TE (also known as Tyco) makes multifunction instrumentation that meters power and energy for the industrial market. The company was planning to move its electrical loom assembly, which was proving a “nightmare”. Since Hitaltech already supplied TE with its terminal blocks, Engineering/Project Manager Karen Wilkinson asked Hitaltech’s Andy Fitzer for his ideas.
“Originally, we approached Hitaltech to look at our terminal block supply as a cost saving,” Karen explains. “We went from screw terminals to plug-in terminals… and the relationship just grew from there.
Loom assembly solutions
“Our loom assemblies weren’t done in the UK, but everywhere we considered moving them, they wanted to put up costs – and it was all the noise and hassle that was so frustrating.
“Andy came to us with a solution for keeping our prices down. He said ‘why don’t you try this – it will save you some money. It will keep production in the UK and shorten the supply chain’.
It’s this approach that Karen values, and which has made Hitaltech “our favourite company to deal with”.
“Hitaltech come to us with answers not problems. They help us with costs, and ideas and lead times. We’ve been doing loom assemblies with Hitaltech for 6 months now and it’s going very well – we’ve signed a buffer contract, to maintain production for the next 12 months.”
Personal touch
“We’ve been working with Hitaltech for a long time – maybe 13 years?” estimates Karen. “The level of service is fantastic. Others have lost the personal touch. Hitaltech are all about their customers and keeping the customer happy.” Karen explains how a strong working relationship underpins the improvements TE and Hitaltech develop together. “We talk about how to grow the business by adding value, and it’s great to work in partnership with Hitaltech to find new ways to do that. When we do new designs, for example, we buy enclosures from Hitaltech to trial them, and then when production ramps up, we make a tool for our own enclosures. “What I like is they’re very, very good at doing what they say they’re going to do. And they’re such a nice bunch too.”
