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TS: Before we talk about Frank Devito let’s talk a little Solution Industries.  You had some exciting news at the end of 2020 with ISO certification and others.  Update us on what is going on in that area of Solution.

 Frank: Yes.  2020 was a high achievement year for Solution Industries from a quality stand point.  Our Quality Management System received its’ (Aerospace) AS9100D:2016; ISO 9001:2015 accreditation.  The next focus in quality is to get our lab ISO 17025 accredited in various scopes.

TS: I know during Covid you were doing a lot of Zoom meetings with customers trying to update them on your current capabilities and, candidly, where Solution Industries is heading as a company.  Fill us in.  Where is Solution Industries headed in the near future?

Frank: Solution Industries has always evolved and will continue to evolve to meet current customer needs, but over the past 7 years I have spent here our evolution has certainly accelerated from years past of just machined parts, hard to find standards and semi-standards, and zinc plated sockets.   That offering is quite different from where we stand today.  With our manufacturing and application partners overseas and domestically we offer a complete part from manufacturing (very inclusive of different materials), coatings (electroplate, mechanical plate, or dip spun), thread lock features (chemical or mechanical), testing (destructive and non-destructive), and customized packing.  We still are a secondary processing machine working through distribution only, but the items we focus on are Non-standard, OEM specific, and Per printed specials.  We absolutely stay away from standards, there is a big box importer in Brighton-Best International (BBI) that does standards very well. 

TS: What about zinc plated sockets?  Are they going away?

 Frank: Solution Industries still inventories zinc plated sockets, just more of a selective range with higher volume usages aimed at meeting higher quality requirements.  We are just not slapping zinc plating (or various coatings) on a socket (or various products), and throwing out buzz words in ads or different media outlets.  Our above mentioned accreditation requires us to continually verify our processes and our supplier processes and products.   Verification may include depending on process; material, heat treat, coatings, thread locking requirements, and certifications.  As an example, we are currently and will continue to test and mitigate Hydrogen Embrittlement from our manufacturers and platers involved in our zinc plated socket products.  Over the past six months we have tested nearly 150 lots in this study.  I’m not aware of any “competitors” doing what we are doing.  But there is a market for both “commercial” and higher quality required electroplated sockets, we chose the latter. 

TS: Please tell me Solution Man isn’t going anywhere.   

 Frank: LOL!!  Solution Man is not going anywhere.  He is permanently tattooed on our owner Mr. Radel’s calf and very visible in various sections of the Solution Industries “Compound”.  Oddly enough I’m not or ever been a comic book or super hero fan, but he works and has a couple of sidekicks to go along with him.

TS: You have an interesting regiment you follow.  A lot of people know of the Frank Devito schedule but share with our readers a little bit about it.

 Frank: LOL!  Sure, I’m very disciplined.  Every day starts with waking up at 1:00am (regardless of what time I go to sleep or even if I go to sleep), reading the Bible, prayer, listening to the preacher, two hour workout session, monitoring or researching global and domestic factors affecting Solution Industries or the Fastener Industry in general, usually a Starbucks run for my wife, and then off to the office.  They say the “early bird gets the worm”, but I get the bird…  LOL!!

TS: Also, health and fitness are a big part of your makeup.  Were you always so conscientious?  

 Frank: Yes and yes.  Still do hundreds and hundreds of push-ups every day, but not quite the 1000 a day I used to do a couple of years ago.  I turned 45 this year and the body isn’t as capable as it used to be.  I have always enjoyed pushing my body to its limits, you’d be surprise what the human body can accomplish.  I was always active in sports as a child and much of my life into my mid 30’s, but when I turned 16 that was the turning point in my life when fitness really became my lifestyle.  I’ve worked out a minimum of 5 days a week ever since the age of 16.  Of course eating properly is a given!

TS: Let’s talk a bit about your career path.  Where else did you work before you landed at Solution Industries?

