4/8/2011 1:56:00 AM
NEWS BRIEFS
Rockford Company Among Suppliers Hampered By OEMs Production Cuts
As suppliers around the world adjust to the fallout from the crisis gripping Japan, more precise figures on the scale of OEM cutbacks are emerging.
Rockford, IL-based Rocknel Fastener supplies bolts to Honda and Mitsubishi — whose production has been drastically altered.
“Our main customer has cut their production to half,” Rocknel executive David Sato told the Rockford Register Star. “We are not interrupted by any means, but since our customers are not building their cars, there’s no reason for us to supply the parts.”
Rocknel was formed in the 1980s as a joint venture between Rockford-based Elco Industries and Nagoya Screw Manufacturing Co. Ltd. of Japan. In 1998, Meira Inc. — formerly Nagoya Screw — bought the outstanding shares, making Rocknel its wholly owned subsidiary.
Rocknel has a plant about 100 miles north of the disaster area in Japan. While its facility was not damaged, the automotive fastener manufacturer’s largest customer is Honda, and Sato told WIFR TV that it will be a long time before most of the carmaker’s plants resume full production.
U.S. fastener companies with facilities in Japan expect a long recovery from the series of disasters rocking the island nation.
A 9.0 magnitude earthquake hit Japan’s northeastern coast on March 11, followed by a 30-foot tsunami, which resulted in a partial meltdown of at least one nuclear reactor in the area. ©2011 GlobalFastenerNews.com
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