
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EU says in an announcement that the EU expects to officially launch the tax measure after the final November 16, 2021 highest rate for certain iron or steel determination scheduled for February 17, 2022. fasteners imported from China is 89.8%. EU lowers the anti-dumping tax margin December 14, 2021 to 22.1%~86.5% for iron or steel fasteners imported from China.
December 16, 2021
February 17, 2022
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EFDA publishes “EU Duties Will Disrupt Fastener Supply Chain”. EU determines to impose the antidumping tax of 22.1%-86.5% on the involved fasteners.
EFDA President says, “In proposing duties of up to 86.5 percent on Chinese fasteners, the EU is creating a permanent supply problem for the European industry, thereby putting ‘Made in EU’ at risk. The excessively high duties will hit European companies at a time when they are already suffering from massive supply problems.”
Editorial Topic 1: EU Anti-dumping Measures on China The Chinese fastener industry is cornered by multiple challenges. Added to the global supply chain blockage and soaring manufacturing costs is Argentina with an announcement to continue the anti-dumping tax on carbon steel fasteners imported from China, but nothing compares to China playing against EU on fastener anti-dumping. The European Commission claimed the average monthly import volume of the involved fasteners during January and March 2021 increased 32% over the investigation time frame and increased 43% over the first 3 months of 2020. CCCME (China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products) countered that the import volume in the investigation time frame did not grow, and that the import growth in the first 3 months of 2020 was not evident, questioning the figures presented by The European Commission. The European Commission stated that despite a rise of 6% to 7% in the import price of the involved fasteners during January and March 2021, a comparison with raw material price and freight shows largely compressed prices of the involved fasteners. CCCME for one questioned the lack of evidence in the appeal document, for another explained that EU mainly manufactures special fasteners and imports standard fasteners from China and that there is little clash between those products.
trade alert system to send precautions in time for potentially involved companies to properly slow down export to sensitive markets, so that they can prepare for legal offense and defense and acquire the time to make response and grasp control. Furthermore, CCCME held a national coordinating meeting inviting lawyers to form a battle group against the challenge ahead by instructing 92 companies to respond to the appeal. At the end of 2021, EFDA stated in a public press release in a tone more intense than before that imposing high tax rates on China’s fasteners will bring a crisis to EU manufacturing. The tax cuts both ways to China’s fastener industry and European companies relying on China’s standard fasteners. Echoing the press release, some Chinese fastener companies stated that other countries are currently not able to satisfy EU’s fastener demand. Therefore, there continues to be European clients who still purchase from China despite the tax rate.
Topic 2: Fastener Export Market Continues to Heat up
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February 17, 2022, EU announced the determination to impose 22.1%-86.5% antidumping tax on the involved fasteners. The involved fastener companies having responded to the appeal are subject to a tax range of 22.1%-39.6%; others without responding are imposed with an 86.5% tax. Fastener businesses across all regions of China, including Jiaxing City, have risen against EU’s anti-dumping measures. Jiaxing city is an economic engine with an annual production value of RMB 60 billion industrywide and over 1,100 fastenerrelated companies. The city swiftly established a foreign
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Editorial According to General Administration of Customs of China, last year China exported 4,917,080 tons of fasteners, up 21.1% over 2020; the export value reached USD 9.307 billion, up 33.7% from 2020 (USD 6.959 billion). Both the export volume and price had a double-digit growth. For export volume, it was 410 thousand tons last January, 420 thousand tons last June, and 480 thousand tons last December. For export value, it was USD 690 million last January, USD 790 million last June, and USD 1 billion last December. Both the export volume and value grew steadily. For average export price, it was USD 2,100 per ton last January, USD 2,400 per ton last June, and USD 2,600 per ton last December.
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At the start of 2021, many Chinese fastener companies were overwhelmed by orders, ramping up production, and anxious to hire technicians. Hubei Deng Feng High Strength Bolt Co., Ltd has a backlog worth RMB 150 million which takes up the first half-year production, and its fasteners are supplied to various infrastructure and aerospace markets. Ningbo Jinding Fastening Piece Co., Ltd has to increase 30% production efficiency to handle delayed orders due to the pandemic. In addition, Guangdong XKX Hardware Products Co., Ltd was going full throttle on 300 orders even before the Lunar Chinese New Year. China Aviation Industry Standard Parts Manufacturing Co., Ltd was hurrying up on its first order this year. The Chinese fastener industry in the first half of 2021 is best described as a buoyant market, labor deficient and full of hustle.
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Topic 3:
New Energy EVs
The talk of the town for Chinese industrial sector in 2021 was unquestionably the continual 3-digit growth rate of new energy vehicles. According to China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, new energy vehicles' production and sales both grew 1.6 times last year and their market share grew 8 percentage points to 13.4%. In a Chinese EV sales ranking, all German carmakers fell out of top 10, losing their edge in the Chinese market. In fact, China’s EV sales already reached 1.3 million vehicles in 2020, exceeding Germany, the U.S. and topping the world. The Chinese government rolled out the Planning for the Development of New Energy Vehicles (2021-2035) to focus on supporting the EV industry. Shanghai International Automobile Industry Exhibition alone has over 40% of new cars being EVs. Up to last year, China had over a million charging stations, twice the number recorded in 2019. IEA forecasts a 57% global market share of Chinese EVs by 2030. Last year saw a bunch of fastener companies investing in the EV industry. In April 2021, a subsidiary of Gem-Year Industrial Co., Ltd. invested RMB 31.8 million in upgrading the manufacturing technology of high-end fasteners for use with new energy car batteries. Last June, Essence Fastening Systems (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. went public in Shenzhen City. The company specializes in developing,
Editorial
However, a huge pitfall lurks behind the exponential growth of the Chinese new energy vehicle market. The Chinese government dished out subsidies over the last decade and spawned a phenomenon that there are too many EV makers. Up to August 2021, the number of companies in the new energy vehicle supply chain sharply increased 81 thousand to over 320 thousand. As the subsidies withdrew, we began to see some of the new energy car makers knocked out of the market, and it forms a bi-polar development where there are companies on one side about to go public overseas, and those on the other side teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. In addition, the overcapacity of Chinese new energy vehicles already appeared in 2020 when the sales were 1.36 million vehicles overrun by the capacity at 26.69 million vehicles which was 19 times as many. Nevertheless, new energy vehicles are now the bullseye for global competition. Until supervision and restrictions come into play, new entrants to the new energy vehicle market are only going to add up rather than get off.
Sit Tight for Latest Trend Coming in 2022 The sharp rise in global market demand peaked last year. The world expects market supply and demand will slow down this year but should remain at a higher level. Steel price could peak and trend back down this year. With the gradual increase in global vaccination rate, there is a good chance that border control will continue to untighten and we could see the aerial industry rise from the ashes. On another note, the world's emphasis on ESG and environmental protection reaches new heights in the pandemic years. A shift to a high-end and low-carbon-emitting manufacturing industry was the focus of study by many countries in the last two years. Obviously, following the global construction fastener boom and deceleration this year, an upturn in the demand for high-end fasteners related to aircrafts, new energy and environmental protection (waste reduction) is expectable. Fastener companies must prepare ahead to take on the inpour of new demand.
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manufacturing and selling high-strength automotive precision fasteners, special joints among others. It is actively tapping into new energy vehicles, developing lightweight fasteners and special joints for new energy vehicles. Furthermore, in December, BYD invested RMB 15 billion in a project on BYD New Energy Vehicle Component Industrial Park located in Xi'an National High-Tech Industrial Development Zone with an estimated annual production value of RMB 70 billion.
shuangjin@double-gold.cn
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Cover Story
One-stop Screw Development & Production of Doubling Your Sales
by Gang Hao Chang, Vice Editor-in-Chief of Fastener World
Based in Haiyan (China), Linkfast Technical Co., Ltd. is specialized in manufacturing advanced Multipurpose Wood Screws, Timber Fixing Screws, Decking Screws and various high quality screws made from 10B21, C1022, and so on. For over years Linkfast has been supplying m a jo r i n d u s t r i a l a p p l i c a t i o n s worldwide and its stable supply and excellent quality have also won the trust and recognition of clients. With the effort of over a hundred professional technicians and quality control staff, its 30,000 sqm plant has been able to reach the monthly capacity of 1,200 tons thus far. Moreover, with the arrangement of a professional team for Do-It-Yourself Hardware Stores’ prepacked fasteners demands, Linkfast offers a one-stop service from production to pre-packing for DIY applications.
High-Quality Screws are Hot in European, American, Japanese and Russian Market Advanced Multi-purpose Wood Screws become NEW PET With high quality, excellent performance, and service which fully satisfies clients’ demands, Linkfast has won for itself a consolidated presence in advanced European and American markets for many years. Its products have been also widely applied to industry, construction, home improvements and furniture industries. Europe, America, and Russia are the top 3 export destinations of Linkfast, representing around 30% of its total export respectively. In addition, up to 10% of its products are exported to Japan. Having been collaborating with clients in these markets for so long, Linkfast continues to meet clients’ demands for product design with its solid product R&D capabilities and to create more possibilities for clients to develop their own markets and increase brand awareness.
“All these patents and certificates not only open a gateway to the int’l market for us, but also fully demonstrate the profession of our team and allow us to win customers’ trust and sell products worldwide with a success. Reputation, quality and service are priorities that we’ll always taken into account firstly. Our team spend a lot of time and effort on testing and working with customers to develop the best product improvement and solution. We hope to establish a relationship with customers that is not just “ buyers and suppliers,” but even more so, a relationship that can grow with each other and be a pioneer in the market. In addition to one-stop service, we even look forward to becoming customers’ smart overseas warehouse,” added General Manager Yu.
“We’ve never stopped our steps toward the development of new products for the everchanging market demands. This year we’ve successfully developed a new Multi-purpose Wood Screw featuring design and performance in practical applications that are more advantageous than those of standard screws. It has also passed up to 1,200 hours of salt spray test and has been proved to be more excellent in corrosion resistance. The dual end-cutting design also makes it easier for users to operate and can be used to replace Timber Fixing Screws and General Square Wood Screws,” said Linkfast General Manager George Yu.
Alt hough some u n favorable conditions (increasing global raw material prices, surging sea freight cost, RMB appreciation, and so on.) remain, Linkfast is still working hard to satisfy every customer’s order for high-quality or bigquantity products. Yu added, “In the future we’ll delve further into European, South American and British markets and hope that the pandemic can be quickly controlled in 2022. We’ll continue to offer customers one-stop service, build up our own positive image as a superior Chinese company in the fastener industry, and make a significant contribution to the global fastener industrial chain.”
One-stop Service & Overseas Smart Warehouse for Customers
WE ARE SMALL BUT WE ARE EVERYWHERE.
Linkfast realizes that quality and precision are both prerequisites to win the continuous trust of customers. In last few years it continually invested in establishing
ARM BY ARM WILL BE WARM.
The professional service team of Linkfast even spent 8 months in total discussing product drawings, sampling, and making times of improvements and tests only for one British client and successfully developed a unique item which can replace the old Wood Screws, Timber Fixing Screws, and Decking Screws, which later helped the customer to achieve a doubled sales record in a short time.
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a laboratory equipped with professional devices a nd i nt roduced adva nced production a nd inspection machines (including cutting machines, bendi ng machi nes, embeddi ng machi nes, tensile strength machines, thickness testing machines, tapping speed testing machines, salt spray machines, and projectors) to carry out the strictest quality control over customers’ products. In terms of relevant manufacturing procedures and management, Linkfast also complies with int’l standards and has acquired CE and ISO certification. The practicality and appearance of its products have also gained various patents and the application for ETA, which is a very important certificate in the construction industry, is already underway.
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Linkfast contact: General Manager George Yu
Email: george@chinfast.com
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Association
Fastener Association Events Update compiled by Fastener World
2011 Four Regions Fastener Association Virtual Conference A virtual conference was held for the Four Regions Fastener Association Meetup on November 17, 2021. The attendees included President Kin-Ming Cheung from Hong Kong Screw & Fastener Council, President Kang-Sheng Xue from the Fastener Subdivision of China General Machine Components Industry Association, President Tu-Chin Tsai from Taiwan Industrial Fasteners Institute, and President Hansung Jung from Korean Federation of Fasteners Industry Cooperatives.
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The presidents exchanged the update of the industry amid the pandemic and reached the following consensus. The pandemic has thwarted the opportunity to meet up in person. The presidents should be able to hold a face-to-face conference at an appropriate time after the pandemic passes away, or hold an online meeting if necessary.
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Company Focus
Durable,
Easily Configurable, Fast-tapping! by Dean Tseng, Fastener World
Yuyao Alfirste Self-drilling Screw Dies
Sold to Asia and 20 other countries, Yuyao Alfirste Hardware’s products are of good value for the price and therefore are highly acclaimed in the global fastener market. The company offers 3 types of self-drilling dies for both carbon steel and stainless steel: normal self-drilling point, small lightning point, and big lightning point dies. Also available are customized special point dies. Available from Model 1 to Model 5, the die diameters range from 2.4 to 7.4mm and the lengths from 4.0 to 18mm. They are suited for various self-drilling screws including self-drilling screws with reduced points, wing tek point screws, twist point screws, and self-drilling screws for carbon steel and 304/410 stainless steel.
Dies for Both Speed and Durability
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Take the L3 self-drilling screw dies for manufacturing M5.5 selfdrilling screws for example, the output drilling diameter is 4.2mm. The latest big lightning point dies by Yuyao Alfirste can complete consistent tapping on 2+3mm steel plates within 3 seconds and show no apparent damage after tapping 1 million times. In simple terms, the Yuyao Alfirste dies has the desired speed and durability and are easily configurable. The company has a professional dies R&D staff who have been long studying new drilling points, improving existing designs and setting up a complete parameter criteria. It has a shorter R&D phase and can tailormake depending on clients’ requests. Currently it is developing 6-piece dies and has made initial progress. With a great team and a fully equipped dies manufacturing space, the company will continue to develop more screw dies.
Supplying Both Dies and Fasteners Besides self-drilling screw dies, the company provides fast-tapping, quality-consistent and various sizes of self-drilling screws, timber screws, chipboard screws and other carbon steel and stainless steel products with excellent performance in fastening wood-structure houses as well as in corrosion resistance. The company features M3.0-M10/9.5mm-400mm long screws with quality guarantee.
Application for CNAS Lab Certificate in Progress - Looking to Boost Quality In a macro-environment of challenges in supply chain and shipment, the company will continue to improve product development and competitiveness. It plans to expand by adding more manufacturing space as well as heat treatment and galvanizing production lines to reduce the cost and satisfy clients. The company provides training every year to elevate personnel skills and technique. It has independent R&D capabilities to mass-produce quality-consistent dies that precede the industry level. Furthermore, the company has acquired CE and ETA certificates and is applying for a CNAS lab certificate, looking to achieve an industry-leading quality control level. Looking forward to the new year, Yuyao Alfirste Hardware is excited to expand markets with more clients. “ ‘Original spirit, manufacture with heart.’ is the unchanging slogan that shows where we started. We will stick to it and stride on!”
