What Are Supply Chain Issues In China Doing To The Fastener Industry?
Supply chain issues in China are affecting a number of industries—especially fasteners. Why? Lots of companies need them.
If you are looking to avoid fastener supply chain breakdowns, there is a way.
Although they may appear small and negligible, the reality is that fasteners are crucial components that affect the functionality of various machines and equipment. The loss of fasteners could disrupt or halt production lines, resulting in financial losses for companies.
Therefore, it is essential to avoid breakdowns in your fastener supply chain to ensure effective production line operations.
What are fasteners?
Fasteners are hardware tools used for joining objects or different parts of equipment. Big Bolt designs and creates a diverse range of fasteners, including nuts and bolts, AMCE fasteners, washers, rods, and studs.
What Causes Breakdowns in Your Fastener Supply Chain?
Breakdowns in manufacturers', suppliers', or buyers' fastener supply chains can occur for the following reasons;
- Frequent stockouts among suppliers.
- Wrong fastener purchases among buyers.
- Poor ordering systems among buyers.
- Low-quality fasteners.
- Supply from the wrong distributors/suppliers.
- Shipping delays.
- Supplier fastener shortages.
- Supplier logistical problems.
- Frantic purchases by buyers.
Eliminating Breakdowns in Your Fastener Supply Chain
Manufacturers, suppliers, or buyers can use the following strategies to optimize and create successful fastener supply chains.
Blanket Orders: This helps to satisfy long-term demand requirements.
Communication & relationships: Open communication among supply chain stakeholders creates successful fastener supply chains. Manufacturers or suppliers should consider open communication about their offers, while buyers should consider open communication about their needs. For instance, a purchasing manager may inform the distributor that the company needs a weekly supply of one thousand floor nails.
Another important aspect of open communication is developing trustworthy stakeholder relationships and maintaining regular contact. If you are an OEM or distributor, you should consider keeping your clients updated on available products and offering options. A stable relationship with distributors allows purchasing managers to effectively adopt vendor-managed inventory, which helps to manage fastener orders, supply, and shipping.
E-commerce: Brick-and-mortar manufacturers and suppliers face stiff competition from online distributors such as Amazon Prime. These manufacturers and suppliers can beat the competition by investing in e-commerce. It could also help them to grow their market share, communicate with clients, and avoid problems such as shipping delays.
Ethics and compliance: Supply chain relationships between manufacturers, suppliers, and buyers are based on ethics and compliance. Manufacturers and suppliers should apply ethics and compliance by ensuring they develop fasteners that meet appropriate industry standards for quality and safety.
Purchasing managers can ensure ethics and compliance by considering non-compete suppliers to prevent disclosure of business transactions to third parties. They should ensure they confirm the supplier's compliance certification and material test report as it indicates their expertise and the quality of the fastener they produce.
Share the knowledge: Most clients are unaware of the appropriate choices of fasteners, especially startups or companies launching new product lines. OEMs or distributors can help customers avoid making the wrong fastener purchases by sharing options and professional installation tips. Hence, buyers evaluate manufacturer/ supplier expertise before purchasing; hence, investing in a specialized customer service team for knowledge sharing attracts more customers.
Advanced technologies: Manufacturers, suppliers, and buyers should consider adopting smart technologies to save time and avoid errors caused by manual inventory tracking. They can use technologies such as barcode scanners and resource planning software to help track and monitor faster orders. Buyers can also use automated reordering software for ordering and inventory management to ensure adequate stocking and a timely supply of fasteners.
Efficiency: Manufacturers and suppliers must provide efficient services that satisfy the customer's needs. Appropriate supply chain practices such as timely shipping and delivering accurate orders promote customer satisfaction and supply chain optimization.
How Big Bolt Can Help
We manufacture and sell high-quality fasteners at Big Bolt. We have some of the fastest turnaround times in the industry because of our large array of bar and blank stock. This helps to minimize supply disruptions.
Our capabilities include:
- A massive stockpile of blanks
- The capacity to thread your request on-site
- An almost non-stop manufacturing schedule
Contact Big Bolt if you are a business interested in high-quality and reliable fasteners for your assembly or production line. We have a team of fastener, industrial, and design engineers committed to designing and creating quality customized fasteners that match our client's needs. Make Big Bolt your fastener supplier and learn more about our fasteners by connecting with us today.
