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A Quick Look Back:
The real starting point for the North American
fastener industry goes back to 1840 when Rugg &
Barnes of Marion, Connecticut established itself as
America's first firm solely for the manufacture and
sale of nuts and bolts.
Competition soon sprang up,
and with it, a major problem with bolt and nut
interchangeability caused by screw thread variance
from one shop to the next. To meet that problem,
William Sellers proposed an American standard for
screw threads, bolt heads, and nuts in 1884. That
concept was gradually accepted, and the industry
began to grow.
With that growth came the need for an industry
association, and finally in 1931, a dozen fastener
manufacturers met in Cleveland, Ohio, to form the
American Institute of Bolt, Nut, and Rivet
Manufacturers - the precursor of the Industrial
Fasteners Institute.
In 1949, the association
adopted the Industrial Fasteners Institute name (IFI
for short). Today, IFI is comprised of the leading
North American manufacturers of bolts, nuts, screws,
rivets, and all types of special formed parts.
Leading suppliers to the industry are also included
as associate members.
Crisis And Comeback:
By 1969, the North American fastener industry
numbered 450 companies with 600 plants and 50,000
employees producing two billion fasteners a year.
But by 1984, only 250 companies, 360 plants, and
some 35,000 employees remained. Clearly the industry
was in crisis.
First, because of a major invasion of
foreign fasteners at significantly lower prices.
Second, because OEMs in the 1980s began using
automated assembly equipment requiring virtually
defect-free fasteners and just-in-time (JIT)
delivery.
The industry's response to both of these challenges
was to turn to highly engineered, value-added
fasteners, both standard and custom order, as well
as formed parts with the fastening function designed
in that lowered assembly, labor, and inventory
costs. In support, IFI underwent a major
restructuring in 1981 to promote the industry's new
and diversified manufacturing skills.
Still, the real turnaround began to take shape in
1985 when IFI, after exhaustive research, confirmed
that millions of mis-marked, bogus, and counterfeit
bolts - most of them imports - had already been
installed on equipment in the United States, with
many more still in the fastener distribution system.
Because these fasteners did not conform to the
required standards, they posed a serious hazard that
could result in equipment failure, personal injury,
and even loss of life. As the scandal gained
momentum, Congress started an investigation that led
to the Fastener Quality Act in 1990.
The demand for
U.S.-made fasteners, with documented and traceable
quality control records, soared, and the North
American fastener industry was on its way back.
The Industry Today:
As of 1996-97, it is estimated that the U.S.
fastener industry operates 380 major manufacturing
facilities with 44,000 employees and total U.S.
sales of 7.5 billion dollars. But still, new
challenges continue to present themselves. Although
the Fastener Quality Act was passed into law, its
regulations have yet to be implemented.
With a
target date for implementation of May 1998, the need
still existed to resolve issues to clarify, simplify
and control the cost impact of the new regulations.
One of the most critical issues is the act's quality
assurance requirements and regulations in light of
the sophisticated in-process manufacturing
capabilities that have been put in place since the
law was originally enacted.
As currently constituted, North American fastener
production is strongly tied to the production of
automobiles, aircraft, appliances, construction and
agricultural machinery and equipment, and the
construction of commercial buildings and
infrastructure. More than 200 billion fasteners are
consumed annually in the U.S. - 26 billion by the
auto industry alone.
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The Fastener Quality Act (FQA), Public Law 101-592, was signed
by President Bush on November 16, 1990. The Act protects the
public safety by: (1) requiring that certain fasteners sold in
commerce conform to the specifications to which they are
represented to be manufactured, (2) providing for
accreditation of laboratories engaged in fastener testing, and
(3) requiring inspection, testing and certification in
accordance with standardized methods.
The Act requires the Secretary of Commerce, acting through the
Director of NIST, to establish a laboratory accreditation
program for fastener testing laboratories under the procedures
of the National Voluntary Laboratory Accreditation Program (NVLAP).
The accreditation program includes test methods which are
required by fastener specifications or standards covered by
the Act. Since fastener testing involves a wide range of
expertise, accreditation will be offered in the areas of
mechanical and physical testing and inspection, metallography,
nondestructive inspection, dimensional inspection, and
chemical analysis.
On March 7, 1996, President Clinton signed the National
Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995, Public Law
104-113, which amended the Fastener Quality Act to further
clarify and define the requirements of the original Act.
Click here for more information on the Fastener Quality Act. |