Contact: Sales manager, Michael Wu
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Email: 028@chinanchor.com
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Industry Focus
UK Brexit 1 No review of the UK market is possible without considering the looming shadow of BREXIT. The uncertainty as to whether there will be a deal or not, has adversely impacted the manufacturing and commercial construction markets. However, the domestic housing market, both in terms of new buildings and repair and home improvement, has continued to grow. The UK manufacturing sector has had to cope with the slowing economic growth in the UK and globally; stocking buildings in anticipation of a BREXIT in March followed by destocking as the deadline moved; uncertainty delaying investment; and a marked slowdown in the automotive sector. These challenges passing on to the fastener industry having the financial stability to cope with these peaks and troughs have been important to UK fasteners’ continuing success.
UK Economy2
UK economy is recovering and expected to reach pre-crisis levels at the beginning of 2022. Its output is projected to rise by 6.9% in 2021, with the growth moderating to 4.7% in 2022 and 2.1% in 2023. Consumption is the main driver for growth during the projection period. Business investment will improve but continues to be held back by uncertainty. Increased border costs following the exit from the EU Single Market are weighing on imports and exports. Unemployment will continue to decline. Inflation will keep increasing due to higher energy and commodity prices and continuing supply shortages. It is expected to peak at 4.9% in the first half of 2022 and then fall back towards the 2% target by the end of 2023.
UK Housing Statistics 3 The number of homes being built since the lifting of the first period of national coronavirus restrictions continues to rise, as the latest house building figures published (March 2021) show.
New data show new housing starts were estimated to be 42,110 in the latest quarter (October – December 2020), a 16% increase on the previous quarter (July – September 2020). The number of new homes completed was 46,950 in the latest quarter, a 4% increase compared to the last quarter, and the highest completions figure since its peak in the March 2007 quarter. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
by Behrooz Lotfian
The latest figures also show an increase in housebuilding starts in London with 13,460 in 2020, an increase of 11% from 2019. In addition, the figures highlight that in 2019 to 2020 houses made up 79% of all new buildings – the highest proportion since 2000 to 2001. The figures further reflect the housing and construction industry’s resilience and measures they have taken to keep building sites open, in line with public health advice. Housing Secretary RT Hon Robert Jenrick MP said: “The figures show a steady increase in the number of new housings starts and the number of new homes built, highlighting a sustained period of growth in the housing sector as it continues its recovery. The government has continued to demonstrate its support for the industry throughout the pandemic by enabling construction sites to remain open and operate safely in line with important public health guidance. We’ve intervened to help the sector bounce back despite all the challenges we’ve faced.”
UK House Prices4 House prices, as measured by the UK House Price Index, increased by 10.1% between October 2020 and October 2021. On a seasonally adjusted basis, average house prices decreased by 1.0% between September and October 2021. House prices grew at different rates across the UK over the year to October 2021. House prices grew by 15.5% in Wales, 11.7% in the East Midlands and 11.3% in Scotland. Growth was slowest in London at 6.2%, the West Midlands at 8.4% and the Northeast at 9.7%.
https://www.fastenerandfixing.com/insight/united-kingdom-european-fastener-market-insight/ https://www.oecd.org/economy/united-kingdom-economic-snapshot/ https://www.gov.uk/government/news/home-building-figures-show-increase-in-new-housing-starts https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN02820/SN02820.pdf https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1036289/21cs12_-_Construction_Building_Materials_-_Commentary_November_2021.pdf https://www.pbctoday.co.uk/news/planning-construction-news/uk-housing-construction/95520/
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Ho usi Sta ng tis Sta tic rts so fU K
Industry Focus Construction Fasteners5 The size of the fastener industry is USD 80 billion and the UK market share is 2.5% of the whole world’s market; therefore, the size of UK fasteners is USD 2 billion. Construction fasteners take up 14.5% of this number in UK; and therefore, their market size is around USD 288 million.
S Monthly construction fastener output grew 1.3% in volume terms in September 2021; new work and repair and maintenance both grew on the month, increasing by 1.3% and 1.2% respectively. S The level of construction fasteners output in September 2021 was 1.0% below the level of February 2020, before the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic; new work was 3.5% below the February 2020 level, while repair and maintenance work were 3.9% above the February 2020 level. S In contrast to the monthly growth, quarterly construction fasteners output fell 1.5% in Quarter 3 (July to Sep) 2021, compared with Quarter 2 (Apr to Jun) 2021; both new work and repair and maintenance saw a decline by (0.3%) and (3.6%) respectively. S Total new orders for construction fasteners fell 9.2% in Quarter 3 of 2021, compared with Quarter 2 of 2021. S The annual growth rate of construction fasteners output price was 5.1% in September 2021; this was the strongest annual growth rate of construction fasteners output price since records began in 2014. S At the type of work level of construction fasteners, the annual rate of price growth in the 12 months to September 2021 was at its strongest in new housing (7.5%) and private industrial new work (6.3%).
Last Words6: It’s been a turbulent period for the construction industry over the past year. With the ongoing pandemic and the continuing uncertainty surrounding post-Brexit trade deals, it has been somewhat difficult for companies to plan their projects.
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The future of UK housing and construction is going to be one with a lot of changes. With the government pledging to build 300,000 homes a year, the onus is on housebuilders to carry out a number of projects at a rate that they may not have seen before. This means they will have to look towards new ways of doing things.
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Industry Focus
Housing Starts
Statistics of Germany by Sharareh Shahidi Hamedani
German Economy and Demography Following a prolonged period of stagnation in these 2 years because of the Covid pandemic, German economy is projected to grow by 2.9% in 2021, 4.1% in 2022 and 2.4% in 2023. The recovery is being hampered by shortages of key manufacturing inputs, although a large stock of unfilled orders signals a strong potential rebound as supply constraints ease. Private consumption will accelerate in 2022 as confidence improves. Solid investment will be underpinned by low interest rates and increasing capacity pressures. Inflation is likely to ease in 2022 but remains elevated. The rise in COVID-19 cases and persistent supply shortages in critical industries could slow the recovery.
For that indicator, this article provides the data of Germany from 1970 to 2020. The average investment proportion of GDP for Germany during that period was 23.46 percent with a minimum of 18.56 percent in 2009 and a maximum of 32.7 percent in 1970. The latest value from 2020 is 20.35 percent. For comparison, the world average in 2020 based on 129 countries is 23.04 percent1. https://www.theglobaleconomy.com/germany/capital_investment/
Graph 1. Germany: Capital investment (Unit in percentage of GDP)
According to current projections, Germany’s population is expected to peak at the end of 2021 at 83.9 million people. By the end of the century, Germany’s population is expected to fall to 74.73 million people. Germany’s death rate has been higher than its birth rates since the 1970s. Currently, the birth rate is 9.397 births per 1,000 people, which has been declining every year. The death rate is 11.392 deaths per 1,000 people. Projections show that 37.6% of the population will be over 60 years old by 2050. The growth that Germany has seen in the past has slowed almost to a halt in recent years, with a growth rate of only 0.20%. By 2025, the population is expected to start decreasing slightly. The population is projected to be 82,540,450 by 2020 but will decrease to less than 80,000,000 by 2050.
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Housing Start Statistics The development of the housing market is governed essentially by changes in general population figures and household sizes. Why is it so?
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Industry Focus The reason could be the fact that the household size is getting smaller; therefore people tend to live in shared houses. On the other hand, if the number of house constructions increases, then deflation will occur which is a negative phenomenon for any industries' growth.
In Germany, the trend is an increasing number of small households while the share of large households with five shows a decline (see the below table). The average number of persons per household has decreased from 2.14 in 2000 to 2.01 in 2020; at the same time the number of households is expected to increase from 38.1 million to 40.5 million. The demand for housing in Germany has increased by about 6.4% from 2010 to 2020. Deflation will happen in the housing industry in Germany.
to obtain a prominent position. The players are involved in research and development activities. These activities lead to new discoveries and upgrades in terms of quality across building and construction fasteners. Furthermore, strategic collaborations also form an important part of the building and construction fasteners market grow th trajector y. The collaborations help strengthen the influence of the players, eventually increasing the grow th rate of the building and construction fasteners market.
The Number of Households in Germany from 2000 to 2020, by Size2
Share
1 Person
2000 Population (Unit: 1,000 people) 13,750
Share
36%
2020 Population (Unit: 1,000 people) 16,476
2 Persons
12,720
33%
13,778
34%
3 Persons
5,598
15%
4,915
12%
4 Persons
4,391
12%
3,970
10%
5 Persons Total Population of all Households
1,665
4%
1,407
3%
Number of Persons in a Household
38,124
41%
40,546
2
https://www.statista.com/statistics/464187/households-by-size-germany/
In an optimistic scenario, the demand will thereafter remain stable at this level, whereas the demand for housing will start to decrease after year 2030 in a pessimistic scenario. There are no figures as to the market share of housing starts market in Germany. However, according to Trading Economics global and analysts’ expectations, although building permits in Germany decreased to 26,129 in October from 26,378 in September of 2021, the building permits in Germany was expected to be 34,400 by the end of 2021. In the Mid-term, German Building Permit for New Dwellers is projected to trend at around 40,400 monthly in 2022 and 41,400 in 2023. Building permits in Germany averaged 20,439 from 2003 to 2021, reaching an all-time high of 36,606 in December of 2019 and a record low of 9,738 in January of 2009.
China Fastener World no.64/2022
German Greenhouse Gas Growing The issues of energy-efficient and sustainable building construction will remain the main agenda items in Germany due to the required reduction of greenhouse gases. In addition, Germans hold wood as construction material in a high regard. Hence, according to experts, the timber frame share in one- and two-family housing will increase from 14% to 30% and in multi-family housing from 2% to 10%, between 2006 and 2030.
Fastener Statistics Related to Housing Starts The building and construction fastener market has numerous players in the fray
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Manufacturers in the building and construction fasteners market indulge in production expansion activities. These activities assure seamless distribution of fastener to the end-users. The players, through mergers and acquisitions, also try to expand their prominence across numerous regions. All these aspects ultimately lead to the growth of the building and construction fasteners market. The building and construction fastener market is expected to observe steady g rowt h du r i ng t he forecast period of 2021-2030. An increase in the construction activities in Germany will serve as a prominent growth-generating factor for this market. Earlier, metal fasteners were in demand due to their properties such as high resistance and robustness but due to the advent of plastic fasteners, the demand decreased. The properties of plastic fasteners such as being lightweight and corrosionresistant proved to be beneficial. Hence, based on all these factors, the building and construction fastener market is estimated to observe a growth trajectory between 2021 and 2030. Global Building & Const r uction Plastic Fasteners Market reached the value of USD 363.5 million by 2020, and with a growing CAGR of 5.0% during the forecast period of 2020-2026, it should be around USD 470.2 million in 2025. Germany’s share in this market is 30%, and therefore, Germany’s market size of plastic fasteners is around USD 109 million in 2020 and will be around USD 141.1 million in 2025.
Industry Focus
Housing Starts Statistics in France and Construction Fasteners by Shervin Shahidi Hamedani
The construction output in France contracted drastically in 2020 by 14%. This reflects the impact of lockdown measures imposed by the French Government in April and May and consequently the closure of construction sites by a large number of firms in the sector. On a yearon-year basis, the fall in French construction output was substantial in Q2 2020 by 33.6% compared to the second quarter of 2019. That made construction the worst-hit sector in the second quarter of 2020. Despite the figures recorded in 2020, the construction output is forecasted to rebound by about 13% by the end of 2021 and to grow about 3% in 2022, while residential building and civil engineering are the key drivers of this recovery. The renovation work segment remains robust, while the Next Generation EU fund will provide large investments in sustainable projects. The most fragile segment in this sector is commercial construction which is still vulnerable as a result of low investment in retail and office buildings. Overall, with the economy also not anticipated to return to prepandemic levels in near future and the risk of new lockdowns, the fragile economic outlook will depress the French construction sector. Before the current pandemic situation, over the past couple of years, French construction
Although the current sector performance could be evaluated as "Fair" due to the recovery of demand and ongoing incentive measures, structural sector fundamentals (narrow margins, working capital problems, default frequency) stay in a "Poor" condition. All the risks related to the current pandemic will remain, and regardless of the growth which is forecasted for the coming years, French construction is not expected to reach its pre-pandemic levels until 2023.
Residential Construction in France As stated earlier, residential construction is the key driver of French construction output recovery. In 2020, the French residential construction market registered a total revenue of $118.3 bn, representing a compound annual rate of change (CARC) of -0.7% between 2016 and 2020. The French residential construction market is expected to register a total revenue of $166.03 bn by 2025. To clarify the above figures, the residential construction market is defined as the value of work required annually for residential buildings, and its market value is defined in general as the total output value of construction activities in any given time, this includes costs of construction materials, equipment and services for new construction, refurbishment, repair and maintenance, and demolition. Last year, the new construction segment was the most productive and profitable in the market with a total revenue of $89.9bn, equivalent to 75.9% of the market's overall value. The main reason could be the exemption of residential construction projects from the nationwide lockdown rules in France. However, on-site social distancing measures negatively affected productivity within the market, whilst border restrictions caused European-wide construction material shortages. This caused significant delays to project pipelines, hampering overall market growth within the French residential construction sector.
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China Fastener World no.64/2022
Introduction
has confronted structural difficulties, such as cash issues for businesses, as they failed to provide the required funding for their working capital. Additionally, as a result of the sudden increase in prices in construction material and labor costs, profit margins are projected to be reduced further in the coming years.
Industry Focus Housing Starts Housing Starts in France averaged about 32,476 units from 2000 until 2021, reaching an all-time high of 54,300 units in December of 2017 and a record low of 12,300 units in August of 2014. Housing Starts in France increased to 37,100 units in October from 34,500 units in September of 2021. The following chart exhibits Housing Starts (by units) in France since December 2020.
China Fastener World no.64/2022
Although France may not have the highest Housing Starts in Europe (for instance, the Housing Starts in the United Kingdom was 46,010 units in June 2021), this country is on top of the list compared with most countries in the region. The Housing Starts statistics vary month to month and the changes could be significant within a year, however, we have tried to compare the number of units in a single month of September 2021 between France and some of the major countries in Europe. The following chart shows that Housing Starts in France is significantly higher than those in some European countries.
