INTERVIEW WITH BECK

BECK has been family-owned since its inception in 1904. In 1933, Raimund Beck secured the production rights according to the patent and started manufacturing the world’s first collated staples. Later, this was followed by collated brads, pins, nails and nail screws in a multitude of different collation styles and specifications. The array of applications ranges from wood structures to high-quality car interiors to even satellite insulation. Run in the 4th generation by Christian Beck, the German-Austrian company is one of the leading premium manufacturers of innovative fastening systems and solutions in the world.

Interview with Christian Beck, General Manager & Chief Executive Officer (CEO), BECK.

Easy Engineering: What are the main areas of activity of the company?

Christian Beck: Our most important markets are North America, Scandinavia, Western Europe and Australia/New Zealand. We operate in a total of 65 countries. Our customers come from the construction industry, primarily wood construction, the furniture industry, the automotive sector, the agricultural sector, the shoe and textile industry – all areas in which something is fastened.

E.E: What’s the news for 2021 about new products?

C.B: The planning for the year 2021 includes more product line extensions, e.g. with collated wooden nails with heads for façade installation or a new generation of LignoLoc® nailing heads for automation. In addition, there are far-reaching concepts regarding sustainable fastening systems for wood fiber insulation materials. One of the focal points at BECK is a 360-degree approach to ecological timber construction – as many elements in a construction project should be made from sustainable resources. Our InMotion push-and-pull device for staplers and nailers is a further product that will be launched this year and that is currently being field tested by various lead users.

E.E: What are the ranges of products?

C.B: We offer one of the broadest assortments on the market  with ~35.000 fasteners in our range. This includes collated staples, nails, pins and nail screws as well as more than 100 models of pneumatic and cordless tools with which these fasteners can be processed. Furthermore, we offer a wide range of products (aluminum clips and clipping machines) for closure of casings used in the food processing industry, sold and distributed under our product brand “CLIP SYSTEMS”.

E.E: At what stage is the market where you are currently active?

C.B: We are in a mature market with few multi-national conglomerates dominating the market, and various regional manufacturers that excel through their local/regional embedment.

E.E: What can you tell us about market trends?

C.B: Our market is constantly in motion. Simply put, automation and prefabrication, sustainability and ecology (including topics like circular economy, timber construction and mass timber technology, regionality) and digitization are the predominant market trends at present.

E.E: What are the most innovative products marketed?

C.B: Innovations play a key role in our entire corporate strategy. One of the most important innovations is our LignoLoc® wooden nail system, an ecological fastening system made from the renewable raw material wood. With this sustainable system, we have won several renowned awards such as the German Design Award or the Green Product Award. Our very clear vision is that at some point in the future a building project can be completely implemented with sustainable fastening systems. Another important innovation is our Scrail® nail screws, hybrid products between a screw and a nail that can be driven in like a nail and unscrewed like a screw – in other words, the best of both worlds. Furthermore, we offer innovative automation solutions, for example devices for stationary production bridges, to enable the users to work more efficiently in an automated manner.

E.E: What estimations do you have for 2021?

C.B: Our estimation is that there will be a steady high demand, especially in the field of timber construction, continued supply and cost issues on the supply side, and more innovative solutions that will be able to succeed and prevail on the market.