A Review & Preview of 2012 & 2013--Hear What Leading Fastener Companies Say

In this yearbook, we Editorial Dept. have included a Q&A interview specifically for our readers with the global leading fastener companies. We believe their insights into the industry shaped by their years of experience and expertise will lead you to see the recent trends and future prospects of the industry.


Q1. Looking back to the year 2012 so far, the European debt crisis continues to weigh down the world economy while U.S. economy recovers at a tepid pace. How do you see these impacts on the fastener sector and how have the overall fastener production and sales been affected this year?

Norma Group CEO: Despite the overall economic situation, our sales in the EMEA region only posted a minor decline in the first half of 2012. We also witnessed solid growth in the Americas region, in which the demand for joining products stays high, and Asia-Pacific posted significant increase in fastener sales as well. For the remainder of 2012 we expect the business to grow slightly in Germany and Northern European markets. In Asia-Pacific and in the Americas the growth potential will remain high. Overall, we still see opportunities for the fastener business to expand globally despite the cooling down of the global economy. This is due to the prevailing megatrends such as growing environmental awareness, stricter emission standards, rising fuel costs and higher cost pressure. These trends are independent of any economic cycles and continuously demand sophisticated technological solutions used in customer end products that address them.

Achill General Manager: European fastener companies have survived 2012 with their stable order backlogs. The previous long-term contracts have supported their business so far this year while the economic environment has no any impact on the industry. On the other hand, the new orders are decreasing as the manufacturing process streamlined by the shorter lead time leads to excessive capacity. Facing the full stock, the companies need to work out how to reduce the stock as the price deceases.

Nord-Lock Global Sales and Marketing Director: The global economy definitely plays an important role in shaping the performance of the fastener industry. Despite the slower growth in some of the matured markets, we are still positive with the outlook in emerging markets. Companies who are users or manufacturers of critical applications know that costs of failure are increasing every year and on top of the monetary costs, no company can afford to jeopardize its reputation. Hence, the emphasis of using effective bolt securing systems is still very strong among heavy industries and Nord-Lock continues to produce reliable bolting solutions for our customers which increase the life cycle profitability of their applications. Additionally, the Nord-Lock Group acquired Superbolt Inc (America) and P&S Vorspannsysteme AG (Switzerland) in autumn 2011. With the combined competence of all our innovative bolt securing technologies, we have expanded into more markets since then and have catered to a wider range of special demands.

Vossloh Managing Director: As a worldwide operating manufacturer, we have seen activity shifts but overall business remains stable. While some countries, e.g. in Southern Europe, seem to have slowed expenditure while reviewing their finances others, e.g. China, have opted to invest anti-cyclically into rail networks. In general we do see a global trend favoring the rail infrastructure and transportation industry.

Wurth Quality and Supplier Qualification: During the first quarter of 2012 sales were still quite good. However, starting from 2nd quarter of the year, most of the customers became more sensitive in purchasing fasteners even despite their order situation still being good. It seems that the customers try to reduce the stock value as a kind or risk minimization. As consequence, orders for the fastener production were and will be further reduced.

Q2. In recent years "Innovation" has become a must in improving one's competitiveness. In addition to new product design, new technology R&D, and new management mode, creative marketing ideas and sales strategies are necessary. What do you think is the most important factor in successfully innovating to strengthen one's market presence?

Norma Group CEO: I believe that the most important factor is to understand and anticipate customers' requirements. Our engineers develop together with our customers the necessary joining solutions three to five years prior to the production start of their end products. We customize our solutions that we have developed in Europe and the USA and introduce them to the Emerging Markets where environmental trends follow usually with a time lag. We establish ourselves as technology leaders there and profit from this growth potential. Another factor is local presence and the transfer of technology and industry know-how into the growth regions. A management team with a good network and an engineering presence in these countries is vital if a company wants to prosper. In addition, it is of paramount importance to understand the culture and to respond to the unique customer requirements on the spot. This is what we do for instance in China, India or Thailand.

In addition, we are continuously striving to address the "white spots" in our product portfolio and global footprint. We have just recently acquired Connectors Verbindungstechnik in Switzerland with a focus on joining solutions for the pharma and biotech industry, and Nordic Metalblok in Italy with an expertise in clamps for the heating, ventilation and air conditioning industry as well as the agricultural and construction sectors.

Achill General Manager: Innovation for us means new sales strategies. Our competitiveness lies in our wide product range & availability, fast delivery, and high quality. Since the establishment of effective marketing channels is important for one to meet his sales objectives, we expect to provide our services to the global market, not only to the headquarters but also to their branches located worldwide. The setup of webshop sales service satisfies today's market need while the sales staff can be customers' best face-to-face consultants. With a completely and comprehensively structured sales network, the most determining factor then comes to the "price."

Nord-Lock Global Sales and Marketing Director: The most important factor is the commitments to our customers. At Nord-Lock, our competitive advantage lies in our focus on being the partner in bolting solutions of our customers. We work closely with them to eliminate insecurity on bolted applications with the know-how we possess from our knowledge and expertise of solving bolted challenges in the past 30 years. With Nord-Lock Performance Services, we create partnership projects with our customers and the objective is to increase their profitability by developing a comprehensive and detailed view of bolted connection design and security methods. Our skilled engineers assist our customers with joint simulation and testing in the design phase and we also ensure successful operations over time with our on-site support and remote product training.