Construction Fastener France is one of the most important markets for industrial fasteners and it accounts for almost one-fifth of European market value this year. This is mainly because, throughout the last decade, France has positioned itself as the second-largest exporter of aircraft and related aerospace equipment. In addition to the aviation industry, France is home to a large number of automotive manufacturers and has long been a major contributor to European automotive production. The next major contributor to industrial fastener demand is the construction sector. The construction fastener is one of the fastest growing markets in France supported by a
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sig n i f ica nt nu mber of Housi ng Starts in this country. The presence of SMEs, a variety of products, the emphasis on strengthening the value in the supply chain, and the growing population dwelling in cities and rural areas are more likely to increase the market demand and to propel the market growth. In summary, increasing building and construction activities will fuel the need for products, subsequently aiding the overall market's growth. Va riations in product of ferings have allowed applications in diverse industries. For instance, the building and construction fasteners market is significantly driven by significant i nvest ment s ma de by pla st ic manufacturers and a wide presence of several players who produce cable ties, plastic clips, plastic grommets, and rivets. T he development of Housi ng Starts and consequently growing demand for related fasteners have attracted several large-scale investors and numerous market entrants. The ease of availability of materials used in the manufacturing of industrial fasteners will arise in favor of market growt h. Moreover, factors such as cost-effectiveness and product durability, and increased reliability will contribute to the development of the fastener market in France during and after the pandemic. Sources: Construction Industry Trends France – 2021, by Atradius Collections Residential Construction in France - Market Summary, Competitive Analysis and Forecast to 2025, by MarketLine Building & Construction Fasteners Market, by Data Intelio Industrial Fasteners Market, by Grand View Research TRADINGECONOMICS.COM
Industry Focus
Fastener Trade Statistics of USA·Canada·Japan·Taiwan·EU Source: U.S. ITA of Department of Commerce
USA (in million USD), in descending order according to figures of 2021 HS 7318 Iron and steel screws, bolts, nuts, washers, etc. Import Rank 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Partner World Taiwan China Japan Germany Canada S. Korea India Italy Mexico Thailand
2019 5,521 1,899 1,110 624 365 310 188 145 144 130 83
Export 2020 4,791 1,764 830 506 330 260 173 107 138 113 74
2021 6,063 2,275 1,121 626 367 322 214 183 171 130 87
Rank 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Partner World Mexico Canada China U. K. Brazil S. Korea Germany Singapore Australia Japan
2019 4,400 1,527 1,149 183 160 110 88 124 104 73 99
2020 3,624 1,215 948 183 127 90 76 98 76 65 84
2021 4,127 1,475 1,085 251 111 95 91 91 85 73 73
Source: Canada.ca
CANADA (in USD), in descending order according to figures of 2021 HS 7318 Iron and steel screws, bolts, nuts, washers, etc. Partner 2019 2020 2021 World 1,660,594,233 1,380,490,815 1,638,883,419 USA 840,275,627 668,482,553 742,773,628 Taiwan 235,470,351 204,249,837 264,238,750 China 213,759,867 188,367,948 260,376,796 Japan 73,459,458 64,438,379 66,301,183 Germany 41,400,815 32,911,913 40,071,684 Vietnam 24,645,738 31,583,032 37,333,670 Italy 32,440,237 24,728,869 30,477,533 S. Korea 28,143,436 22,416,511 23,757,525 India 15,941,325 12,725,402 19,379,389 U. K. 24,754,656 19,376,250 18,612,893
Export Rank 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Partner 2019 World 503,486,385 USA 406,718,159 Mexico 22,137,037 China 6,041,766 Germany 5,917,126 U. K. 9,878,787 France 5,803,156 Denmark 2,284,957 Turkey 1,588,944 Poland 3,389,324 Australia 2,140,546
2020 426,791,754 344,990,348 17,266,409 9,120,579 4,918,918 6,714,444 4,382,186 2,137,585 2,370,385 4,839,113 2,216,971
2021 522,120,342 428,746,720 21,161,869 10,439,432 9,757,472 6,452,271 4,395,811 2,952,671 2,705,769 2,666,074 2,633,628
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Import Rank 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Industry Focus Source: Ministry of Finance, Japan
JAPAN in descending order according to volumes of 2021 Japan Import P.C. Code 61703 Nails, bolts, nuts, etc. Import Rank
Partner
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
World China Taiwan S. Korea Vietnam Thailand Malaysia USA Germany Australia Indonesia
2019 348,661 221,268 74,664 25,336 11,163 5,457 3,657 1,328 1,349 401 671
Metric Ton 2020 297,918 194,048 66,154 12,839 11,839 4,645 2,533 933 1,032 803 500
2021 318,703 210,569 67,191 15,407 12,685 4,210 1,896 1,181 1,148 807 629
2019 120,112,826 46,588,998 28,759,101 7,860,063 3,443,248 3,459,067 1,671,085 18,214,622 2,781,108 291,032 624,023
1,000 Yens 2020 97,070,923 38,055,825 24,773,147 4,685,725 3,247,338 2,956,298 1,046,231 13,400,879 2,419,395 491,145 431,798
2021 114,934,868 49,275,004 29,143,322 6,024,996 3,903,435 3,388,780 935,805 11,705,753 2,812,733 706,076 633,521
2019 305,163,698 71,463,784 73,501,386 39,876,989 21,023,412 12,523,841 9,327,437 6,173,937 6,528,126 4,405,194 5,183,760
1,000 Yens 2020 257,102,234 74,408,180 61,504,889 29,203,131 10,971,757 10,613,230 7,805,872 4,597,655 4,447,837 3,859,177 4,149,960
2021 324,979,859 85,112,581 76,968,506 40,602,271 18,864,526 12,842,986 11,344,803 7,242,948 4,837,971 4,143,090 4,882,411
Japan Export P.C. Code 61509 Nails, bolts, nuts, etc.
Export Rank
Partner
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
World China USA Thailand Indonesia Mexico India Brazil U. K. Turkey Malaysia
TAIWAN
2019 338,616 78,914 80,804 45,554 25,738 14,336 9,943 8,588 9,100 5,917 5,672
Metric Ton 2020 279,577 84,221 66,278 32,210 13,283 12,056 8,170 5,930 6,177 5,153 4,512
2021 346,517 93,442 81,733 45,353 22,833 14,229 12,215 9,243 6,065 5,093 5,032
Source: Bureau of Foreign Trade (Taiwan)
in descending order according to volumes of 2021
HS 7318 Screws, bolts, nuts, coach screws, screw hooks, rivets, cotters, cotter-pins, washers (including spring washers) and similar articles, of iron or steel
Import China Fastener World no.64/2022
Rank 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
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Partner
2019 World 18,374,272 Japan 6,248,319 China 3,672,525 Vietnam 3,170,962 Philippines 1,167,517 Germany 399,763 S. Korea 332,917 Thailand 321,688 USA 351,534 Turkey 312,557 Sweden 149,694
KG 2020 16,575,015 5,923,253 3,673,787 2,312,366 517,069 413,559 476,283 394,603 341,809 379,358 133,815
2021 20,181,676 6,342,029 4,912,268 2,976,943 1,970,096 589,032 499,562 450,087 387,217 272,405 171,036
Partner World Japan USA China Germany S. Korea Philippines Vietnam Netherlands Switzerland Sweden
2019 159,937,426 66,179,082 26,785,166 10,279,450 11,857,743 4,113,424 3,505,319 4,580,616 3,392,145 2,073,390 2,857,695
USD 2020 154,202,514 61,498,107 24,505,013 15,255,467 10,222,029 5,660,405 1,511,922 3,719,309 4,055,315 2,185,959 2,033,265
2021 206,147,825 78,090,806 35,474,785 21,189,220 14,582,412 9,414,381 5,401,730 5,375,493 5,205,645 2,937,108 2,678,180
Industry Focus Export 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Partner
2019 World 1,479,292,223 USA 621,962,469 Germany 132,505,809 Netherlands 80,348,283 Japan 72,771,839 U. K. 55,620,928 Canada 51,295,923 Italy 32,429,910 Mexico 31,167,935 China 20,276,785 Poland 31,645,985
Source: EU Trade Helpdesk
EU (in EURO), in descending order according to quanties of 2020 HS 7318 Iron and steel screws, bolts, nuts, washers, etc. Import Rank 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Import Value to the EU/MS (EURO) Import Qty to the EU/MS (kg) Indicators 2018 2019 2020 2018 2019 2020 Total non-EU 5,493,456,488 5,422,381,868 4,703,454,101 1,770,318,825 1,696,085,746 1,560,878,862 China 1,088,660,871 1,167,648,479 1,124,834,946 593,939,072 627,259,520 643,167,531 Taiwan 1,251,356,825 1,174,902,180 1,012,236,960 488,307,131 432,616,376 373,179,745 Vietnam 238,751,136 218,214,796 193,789,714 127,801,115 109,260,953 99,433,493 Turkey 290,545,586 284,024,200 250,113,448 90,337,283 89,081,136 78,892,084 India 235,943,767 238,514,535 187,415,500 86,513,845 83,458,740 67,732,375 U. K. 423,477,240 411,171,446 346,297,369 56,439,435 61,742,835 54,459,219 Thailand 109,266,345 88,192,649 69,203,790 64,836,014 51,105,019 42,867,152 Malaysia 89,862,629 82,316,026 64,884,590 44,950,338 39,877,271 32,364,141 S. Korea 171,713,746 168,691,182 145,460,929 41,722,245 38,775,122 30,802,081 Switzerland 443,751,589 405,720,448 362,346,187 31,879,531 28,110,894 25,686,911
Export Rank 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Export Value from the EU/MS (EURO) Indicators 2018 2019 2020 Total non-EU 4,754,558,194 4,806,783,233 4,318,420,585 China 852,490,859 789,437,458 855,893,468 USA 751,919,105 868,351,201 734,819,951 U. K. 606,388,253 578,579,988 464,291,734 Switzerland 318,581,920 303,738,687 276,058,689 Russia 207,258,946 212,652,099 201,906,449 Turkey 218,943,617 206,124,750 190,304,726 Mexico 219,684,638 231,938,423 192,133,841 Brazil 174,535,897 171,592,789 146,512,499 Norway 122,231,581 137,559,116 122,528,698 India 151,626,170 129,333,696 99,645,707
Export Qty from the EU/MS (kg) 2018 2019 2020 651,283,816 625,249,028 569,568,536 103,014,480 88,409,792 96,394,081 81,836,122 87,191,515 79,211,110 96,230,254 89,841,466 71,529,905 42,983,393 38,954,356 36,737,160 37,177,758 36,778,531 35,048,339 35,500,476 32,724,722 29,857,420 30,714,333 31,815,507 27,688,203 31,082,268 28,190,483 22,576,028 22,836,135 24,662,528 21,431,091 23,111,148 17,858,655 13,304,946
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China Fastener World no.64/2022
Rank
KG USD Partner 2020 2021 2019 2020 2021 1,363,249,857 1,610,683,597 World 4,316,380,032 3,969,114,428 5,322,552,883 609,131,909 699,411,115 USA 1,751,810,124 1,689,817,152 2,249,900,692 116,623,332 140,334,480 Germany 392,118,297 340,097,242 454,994,012 67,241,601 92,325,806 Netherlands 227,785,981 195,142,285 291,941,389 63,283,611 66,328,760 Japan 241,272,905 209,497,416 246,072,681 41,692,178 60,596,995 U. K. 171,259,001 136,837,417 209,199,205 45,368,429 57,377,615 China 114,145,687 128,962,962 191,243,730 27,368,054 35,787,498 Canada 145,037,763 128,760,834 177,039,530 23,813,674 34,183,071 Sweden 94,555,904 85,303,928 121,737,174 97,384,603 77,878,026 119,553,758 24,079,544 33,366,706 Mexico 27,418,561 33,003,477 Italy 82,026,949 70,888,895 103,873,841
European News
China Fastener World no.64/2022 China Fastener World no.64/2022
compiled by Fastener World
European News
Semiconductor Shortage Impacts Bulten
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Bulten AB has announced third quarter net sales of SEK 764 million, a decrease of 10.5% on the same period last year. Order bookings amounted to SEK 830 million, a decrease of 37.2% on the same period last year. Anders Nyström, president and CEO at Bulten, comments: "The shortage of semiconductors that has been impacting the global automotive industry since Q2 2021 was an even greater obstacle during Q3. A number of our customers’ production units have been closed or running at reduced capacity during certain periods. The negative impact of the semiconductor shortage on Bulten’s sales was estimated at 25% - 30% during the third quarter. Underlying demand in the consumer stage remains strong, but at present vehicle production cannot keep up with demand.” Anders continues: “Reduced volumes and lower capacity utilisation in Q3 meant that we had to take necessary decelerating measures to reduce our stock, which has had a negative impact on earnings in the short term. The shortage of semiconductors, along with price rises for steel, are external macroeconomic and partly geopolitical factors that are expected to continue affecting Bulten’s sales and margins negatively for the rest of 2021. From a longer term perspective, Bulten’s growth and earning capacity is very good. The inflow of new contracts, from both new and existing customers in and outside of automotive, has never been as strong as it has to date in 2021.” These new contracts include the signing of a strategically important agreement in China regarding the supply of fasteners to a leading provider of consumer electronics. The agreement has an estimated annual value of approximately SEK 50 million. Deliveries started in the middle of the quarter. Bulten also strengthened an existing FSP (Full Service Provider) contract for the supply of fasteners, with a further order from a Böllhoff Group Acquires European automotive manufacturer. The order is worth approximately SEK 68 million per annum. Deliveries Worldwide HELICOIL® started in Q4 2021, will reach full pace in 2022, Trademark and will run for three years. Finally, Bulten was also awarded a new FSP contract by a European automotive manufacturer, which As of 1st October 2021, Böllhoff Group, a family is also a new customer for Bulten. The company based in Bielefeld, Germany, has acquired contract relates to supply of fasteners the worldwide HELICOIL® trademark. The trademark for an electric vehicle program was previously held by STANLEY Engineered Fastening, that is under development. The a subsidiary of Stanley Black & Decker based in New Britain, order value is approximately Connecticut. This transaction allows each company to more closely SEK 220 million a year. align resources. As part of this transaction, Böllhoff Group will license Deliveries are estimated to back this trademark to STANLEY Engineered Fastening in the North start in the third quarter American region. In North America, OEM automotive applications for of 2022, reaching full HELICOIL® and wire thread inserts will be served by Böllhoff Group, while pace by 2025. automotive repair and aftermarket applications and other industries will be served by STANLEY Engineered Fastening. The remainder of the globe will be served by Böllhoff Group. Böllhoff Group and STANLEY Engineered Fastening are both leading manufacturers of specialty fasteners serving the automotive, industrial and aerospace markets. The companies have a 70 year history of partnership in the HELICOIL product line and associated trademarks. During this long history together, they have established successful license agreements to develop the markets and products which serve customers around the world.