 Frank: I started at Parts Associates Inc. in Parma, OH packing boxes on the shipping line at 17 years old.  A couple of years later after experiencing job functions in multiple departments I was asked to procure fasteners.  In this role I had the pleasure of first meeting a Fastener Hall of Famer The Traveling Salesman as you called on me many years ago.   I spent a little less than a decade there until the company was sold.  Upon the sale I had an opportunity to join The Porteous Fastener Company.   Within about a year I became the Branch Manager of the Cleveland, OH facility and over time added the Detroit, MI and Perth Amboy, NJ facilities to my umbrella as well.  After 10 years at Porteous the company sold to BBI.  Upon that sale I took advantage of the opportunity to become the General Manager of Solution Industries where I stand today.

 The Lord has truly blessed me with the honor of working at great companies.  The people in these companies provided a fantastic base of fastener and business knowledge that has allowed me to have a career in this industry.

TS: I’d like to have a full discussion sometime about Porteous.  In business school we used to do case studies on companies and I personally feel their is a very interesting case study regarding the Porteous company.  If Barry or Bob Porteous read this blog somewhere and would be interested in talking, I’m offering a personal invite right here and now.  I’m sure there are things you would share and some you wouldn’t care to share.  But give me a few of your thoughts on what happened to Porteous and your time working there.

Frank: I’m assuming  you’re question is in the context of the competition between Porteous and BBI and the eventual sale to BBI.  Well I’m sure everybody has their own perspective, and there was of course other contributing factors, but in my shortened version it just seemed to come down to timing, product mix, and resources. 

In 2008 when Brighton-Best Socket Screw Mfg. sold to Taiwan investors headed by Mr. Shieh material cost overseas were at historic highs, and as a large import master distributor Porteous was procuring material at very high cost.  In the first quarter of 2009 material cost overseas fell to historic lows just as BBI seemed to really start procuring product and push into Porteous’s markets.  BBI had lower cost material and could sell at lower pricing levels and sustain profits while Porteous had higher cost material unable to sustain profits selling at price levels in a declined cost market.  To me this was where BBI really got a stronghold into the market, selling the same quality products at lower price levels.

Throw in product mix.  Porteous was mainly a low carbon product supplier (low price per/lb.) lower value lower profits.  BBI had/has a lock on the socket product market which is a high price per/lb. product line, higher value higher profits so BBI could also off set overall costs in which Porteous could not.

Lastly resources.  BBI just had more resources with the investment behind them.  They could purchase better and sustain longer droughts.  If you add BBI’s online platform for quoting and purchasing, it changed the industry!  Over time BBI just became the stronger company.

But at the end of the day the only real perspectives that matters is Porteous and BBI’s.  I have TREMENDOUS respect for the Porteous brothers and family.  I was truly blessed to be a part of their company.   And I truly admire BBI’s leadership and what they have and will accomplished in this industry.  Jun and Peggy are very intelligent and deserve credit for having a business strategy and executing it.  I wish them and the entire Fastener Industry much success!

TS: OK, let’s circle back around to industry related questions.  You are a member of the North Coast Fastener Association board and Solution is a member of several different fastener associations.  What value do you find in belonging to those groups?

Frank: Building long lasting personal relationships in regional and local markets.  You get the opportunity to interact on a personal level with fastener colleagues in their environment, and you would never get the pleasure of meeting them all at a national show. 

TS: You have been on several panel discussions, including out at Fastener Fair.  You always seemed really well prepared and I’m impressed at how much factual data you bring to support the topics you discuss.  You seem to enjoy doing those, am I correct?

Frank: Thank you!  For the kind words.  I’m so grateful and blessed to be asked to be involved in these discussions.  And to that fact; the event organizers, panel participants, and audience deserve the right to have a well prepared panelist, so I better do my due diligence! 

I really enjoy participating in the panel discussions.  I truly enjoy hearing other panelist perspectives as well.  I love the industry and an educated industry is a better prepared industry for the future.  And if I can help aid in that education process I’m honored. 

