Posted to News on 12th Jan 2022, 00:00
Trifast invests to increase its European manufacturing capacity
International fastener specialist TR VIC spa, part of the Trifast plc group of companies, has further invested at its manufacturing site in central Italy, increasing its capacity to meet the growing European white goods market. The company says it has experienced unprecedented demand, which has been fuelled by an increase in consumer driven home improvements during Covid that shows no signs of abating.
The investment is largely focused on securing new machinery at the site, and this will increase the production capacity by some 33%. It builds on an earlier move a year ago to implement additional multi-station cold forming machinery in their heading section. This will result in the company’s ability to produce an additional 500 million pieces annually over the next 12 months.
The site is focused on being ‘Industry 4.0 compliant’ creating a greener and more efficient workspace, providing a modern, fresh and diverse environment. The work is to be completed in two phases in 2022 and 2023 which includes extending the manufacturing footprint on the site.
Andrew Nuttall, European managing director of TR Fastenings, said: “The order book has increased dramatically over the past two years. As more people work from home, they are investing in their domestic appliances and not spending so much on holidays etc and instead enhancing their home environment. This means that the demand for white goods has significantly increased.
“Our major customers want to see shorter and more agile supply chains. The lead times out of Asia have increased significantly during Covid and freight costs and container issues have meant that we had to react and onshore more product. This investment strategy allows us to better meet our customer needs, now and for the future.”
Stefano Pisoni, managing director of TR VIC Spa, said: “This investment represents a huge step forwards for our capability to meet growing demand. The site was operating at 130% of its capacity putting a strain on the workforce to meet customers’ demands. We are now embarking on the first steps, not only to futureproof our group against supply chain disruption, but also to ensure we continue to meet the demands of our customers. In sharing this news with them at every opportunity the feedback has been fantastic that we have instigated this investment.”
Glenda Roberts, global projects and marketing director of Trifast, added: “We are very confident in our ongoing programme of investment in Italy. This move has come directly from customers telling us they want us to manufacture in Europe, nearer to market, and avoiding the supply chain challenges that have been hampering the sector. More widely, this is how things are going. Major brands want this. This will become a growing part of the TR strategy future proofing against supply chain disruption and investing in the European manufacturing economy.”
