Purchasing takes center stage at Fastenal customer event
The distributor provides total cost of ownership training at its annual Industrial & Construction Expo
By Susan Avery -- Purchasing, 5/3/2007 2:00:00 AM
"Growth through customer service" has long been the motto of industrial distributor Fastenal Co., Winona, Minn. Nowhere was this more evident than at the company's fifth annual Industrial & Construction Expo held last month in Nashville, Tenn.
More than 4,000 Fastenal customers—many of whom are MRO purchasing professionals—attended the three-day event that this year boasted more than 200 booths manned by the distributor's manufacturing suppliers. MRO stands for maintenance, repair and operations.
"The expo is a good opportunity to see many manufacturers at one time," says Bob Cook, a buyer at Frank J. Zamboni & Co., in Paramount, Calif. He was typical of customers at the show. Cook also liked being able to spend time getting to know Fastenal's employees better "away from the purchasing experience." Attending the show helps strengthen his company's relationships with suppliers, he added.
Likewise, manufacturers view the expo as a way to help the distributor educate its customers on new products and technologies. One who says so is Jim Reimbold, national accounts manager at Briggs & Stratton Power Products Group in Jefferson, Wisc. Purchasing professionals visiting his company's booth were looking for more information on the company's power tools.
Customer training sessions, a mainstay of the expo, this year focused on topics of special interest to purchasers such as "Total Cost: A Real Opportunity to Save", "Drive Out Total Cost of Ownership in Your Supply Chain", "Strategic Planning for Supply Chain Solutions" and "Personal Protective Equipment: 3M & Ansell".
Purchasing pros attending these sessions could receive continuing education credits from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) toward recertification of their CPM (certified purchasing manager) designation. ISM and Purchasing each had booths at the expo. ISM was there to provide information on benefits of becoming a member of the association, while at the Purchasing booth, expo attendees could nominate purchasers for the magazine's All-Star MRO Buy team.
 Training sessions focused on topics of interest to purchasing professionals including driving cost out of the supply chain by Tim Underhill of Strategic Business Solutions. |
At one session, Tim Underhill of Strategic Business Solutions instructed attendees—both purchasing pros and Fastenal employees—on ways to get the most out of the supply chain—and keep total costs low. In fact, he suggested that purchasers ask their suppliers, "How can you help make my company more profitable?" Some ways are: VMI (vendor managed inventory), energy audits and enlisting manufacturing expertise. As a consultant, Underhill works with both purchasing and distributor management on such issues as total cost of ownership, strategic sourcing and supply chain management.
Manufacturer suppliers conducted other sessions. At the "Go Green to Save: Environmentally Friendly Buildings" session, Mark Hartman, customer marketing manager, industrial supply, at Kimberly Clark Professional, and Gary Walk, channel development manager, safety and industrial, also of Kimberly Clark Professional, explained environmental guidelines to attendees. For instance, the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System is a national benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high-performance green buildings. Such buildings can help save on waste costs (by up to 90%), water use (by up to 50%) and energy (by 30%). The two also talked of using "green" cleaning products.
"We feel that offering these educational sessions at no cost to our customers is just another opportunity to enhance our relationships with them," said Will Oberton, president and CEO, in a welcoming address. "At Fastenal, our motto has always been 'growth through customer service'. We have also adopted the philosophy of 'getting it right'. From our service, to our products, to our relations with customers and suppliers, we continually strive to do our best." At the expo, Oberton was on the show floor meeting with customers and suppliers alike.
This year, the trade show floor was divided into product categories to make it easier for customers to locate the manufacturers they wished to meet. These included: janitorial supplies; paints and chemicals; hydraulics/pneumatics/power transmission products; electrical supplies; material handling products; air and hand tools; and abrasives. To help build their customers' relationships with the manufacturers, Fastenal employees visited the booths with attendees.
Fastenal also demonstrated some of its capabilities at the show. These include custom packaging, lighting, manufacturing, global trading through its Fastco unit, construction, and supplier diversity.
At the Fastenal Customer Technology Center, employees were on hand to demo such new capabilities as SmartScale, an automated bin-replenishment solution; SmartScan, a self-service ordering system and SmartCrib, an inventory management solution.
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