TS: Because you have participated in these panel discussions, I know you study the fastener industry.  What changes do you see coming in the industry?  What trends do you see?

 Frank: There are definitely different short and long term trends in certain segments of our industry that do not affect us all equally.  And not to bore your readers more than I already have at this point with my opinions,  I’ll just touch slightly on a few influencing Solution Industries and stay away from the standard answer of “company consolidations.”  A couple of trends that have been looked upon as nice to have or working towards are now requirements, a higher quality management system (not just ISO 9001) and you must be technologically capable to support customers (which our industry has been slow to embrace).   Lastly the concern over the environment more so now than ever.  Heavy dollars from the most valued and wealthiest investment companies in the world have been pouring into the global initiative to reduce environmental impacts.  This has impacted industry markets many of us are selling into and impacting the entire product creation process, from raw materials themselves and how they are produced and processed, the manufacturing and application processes, packaging products, and of course transportation.  This is already spilling into our industry now in certain aspects. 

TS: Lastly, I know your faith is very important to you, probably the most important thing to you.  I have never asked a question about faith but it is so integral to the makeup of Frank Devito I wanted you to feel free to share any thoughts you have.

 Frank: Yes it truly takes precedence in my life.  My faith is not just talk, it is how I live my life!  Thank you for giving me the opportunity to express my thoughts!  I gave my life to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ 20 years ago and what a WONDERFUL impact it has on my life.  It does not mean life will not have trials and tribulations, but certainly the Grace of God provides peace in all circumstances.   The Lord is well beyond and deserves more than my few lines of commentary, so I would plead for any person reading this to pick up The Bible and discover The Lord for themselves.  I will also add I’m always open for a discussion on the truth of the word of God.  I can always be reached through Solution Industries and you can also email me at [email protected]. Send me a message, leave a phone number and I will absolutely call you back. I’m definitely not the only believer in this industry, and if it is God’s will someday “Faith in Fasteners” will be a thriving organization.

Note from TS:

I have a regular column in Fastener Technology International (FTI) magazine, called 10 Minutes with the Traveling Salesman, which can be read online at www.fastenertech.com. Subscriptions to FTI, print and digital editions, are free-of-charge for fastener manufacturers, distributors and users as well as suppliers to the industry.”

TS: Thank you for taking the time to do this interview with me. I have been wanting to talk with you for a long time and now is an especially good time because you have some exciting news going on with you and Duncan Bolt. But, before we get into that news, let’s get some background information on Andy Cohn.

I’ve know the name, Andy Cohn, for a long time even though you and I have not had the opportunity to really hang out together or spend time together.  So, I thought maybe a good way for us to do that was to do a 10 minute segment with you.  Yet, I do feel like our paths have crossed in many ways.  You went to college at Case Western Reserve in Cleveland, Ohio.  And, I understand you worked for a period of time in Strongsville, Ohio, my home and the current fastener epicenter of Ohio.  Also,  I understand we have both had the extreme pleasure of working with the famous fastener veteran, My. Tom Hipp!  So, let’s just jump in and get this started.

You’re originally from, New York, went to school in Ohio and are best known for running Duncan Bolt located in California.  How did you get out to California and what’s your fastener background?  Let’s talk about how all that developed.

Andy:  I grew up in the fastener business. My dad worked for his dad importing men’s hats in New York City. At one point someone asked him to bring some hardware in (from Italy) and he was off and running.  I remember one summer he had every kid in our neighborhood sorting kegs of hex nuts that were mixed ¼-20 and ¼-28-  I believe we got 15 bucks for sorting a 20,000 pc keg.  

Anyways, if there is one thing I knew in my heart it was that I was not going to get dragged into this business! I had a lot of different plans as I grew up but none of them had anything to do with Bolts or Nuts.