Hilti Group Recovering Strongly Hilti Group has reported a sales growth of 13% up to CHF 3.87 billion (€3.57 billion) as per the end of August 2021. Both the operating result and net income significantly increased compared to 2020 to CHF 613
European News million (+38%) and CHF 466 million (+48%) respectively. CEO Christoph Loos commented on the intermediate results: “We have managed to continuously recover from the pronounced dip last year, supported by a positive global construction market. Sales were approximately 5% higher compared to pre-crisis level of 2019.” All geographic regions showed a recovery trend, even though Covid-19 related restrictions are again being felt more strongly in some markets. Europe reported strong growth of 15.9% in local currencies, mainly driven by the Mediterranean countries. Both the Americas (+10.6%) and Asia/Pacific (+11.3%) regions also grew double-digit. The same applies to the eastern Europe/Middle East/Africa region (+10.7%), where ongoing challenges in the Gulf region are slowing down growth. Despite higher raw material prices and transport costs, Hilti Group generated an operating result of CHF 613 million, 37.7% higher than in the same period last year. Net income rose by 48.2% to CHF 466 million. Hilti Group is confident regarding the coming months and expects an ongoing recovery, despite remaining uncertainties due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Sales growth over the full year of 2021 was expected to be in the high single digits in terms of local currencies.
Fabory Acquires KEBEK Group Fabory has reached an agreement to acquire KEBEK Group from founder and current Director Dalibor Bek, creating a leading fastener specialist platform in the CEE region and further enhancing its ‘Masters-in-Fasteners’ strategy. The strong strategic fit between and common high performance mentality of both organisations will enable the Fabory-KEBEK combination to provide a stronger and more relevant proposition to its customers including a deep and relevant range of specialist fasteners. ARaymond
Acquires
KEBEK is a family-owned fastener specialist headquartered “We are pleased to announce our acquisition of in Chomutov, in the north-west of the Czech Republic Castello Italia. It will reinforce and complement our with operations in Czechia, Slovakia and Hungary. overall current and future product offering. The future of the Its successful initial distribution activities of air automotive industry will be electric and autonomous vehicles and conditioning and ventilation components quickly we firmly believe that we should actively participate in the mobility expanded to the distribution of fasteners, which is of the future and contribute to the shift in the market by meeting its core activity today. KEBEK offers a wide and customers‘ demands,” said Antoine Raymond, CEO at ARaymond. broad assortment of specialised fasteners in “ARaymond is an innovative leading supplier of QCs and nozzles for all combination with Value Added Services, fluid systems, and we will continue to design and produce QCs, invest in including in-house production capabilities R&D and the global production capacity. We have a history of more than 155 and automated kitting facilities. This years of innovations, and we strive to continuously reinvent ourselves to be ahead creates a strong value proposition of the very rapid technological changes in our market.” to a customer base of over 8,000 customers, including several With more than 7,000 employees in 25 countries around the world, the ARaymond large key accounts amongst Network designs, manufactures and markets assembly and fastening systems. Founded in others the healthcare, 1865, this family business based in Grenoble, France, and inventor of the press stud, has always energy and the conput human values at the heart of its success and is one of the global leaders in fastening and struction market. assembly solutions for many market segments.
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Francisco Terol, CEO Fabory comments: “Fabory is highly impressed by KEBEK, the Castello Italia width and depth of its product assortment, their strong commercial performance and supply chain capabilities. We are therefore extremely excited and proud to welcome the KEBEK Group to Fabory. This marks an important step in our ‘Masters-in-Fasteners’ strategy; ARaymond has acquired reinforcing our leadership position in our core countries. We continue to make strong Castello Italia SpA, a company progress on our overall transformation and are looking forward to continuing this specialised in tube production for the journey together with the KEBEK team.” Dalibor Bek, director at KEBEK Group pneumatic and industrial markets. comments: “We are excited about our future as part of Fabory. Fabory and The purchase of the tubing its management team have shown that they have the required expertise and manufacturing company will broaden winning mentality to establish a leading platform in the strong and quickly A R a ymond’s produc t offe rings fo r t he growing CEE market. We are convinced that joining forces will open up truck market and open up new diversification many new opportunities, in several countries and market segments.” opportunities within some selected industrial sectors.
European News Scell-it UK Invests in New Fixings Tester Technology Scell-it UK has prided itself on being at the forefront of product design when it comes to setting tools and chemical dispensing guns, Now the company has just invested in the latest technology in the world of fixing testers. Staht have developed a new and innovative ‘next generation’ tester. The Staht Digital Pull Tester is set to revolutionise the process of testing construction fixings through its compact design, ease of use and versatility. The features include a full colour digital display; a li-ion rechargeable battery; Bluetooth connectivity; as well as a simple to use free App and reporting system. For Scell-it UK this offers a real advantage of being able to test their fixings quickly and easily and provide a detailed report to confirm the fixings are up to the job and fit for purpose. Gary Moseley, managing director at Scell-it UK, explains: “We were given a demonstration of the new unit and we were so impressed with the ease of use and capability it would give us that we bought one there and then on the day. Our quality assurance has to be second to none and the quality and standard of our fixings is something we take very seriously.” Gary continues; “Staht has produced a testing Rotor Clip Becomes tool that allows us to accurately assess the quality of our products quickly ISO 13485 Certified and within our own quality control department here at our warehouse. We can then use the reports and documentation features to reassure our customers of the quality, and that our products meet the standards that Rotor Clip recently received its ISO are specified.” By using the Staht Pull Tester, Scell-it UK claims it 13485:2016 certification. Described as the medical can speed up the checking process of stock and be assured that the device industry’s most widely used international quality and integrity is still intact. standard for quality management, compliance with ISO 13485 means that the medical device manufacturing industry can now rely on Rotor Clip as the one-stop-shop Similar to the methodology of Scell-it tools, the Staht for the highest-quality retaining rings, wave springs and hose unit has many design features that also consider the clamps for their assemblies. health and safety of the worker. Safety straps to prevent tool drops, and enhanced mechanisms Rotor Clip has been a trusted supplier of the medical industry for for easy load application, all help eliminate many years. Receiving this certification reinforces the quality standards accidents and prevent repetitive strain injuries. and reliability of its retaining rings, wave springs and hose clamps, so Scell-it believes that wholesalers have to be medical device manufacturers can depend on its products to perform safety held to account and should be questioned critical functions every time. Companies across a broad range of industries rely about the quality and standard of their on Rotor Clip products, value-added services, and expertise to build reliable and stock. “Customers should insist on safe equipment. In addition to manufacturing high-quality parts for medical, Rotor seeing credentials and evidence Clip also meets the stringent quality standard of industries such as military, aerospace, that items are fit for purpose. and automotive. By investing in new technology, like the Staht According to Amir Abdalla, quality engineer at Rotor Clip, understanding customer Pull Tester, wholesalers requirements and working towards exceeding customer’s expectations is key to better serving the will be proving they medical device industry. “This is another Quality Management System to be added to our IATF, are taking their AS and ISO9001 Systems that ensure Rotor Clip continue to deliver high-quality products that exceed responsibilities customer expectations. I am very proud of what our team have achieved.” seriously.”
China Fastener World no.64/2022
SFS reports Significant Sales and Profit Increase Carried by a dynamic market environment, SFS Group has generated a strong half year result with sales of CHF 957.8 million (€883.3 million) generated in the first half of last year – corresponding to year-on-year growth of 23.8%. SFS states that the signs of recovery in the market environment, which were visible from the third quarter of 2020, continued unchanged during the first half of 2021. All three business segments participated in the solid demand seen in nearly all end markets and regions, with some business units actually exceeding the expectations substantially. The SFS Group’s long-term ‘Local-for-Local’ strategy and its decision to make predominantly temporary adjustments to production capacity during the Covid-19 pandemic have proven to be prudent. By using the instruments available to temporarily reduce capacity during the financial year 2020, the Group was able to preserve jobs, expertise and production
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European News capabilities. That, in turn, enabled it to respond swiftly to the recovery in demand and benefit from the economic environment. Short time working was discontinued during the reporting period in all areas except Aircraft. The Engineered Components segment benefited from high demand across the board that exceeded expectations in most end markets. This positive development was particularly strong in the Automotive and Electronics divisions. Overall, this resulted in organic growth of 29.1% compared with the first half of 2020. Both divisions in the Fastening Systems segment succeeded in taking advantage of the extraordinarily dynamic market environment and pent-up demand. Strong demand in the construction industry caused delivery bottlenecks and cost increases along the entire supply chain. The Riveting division operated in a similarly challenging environment. It benefited not only from pent-up demand in the automotive industry, but also good recovery in demand from industrial customers. Total segment sales amounted to CHF 293.1 million, corresponding to year-on-year growth of 25.3%. Thanks to the high-level of capacity utilisation and the comprehensive measures of the previous years to improve performance an EBIT margin of 17.7% was achieved (prior year period: 9.5 %). SFS expected sales growth to a level of around CHF 1.9 billion for the full 2021 financial year at an EBIT margin of approximately 15%. This corresponds to sales growth of approximately 5% per year since 2019, which is in line with the medium-term growth targets announced.
Bossard Back on Growth Course
In the first half of 2021, Bossard Group recorded a sales increase of 23.9% to CHF 494.8 million (previous year: CHF 399.4 million). The pace of growth accelerated slightly in the second quarter and was supported by a broadbased economic upturn.
SFS concludes that the outlook for full year For the first half of 2021, Bossard Group expected an EBIT of 2021 remains fraught with uncertainties and around CHF 67 million, corresponding to an EBIT margin of 13.5%. risks due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Bossard Group reported that this was the best half year result in the That is why SFS’ management focus company's history. on protecting employee health and In Europe, Bossard generated sales of CHF 146 million in the second quarter, safeguarding delivery capacity, with an increase of 42.3% (in local currency: +39%). In the first half of last year, sales further efforts to pursue investment increased by 24.6% (in local currency: +22.2%) to CHF 293.7 million. and innovation projects, will still be given top priority. Business in America showed strong sales growth of 30.4% (in local currency: +37.5%) to CHF 55.8 million in the second quarter. In the first half of last year, sales increased by 14.5% (in local currency: +21.4%) to CHF 110.8 million. The weakening of the US dollar had a negative impact on sales development. Growth in Asia remained at a high-level in the second quarter. Sales increased by 37.3% (in local currency: +35%) to CHF 48.2 million. In the first half of last year, sales increased by 35% (in local currency: +34.6%) to CHF 90.3 million. Bossard’s focus on growth segments led to gains in market share.
Streamlining Mitigates Effects of Negative Macroeconomic Factors Bulten AB has reported that its streamlining, along with a new Full Service Provider contract that was signed during 2020, have largely compensated for negative macroeconomic factors currently impacting the market. Bulten achieved net sales of SEK 910 million in Q2 of 2021, an increase of 106.2% on the same period of 2020. However, the company was quick to point out that the comparison quarter was severely affected by the pandemic. Compared to Q1 2021, which was more representative of Bulten’s performance in a normalised market, net sales fell by 17.5%, due to lower production among customers during the quarter. Anders Nyström, president and CEO at Bulten, commented: “The progressive recovery that characterised the global automotive market from the second half of 2020 was interrupted during the second quarter of 2021. The shortage of
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As a result of strong global demand, the supply market situation remains tense, which is currently reflected in further price increases and longer delivery times. The Covid-19 situation also remains a factor of uncertainty due to rising infection rates in various market regions.
European News semiconductors is now a clearly inhibiting factor for production across the automotive industry, something both we and others in the industry have warned of previously. Underlying demand in the consumer stage remains strong, but at present vehicle production cannot keep up with demand.” He continued: “The shortage of semiconductors, along with price rises for steel and shipping, are three macroeconomic and partly geopolitical factors that have resulted in an extreme situation for the entire global industry. These factors were expected to have a further negative impact on Bulten’s sales and margins during the second half of 2021. We are continuing to focus on what we can control and are continuing to strengthen Bulten’s position and offering.”
New Polish production unit Bulten has also started the construction of a new production unit in Radziechowy-Wieprz, Poland. With production start-up planned for the first half of 2023. This will give Bulten a facility with world-class surface treatment processes in terms of efficiency, quality, and sustainability. The facility is a vertical integration of Bulten’s existing plant in Bielsko-Biala and will further strengthen its competitiveness.
MKS Instruments to Acquire Atotech MKS Instruments Inc and Atotech Limited have announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement pursuant to which MKS will acquire Atotech. The equity value of the transaction is US$5.1 billion and the enterprise value of the transaction is approximately US$6.5 billion
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(€5.48 billion). John T.C. Lee, president and CEO at MKS, commented: “Together MKS and Atotech will be uniquely positioned to drive faster, better solutions and innovations for customers in advanced electronics. By combining leading capabilities in lasers, optics, motion and process chemistry, the combined company will optimise the PCB Interconnect, a significant enabling point of next-generation advanced electronics that represents the next frontier for miniaturisation and complexity. Proven Fireproof We anticipate the addition of Atotech will position MKS to enable roadmaps for future generations of advanced electronics devices. The Conduit Fastenings acquisition of Atotech also provides MKS with a recurring revenue stream from a consumables portfolio for leading-edge devices” Conduit installations must retain their load-bearing “The combination of Atotech’s expertise in electroplating capacity for a sufficient length of time in the event of and chemistry and MKS’ strengths in lasers, laser systems, fire. fischer has therefore helped develop the European optics and motion will enable innovative and groundAssessment Document (EAD) 280016-00-0602 for pipe breaking solutions for customers in the areas of materials support systems and optimised it for fire protection, which is processing and complex applications,” said Geoff serving as the basis for the European Technical Assessment (ETA) Wild, CEO of Atotech. “This transaction is an for fischer products. excellent outcome for our shareholders, and we believe it will provide immediate value and Significant deformation can occur on rail constructions when exposed the opportunity to benefit from the upside to fire. Conduit installations in escape and rescue routes must therefore potential of the combined company.” be designed to withstand fires, which can save lives. fischer contributed to modifying the European Assessment Document (EAD) 280016-00-0602 Atotech, headquartered in Berlin, published by the German Institute for Structural Engineering (DIBt) and optimised Germany, has a team of 4,000 the document for fire protection purposes. experts in over 40 countries generating annual revenue of This now allows European Technical Assessments (ETAs) for approved conduit US$1.2 billion in 2020. It has fastening products to be created with CE Marking, while the fire resistance of installations manufacturing operations is assessed and proven according to up to date technical knowledge. During this process, across Europe, the each construction product of a fischer pipe support system is tested and assessed by a specially Americas, and Asia. accredited institute before being transferred into an ETA.
News provided by: Fastener + Fixing Magazine www.fastenerandfixing.com
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European News EFDA: EU Duties Will Disrupt Fastener Supply Chain
News provided by EFDA Date: Dec. 16, 2021
"In proposing duties of up to 86.5 percent on Chinese fasteners, the EU is creating a permanent supply problem for the European industry thereby putting 'Made in EU' at risk. The excessively high duties will hit European companies at a time when they are already suffering from massive supply problems. It is completely incomprehensible that the European Commission wants to make the supply situation even worse under these exceptionally difficult circumstances." This was the response from Volker Lederer, President of the European Fastener Distributor Association (EFDA), to the Commission's disclosure of its conclusions from the AD676 anti-dumping investigation issued on 14 December 2021.
