NEWS
Nedschroef agrees to buy two Whitesell plants Koninklijke Nedschroef Holdings B.V has signed a purchase agreement to acquire the assets of Whitesell Beckingen and Whitesell Schrozberg, subject to approval by competition authorities.
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hitesell entered insolvency in January 2015, having twice previously gone through the process – with the US Whitesell Group buying the four German plants at the beginning of 2014. The purchase agreement represents Nedschroef’s first acquisition under the new ownership of Shanghai Prime Machinery Company Limited. The acquisition is seen as “another step in in Nedschroef’s vision to become the leading global fasteners partner for future mobility – focusing on value for customers with advanced solutions and services”. Mathias Hüttenrauch, CEO of Nedschroef, said he was very positive about the planned transaction, for three major reasons. On people he said: “I am convinced that we as Nedschroef are in a position to offer Whitesell employees a better future compared to the past. In our long-term growth plans we will further focus on engineered fasteners. I was able to see craftsmanship and high-quality work reflected by the people from Schrozberg and Beckingen, which grew my confidence in them.”
On technology he noted: “Both plants have outstanding technologies, which are required in the worldwide fasteners industry. With the acquisition of Beckingen we are able to generate know-how and capacity for coating, which we do not have so far. Schrozberg’s history is driven through development, engineering and production of complex cold forged products. Together with our machine capabilities we will open new perspectives there.” Regarding customers and time to market, he said: “Currently there is a strong need for an increase in time to market for new businesses. With these additional capacities we will be able to offer more flexibility to our customers and help them on a short notice to overcome their bottlenecks.” NGZ-online reports that the insolvency administrator has told 116 employees at Neuss Schraubenfabrik that he will continue in negotiations with two prospective purchasers, one interested in the Neuss plant only; another in both Neuss and the plant at Neuwied.
Dokka Fasteners to close Michigan plant On 28th August Dokka Fasteners Inc announced it will cease operations at its Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA, plant by the end of 2015; the closure process beginning immediately. Dokka emphasises that the decision solely affects the USA facility and not its operations in Norway.
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he statement issued by CEO Louis Vasilevski notes: “The decision to close Dokka Fasteners in Auburn Hills, MI, was difficult after just committing to build the state of the art facility in 2010. Although the plant start-up went well, the business was subject to uncertainty due to the state of the wind industry in the United States. The landscape for wind energy is volatile based on a lack of a committed US renewable energy policy, gridlock of government in Washington, and the uncertainty of the production tax credit. Furthermore, inexpensive fossil fuels continue to pose a challenge to the growth of renewable energy. Lastly, the strong US dollar has made competing against European competitors and low priced
Asian imports increasingly difficult. The Dokka Fasteners Norway plant will continue to support customers demanding high-quality fasteners used in extreme applications.” Dokka Fasteners joined the Würth Group as part of the acquisition of Arvid Nilsson in 2008. The product of a US$20 million investment, the Auburn Hills hot forging and machining operation opened in late 2011. It uses automation and robotics throughout to manufacture fasteners for critical applications and harsh environments. At the beginning of 2015 Dokka relocated production from Cardinal Fasteners, which it acquired from bankruptcy in 2011, to the Auburn Hills plant, north of Detroit.
Screwfix reports strong growth In a pre-close update Kingfisher Group reported half year sales for its Screwfix trade supply subsidiary were up 27.5% on the same period in the previous year.
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crewfix opened eleven outlets during Kingfisher’s second Quarter bringing its total presence in UK and Ireland to 412 branches. Like-for-like sales increased 16% year to date. Group sales for Q2 were up 4.8% (+3.5% LFL). For the financial year to date (23 weeks to 11th July) full Group sales were up 3.7% (+2.1% LFL). B&Q UK and Ireland reported year to date sales up 4.7% (+3.3% LFL).
Fastener + Fixing Magazine • Issue 95 September 2015