When I graduated from college (in Cleveland no less) I still knew one thing for sure,  NO FASTENERS! ,  I followed a college friend out  to San Francisco looking for a job in the Television business-and still, NO FASTENERS!   It wasn’t until I had been unemployed  for 5 months that  my dad called me one day and said “oh by the way, we have a customer out there who just got a big packaged fastener contract and was hiring packagers at $ 1.00/ hour” , that  finally got my attention.  Bay City Screw and Bolt in San Carlos, CA was my first job in the fastener business  in  1974.  For the first three months I packaged 5/16-18 Hex Jam nuts! So, after a year I was the “kid” who  filled orders but I also got to answer the phone if everyone else was busy.  Back then, half of our customers would take import or domestic on Gr 5 bolts but no one accepted an import Gr 8!  (well Infasco if they had to.)  Everything had to be from  Lake Erie or from the new kids at  Nucor.   By then I was hooked. Money was decent and I was able to move into a swinging singles complex in Burllingame.  Also, I quickly learned that I was not going to make it as a swinging single!

TS:  OK, but that still does not get me to Duncan Bolt.  So, what happened  next?

Andy:  So, two  years go by and one day my dad calls me up again and says “any chance I could interest you in moving to Denver?  We’re going to open a branch there and there’s a job as the Regional Sales Manager! Pays real money!”  So, I moved to Denver and our huge import warehouse (3700  sq. ft.) and it was fun. Selling to “distributors only” was way easier!

TS:  What company are we talking about here?

Andy:  This was Allied International.  So one day a van pulls up to our dock (one dock!) and a young lady hops out and says “ok guys slide those kegs down the ramp carefully”!  Before I know it I’m  engaged to Jeannie Walker of Fasteners, Inc. and trying to decide whether to marry her and move back to NY to continue on with Allied International or accept her dad’s very gracious offer to come work at FASTENERS, INC.

TS:    I was told by mutual friends that  there are a lot of family ties that you have with other members of the fastener industry, so the story about Jeannie makes sense.  Would you mind sharing more about  some of those ties?

Andy: As I think over your question I have 2 thoughts- I never kept business and personal lives separate (most of my friends are in the industry) and I kept marrying young ladies in our industry!  Maybe it was the only way I could get a date!

So after 6 years in Denver at Fasteners Inc Jeannie Walker and I divorced and went our separate ways.

Once again I had a chance in the importing business and I moved back to NY to work at Allied International & Allied Stainless. My dad had sold the business by then and the new owners sort of wanted me around for my memory but they didn’t want me too close so off to Los Angeles I went. Once again I meet a cute girl who is sort of double from the industry.  Virginia Sullivan (her dad was Luke Sullivan of Sullivan Bolt and she was the younger sister of Anne Sullivan also of Sullivan Bolt and also head of the LAFA!)  By the way you mentioned Tom Hipp – when I left the east my new boss had said- I know your going to leave Allied and find a business of your own, just don’t leave us in the lurch when you do. That’s when Tom got promoted to branch manager, and he was great at it. Virginia and I looked for a distributor we could buy while I continued at Allied. At the end of ’88 we found Dave Duncan at Duncan Bolt-Dave was 80 and had just remarried- he wanted to sell the business and live happily ever after with his new bride.   So it was a good fit. Dave was a distributor and an importer. He only brought in the weird sizes that the Heads & Threads of the world wouldn’t bother with   (Heavy Hex Jam Nuts 2” thru 4” and stuff like that)

TS:  Tell me about Duncan Bolt.  You purchased it many years ago but have taken it to another level.  I know you are a Huck distributor but for what else is Duncan Bolt best known for?

Andy:  Well I would like to say we are best known for being a responsible partner who helps OEMS with vendor managed inventory with a technical sales staff that actually still knows something about fasteners.

TS: And now, after all these years, you are selling the company. That is big news! What can you share with me about the sale of Duncan?