The European Commission intends to impose an anti-dumping duty on imports of screws and other iron and steel fasteners originating in the People's Republic of China. A duty of 39.6 % is planned for a limited group of Chinese fastener exporters. However, the general duty rate is to be a whopping 86.5 percent. The Commission initiated the investigation on 21 December 2020, following a complaint lodged by European fastener producers. According to the Commission, the duties are to be imposed by 17 February 2022 at the latest. Before that, the governments of the EU Member States will vote on the definitive measure. (Editors' note: The duty is already in effect after EU's press release on Feb. 17, 2022.) The planned duties will hit all sectors of European industry, craft, and commerce as well as European consumers, all of which depend on the reliable supply of fasteners manufactured to international standards. These ostensibly simple, low value pieces of precision engineering – whether bolts, screws or washers – are indispensable for the manufacture of cars, bicycles, washing machines, solar panels, combine harvesters, furniture, and trains, as well as for use in installation and repair work by craftsmen or for repairing the garden door or attaching a picture in one's own home. But the impact of duties will also be felt by schools, food manufacturers and the health sector, which need school desks, refrigeration equipment or medical devices literally held together by fasteners. Without the right fasteners, none of these final products or structures is viable.
China Fastener World no.64/2022
European fastener importers, wholesalers and distributors supply the European industry with an extensive range of fasteners and ensure that the products are available at the right time at the right place at the customer. For industry, the permanent availability of standard parts is indispensable so that their products can continue to be manufactured in the EU and sold successfully on the world markets. Any disruption, even slight, to the fastener supply chain has a disproportionate impact on the supply situation. Therefore, any intervention in the supply chains must be well-considered.
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European News The existing supply bottlenecks for fasteners are already making it more and more difficult to meet the demand of industry and consumers for fasteners. Delivery times for fasteners have in many cases tripled in 2020 and are currently between 8 and 14 months. The costs for sea containers are ten times higher than in 2019, and the prices for raw materials like steel have exploded, too. The pandemic-related work stoppages in factories all over the world are further complicating the situation. This has not only made fasteners scarce, but dramatically driven up their costs. At 86.5 percent, the planned duties on Chinese fasteners are even higher than those imposed from 2009 to 2016, which were eventually withdrawn following a succession of negative rulings against the EU by the World Trade Organisation (WTO). During that period the import flow from China completely collapsed. European manufacturers, despite assurances to the Commission to the contrary, were either unable or unwilling to the shortfall – which was substituted almost entirely by importers moving to other Asian manufacturing countries. "Now, despite extensive evidence from EFDA, the Commission is apparently intent on going one better! In a supply-chain environment massively and critically worse than in 2009, the proposed duties are set to almost double prices that have already exploded in the last twelve months. In addition to driving inflation for the wide range of European fastener users and consumers, the application of duties will put even more strain on the already tightly constrained capacities of manufacturers outside China and further increase supply bottlenecks. Given the supply crisis already in place and the force of the proposed duties, the consequences for the economy and consumers will be devastating. The Commission, however, completely ignores these consequences!" The planned duties on Chinese fasteners will create an unbridgeable permanent supply gap that will not be covered by switching to manufacturers in Europe or elsewhere in the world. In other East Asian markets such as Taiwan, Thailand or Vietnam, production capacities have already been exhausted since US companies began claiming resources here a few years ago in response to Trump administration protectionist duties on Chinese imports.
European fastener manufacturers are not available as substitutes either. Their capacities are already stretched now, and there is no improvement in sight. Almost without exception, European manufacturers produce high-quality special parts, e.g. for the global automotive industry, whereas imports from China regard the simpler standard parts. For these standard parts EU producers will never provide sufficient production capacity. They did not do so either when duties were imposed on Chinese fasteners from 2009 to 2016. In 2016, the Commission was obliged to withdraw its antidumping duties overnight due to a series of WTO rulings that demonstrated their basis was irreparably flawed. “Now the Commission is repeating its mistakes by imposing disproportionately high duties without any need. A duty level of 86.5 per cent in no way reflects the realities of the market” , Lederer emphasizes. “As in 2009, the Commission calculates the duty level on a data basis that is not representative at all. It is based on the costs and price of one single fastener product type out of several hundred, produced by one out of many Chinese fastener manufacturers. The Commission deliberately chose this particular approach because it yields the largest margin for a duty and makes it the benchmark for the China business.＂ The European Fastener Distributor Association (EFDA) represents the interests of importers, wholesalers, and distributors of fasteners in Germany and Europe. EFDA has been actively involved in the Commission's investigation process as an interested party from the very beginning and has presented comprehensive arguments and evidence why the imposition of duties on Chinese fasteners is not appropriate. To the dismay of EFDA, the Commission has barely addressed the association's input in its decision.
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"This duty has nothing to do with establishing a level playing field. Rather, it arbitrarily distorts an already extremely strained market. National governments of the EU Member States need to take the interests of their European manufacturing, construction and consumer economies seriously and council the Commission to reconsider its proposals", Dr. Lederer concludes.
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Chinese New Energy Car Marks the Fastest Growth Amid Stabilized Chinese Industrial Economy in 2021 Industry Update
The data released on January 17 this year by National Bureau of Statistics of China shows that last year China's manufacturing industry grew 5.8% over the previous year and that the average growth for the respective past two years was 6.1%. In December 2021, the country's manufacturing industry grew 4.3% and this was the third month in succession with an upward recovery. High-tech manufacturing industry and equipment manufacturing industry grew 18.2% and 12.9% respectively. The export delivery at high water mark drives the production of industrial products. The industrial sector has returned to the pre-pandemic level, but the recovery is imbalanced. Some mid and downstream companies are still dealing with supply shortages, lack of critical components/materials, logistics cost pressures, and regional power cuts. China's manufacturing for 2022 is expected to stay within a stable growth range of 5.5% to 6.0%. The highlight of China's manufacturing industry in 2021 was the explosive new energy car growth with 3-digit consecutive growth. The data by China Association of Automobile Manufacturers shows that new energy car sales grew 1.6 times in 2021, taking up 13.4% of the market share, up 8 percentage points over the first half of 2021. Besides new energy cars, the automotive industry on the whole ditched the negative growth of -7.1% and grew 3.4% in December last year, ending the 7-month consecutive drop.
China's 2021 GDP Grows 8.1% National Bureau of Statistics of China reveals that China's 2021 GDP reached RMB 114.367 trillion, up 8.1% year over year. Q1 grew 18.3%, Q2 grew 7.9%, Q3 grew 4.9% and Q4 grew 4%.
Japan's Fastener Export Shows Recovery in 2021 Ministry of Finance (Japan) released the export figures of bolts, nuts and other fasteners for 2021. The export volume for the 12 months of 2021 was 343.411 thousand tons, up 23.9% from 2020; the export value was JPY 320.876 billion, up 26.3%. The export volume and price both returned to the level before the pandemic outbreak, revealing an upward trend. The fastener price index ramped up in 2021 compared to 2020. According to Bank of Japan, in average price index, the growth rates were 79% for iron ore, 61% for copper, 39% for nickel, 2% for bolts and nuts, and 3% for screws. Around half of the items have shown increased price indexes recently.
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Calculated in USD, China's national domestic GDP was USD 17.7 trillion in 2021 and was ranked second in the world. According to IMF's forecast, U.S. economy grew about USD 2 trillion in 2021, but China grew USD 1 trillion more than the U.S and will reduce the gap with the U.S. economic scale. The GDP gap between the U.S. and China was USD 6.2 trillion in 2020, and by 2021 that gap shrank by around USD 1 trillion. China's total GDP is likely to reach 77.3% of U.S. total GDP.
Fastener World News
An Insight into Trends in the Fastener Industry 2022 As we move into another exciting year for the fastener industry, Lars Holm, Managing Director of Swedish specialist stainless steel fastener maker BUMAX gives us his insights into what he sees as the three most important industry trends in 2022.
1. The growing importance of sustainability Many industries are facing greater demands for sustainability and circularity – including product Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) and Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs). Stainless steel is highly recyclable, which means that stainless steel fasteners can be a more sustainable material option than carbon steel in many applications. There will be increasing pressure from customers, partners, owners and society as a whole on companies, products and projects to be as sustainable as possible and that includes using fastener raw materials that are as ‘green’ and long-lasting as possible. As industries better understand LCA costs, long-term value and sustainability, we anticipate new market opportunities and a growing demand for stainless steel materials. The fact is that premium stainless steel fasteners last longer, and require less maintenance and replacement, which also boost their sustainability profile. Therefore, I anticipate a shift from standard to premium fasteners and specifically from carbon to stainless steel fasteners.
2. Continued innovation A great deal has happened with premium stainless steel fasteners in recent years in terms of new properties and capabilities, and I expect this to continue in 2022 as new products are developed to meet even more demanding fastener applications. We see new fasteners that are stronger and more corrosion resistant for a wide range of industry segments.
3. Continued market instability Unfortunately, economic instability, supply chain issues and uncertainty look likely to continue well into 2022, largely due to the ongoing effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. We will continue to see supply chain pricing pressures in the form of higher steel and logistics costs and the challenge for industry actors is to curb these effects. Some will handle it better than others. Winners will be fastener manufacturers with longstanding relationships with their suppliers, their own production facilities and with large stocks of products ready for shipping to customers. It is likely that market prices will continue to rise further during 2022. Lars Holm is Managing Director for BUMAX, a Sweden-based world-leading specialist manufacturer of premium stainless steel fasteners. Holm has a decade-long background from the global logistics, manufacturing, adhesive and tooling industries.
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Fastener Manufacturers Report Over NT$10 Billion Revenue as Fastener Orders Surge Since 2021 Taiwanese fastener industry has felt the strongly growing demand for fasteners from U.S. and European clients. Although the lack of containers and port congestion remain unsolved, sales and unit prices of their exports still showed a significant growth. Last year, the entire export volume and value of Taiwanese fastener industry both reached a new high. According to the database of Taiwan Customs, Taiwan exported nearly 1.7 million tons of fasteners to the world (roughly up 18% from 2020); if calculated by value, it exported around US$5.55 bn worth of fasteners to the world (up around 34% from 2020). Many leading export-oriented Taiwanese fastener companies (e.g., BBI, Boltun, Chun Yu, Tycoons, and so on) reported that their annual revenues were over NT$ 10 bn in 2021. Among these companies, BBI even achieved the record of over NT$20 bn. According to several leading fastener companies, due to the strong and growing demand for fasteners from automotive, construction, and many other industries in the U.S., Europe, and Asia, as well as fully booked capacities, and the expectation of a better situation regarding the port congestion issue in Q2 2022, the outlook for 2022 is very likely to turn really well.
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EV Trend Now Sweeps into Japanese Fastener R&D Market Poised to take over Tesla, the newcomer Lucid emerged as a surprise and topped the market with its title for creating a battery of 520 mileage. The EV trend is sweeping the Japanese components manufacturers like a tsunami and it doesn't exclude fastenerrelated companies. The white-hot EV market has forced a change in Japanese fasteners. While a fuel vehicle uses 30,000 components, an EV only requires half of the total amount. To reduce power consumption, EVs must be lightweight to reduce vehicle weight, which means manufacturers must use lightweight resin instead of iron as the material for automotive components. The same lightweight requirement goes for fasteners. Each 0.5 grams saved on a single screw will reduce over 1 kilogram for an EV's total weight. Currently there are some Japanese fastener manufacturers who have developed aluminum screws weighing one-third of iron screws. With nearly the same contractibility as resin when exposed to heat, aluminum screws work well with resin automotive components. Some Japanese manufacturers have even developed CFRP fasteners. Additionally, some have developed titanium screws for use on EVs that can rebound like a spring and hence are resistant to vibration and loosening, but the problem lies in the cost which is 30 times higher than that of iron screws as well as the difficulty in processing titanium screws. Besides screws, screwdrivers will have to be re-designed to drive screws into small electronic components on EVs. EVs require fastening fasteners in a very confined space; and therefore, a combination of fastening screws with adhesives and thermal welding emerges on the market to prevent screws from loosening.
Thanks to further market share gains in a strong economic environment, the Bossard Group recorded sales of CHF 995.1 million in 2021 (prior year: CHF 812.8 million). This corresponds to organic growth of 21.1 percent, with currency effects and acquisitions having a positive impact. All regions performed well in the fourth quarter, even though the high basis effect of the prior year was clearly felt in America. The Bossard Group’s fourth quarter sales increased by 17.9 percent to CHF 250.8 million (prior year: CHF 212.8 million). The growth of the Bossard Group that began with the broad-based economic upturn in the fourth quarter of 2020 continued into the fourth quarter of 2021. At the same time, Europe and Asia recorded impressive double-digit growth rates. The rising COVID-19 infection rates in various market regions continued to foster uncertainty. Simultaneously strong global demand continued to strain the situation on the procurement market, resulting in further price increases and longer delivery times. Bossard will release its complete annual report 2021 on March 2, 2022.
Companies Development
Bossard’s Sales Financial Year and Fourth Quarter 2021
Torq used to go by the name of Kobayashi Metals Limited. The company is building the industry's largest fastener distribution center set to span 9,917 square meters in Taisho Ward of Osaka. With an investment of JPN 4 billion, this is the largest spending in the company's history. The new center is equipped with the latest equipment and is expected to be inaugurated in April 2022. The volume of shipment will be two times that of the existing center, and the productivity will be over three times. The company is planning to increase stock from 35 thousand items to 100 thousand items, which is expected to drive up 2023 revenue by JPY 1 billion. Furthermore, Torq is developing an e-commerce system scheduled to be launched across Japan this April, which will improve production efficiency by over 30% in 2023. It will tap into the B2C market through online sales.
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Japanese Public Company Torq to Launch the Industry's Largest Fastener Distribution Center in April
Fastener World News
Tong Ming Enterprise's 12-month Revenue in 2021 Increases Stainless steel manufacturer Tong Ming reported that its consolidated revenue in December 2021 was NTD 1.432 billion, a record high at a monthly growth of 10% and annual growth of 36.21%. The Q4 2021 revenue broke records at NTD 3.942 billion, a quarterly growth of 8.8%. The 12-month revenue in 2021 was NTD 13.272 billion, an annual growth of 44.49%. Both Q4 2021 and full-year revenues set a new high. Focusing on the Chinese market, Tong Ming expects that China will continue with building infrastructure this year and the company will increase the capacity to hit a new record. The Chinese government plans to invest RMB 10-17.5 trillion in 5G, IIoT, data center, AI, and EV chargers. To grasp the opportunity, Tong Ming is working on a new plant in Zhejiang Province and expects the annual capacity of the new plant to reach 80 thousand tons in 3 to 5 years. Tong Ming's current annual capacity is 120 thousand tons. The future total capacity is estimated to increase by 100 thousand tons. The new plant will mainly manufacture small screws and nuts and will be put into operation in Q4 2022.
