Eurotec is an interesting company to talk about the German market. From modest beginningswith four employees, acting purely as a trader, buying and selling from a private garage, ithas grown to become a reference in the field of fastening technology. Since January 2013,it has also been a manufacturer. On a first machine in Hagen, a selected part of the range ofwood construction screws was then produced. An expansion of its machinery subsequentlyincreased its production capacity, enabling Eurotec to supply a wide range of its own products.The company currently employs 250 people.

Breakthrough in 2013

We contact Global Sales Manager Jörn Rüschenschmidt, just before he prepares for yet another long-distance intervention. He explainshow Eurotec holds its own on the German and global markets and ventures to analyse the current economic future in his homeland.

‘The big breakthrough came with that investment in 2013,’ he smiles. ‘The move to produce screws ourselves was the right one and sothe number of pedestals we produced has grown exponentially. We now have no fewer than eight injection moulding machines, eachproducing 100,000 units per month. A little arithmetic shows that we make around 10 million injection moulded parts and up to 700million screws per year.’‘We sell our pedestals to selected dealers all over the world. In this respect, we are also active in Belgium, with ProFixing from Kasterleeas our exclusive partner. In the Netherlands and Luxembourg, there are several companies selling our items.’

Aftermath of pandemic

We asked Mr Rüschenschmidt how he assesses the current economic situation. Is it still growing, and what's going on in the Germanmarket in general?‘Actually, even last year we saw the impact of the pandemic, just like many other companies. Because of the pandemic, people startedinvesting in their homes and outdoor spaces and the world of deckings also benefited. Late in 2022, you started to feel how the marketwas changing as people started travelling again, resulting in a small stagnation in the flooring sector. We ourselves were not so affectedby this because we are active in different industries, such as the solar panel substructure we designed, which offset the loss in deckingsand flooring. This year is different and we feel the demand for deckings is rising again. There are two main reasons for this: firstly travelbecame more expensive and, secondly, we are seeing an increase in the supply of large commercial decking. Recently, for instance, weeven supplied large piers for cruise ships, which allows us to handle ups and downs. Now we are working on large decking projects in allaround the Middle East region, among others.

’‘In terms of turnover, we notice that it was more or less the same in 2022 and 2023. This year promises a good perspective too. When Ispeak to installers and craftsmen, I hear the same thing over and over again: the order books are full until October. Looking at it purelyin terms of numbers, I can report that last year we sold no less than 10,000 km of aluminium runners, which means that we realisedthe installation of outdoor flooring from Germany to Brazil... It is striking that this demand for aluminium is on the rise, especially then  due to the increasingly expensive wood for substructure. Customers are also discovering another advantage of aluminium: it lasts adue to the increasingly expensive wood for substructure. Customers are also discovering another advantage of aluminium: it lasts alifetime. We frame the sale of this aluminium in a special story, explaining how to look beyond the purchase price of the material. Weoffer a kind of building block system, which also ensures that installation becomes increasingly easy.’

Some big companies sputter

‘Over to Germany: worryingly, a number of large companies are getting into trouble. The reason seems clear to me: there is too muchfocus on a single product. Furthermore, we notice how the residential market in particular struggled last year, but on the other hand theproject market continued full throttle. What is also interesting in our home country is that many federal states launched new initiatives.A good example is a state-backed initiative by Baden-Württemberg for timber construction. All commercial projects there, must now beerected in wood or engineered wood, which works hugely in our favour because we have everything from one source, from the structuralto the design element.

’We then hear that Germany, Eurotec's core market, continues to account for half of its sales. Sales to the rest of Europe are also large,and that is no coincidence.‘Germany - and Europe in general - makes a difference because it has real professionals who know how to work with wood. Thedifference with countries outside Europe is huge. Take the Middle East, for example: there they are all crazy about tropical hardwood,but you just can't get them to understand that wood requires a lot of maintenance and that it won't stay looking like it did when it wasbuilt. For Europeans, this is not an issue; they are aware that wood ages, among other things, and feel that maintenance is just part ofthe choice you make.’

Benelux is stable market
And the Benelux, how is Eurotec doing there?
‘The market is not small, but you can't call it huge either. Let's say it as become a market with a turnover of ‘7 digits’. This is a verystable market, once people use something and it proves its strength, they keep choosing your product. What is striking is that peoplein the Netherlands use much fewer pedestals, they are simply not used to them. Now there is room for improvement, but we know alltoo well that this will take time. Actually, you just need a forerunner with courage, who will then be followed by others. We already leavenothing to chance and support our customers, wherever they are, with a large technical team. It's about more than delivering, you haveto think along with your customer.

’At this point our interlocutor drops the name of a fellow manufacturer, with whom, according to him, things are less successful becausethey forget the central point of doing business: you have to keep innovating!‘If you keep offering the same thing for eight years, sooner or later you get into trouble, no matter how well-known your name is. Thatmeans you have to keep up with trends, even with things like Tik Tok, when thinking with your customer. Furthermore, there is alsosuch a thing as BIM (ed: Building Information Modeling). If someone builds a house, you need to have a conclusive model in advance,where you have thought through to even the smallest screw. After that, you continue to closely monitor the customer during and afterinstallation.

’‘What strikes me at Eurotec is that our management listens very carefully to the market. We always talk to the customer and theend user. What do they expect from a deck or a screw? We also use feedback after the launch of novelties, so that we can makeadjustments at the indication of users. Ah, it's all about the same thing: market-friendliness and maximum flexibility are just standard!’

Promising 2024

The question remains as to how Eurotec sees 2024. Quite optimistic, as it turns out.‘2024 looks promising. Still, I don't want to be too overenthusiastic,’ Jörn Rüschenschmidt concludes. ‘What is certain is that thenumber of floors installed will increase enormously after May due to the improving weather. We are optimistic even for the not-too-lateautumn. In our opinion, flooring sales will continue to rise more than last year!’