Vossloh Managing Director: Despite the conservative nature of our industry documented in long product lifecycles, Innovation remains a key to our success. In our view innovation ranges from developing new fastening systems for new markets or segments to transferring proven products from our wide range of systems to other markets with similar requirements. Most importantly to our industry is the focus on reliability resulting in our commitment to continuously improve our already reliable products.

Wurth Quality and Supplier Qualification: Short distance between customer and production or, supplier. This is one of the Würth Group's most important key success-factors. The close proximity to our customers helps us to be fast and unique.

Q3. Looking forward to 2013, what do you think about the prospect of the fastener industry? Which new emerging market is getting your attention? What's your suggestion to your fellow companies regarding the future investments?

Norma Group CEO: As I mentioned before, we are facing global megatrends which are causing a rising demand for engineered joining technology used in customer end products. In emerging countries, the demand for joining technology is evolving rapidly as the standard of living increases and more sophisticated solutions are asked for. Exhaust treatment is increasingly in focus not just in Europe but also in Asia. This development is underpinned by stricter emission regulation. While Europe is already preparing the Euro 6 directive, demand in China, for instance, is driven by the Euro 5 directive. These regulations will also be introduced in the Emerging Markets in the years to come. 

In 2013 we will continue to exploit growth potentials arising from the increasing customer requirements such as reducing weight and leakages, enhancing engine efficiency, or allowing for the modularization of production processes. We accomplish this by strategically focusing on and investing in R&D efforts. In addition, we have expanded our product portfolio and will continue to do so to cover sectors such as infrastructure, construction, water management or the pharma and biotech industry that offer good growth opportunities. Moreover, we want to gain an even better access to clients, further build our distribution network, strengthen our product portfolio and exploit additional synergies.

Achill General Manager: The year 2013 in the European fastener market would begin with a slow business and recover its momentum in the second quarter owing to the low stock. In 2013, we will participate in the fastener shows in Russia and Taiwan to open and expand our new markets. On the other hand, Asian countries such as Singapore will be our target customers. We are continuing to develop and make our product range attractive to customers, offering more special products than just standard DIN fasteners.

Nord-Lock Global Sales and Marketing Director: We remain positive on the outlook of the fastener industry in 2013 as bolting solutions remain an important element of critical applications used in extreme conditions. The Nord-Lock Group will continue to strengthen its position as a global solutions provider and transit into a knowledge and engineering based business. With higher growth in the Asian markets, we certainly look forward to expand further within the region. Local offices have already been established in Japan, Singapore and China, and we are looking further towards the development of Korean and Indian markets. To fellow companies - being a deliverer of safety solutions, we should always be consistent and committed in the solutions we provide our customers. Always ensure high-quality and authentic products are developed for customers who entrusted their investments on you.

Vossloh Managing Director: Differentiating regional from segment growth, we expect regional growth in South America (i.e. Brazil) and Africa and segment wise in the Urban Transport and Heavy Haul segments, as the global megatrends of urbanization and increasing demand for raw materials are unbroken.

Wurth Quality and Supplier Qualification: Würth is already represented in more or less all industrial and emerging countries. Future investments should only be done if there is benefit for quality and/or productivity. Of course, never forget to invest in innovation!

Q4. Do you have anything more to talk to and share with the fastener industry?

Norma Group CEO: The growth potential for the fastener industry is huge. We are trying to adapt new solutions to different markets and applications. For example in infrastructure there are new challenges. As buildings become higher and higher, performance requirements for joining solutions increase equally. Water supply is also important. As this resource is increasingly becoming a precious commodity, leaks in water supply systems must be avoided. We see water as an important sector for our future, whether it is desalination systems or eliminating waste. Other developments that are painting a positive picture for the fastener industry are, for instance, toughening requirements in power generation, construction and agricultural equipment, and in marine applications.

Achill General Manager: We hope in the end of 2012, the market will level off. In the last four years, the fastener market in Europe has been volatile. Looking forward to a market with steady growth, we expect the market to continue to grow for everybody. Next April, we will participate in the International Fastener Show Tainan, TAIWAN. Come to join us at this great fastener event to open up your Asian market!

Nord-Lock Global Sales and Marketing Director: We recently introduced a new evolution in bolt security with the launch of Nord-Lock X-series washers. With new technologies and demands, joints increasingly have to withstand stresses from multiple fronts, including vibration, dynamic loads, settlement and relaxation. X-series combines Nord-Lock's unmatched wedge-locking protection against spontaneous bolt loosening due to vibration and dynamic loads with an exceptional spring effect to protect against slackening due to settlement and relaxation.

Wurth Quality and Supplier Qualification: As mentioned already, one of the biggest advantages of the Würth Group is the short distance between customer and production. Innovation has become a must, the German parent company Adolf Würth GmbH & Co. KG set up a representative office in Taiwan/Kangshan. The main target is to strength the cooperation with our partners in regards of improving products and quality as well as to develop new product lines and innovative fastener products. This is one of the reasons why we employ technical engineers in our representative office.