Trifast Invests to Increase Its European Manufacturing Capacity International fastener specialist TR VIC spa, part of the Trifast plc group of companies, has once again benefited from a significant investment at its manufacturing site in central Italy. In expanding the TR Viterie Italia Centrale (TR VIC spa) site in Fossato Di Vico in Umbria, Trifast is further increasing its capacity to meet the growing European white goods market. They have experienced unprecedented demand, which has been fuelled by the increase in consumer driven home improvements during Covid that shows no signs of abating. The investment is largely focused on securing new machinery at the site, all locally sourced from Italian manufacturers, and this will increase the production capacity by some 33%. It builds on an earlier move back in January 2021 to implement additional multi-station cold forming machinery in their heading section. This will result in their ability to produce an additional 500 million pieces annually over the next 12 months. The site is focused on being ‘Industry 4.0 compliant’ creating a greener and more efficient workspace, providing a modern, fresh and diverse environment. The work is to be completed in two phases in 2022 and 2023 which includes extending the manufacturing footprint on the site. Andrew Nuttall, European Managing Director of TR Fastenings, said: “The order book has increased dramatically over the past two years. As more people work from home, they are investing in their domestic appliances and not spending so much on holidays etc and instead enhancing their home environment. This means that the demand for white goods has significantly increased. Our major customers want to see shorter and more agile supply chains. The lead times out of Asia have increased significantly during Covid and freight costs and container issues have meant that we had to react and onshore more product. This investment strategy allows us to better meet our customer needs, now and for the future.” The investment has been well received locally, creating new jobs and this has piqued the interest with local Government and the Media giving us the recognition that we are an important manufacturing company in this key area of Italy. We are proud of the fact that we have chosen Italian companies to supply the new machinery.” The TR VIC site serves 24 countries around the world and the site will also have capacity to serve more Health & Home and Light & Heavy Vehicle sectors. TR VIC is a member of the European Fastener Distributor Association (EFDA) and has IATF 16949 accreditation.
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Southco Launches Die Cener in Shenzhen Southco is a world-leading engineering hardware solution provider supplying various fasteners, quick-release fasteners, inserts and other accessories applied in the automotive, aerospace, transportation, engineering, machinery, construction and medical industries. The Southco Die Cener in Shenzhen has become operational since November 30, 2021. The opening ceremony was hosted by the director of Southco Asia Pacific. The center was planned and prepared at the start of 2021 and began a trial launch in July. Currently having 1,100 square meters of land area, 22 sets of equipment and 34 employees, the new die center will focus on designing and manufacturing zinc/ aluminum cast dies, punch dies, injection mold dies and overmolding dies.
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Shanghai University Successfully Develops the World's First Grade 19.8 Bolt After more than a year of trial and error, a team working on high performance steel at Shanghai University of Material Science and Engineering worked with 7 other collaborators, and successfully developed the world's first Grade 19.8 ultra-high strength bolt dubbed as the world's strongest fastener. By optimizing the material and heat treatment, the Grade 19.8 bolt achieves a tensile strength of 1900~2070MPa under room temperature. A shear test compliant to GJB 3376-1998 standard reveals the bolt's shear at 115KN. A room temperature tensile fatigue strength test compliant to GJB 33761998 and GJB715.30A-2002 standards reveals that the bolt didn't break during the test and didn't crack on the bolt's surface and threads after its removal. This newly-developed ultra-high strength bolt can meet requirements with its combined performance.
Fastener World News
South Korean Hyodong Machine President Receives Gold Tower Industry Medal Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and Korea Machinery Industry Promotion Association held the 2021 Digital Transformation Fair Online & Onsite from October 19 to 22, 2021. Vice Minister Park Jin-gyu of S. Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said machinery has been the second largest export industry of South Korea since 2015. This industry gains importance by introducing advanced technology in response to trade protectionism, digital transformation and carbon neutrality initiatives. President of Hyodong Machine was honored with the "Gold Tower Industry Medal" during the event. His effort in developing large forging and forming machines and dedication to smart manufacturing leads the technological development of the South Korean machine industry. He is recognized as one of the characters to have revolutionized and secured the international competitiveness of the South Korean machine industry.
NORMA Group Starts Production Cooperation with Italian Water Management Company NORMA Group has entered into a strategic partnership with SAB S.p.A (“SAB”), an Italian specialist in joining technology for drinking water, irrigation and drainage. SAB now produces high-quality NORMA PN 16 compression fittings certified for drinking water applications for NORMA Group. Further products are to follow. In addition, the agreement reached stipulates that NORMA Group and SAB will jointly develop new products. With this cooperation, NORMA Group is strengthening its water management business in Europe and, in particular, further expanding its position in the field of drinking water applications. “SAB has a proven record of outstanding product expertise,” says Dr. Michael Schneider, CEO of NORMA Group. “With this cooperation, we gain additional production resources and can serve our customers in Europe better and faster with water management solutions. Efficient use of the scarce resource of water is becoming increasingly important, which is why we are consistently expanding our water management business in all regions.”
TFI Aerospace will continue to operate as an independent manufacturing site at its current location in Canada, led by VP General Manager, Thomas Squires, who along with his father Ted have been building and leading that business for several years leading up to this point. TriMas Aerospace president John Schaefer and some other key TriMas Aerospace senior leaders will be working closely with Thomas and the rest of the TFI team to integrate the business into TriMas Aerospace over the coming months. While relatively small in size compared to some of their other sites and businesses, TFI has some exciting growth opportunities in the next few years that they look forward to supporting.
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TriMas Corporation and TriMas Aerospace have successfully completed the acquisition of TFI Aerospace based in Orangeville, Ontario Canada. Located near Toronto, Canada, TFI is a leading manufacturer and supplier of specialty fasteners used in a variety of applications for aerospace and other industrial end markets. TFI previously operated as a private, family-owned company, and has generated approximately $6 million in revenue over the past year. This acquisition will further expand TriMas Aerospace’s fastener product lines with the addition of complimentary niche products that have an exciting growth trajectory resulting from TFI’s new program wins and overall market recovery. TriMas also anticipates TFI’s customers will benefit from the added innovation and manufacturing depth offered by TriMas Aerospace, while TriMas Aerospace’s customers will enjoy additional product offerings.
Acquisitions
TriMas Acquires TFI Aerospace
Fastener World News
MW Industries Expands Threaded Fastener Products Through Acquisition of Ideal Fasteners MW Industries, a leading provider of precision components, announced the acquisition of Ideal Fasteners, a global manufacturer of threaded fasteners. The acquisition of Ideal Fasteners closed on December 10, 2021 and expands MW Industries’ existing US-based manufacturing locations to provide precision components for worldwide distribution. The combined company will offer an increased selection of stock, standard, and custom socket caps, button sockets, flat socket caps, and other threaded fasteners along with a wide variety of highly engineered metal and plastic components. “Ideal Fasteners is the perfect addition to the MW Industries family. At a time when customers want components faster than ever before, businesses need to be able to quickly source a variety of parts from a single provider. Ideal Fasteners allows us to offer a greater breadth of products so we can provide the diversity of products customers need. We are excited to integrate the Ideal Fasteners product lines into our portfolio,” said Simon Newman, CEO of MW Industries.
TSLG Receives Growth Enterprise Prize in Jiangsu Province, China The 20th China (Suzhou) Electronic Manufacturer Expo held the "Purple Apex Award" ceremony on November 19, 2021. It is the only provincial-level award that Taiwanese enterprises in China can be eligible to receive.
Association
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TSLG was honored with the growth enterprise award. The company provides professional engineering consultation and production management. It established a technical center in China and a CNAS-certified anti-loosening inspection center to provide high quality product applications and quality verification service. It was also nominated into the pre-applied anti-loosening standard committee to formulate standards with top players of the industry.
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Hong Kong Screw & Fastener Council’s New Chairman in Office The Council held a member assembly on December 13, 2021 to elect the new board of directors. The new chairman is Mr. Ping-Fai Tsui, who will lead all other directors on council affairs and continue interaction and collaboration with other commerce associations and organizations.
American News
Optimas Solutions upgraded its inventory management solutions. Improvements implemented over the last 12 months have focused on technology enhancements, process automation changes and contactless delivery protocols. “The pace of business and delivery expectations for fasteners, C-Class components, and indirect consumables have increased significantly in 2020,” stated Daniel Harms, president of the Americas for Optimas Solutions. “This new dynamic for manufacturers and distributors is grounded on unprecedented demand coming out of the COVID-19 disruption and subsequent economic reawakening. We anticipated this change and made improvements in inventory management to adapt to this customer demand.” According to the latest 2021 Thomas State of North American Manufacturing Report, 83% of manufacturers are planning to add North American suppliers to their supply chains within a year. This is a significant increase from 54% in March 2020. Daily challenges around inventory availability, lead times, and delivery schedules have become the norm. “In a market environment where ‘inventory is the new king,’ timing, efficiency, and organization have never been more critical,” Harms stressed. “It’s these three characteristics of supply chains that call for inventory management solutions like ours that simplify and automate the process of replenishing high-volume parts.”
Optimas’ innovative Optimas is focused on two sides of the equation to improve inventory OptiTech inventory management – the front-end collection of a variety of customer data that management solutions paints a clear picture of what’s needed to meet future demand mapped to use the latest technology supply chain partners’ inventory availability and production capabilities. to automate inventory replenishment. A secure, “Having a true understanding of demand and supply is the chief cloud-based just-in-time platform factor of our data driven approach,” Harms emphasized. “This receives and processes orders from type of sophistication and analysis enable us to collaboratively any OptiTech Solution with scanning optimize planning, fulfillment, and financial investments for and barcode technology and RFID. replenishing parts at smart manufacturers of all sizes.” RFID is becoming more pervasive because “This delicate balance of consumption and delivery, it offers a higher degree of accuracy. In fact, highly influenced by transportation timing is critical RFID increases inventory accuracy from an to successful, efficient customer inventory average of 65% to more than 95%. management,” said Paul Przyby, senior vice president of sales and marketing for Optimas “More and more, customers are accepting the Americas. “We have applied some of the use of RFID as an investment for increasing sales,” best technology and thinking in the Przyby said. According to Przyby, Optimas has a very industry to our inventory management skilled and experienced Demand Planning Team whose system. This gives customers the sole responsibility is to work with customers and ensure most valuable insight possible the company delivers accurate inventory forecasting and into their inventory and replenishment based on historical data, trends, and known upcoming closes the gap between events. “The team has been around for quite some time, but they have suppliers, distributors, been empowered even more today with AI-based systems and technology and manufacturing that make customers and us smarter,” Przyby said. customers.”
Private Equity Firm Acquires EFC International EFC International was acquired by Chicago private equity firm Frontenac for an undisclosed sum. Founded in 1983 by the late Doug Adams, EFC is a global supplier of specialty engineered metal and plastic fasteners and other component parts to OEMs and distributors. St. Louis, MO-based EFC has locations in North America, Europe and Asia. CEO Matt Dudenhoeffer and the current executive team will continue in their roles for EFC. “We have enjoyed strong growth over the past several years as we executed on a number of key initiatives that have expanded our global reach as well as our customer and supplier base,” stated Dudenhoeffer. “With Frontenac as our new partner, we are excited to leverage their industrial distribution expertise to continue our expansion plans, both organic and inorganic, and continue to increase market share both domestically and abroad.”
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American News
Optimas Solutions Upgrades Inventory Management
American News Ron Kuehl, Managing Director at Frontenac, added: “EFC has grown impressively and perfectly fits our target profile. We look forward to deploying our playbooks, working with the team to accelerate the pace of progress, and having another successful industrial distribution investment for Frontenac.” Frontenac invests in lower middle market buyout transactions in the consumer, industrial, and services industries.
UFS Reports Fastener Engineering Breakthrough Universal Fastening System (UFS), Clearwater, FL, USA, announces versatile designs for the fastener industry. The company’s universally applicable system incorporates the best qualities of a screw, a bolt, a nut and a nail—all combined into one system, which can come in three, two or one-piece fasteners depending on the application. For example, a screw can be guided from an angle into its final position and a nail that can be inserted with built-in resistance to bending. And fasteners can be secured and tightened using non-skid, no-slip, dual internal and external hybrid connections that mesh closely together in motion with their driver counterparts to resist stripping. UFS components can be made from any solid material such as metals, plastics, ceramics and rubbers in micro and macro sizes with various methods. The fasteners can be driven or accessed from angles of up to 180° and in the tightest of places with an effectively designed head that can act as a carrier for manual or automated use or as an anchor for a secondary process such as a permanent or nonpermanent joint.
China Fastener World no.64/2022
Ramco Specialties Expands Capacity in Michigan
SPIROL White
Ramco Specialties, Hudson, OH, USA, continues to make significant Paper: Proper Pin investments in its Michigan facility. Ramco has purchased a third building, adjacent to its two existing buildings, which provides 10,000 ft2 of production Selection space, resulting in a total of 45,000 ft2 at Ramco’s Michigan location. The expansion is a part of Ramco’s ongoing goal of increasing production Danielson, CT, USA-based SPIROL in the USA. With the national supply chain problems and lack of International Corporation has recently published timely delivery created by international trade, Ramco has made a White Paper, titled, How to Select the Proper a commitment to help alleviate these issues by boosting its Pin for Your Application, and authored by Jeff manufacturing capacity and ability to get product to market Greenwood, Product Sales Engineer. Pins are some quicker. Ramco Michigan will continue to focus on its of the most common types of fasteners used in modern expertise in precision machining, particularly for the manufacturing. Ideally, the design engineer selects a pin that automotive and aerospace industries. is simple to assemble, provides desired performance for the intended lifetime of the assembly and yields the lowest overall cost of the assembly taking into account the entire manufacturing process. With so many different types of pins to choose from, it is difficult for designers to be sure that they have selected the best pin for their specific application. It is for this reason that this White Paper was created by SPIROL. The White Paper specifically focuses on how to select “press-fit” pins for different types of applications, as these are the most common types of pins.
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American News Brad Gallagher Joins ND Industries as Business Development Manager
Supply Chains Worsen for
ND Industries, Clawson, MI, USA, has hired Brad Gallagher as Applications Engineer and Business Development Manager. Brad will be focused on the growing electric vehicle industry, as well as the aerospace and industrial markets, while fostering ongoing relationships with clients across the Western United States. As a trusted partner, Brad will work with new and existing customers to determine how ND can help solve their problems. Brad’s career path allowed him to work with world-renowned chemical manufacturing companies that specialize in fasteners. In today’s world, businesses have fewer resources and less time to continually vet their sources. Supply chain issues are keeping Taiwan fastener imports down. U.S. Importers
Supply chain issues are worsening for U.S. importers. But domestic manufacturers are not interested in orders that merely supplement what distributors are importing, according to Doug Ruggles, President of Martin Fastening Solutions. While importers have been forced to change their business process during the pandemic, there is no substitute for face-to-face interactions, according to a forum from the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office and Crain's Chicago Business.
