Page 20 - HW July 2020

fasteners & xings
HOW DID LOCKDOWN and the Covid-19 restrictions treat the fasteners & xings players?
Asking around about how much business really was done serving essential businesses, in terms of building products, “next to nothing” would be a fair summary of how I’ve been hearing trade during Level 4 being described.
NOT SCREWED, WE’RE ACTUALLY NAILING IT...
MiTek’s Mike Stanton however is steadfast in his belief that the market is strong.
“Building notoriously goes up and down – the building industry always cops it at the very start of any sort of decline in the economy and we always seem to bear the brunt of it.
e shift to Level 3 was positive for businesses, no doubt, but just how positive ranges widely, depending on which category you’re talking about, with construction product (as opposed to DIY) suppliers seeing perhaps 70-75% of normal business.
At the end of June, one supplier who preferred to remain nameless said: “We seem to be starting to get back to where we were before it all turned to custard.
“The building industry always cops it at the very start
of any sort of decline in the economy and we always seem to bear the brunt of it. But the building industry has a very strong foundation – it’s a resilient industry”
“But it depends who you talk to – talk to builders and they’re all saying they’ve got loads of work on.
“But talk to the merchants and retailers and some are so ******* pessimistic and I can’t see why.
“Maybe they know something we don’t?” asks our supplier.
“But the building industry has a very strong foundation.
“It’s a resilient industry.
“We’ve gone through many highs and lows but we’re also very
adaptable.
“We’re really innovative in New Zealand – the screw innovations
that we’ve developed recently are proof of that innovation.”
Milwaukee nails it
Milwaukee Tools’ latest cordless nailing solution, the M18 FUEL 30-34° Framing Nailer, delivers the power to sink nails into hardwood, with zero ramp-up time and requiring no gas cartridges.
With a claimed best-in-class re rate, the M18 FUEL Framing Nailer delivers a re rate comparable to a pneumatic nailer and has
been optimised to t between studs. An optional Extended Capacity Magazine accepting two strips of nails is also available.
Further improving productivity, the new M18 FUEL Framing Nailer is fully compatible with the extensive Milwaukee M18 tool and battery system.
www.milwaukeetools.co.nz
18 NZHJ | JULY 2020
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