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    What is Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) and is now the time to consider it as a solution for your business?

    Posted by Austin Hardware on Feb 29, 2024 1:37:18 PM
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    Topics: Vendor Managed Inventory, Warehouse Management, inventory management

    5 Ways IT Departments Can Protect Their Company Against Dangerous Cyber Attacks

    Posted by Austin Hardware on Feb 22, 2024 10:00:00 AM

    IT departments play a critical role in protecting their organizations against cyberattacks. A failure to be proactive can compromise your company's web security, leading to data breaches, financial losses, damage to the company's reputation, and legal consequences. Keeping up with the latest security threats and best practices is crucial in maintaining a solid information security posture.

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    Topics: Blog

    Sealants and Adhesives Blog Series – Spray Adhesives – Pressure Pots vs. Cannister Systems

    Posted by David Plunkett on Feb 16, 2024 9:30:00 AM

    Spray adhesives for industrial applications are increasing in popularity. Automotive, marine, construction, and aerospace applications are just a few where spray adhesives' performance benefits and efficiency are a significant advantage.

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    Topics: chemicals, adhesives,sealants,chemicals

    Make-A-Wish America Wins Big Thanks to Austin Hardware's 8th Annual Charity Football Pool

    Posted by Rob Dell'Elmo on Feb 7, 2024 11:00:00 AM

    Winner David Famula selects Make-A-Wish America to receive a donation!

     

    With football season coming to its conclusion on Sunday, we want to share the results of our 8th Annual Austin Hardware® Charity Football Pool.

    This year’s contest went 12 weeks into the 2023-24 season. The player who outlasted the competition this year is David Famula from Germany.

    David beat out our runner-up, Robert Carmer, on the Monday night of week #12 when the Chicago Bears upset Robert's pick, the Minnesota Vikings, on Minnesota's home field. This result gave David the victory, as he had already gotten a Week #12 victory when the Los Angeles Rams defeated the Arizona Cardinals that Sunday afternoon.

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    The Austin Hardware® Sealants and Adhesives Blog Series: Seam Sealants Pre and Post E-Coat

    Posted by David Plunkett on Jan 12, 2024 11:02:37 AM

    In the complex automotive manufacturing world, achieving a perfect balance between structural integrity, aesthetics, and durability is paramount. One often overlooked yet crucial component in this process is seam sealer. Seam sealers play a vital role in enhancing the overall performance and longevity of vehicles, particularly in the presence of pre- and post-e-coat processes.

    Seam sealants are commonly used in the automotive industry to seal joints, seams, and gaps in vehicle bodies to prevent water, dust, and other elements from penetrating and causing corrosion, subsequently enhancing the overall durability of the vehicle.

    Their application occurs at various stages of the manufacturing process, including both pre-electrocoat (e-coat) and post-e-coat stages.

    Electrocoating, or e-coating, involves immersing the vehicle body in a tank of electrically charged paint particles. The paint adheres to the metal surfaces electrostatically. After applying the e-coat, the vehicle body goes through a bake oven, where the paint is cured. The high temperature in the oven helps the e-coat form a durable, protective layer.

    It's essential to use seam sealants that are compatible with the e-coat process and can withstand the high temperatures of the bake oven. Proper surface preparation and application techniques are also crucial to ensure adhesion and effectiveness.

    The pre-e-coat phase involves the application of an electrically charged coating to the vehicle's metal surfaces to prevent corrosion. However, even with the protective layer of e-coat, there are vulnerable areas where water and other environmental elements may penetrate. This is where seam sealers come into play.

    Pre-e-coat seam sealers have two significant functions. They function as an added barrier against corrosion and contribute to the vehicle's structural integrity.

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    Topics: Austin Hardware® News, adhesives,sealants,chemicals

    Our Commitment to Our Customers - Five Resolutions for the New Year!

    Posted by Austin Hardware on Jan 4, 2024 9:30:00 AM

     

    Happy New Year! We hope you and your family had a joyous and rejuvenating holiday season.  

    The new year is a time when many commit to resolutions. We’re no exception at Austin Hardware®. So here are our five resolutions for 2024. 