“It’s not a shift away from Taiwan at all,” Ruggles noted. A lot of customers are going back to domestic fastener manufacturers due to 22-24 week lead time one year ago; now its 32-40, according to Jon Najeski, Manager of Purchasing of Screws Industries Inc. “A lot of industries can’t wait that long to get products.”
Importers buy fasteners from Taiwan because of consistent quality, Ruggles added.
“The capacity to meet demand is not there in the U.S., so we have to supplement with overseas suppliers,” noted Ruggles. “This is nothing new.” Infrastructure spending in the coming years will drive ongoing fastener demand, Nagle predicted.
“As soon as Section 301 tariffs Taiwan exports 1.36 million tons of fasteners each year at a value of US$3.99 went into effect, we utilized our billion. The U.S. imports 609,000 tons of Taiwan fasteners each year at a value of $1.69 Taiwan connection to meet our billion. needs,” stated Joe Nagle, Sr. Manager, Strategic Sourcing, Customer Solutions, Lawson Bartel Advises IFE: Take Action on Inventory Products.
Suppliers need to change their sales forecasting based on past sales, Bartel, CEO of Hydrian Inventory Optimization, said in an International Fastener Expo conference session. Upon Covid, Q2 “demand sunk” while orders were still arriving. By relying on sales, suppliers got “gun shy on buying” during 2020 Q2. Since the summer of 2020, “demand has been recovering and lead times extending,” Bartel said. Lead times have doubled in 2020. A company may now have 10 days inventory, but the lead time has increased to 42 days. “We have nothing when the customer wants it.” He cited an example of having 20+ days inventory last year and being down to 12 days now. If your inventory is dwindling, you can be losing sales, Bartel warned. • “Take action right away” to restock, Bartel urged. If a supplier can’t ship to one location, can shipments be diverted to a branch? Bartel suggested. “Working with your vendors is critical,” Bartel declared.
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While lead times rose in 2020 before the Covid-19 pandemic, Josh Bartel termed today’s high demand and longer lead times as a “Covid double whammy.”
American News FDI Hampered by Supply Chain & Labor Issues The seasonally adjusted August 2021 FDI (55.4) moderated from last July’s 59.6, reflecting “lower employment levels and a softer seasonally adjusted sales index (-7.7 m/m),” according to R.W. Baird analyst David Manthey. Pricing, however, continued to accelerate amid raw material inflation, inventory/ labor shortages at the supplier level, and robust demand. This resulted in further improvement in the FDI Pricing month to month index. “In addition to extended lead times, labor shortages, and freight delays impacting respondents’ ability to meet orders, the ongoing semiconductor chip shortage continues to have negative impacts on demand (most likely in auto) for some respondents,” Manthey writes.
Labor and logistics constraints continue to be respondents’ top concerns.
“Continued supply chain challenges due to port/rail congestion, raw material availability,” one respondent commented. “Labor remains scarce.”
“In my 30+ years in the business I don’t think I have ever had such a difficult time meeting demand,” another noted.
After four months of decline, the seasonally adjusted Forward Lastly, semiconductor chip shortages also remain a Looking Index rose to 73 due to “extremely low (and weakening) headwind for some respondents: “With delay in imported customer inventory levels, which could be a positive for material and computer chips our sales are down by as much future demand, as well as a better outlook,” according to as 15% and doesn't look like it is going to improve anytime Manthey. With the exception of the employment index, soon.” which continues to be impacted by labor shortages, all other FLI components (respondent inventory levels, customer inventory levels, and six-month outlook) Bufab to Acquire improved last August.
Component Solutions
The FDI employment index declined to 53.8 from 61.3 last July. Just 19% of Bufab agreed to acquire all outstanding shares of respondents saw employment levels Dayton, OH-based Components Solutions Group, Inc, as above seasonal expectations (CSG) for $26 million. vs. last July’s 26% as the job Founded in 2000, CSG distributes fasteners and other C-class components, with market remains extremely annual sales of approximately $30 million. CSG also owns three subsidiaries - two in Ohio tight, “although the recent and one in Kentucky. Under the leadership of current president Ernie Riling and minority expiration of enhanced owners Matt Coy, Ken DeCrane, Thomas Girgash and Rick Clark, CSG has 85 workers and federal unemployment generates a 10% operating profit. “By joining Bufab, we will be able to continue to improve our benefits could spur customer offering, grow our business and strengthen our team,” stated Riling. “I am pleased to additional return to continue as President and CEO at CSG. the labor force.” Founded in 1977 in Sweden, Bufab has operations in 27 countries. Bufab has 1,350 employees. Bufab’s net sales amounted to Swedish Krone 4.2 billion (US$432 million) and the operating margin was 9.5%.
UK's Trifast Acquires Falcon Fastening
China Fastener World no.64/2022
UK-based Trifast plc acquired Falcon Fastening Solutions Inc. NC-based Falcon is a North American fastener distributor and will be Falcon. Trifast paid US$8.3 million for Falcon.
Charlotte, rebranded as TR
Trifast CEO Mark Belton said the “Carolinas region is a strategically important area for us where a number of our global OEMs have facilities.” “We believe that the combination of Falcon and Trifast’s locations, experience, knowledge base and skill sets will open significant opportunities to expand the service and portfolio offering to both existing and new customers on a domestic and international basis. We look forward to working together to create a stronger presence for Trifast in North America.” Falcon Metal Corporation was founded in 1979 by Bruce Roberts and Nancy Roberts. Don Nowak joined Falcon in 1997 from Hoyt Fasteners in Chicago and acquired the distributorship in 2008. The name was changed to Falcon Fastening Solutions in 2014. Current president and major shareholder Giovanni Cespedes, who joined Falcon in 2008 and acquired it from Nowak in 2018, will remain with the business. Today Falcon Fastening distributes industrial fastenings and class C components and from locations in North Carolina and Kentucky. Over 90% of production components supplied by Falcon are customer specials. Falcon specializes in customized supply chain solutions that support lean principles. Trifast announced it intends to retain all staff at both Falcon and US operations.
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American News For 2020, Falcon reported EBITDA of US$1.27 million. Trifast chair Jonathan Shearman described the Falcon acquisition as “our next step into the North American market, and we are confident that this business, alongside our existing Houston operation provides a springboard to further develop our presence within this important region.” Cespedes termed the acquisition a “fantastic opportunity for Falcon’s employees, customers and suppliers. Becoming part of Trifast gives all of us at Falcon the opportunity to work more closely with a well-respected international business.”
Nucor Expanding Fastener Division Nucor Corp., Charlotte, NC, USA, will expand its Nucor Fastener division with the acquisition of an existing state-of-the-art coil processing facility in Shelbyville, IN, USA. This facility includes an automated clean and coat line, two STC® furnaces and wire drawing capabilities. In addition to coil processing, Nucor will also expand fastener manufacturing capabilities by installing bolt making equipment at the Shelbyville facility. BUMAX This new operation will employ some 33 team members with the potential to double those jobs. “We are excited to grow our Expands Fastener Division with the acquisition of these assets,” said in USA Joey Loosle, Nucor Fastener GM. “Adding bolt making capability to the Shelbyville facility will help expand our As part of a strategy offerings to the automotive, heavy truck, industrial/ to increase its presence in MRO and structural fastener markets.” the North American market, Swedish leading manufacturer By recycling steel in electric arc furnaces, of high-strength stainless steel Nucor is among the cleanest steel producers fasteners, BUMAX, has hired Bo in the world, with greenhouse gas Andersson to the position of Business Development Manager for the USA. emissions that are one-third of the global “We see the USA as a strategic focus market for BUMAX with huge potential steelmaking average and nearly onefor our premium stainless steel fasteners in a variety of industries,” said Lars Holm, fifth of the average blast furnace Managing Director at BUMAX. “We will increase our efforts to capture new clients steel producer. Nucor’s Fastener and new projects in North America in sectors like marine, oil and gas, energy, defense, Products are made with 97% pulp and paper and construction where durable and high-strength fasteners are increasingly recycled content, which is required.” Industry veteran Bo Andersson will be responsible for growing the American far more sustainable than market and making sure that BUMAX continues to provide excellent customer service as a fasteners produced from “solutionist”. blast furnace steel made overseas.
Threaded Fasteners, Inc. (TFI), Mobile, AL, USA, a 100% employee-owned business specializing in the manufacturing, custom packaging and distribution of steel fasteners, has acquired RTC Threaders, formally Ruja Tooling Corp., based in Churubusco, IN, USA. RTC was founded in 1971 by Jack Pease, and today RTC runs under the direction of his son, Rick Pease, and it is the premier manufacturer of planetary threading equipment in the USA. RTC has been the USA leader in manufacturing planetary threaders since 1971 and continues to innovate and develop new lines of threading machines. Also making the transition is long-term business associate Chuck Wilcoxson, who has been an integral part of the success of RTC from the beginning and is looking forward to this new chapter in the life of RTC. “We are thrilled to have Rick and the RTC team join the TFI Family, I have had the privilege of getting to know Rick during this time and I was not only immediately impressed with the quality of the machines that he designed, but most importantly the quality of his character,” says Billy Duren, President and Chief Motivational Officer of Threaded Fasteners, Inc. “I had heard of RTC, but I really didn’t know much about their operation. I interviewed several people who had an RTC Planetary. One owner described the machine as a ‘beast,’ and another stated that it was a ‘workhorse.’ So, over the course of several months of conversations, both Rick and I began to see the value of combining our efforts and knowledge by making RTC part of the family of companies owned by TFI.” Depending on diameter the RTC Threaders Eagle Planetary Threading Machines can manufacture over 100 parts per minute. Machines are custom made to order and are available with quick change, modular, and single or double end units. News provided by: John Wolz, Editor of FIN (globalfastenernews.com) Mike McNulty, FTI VP & Editor (www.fastenertech.com)
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Threaded Fasteners, Inc. Acquires RTC Threaders
Russian News
New Workshop of Hot-stamping Equipment for Fastener Production was Launched at JSC "KONAR"
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Russian News
A modern press machine from HATEBUR (Switzerland) was put into operation in the new hot-forging equipment workshop of KONAR JSC. This is the third and most modern machine that KONAR has for production of large quantities of high precision metal products.
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KONAR manufactures high-strength fasteners for the oil and gas industry, as well as for metal structures, railway and automotive industries. General Director of JSC "KONAR" Valery Bondarenko said that the total investment for construction of the workshop amounted to 890 million rubles. The launch of production will also create 50 new jobs.
The Russian Government is Preparing Radical Changes in Industrial Construction: They will be Allowed to Design According to Eurocodes and Chinese SniPs In Russia, it will be allowed to build industrial facilities according to projects developed on the basis of foreign building codes. Including - based on Eurocodes and standards of the People's Republic of China. This presupposes a "road map" approved by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin. The document was published on the official website of the government.
MMK-METIZ Expands Product Line of Machine-Building Fasteners
Due to the investment program 2017-2020, MMK-METIZ replenished new promising types of products.
This was facilitated by equipping the It is expected that the Cabinet of Ministers production line with a whole range of new will prepare appropriate amendments to the equipment: stamping, chemical-thermal treatment, law "Technical Regulations on the Safety phosphating and packaging. of Buildings and Structures". Also, in accordance with the "road map", it is As a result the production of machine-building bolts and planned to allow the construction nuts M6-M12 with a hex head and a flange according to DIN of industrial facilities in Russia 6921/6923 with the bolt strength class 5.8 was mastered; 8.8; 10.9 using foreign design docuand nuts 6; 8; 10. Fasteners could be with or without galvanized zinc mentation. The preparation coating. of the government's Screws M6-M12 with a cylindrical head and a hexagon socket for a act necessary for wrench according to DIN 912, strength class 5.8; 8.8; 10.9 is another new the procedure is type of product offered by MMK-METIZ. The main area of their use is the scheduled for assembly of cars and various mechanisms. This type of product could be with or June 2023. without galvanized zinc coating. MMK-METIZ also got the opportunity to offer its customers M6-M12 bolts and screws up to 180 mm in length, as well as bolts and screws with full threads up to 150 mm in length. At all stages of production, fasteners undergo various types of tests in factory laboratories, equipped with all the necessary testing equipment.
New Products of MMK-metiz Specialists of the technical center of OJSC MMK-METIZ have developed a new type of welding wire made of low-carbon alloy under the MagWire brand. The wire is intended for automatic and semi-automatic arc welding of low-alloy structural steels of increased strength in a mixture of shielding gases. The company bought a new complex for the production of galvanized wire with galvanizing units of the Belgian company FIB, which has a capacity of 12 thousand tons and allows the wire production with diameters from 1 to 6 mm.
Russian News In recent years, the plant has commissioned new modern facilities for fasteners production, including large sizes. Taiwanese cold heading and thread rolling machines for production of bolts and nuts, cold and hot heading equipment for the manufacture of railway fasteners were launched. In addition, a complex was purchased for preparation of calibrated rolled products for upsetting fasteners - furnaces from LOI, a fully automated galvanizing line Tesar-Ekogal was launched for galvanizing small fasteners with a diameter of 6 to 12 millimeters. OJSC MMK-METIZ has recently mastered the production of new types of fasteners: a screw with a flange for ventilated facades of the strength class 8.8 and self-tapping / self-drilling screws for a window profile.
Hilti Boosts Mobility: 100 New Volkswagen Transporters are Re-equipped to Showcase the Power of Construction Tools The Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles brand and the global manufacturer of professional solutions and tools for the construction industry, Hilti, have entered into an agreement for the supply of 100 new Transporter 6.1 vehicles. As part of the partnership, the Volkswagen Transporter vans will be converted to In Tatarstan, an innovative vehicle format to showcase Hilti's construction tools and It is Planned other solutions that can be conveniently mounted inside the vehicle to showcase their effectiveness. The body of the converted Transporter will quickly turn into a to Launch the mobile and stand-alone Hilti demo office when required.