Andy: Pre-pandemic, my VP and General Manager Steve Somers asked if he could explore the different options for buying us out and we said yes. Ultimately he and some of our other execs proposed an ESOP as the solution that worked best for all. That tasted right to Virginia and I since it gave us some tax advantages that allowed us to be more reasonable on the price and it felt right since all the employees were getting a piece of the action as well.

TS: So, this is a done deal? Your sale of Duncan Bolt is complete?

Andy: Yes, as of Thursday, December 30.

TS:  Well, congratulations on that all coming together. Sounds like it works out well for you and the employees.

I’m going to come clean with you Andy and share another reason I wanted to interview you. I heard, few years ago,  you hosted a joint NFDA/Pac-West cocktail hour at your house as part of the joint meeting.  I want to be kind to you in this interview to make sure I get invited to the next one!  So, what has been your involvement with fastener associations?

Andy:   I have always believed that there is a lot of power in associations- easier for suppliers harder for distributors because you have to be willing to accept that you can learn from your competition and still stay sharp and try to be the best distributor in town.  But it takes a certain personality- some distributors are just not going to share.  The year your referring to, there was a joint meeting here in LA and we had just moved into this big old house in Long Beach with a great backyard so we offered to host the opening night party –  a good time was had by all – the joke in California has always been show distributors from Boston or Chicago our weather and you will end up with 10 more competitors. There is some truth to this I believe. But mostly we can still scare them off talking about how high the taxes are here (and its TRUE!!)

TS:  When we started first talking, California was just starting to open back up after months of shut downs due to Covid-19.  Now it looks like you could shut down again.  How has that whole situation affected your business?

Andy:  Scary- today they just tightened the rules back up again!  I would say the pandemic has hurt our business by 30% and most people I talk to are in the same range- depends on what your customers do.  But how long will this go on?   WHEN ARE YOU READING THIS?  ARE WE DONE YET?

TS:  Irrespective of the Covid-19 situation, what do you see on the horizon for the fastener industry?  What changes do you see coming?  What things will affect our industry? 

Andy:  As long as somebody is still making something here in the U.S. I think we will continue to see more consolidation.  Fastenal and the like will continue to grow and specialty distributors will continue to provide “boutique” services and thrive. When I think of  the fastener business I still think about my dad sitting in my grandfather’s office on West 39^th St.  in New York and having a hat customer ask if they knew anything about bolts and could they possibly get him some. How you reply to that question is still the essence of what we do.

Regarding Covid and looking at 2021, the pandemic makes our role harder and yet the need for custom services and customer service is still there. Bolts are not expensive, but NO BOLTS or the wrong bolts are very expensive!

TS:  So, will you no longer be involved with Duncan Bolt?  Are you a retired man?  And will the fastener industry see Andy Cohn at any industry related events down the road?

Andy: Retired? Yes. Will you seem me down the road? If I can’t learn golf I’ll have to do something.

TS: You are an accountant by trade.  How the heck did you get yourself so deep into the fastener industry in what seems like a short amount of time?  You have served as president of MWFA and been on the FIC board for years.  How did all this happen to the company accountant?

Bob: Well, it really does all stem back to being an Accountant.  I started with Abbott-Interfast as Controller 29 years ago when there were 3 generations of Binders (owners) alive and working daily in the business.  My office was right smack in the middle of them and of course they all had different needs so I quickly learned to adapt. I really dove into the numbers in my first few years and apparently my accounting skills impressed them enough to promote me into the meat and potatoes of the business – namely Purchasing and Manufacturing. I started attending local trade shows, seminars and industry events. I took my first fastener class with the MWFA in ‘95, was impressed and just kept going (that is also where I first met my good friend Rich Cavoto who taught the Metric portion of the class). After attending MWFA events and shows for many years, I decided I should give back to the industry, so I ran for the BOD in 2005 and have been involved ever since. In 2014 the MWFA needed to replace its representative to the Fastener Industry Coalition (FIC) and I volunteered.  Again, met more great folks who also volunteered for the FIC.  In 2018 the Fastener Training Institute asked me to join their board as well. Ditto! I have met a lot of great people in our industry and have made many close friends since making the switch, I guess I never realized how restricted I was just sitting in a room keeping score.