    #1 More New Solutions for You 

    Our engineers will continue to work with customers to understand their needs and goals and design or reinvent products to help meet them. Our Austin Guaranteed Engineered Solutions™ portfolio stands as a testament to that commitment. With several new products in the pipeline, we’re excited about what the new year will bring. 

    #2 Redesigned Website 

    We’re revamping our website to make doing business with us online faster and easier than ever. The project is in an early stage, but we expect to launch later in the year, so stay tuned. 

    #3 Getting the Basics Right 

    While many companies get caught up in their revenue goals, they lose sight of doing the basics right. To borrow a sports metaphor, the “blocking and tackling” of their business. At Austin, we strive to get those basics right. Things like having the right stock on the shelves. Packing and shipping your orders with care and on time. Fair pricing for challenging economic times. We’ve never lost sight of that and resolve that we never will.  

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    Topics: Austin Hardware® News, Blog

    Happy Holidays from Austin Hardware!

    Posted by Bill H. Stambaugh on Dec 21, 2023 11:00:00 AM

    Happy Holidays from Austin Hardware!


    Wow, 2023 was quite a year. Thankfully, our employee teams rallied yet again and delivered for our customers and supply partners when it mattered most. We are well over a year past the worst of the pandemic, but it hasn’t gotten any easier to operate or perform. Our employees feel pressure from all sides, our vendors still have isolated challenges to work through, and our customers are trying to catch up with demand.

    Austin Hardware is in the middle of most of these scenarios, and we are striving to support, meet, and, where possible, exceed expectations. Thankfully, despite the challenges, we are executing well. We have more inventory now than ever in our history, our fill rates improve annually, we have exceeded our sales plan, and we have worked with our supply partners to stabilize costs for our customers.

    For 2024, it looks like more of the same. We are forecasting growth driven by demand for new products and increasing build rates that will undoubtedly bring challenges to be solved. We are confident that our employees and supply partners will work proactively to supply our products on time. When challenges present themselves, our tenured, knowledgeable employee teams will find a way to deliver an acceptable solution. 


    We understand and value the importance of our employees, our customers, and our supply partners. As we wrap up 2023 and look forward to 2024, we are very thankful for the opportunity to support our employees, serve our customers, and promote our supply partners.


    Best wishes to all. Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!

    Sincerely,
    Bill Stambaugh

    President of Austin Hardware®

     

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    The Austin Hardware® Sealants and Adhesives Blog Series: Silicones vs. Modified Silanes vs. Polyurethanes.

    Posted by David Plunkett on Dec 13, 2023 10:00:00 AM

    Silicone, Silane-modified, and Polyurethane are some of the primary polymers that make up different types of sealants and adhesives. Each brings unique properties, making each of them better suited for different applications. 

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    Topics: Austin Hardware® News, adhesives,sealants,chemicals

    Save these Dates: Learn More About Austin Hardware's 2024 Events and Live Demos.

    Posted by Austin Hardware on Dec 7, 2023 10:00:00 AM

    While 2023 is winding down, at Austin Hardware, we’re working on some exciting new solutions for our customers that we will be presenting at trade shows in early 2024. Here’s a look at where we’ll be after the new year and the innovative products we look forward to sharing with you.   

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    Topics: Austin Hardware® News

    The Austin Hardware® Sealants and Adhesives Blog Series: A Guide to Bond Strength

    Posted by David Plunkett on Nov 30, 2023 11:30:00 AM

    Bond strength is a comprehensive measure of an adhesive's ability to hold two substrates together. It measures the resistance to separation and is affected by various factors, including the type of adhesive used, the bonding surface preparation, and the bonding process.

    To fully understand the bond strength of an adhesive, it's necessary to understand the types of stress imparted on adhesive joints. The most common stresses include shear, peel, tensile, compression, and cleavage.

    All these terms relate to the integrity of adhesive joints while measuring different strength aspects of the adhesive's performance. Below is a summary of each.

    Shear strength measures an adhesive's resistance to forces parallel to the bonded surfaces. It represents the adhesive's ability to withstand pull directed across the adhesive, forcing the substrates to slide over each other. It is commonly tested by subjecting the bonded materials to a force applied parallel to the adhesive joint. A strong adhesive joint should exhibit both high bond and shear strength.

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    Topics: Austin Hardware® News, adhesives,sealants,chemicals