In the Primorsky Territory, in 2 Years, They will Begin to Produce Fasteners
Production of Selftapping Screws with the Appropriation of a Loan from FRP
A preferential credit line was opened for a resident of the Free Port The Expert Council of the Industrial of Vladivostok for construction of the first Far Eastern factory for Development Fund (FRP) approved the possibility production of fasteners. In the Primorsky Territory, the Primstroitel of allocating a loan of 136.9 million rubles for company plans to launch import-substituting production in 2023. the implementation of a project for production of “There are no other manufacturers of fastening materials in the self-tapping screws in Tatarstan. The appropriations region now. Its launch in 2023 will allow local construction are supposed to be allocated under the FRP program companies to purchase domestic products at affordable "Development Projects". The Tempo-Metiz company from prices. At present, almost all screws in the Far Eastern Naberezhnye Chelny intends, using the funds raised, to launch Federal District are imported from China and the production of self-tapping screws with a zinc lamella coating. Taiwan”, - said Alexander Bondarenko, General During the implementation of the project, 41 jobs will be created. Director of Primstroitel LLC. He added that The total project budget will amount to 273.9 million rubles. the status of a resident of the free port of Vladivostok, in addition to the possibility of concessional lending, gives the company a wide range of other advantages that Ryazan Polytechnic University make it possible to implement the project successfully. Begins to Study the Technology
of Production of Fasteners
Since the beginning of the 2021 academic year at the Ryazan Institute of the Moscow State Polytechnic University, as part of the specialties in mechanical engineering technology, the course "Technology of fasteners production" has been opened. Lectures are given by Semyon Volkov, who has practical experience in creating fasteners production, relying on modern teaching aids and technical achievements of foreign companies in the field of metal forming, lubricants, heat treatment, application of protective coatings.
News provided by: Alexander Ostashov, editor of “Fasteners, Adhesives, Tools and...” Magazine Mariya Valiakhmetova, editor of “Metiz” Magazine
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China Fastener World no.64/2022
The total investment in the project will amount to 338.2 million rubles. The new production will create 31 jobs.
Brazilian News Fastener Suppliers Among Winners from GM Award
China Fastener World no.64/2022
compiled by Fastener World
Brazilian News
General Motors announced online in the early second half of 2021 the list of those awarded to the Quality Excellence Award 2020, which includes just suppliers that serve this giant automaker in South American operations. In total there were 133 suppliers, and 107 of them were from Brazil, 16 from Argentina, 7 from Colombia and 3 from Ecuador. Some of these suppliers, as listed below, were companies in Brazil that manufacture fasteners. Progeral (metal clamps) received the 7 Star Special Recognition.
Brazilian Steel Company Wins World Metallurgy Award 2021
At the end of October 2021, the Global Metals Awards, from S&P Global In Propulsion/Powertrain category, the fastener Platts, announced the current award receivers, players awarded were: which included Aço Verde do Brasil (AVB). - Irmãos Parasmo: 6 stars Manufacturing long carbon neutral steel, this - Rudolph Usinados: 5 stars Brazilian steel company, a subsidiary of Ferroeste - Böllhoff Brazil: 4 stars Group, was recognized to the main awards for the sector. - Lipos Fasteners: 4 stars - Metalac SPS: 3 stars The main products manufactured at the company’s plant - Continental Fasteners: 2 stars located in northeast Brazil, in Açailândia town, Maranhão State - Refal Rivets: 1 star - include wire rods and rebars (CA-50 and CA-60). With more than 2,300 employees, the company being the first steel mill in the world to produce carbon neutral steel, won in the ESG Development category. The AVB's carbon emission for steel production for the years 2019 and 2020 were respectively 0.06 and -0.04 tons of CO2 per ton of crude steel. Another 11 companies competed in the same category, including Alcoa, JLW Steel, Rio Tinto and Posco. "The carbon neutral certification and this award were just our first steps. We will continue to invest in the implementation of innovations with a new plant to produce briquette of co-products for use in our blast furnaces, aiming to be the first carbon neutral and zero residue plant, with 100% solid residues being reused in such operations", said Sandro Raposo, the AVB Industrial Director. Unfortunately, due to the Covid pandemic, the AVB staff avoided the trip to the ceremony held in London, UK. It was up to the General Secretary of the International Iron Metallics Association, John Atherton, to get the Award.
John Atherton
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Brazilian News
The Sun Shines Again for Trade Fairs in Brazil The Covid pandemic placed the uncertainty as the only answer in recent times, especially when it comes to events in which relationship is the key to success. So, we can describe as bold and "pioneering" the action of the organizers and the exhibitors of the event dedicated to the solar energy sector. The Intersolar South America was able to start the first trade fair since March 2020.
Fastener Imports into Brazil Won't Reach US$ 1 Billion
Months before, the exhibitors had to sign an agreement to put their teams and investments into the event without knowing if it would take place or not, a common question around the world, especially in Brazil this was deeply hit by infection and deaths. However, vaccination in Brazil has been a big success, with a high acceptance level, and the case number was already in a deep fall when the Intersolar was held, in October 18-20, in São Paulo City, SP.
However, in the first nine months of 2021, the fastener imports into Brazil totalled US$ 693.62 million (151,487.7 tons), a result of 38.92% up from US$ 499.27 million (104,052.1 tons) in 2020; and 11.57% higher than the record for the 12 months in 2019 which was US$ 621.65 million (123,923.4 tons).
The 2021 performance was good, but not enough to break the record. After all, the Brazilian currency has depreciated. Also, many circumstances have caused an impact, such as some production halts with automotive and auto parts companies, and the shortage of containers does not allow the imports to go beyond.
21st Anniversary
The company was founded by Michael Kleber and Enéas Henrique, when they were practically teenagers. In early 1990, Kleber and Henrique were employees at a fastener small store, separating and arranging several kinds of fasteners. Soon, the duo was working in sales. Michael Kleber and Enéas Henrique (New-Fix President and CEO)
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China Fastener World no.64/2022
The 2021 edition had a little more than 250 exhibitors and around 28 thousand visitors from 29 countries. Among the exhibitors, some were main fasteners companies with local factories and/or offices – including ARaymond, BelEnergy (from Belenus Group), Boltinox, Inox-Par, LuduFix, New-Fix Celebrates Max Del, Walsywa and others – showing their news on products and services to this emerging On normal and highly promising conditions, corporations sector, still almost celebrate when they achieve unexplored in Brazil ten years from foundation, with a big potential also 15, 20 years...and so for business in on. New-Fix, a young and very the next 5 to 10 successful fastener manufacturer in years. Brazil, was celebrating 21 years.
Brazilian News
In 1994 they founded their own fastener store to sell as a specialist in rivets. In 2000, the store had its own production to supply to some important customers. In 2002, an opportunity emerged to purchase a modest company named “NeoFix”, consolidating the current trademark New-Fix.
Jomarca Does not Stop Expansion Located in Guarulhos City, SP, around ten minutes from International São Paulo Airport, the huge area owned by Jomarca was amplified with the purchase of a neighbouring area of 6,800 m², the space once occupied by a chemical industry that already moved to another address.
China Fastener World no.64/2022
Currently operating with more Jomarca, one of the biggest Brazilian fastener manufacturers, has invested in than 540 employees, it is forecast expanding its industrial plant to 51,000 square meters in total. to achieve more than 15 thousand tons in production “This expansion directly impacts the production of fasteners for furniture industries. for 2021, including bolts, The new facilities have more machines to process raw materials to manufacture fasteners screws, nuts, as well as overall. In addition, this new space is to be occupied by new lines for painting and surface rivets in which Newtreatment,” said Ricardo Marques Castelhano, CEO of Jomarca. Fix is the Brazilian leader.
Ricardo and João Marques Castelhano (CEO and President of Jomarca)
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Brazilian News
Walsywa: Moving and Expanding A fastener player in the construction and solar energy markets, Walsywa, operates in its new headquarters in Jundiaí town, around 90 km from the state capital, São Paulo.
Ingepal: Deck Screws Decks surrounding swimming pools, porches, and gardens have a plastic resin composite which greatly expands and contracts when exposed to the weather.
The company is the only one in Brazil that has developed this type of screws in hardened steel, an item capable of resisting expansion and contraction.
João Pedro Schrott (President of Walsywa)
China Fastener World no.64/2022
For secure and long-lasting fixation without impacting the aesthetics in the construction or renovation of decks, the Brazilian fastener manufacturer, Ingepal, presents its line of exclusive screws for this type of application.
The modern and new address has a 13-meter high ceiling, and more than 8,000 pallets and eight docks, where the company can move batches with greater speed. It is very close to two of the five busiest highways in the country. The office is a modern and open environment with high floors, in addition to rooms for taking a rest and playing games, thus generating greater interaction with the collaborators. It has a very modern laboratory which is still under construction.
News provided by: Sergio Milatias, Editor Revista do Parafuso (The Fastener Brazil Magazine) milatias@revistadoparafuso.com.br www.revistadoparafuso.com
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Industry Focus
inancial Reports of
Compiled by Fastener World
Updated on Feb. 17, 2022 Monetary unit in millions
astener Companies U.S.A Company
Financial Year
Net Sales
(USD)
Gross Profit
Operating Income
Pre-tax Income
Net Income (Loss)
2021
12,152
---
---
1,199
429
2020
9,286
---
---
173
(170)
Change (%)
▲30.8
---
---
▲593
2021
1,531.8
712.9
300.9
298.5
231.2
2020
1,358.0
618.8
264.4
262.2
196.1
Change (%)
▲12.7
▲15.2
▲13.8
▲13.8
▲17.8
2021
13,022
---
1,547
1,485
1,043
2020
11,797
---
1,019
947
695
Change (%)
▲10.3
---
▲51.8
▲56.8
▲50.0
---
2021
3,243.224
1,333.515
301.769
288.379
216.907
2020
3,192.399
1,343.322
350.740
334.250
251.117
▲1.5
▼0.7
▼13.9
▼13.7
▼13.6
Change (%) 2021
36,483.939
---
---
9,200.858
6,827.461
2020
20,139.658
---
---
835.538
721.470
▲81.1
---
---
▲10 folds
▲846
Change (%) 2021
1,573.217
755.030
367.793
358.549
266.447
2020
1,267.945
576.384
252.363
249.564
187.000
▲24.0
▲30.9
▲45.7
▲43.6
▲42.4
Change (%)
Europe
China Fastener World no.64/2022
Company
092
Financial Year
Net Sales
Gross Profit
2021 vs. 2020 Total Assets 15,003 vs. 14,860 4,299.0 vs. 3,964.7 6,592 vs. 6,295 2,462.115 vs. 2,382.430 25,823.072 vs. 20,125.394 1,484.125 vs. 1,232.569
(SEK)
Operating Profit
Pretax Profit
Net Profit
2021
5,878
1,638
664
615
470
2020
4,756
1,252
452
391
299
Change (%)
▲23.5
▲30.8
▲46.9
▲57.2
▲57.1
2021
3,730
710
232
210
154
2020
3,195
567
116
87
50
Change (%)
▲16.7
▲25.2
▲100
▲141
▲208
2021 vs. 2020 Total Assets 6,573 vs. 4,991 3,419 vs. 3,071
Technology Preface As it is known, an uncontrolled tightening of bolted fasteners with hand or with unprecise torque wrench is mostly used in common mechanical engineering practice. The reason is not only unwillingness to invest in quality tools, but mainly fixed idea, that it is sufficient to control tightening by senses. Both reasons are irrelevant. It is easy to prove, that to invest in exact tightening is effective and the sense by hand can not be considered a technical category. That is why it is important to tighten exactly to the set level of assembly preload determined by the strength of screw and the nut and to the prediction about the change of preload during operation. It is an object of the present assembly method to provide a threaded fastening system that is torque resistant. According to classic opinions, represented in particular by the recommendation of VDI 2230, screw connections should be tightened to a maximum level of 0.9 Rp0.2, which means with a 10% security reserve. The latest knowledge, especially from the automotive industry (ŠKODA Auto, VW), however, but also from some screw manufacturers (RIBE), is to not give much recognition with this rule. They recommend using the effect of mechanical cold hardening by tightening above the yield point.
SMART MONT
by Jozef Dominik
Stepped Assembly of Bolted Joints Theory and Principle of SMART MONT Tightening
China Fastener World no.64/2022
O ne of t he met hods of usi ng mechanical cold hardening effect and controllable, not chaotic montage of bolted fasteners and of the preservation of preload at the same level is the promoted system named SmartMont (SM - in short from smart montage). In principle it is a pair of counter-mounted case-hardened washers (Fig. 1a and b), which are wavy on the inside and grooved on the outside (Fig. 2, 3). The height of the wavy lines k (Fig. 3) to which the cold hardening level depends is important.
Fig. 1a
Fig. 1b
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
The principle results from Fig. 3. As can be seen from this figure, the classic tension diagram is supplemented by another assembly cycle. This is achieved by cou nter-rot ati ng t he washers. It is a matter of f u r t her research to find the optimal ratio between the height of the wavy lines k and the distance between their peaks L. The base condition of correct SM operation is that the friction on the outer bearing surface Fo is higher than the friction between both washers F b . Fo > F b This is achieved by appropriate gearing or by ribbing the outer contact surface of both washers (Fig. 3). One washer can advantageously be integrated directly with the nut (Fig. 4). This variant makes sense especially when joining parts are hardened max. on the class 8.8 or in the annealed state of 5.6 only . In this case the opposite washer is not required because the necessary opposite depressions are created automatically during assembly.
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Technology The actual assembly takes place in three stages: Preload to FM, overload to Fmax and come back to FM. This cycle can be freely repeated.
Main benefits:
Fig. 5
(1) Cold hardening directly during assembly of bolts and comeback to the area of “Security Rubikon” (Fig. 3). (2) Possibility of using lower alloy steel 5.6 instead of 8.8 for screws (Fig. 4). In the case of the application of screws 5.6, a significant economic effect would be obtained, as the expensive hardening operation would be eliminated. (3) Reliable locking against spontaneous loosening. This ability of a pair of SM washers is a basic condition for the safe operation of the screw joint and thus of the entire structure. (4) Using the flange nut according to Figure 4, represents simplified logistics as well as the assembly itself. This advantage is manifested mainly in reassembly. (5) And last but not least the Smart Mont system can also be used for nutless screw connections. In this case, the corrugation must be applied directly under the screw head with integrated flange. That is the best option. However, the joined parts must not be made of highalloy structural steels.
Fig. 4
Conclusion As can be seen the presented new method of assembling bolted joints represents an alternative to commonly known used securing methods. The main benefit of this assembly compared to them is the use of cold hardening effect during tightening which makes it possible to replace hardened steels of strength 8.8 with steels of strength 5.6. The ideal combination is the application of a flange nut according to Figure 4 and the SM washer. All this gives the designer a good chance to rationalize production and increase product safety wherever structural nodes are dynamically stressed during operation as presses and forging machines, rolling mills, high pressure cleaning systems locomotives, machine tools, etc.
China Fastener World no.64/2022
A preferred variant of the SM system solution is shown in Fig. 5. This variant allows, similarly to nuts with integrated flange, to rotate one structurally slightly modified washer together with the nut during assembly. The washer is in this case provided on the outer diameter with at least two driving surfaces. However, special tightening tools are required.
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