Global Fastener News

Hebert: Distribution Tougher Than He Thought

John Wolz

After 27 years of marketing for a leading fastener manufacturer, Jay Hebert switched to marketing for a master distributor and importer.
Hebert told the Western Association of Fastener Distributors that he finds his new job as vice president for marketing at Porteous Fastener Company �is a more complicated business� than having the same title at Lake Erie Screw Corporation.
�I thought I was getting away from the tough manufacturing business,� Hebert mused.
Lake Erie specializes in JIT manufacturing. Porteous carries 70 million pounds of finished product in inventory. Porteous stocks 70,000 SKUs vs. �maybe a couple thousand� different products at Lake Erie.
Porteous has 3,000 customers vs. 300 for Lake Erie and 15 facilities vs. 2.
At Lake Erie Hebert had to know cap screws. At Porteous he has to know almost all fasteners.
Hebert also has had to learn quickly about importing and foreign fastener manufacturers.
He noted that during the more than a decade process of developing and amending the U.S. Fastener Quality Act, fastener manufacturers exporting to the U.S. found �they had to embrace ISO/QS if they were going to play ball. As a result the playing field is being leveled.�
Years ago Taiwan manufacturers improved their quality levels, and increasingly �China is looking like Taiwan.�
There are differences in other countries that are important to understand. U.S. law prohibits competitors from talking prices among themselves, but in Taiwan they can, Hebert observed.
Quality remains a challenge for all manufacturers. �The expectation of zero defects is way beyond reality. Zero defects is unrealistic,� Hebert said of automakers� demands despite dramatic gains in quality.
�I do not miss working with automotive,� Hebert sighed.
And price will always be an issue, he predicted. �There is always someone selling cheaper.�
Price is much of what computers and the Internet are about.
�We have to embrace e-commerce,� Hebert emphasized. Porteous has begun online stock checking for distributor customers and later this year will add online ordering.
�There are too many dollars lost to inventory in the supply chain,� he explained.
There are similarities, Hebert observed. �When you are in sales, the company reputation is so important. Lake Erie and Porteous are each first class. That�s made the transition easier.�
Manufacturing and distribution customers are alike, Hebert finds. �They are demanding, savvy, more technical than ever, always one step ahead and hard to please.�
Hebert noted the cultural differences between the more formal Midwest from Southern California. �My ties are in my Midwest tie drawer,� Hebert chuckled. �I sometimes have a hard time remembering where it is.�
�For the first time in my life, rain is an �event� and snow is �up there� in the mountains,� Hebert said of his move from Cleveland.
In common are �three great CEOs to work with, men of impeccable integrity, warmth and enthusiasm for the business,� Hebert said in reference to retired Lake Erie CEO George Wasmer and current CEOs Jerry Begue and Barry Porteous. �They are the kind of people you want to sell for.