TS: Let’s talk about Abbott-Interfast. My early industry memory was that Abbott was a supplier of nylon insert locknuts with the yellow ring.  Back in the days of the Columbus Fastener Show, there was about 5 players that all had different colored nylon inserts and Abbott’s was yellow.  But, as I have learned, that is a small part of what Abbott does.  Fill me in on the other business units.

Bob: When I started with Abbott-Interfast there were over 20 different companies to “account” for monthly ranging from fasteners to a restaurant. The Binders were very diverse in their business ventures. Over the years we scaled down to core fastener business units.  In addition to Abbott, we have a knob division – OEP LLC and a deck screw company – Titan Metal Werks, which sells branded High Performance (SplitStop™) and private labeled deck screws for wood and composite boards.  Abbott also started and still maintains The Nationwide Fastener Directory™, although nowadays the listings are on our website which also features our popular but now virtually printed 2 volume book. Our manufacturing company, Abbott Metal Werks, makes locknuts, precision screw machined products, CNC parts and assemblies. Abbott sources from all over the world and backs it up with domestic manufacturing, whether it be our own shops or local manufacturers. Over the years, Abbott has secured many patents and we continue to innovate but since most of our business is OEM direct, the industry doesn’t always hear about it.

TS: Part of your company belongs in the STAFDA market, part of it belongs in Aerospace, part at the OEM and part at the distributor marketplace.  That is some really good diversification.  Did that just develop that way or was that diversification intentional?

Bob: Abbott-Interfast has always been diverse. The goal was and still is, to some extent, to not have many customers or industries greater than 3% of our business.  Of course, these days, we welcome rapid growth when one of our customers take off. That philosophy has been key to our 73 year survival and success as a small manufacturer competing in a country where so much product is now outsourced internationally. Historically, our business has not jumped quickly with the rest of the market, but also doesn’t drop when things slow.  Steady slow growth has been our formula.    

TS: You are also a manufacturer.  What products do you manufacture at Abbott-Interfast?

Bob: We do make some fasteners, but we really focus on precision parts to prints, aka specials. We also manufacture knobs, many standard, both metal and plastic, but again focus on the specials. Assemblies are a big part of OEM work, and we manufacture many of them in our own shops. We welcome tough parts, it’s our wheelhouse and it helps us learn. Every special has its own quality and inspection requirements, manufacturing method and of course unique application.  And as we know, they rarely come with perfect instructions, each one has its own story.

TS: During 2020, I’d be remiss if I did not ask how COVID-19 has affected your business.  How has it affected you guys and what have you learned?

Bob: Well the first thing we learned is that we weren’t prepared to immediately shift into working from home.  There was some portability, but employees had to use their home computers and that had security issues.  We quickly adjusted, didn’t hesitate, made the IT investment and geared up for transition.  Our work schedules were changed, we spread out those remaining in the office, added air purifiers, self-temperature checking stations, disposable gloves, etc. We discovered pretty quickly which of our industries were or were not fail-safe from Covid, either brought in extra inventory early or delayed product not manufactured yet. Finally, we called all of our major accounts regularly and kept a weekly log of customer plant closings, openings and expedited or delayed shipments.  The file was accessible by all departments and it helped us prioritize.  Communication was key, talking with customers and staff.  There was also a rapid learning curve to balance holding inventory for customers, letting your A/R age and keeping current with suppliers, all while still making payroll, rent, etc. and while we had been through downturns in the past, this was totally new and came out of nowhere.

TS: What is next for Abbott Interfast?  What do the next 5-10 year look like?

