Industry Activities 

by Dean Tseng, Fastener World Inc.

KPO is an internationally active and integrated supplier of fastening technology. For over four decades, this family-owned enterprise has been inspiring various industries with its joint elements, enjoying a high status on the market. The offer encompasses technical consultation, warehouse management and the sale of fasteners of all kinds. Headquartered in Iserlohn, KPO has always stayed true to its roots and developed from a screw wholesaler for DIN and standard parts into a system provider for fastening technology with the core competence of special and drawing parts manufacture. The export share of approx. 40% shows KPO is not limited to Germany. Today, the company is all about the highest product quality, specialised consultation, and strong customer service. It has many long-term and reliable partners as well as some customers from Asia, which proves the company with good reputation internationally.

KPO’s Strength— Dedicated Employee, Know-how, Capability to All OEM Standards

As is known, the making of special parts and drawing parts requires sophisticated and skilled technique. What is the strength and feature of KPO’s special parts and drawing parts? CEO Stefan Pott told Fastener World Magazine, “KPO is given life by its employees who focus their entire know-how, passion and determination on mutual success. Today we all know what it is about for special and drawing parts. This means that we can produce using the widest range of cutting edge production processes, regardless of the requirements made of the product and the requests of the customer. The important thing for customers is that we can offer all joint elements according to all OEM standards.”

KPO’s Label: Vargal®10 – Self-locking Nut

Vargal®10 is a special safety nut. As Stefan Pott explained, it is resistant to vibrating and dynamic movements for three to four times higher than nuts with an integrated clamping part. Temperature resistance from -50°C to +300°C and corrosion resistance allow the widest range of application. The nut is made of steel or carbon steel and is made corrosion-resistant through zinc passivisation or Geomet coating, but it is also available in non-rusting steel. Another benefit is the reusability without reducing clamp torque when unscrewing. Here the clamping torque does not depend on the breakaway torque and thereby can ideally be used for the mechanism. Because securing is done with an external spring with radial deformation which pushes on an elastic collar with four notches, the clamping effect created here does not have a direct effect on threading and thereby causes no wear. As a result, vargal®10 can be used several times after the functional properties are tested and the nuts are cleaned. These benefits are often used in railway and track engineering, mechanical and plant engineering, etc.

Added Value: Storage & Coating Service, Environmental Management

KPO stores 60,000 articles for customers in two high bay shelves and three consignment warehouses, offering customers individual service such as production in a customised batch system with digester tanks. It can elevate production level and react to appropriate queries (for DIN and standard parts, mostly special and diagram parts) in the short term. Stefan Pott noted, “We see ourselves as an ‘external warehouse’ for our customers who can thereby maintain their flexibility, remain competitive and save costs at the same time. The construction of a new shipping hall for more efficient goods flows in 2014 positions us in such a way that we can react flexibly and quickly. With surface technology, we can apply different top coatings to our products.” KPO collaborates with a top-notch lab in Europe and offers customers an accredited materials test. It can also sort products by camera or laser using cutting-edge systems, reaching a rate of up to 10 ppm.

“We are happy to see the certifications earned - DIN EN ISO 9001 and DIN EN ISO 14001 - as recognition for our work, direction and very good quality assurance. The VDA 6.2 certificate also emphasises our competence in the automobile industry. Our quality and environmental management is very meticulous and is currently in the middle of the test to be prepared for the new DIN EN ISO 9001:2015,” said Stefan. KPO’s vision was honoured by the award from Dun & Bradstreet and Creditreform. In today’s global jungle of suppliers, risk-free procurement is becoming increasingly difficult. With both awards, KPO is classified as a reliable business partner.

Planning the Future

KPO has eyes on a new ERP solution from which it expects to achieve the desired flexibility and offer clients a new service level. However a conversion of this type is a long-term project. In the future, the company will continue to grow and is seeking support for its sales team. Stefan adds, “In October 2016, we will exhibit again at the International Supplier Exchange (Internationale Zulieferbörse [IZB]) in Wolfsburg. You can find out more specific information at our website schrauben.de”