Bob: Our #1 priority is continued growth with additional machining capabilities, we recently bought another CNC machine with additional ones planned.  Online marketing and/or digital marketplace is also going to be our focus for next 5 years. Things are changing so fast, not sure about 10 years from now, except that maybe I will pass the torch by then. While I am not yet eligible for Social Security benefits, I am getting up there in age 😉

TS: On a personal note, you get some good natured teasing about being Mr. GQ.  In your defense, you do take care of yourself and dress professionally which sometimes in our industry stands out.  Not everyone wears a suit to the Vega show!  So first, let’s talk about your training regiment because that is important to you.  You’ve done Tough Mudder races and are diligent about taking care of yourself 

Bob: Yes, always felt that it’s better to be overdressed rather than the opposite. Eric Dudas first tagged me with the name on a podcast and it stuck, but it’s OK, I take it as a compliment. We have plenty of others in our industry, who like to dress for success, so I am definitely not alone. I was fortunate as a young man to start my career with Florsheim Shoes, and as an employee, was able to buy Royal Imperial wing tips for just $20. At the same time, my Mom worked for Hart Schaffner Marx so purchasing a 3 piece suit for $60 was a regular occurrence.  So I was a bit spoiled and it became normal to always wear a suit and nice shoes to work which I did so every day up until about 10 years ago when Business Casual became a thing and then fully integrated itself into the business world.  I can talk about fitness for hours, but my workout is not rocket science, just mix it up.  I’ve always been fortunate to stay active and lean but like many, I got away from it, especially after having kids. Then, at age 43, picking up a 2 year old daily was killing my back so I started back to the gym and swimming again.  I discovered Triathlons, Mud races, various different Obstacle races and fell in love with the physical challenges. The diverse training necessary to complete them, without dying on the course, has kept me in shape and feeling young.  Also, I had to keep up with my 3 growing boys/men. I’ve done many races, with my boys too, and still enjoy doing them. My bride and I regularly bike together, I am really slow at running, but swimming has always been my “go-to” for stress relief and I still swim 2-3 days a week. In 2007 I swam from Alcatraz to the beach at Crissy Field near the Golden Gate Bridge – my claim to fame and a lifelong goal. I would love to get an Industry Tough Mudder Team together for those of you interested, when they allow races again.  I think it would be a lot of fun. 

TS: You also are a die hard Chicago White Sox fan.  I had the opportunity to attend a Sox game with you once and was surprised to learn that pretty much your front yard as a kid was Comisky Park.

Bob: Yes, I grew up right between Chinatown and Comisky, a very short walk to the park. We really couldn’t afford tickets but a friend and I got to know the Players Parking Lot attendant pretty well. We used to sweep the parking lot for him regularly and he would let us in free after the 7^th inning stretch, so I attended a lot of 2 ½ inning Sox games. Growing up a Sox fan in my neighborhood also meant disliking the Cubs, a trait which I passed on to my kids.

TS: I love that. First, it is important that we raise our children the right way. And getting into games with a couple innings left – that’s awesome! You are a true fan. Ok, changing the topic here – how many watches do you own?

Bob: Best guess, somewhere between 25-30, including a few running & workout watches. It’s a Baer family male trait, my Dad was the same way, and my two brothers both have way more than me.  When you’re dressed, a nice watch is as important as your shoes. Now I wear an Apple watch frequently for its functionality and convenience and definitely miss wearing my nice ones regularly. As a gadget guy, it’s a tough trade off. 

TS: Lastly, what trends do you see in the fastener industry?  Where are we headed with consolidation, innovation and all of the above?

Wow, that’s always a tough question. Acquisitions never seems to rest, so it’s a safe bet they will continue.  But many baby boomers retired or are retiring and therefore selling out, so over the next 10 years I think consolidation may slow.  Technology seems to consistently move at light speed and almost every large fastener company now has a web presence and E-commerce on their own website.  Automated unmanned warehouses I think will be a phase in the future. I really do hate predictions, despite being a numbers person, so I will just make one – AI is growing so rapidly in the background and when it surfaces mainstream, things will change even faster than we can imagine.