Even though there are millions of people out of work in this United States, many pallet companies are reporting having difficulty finding qualified labor to fill all their positions. And with Obamacare and other rules, people continue to get more expensive each year. That is why companies are looking at ways to automate and improve their production.
Helping companies solve their labor and production woes has been one of the key reasons for the success of Viper Industrial Products, which was established in 2009. Over that time Viper has become a significant player in the nail sector and is starting to make a mark in the nailing equipment arena.
Viper offers pallet nails, pallet nailing tools and equipment, service and is now the sole sales representative for the Woodpecker nailing machines. Later this year, Viper is launching the Viper 3000, a high-speed nailing system designed to compete against other top-line systems.
A key driver for all of the things that Viper does for its clients is to reduce the amount of downtime, make employees efficient and try to eliminate labor requirements.
Todd Mazur, president of Viper, commented, “Our company is adapting to changes in the industry where labor is a major concern for pallet companies all over the country. The right type of automation and the proper nail and tool program can boost productivity and make it possible for companies to produce more pallets with fewer people”
He added, “Once we get engaged with customers we try to prevent problems before they occur. In our business no news is good news, which tells us our customer’s expectations are being met.”
One of the ways that Viper does that is by visiting a new customer and auditing its current nail programs from nail guns used at repair or manufacturing tables to looking at nailing needs for automated systems.
Del Wagner, sales manager for Viper, said, “Not all nails are created equal. You can get more holding power with a nail that is configured properly.” Viper will work with customers to simplify nail programs and make sure they have the right nail and/or equipment for the job.
Mazur said that his people will work with a pallet company to review a Pallet Design System™ (PDS) analysis to see if a pallet is overdesigned. Mazur explained, “We can look at the nail and figure out how to reduce the deck board thickness based on using a more favorable nail.”
There are a lot of nail factors that can be reviewed based on a PDS analysis, such as the length of the nail, the diameter, the thread type, etc. Some specialty pallets or crates require a heavier gauge or longer nail. Mazur added, “We know a lot about fasteners, but we also know a lot about pallets and how our fasteners are used in their finished product.”
A few years ago the country faced a hardwood lumber shortage and people opted to use more pine and SPF material. Mazur said that pallet suppliers started to get calls from customers that boards were popping off the top deck. Viper advised its customers in those cases to start using a rink shank nail because it gets better performance in the lumber compared to a screw shank nail when it comes to softwood material. This solution solved the problem.
Let’s look at some of the real-world scenarios where Viper helped customers improve their production processes, cut labor requirements and boost production.
Viper Overhauls Nail Program at L&R Pallet
A major pallet manufacturer and recycler in Denver, Colorado frequently faced problem with its hand tools and nails. Jamie Doyle, plant manager for L&R Pallet, explained, “We were using a different vendor for nails, and we were getting nails from them and handling our own tools. Our maintenance department was servicing nail guns that we purchased. It was a huge hassle for us because we probably have 150 nail guns here.”
Jamie Doyle added, “Our maintenance department was capable of doing it, but taking care of nail guns got treated as an afterthought.”
Nail guns were breaking down, jamming, causing extra nail discharges. It was not only a production problem, it had turned into a safety concern as well. James Ruder, president of L&R Pallet, observed, “What brought this to a head for me was the downtime that we experienced. And it was a major safety issue. We were getting new hires that had little experience with the equipment. And some safety issues arose.”
Viper solved the problem by bringing in better nailing tools, handling all the servicing and training workers on proper practices. Viper set up a tool management program where tools for each department were color coded. This allows a manager to easily identify if a nail gun is out of place. This program also ensures that each tool is serviced in a timely manner.
Jamie lamented, “Nailing problems were constantly on our radar, and that is not something you want as a production-oriented company.” Tools were wearing out where the nose cones were stretching allowing for multiple nails to be discharged at once. This resulted in quality and safety concerns.
By bringing in better equipment, Viper was able to solve the issues. Mazur explained, “Many of the suppliers will try to put as cheap of a tool as possible in there because it is an expense. But we put better quality tools in there so the customer has less downtime related to the equipment, and we have less labor in it to maintain and keep it running well.”
Wagner added, “Recycling is a tough business and you need good tools to handle the job. We offer on-site service so everything is repaired as needed.”
To service L&R Pallet, Viper found a technician to handle servicing the tools. Jamie said that he was impressed with how Viper was willing to enter a market where it did not have a presence. He added, “Viper just didn’t come in looking to sell one thing, they wanted to see how they could help us fix our problems.”
Ruder couldn’t be happier with the decision to switch to Viper. He explained, “Our nail program with Viper was a little bit more expensive initially, but it solved so many problems that we couldn’t even put a number on the conveniences and benefits we have received.”
Viper focuses on the total value of its solution, which includes the expertise of its personnel. Jamie suggested that Del Wagner was a wealth of knowledge about nailing systems, and he really helped them solve even some nailing related issues on their automated nailing lines.
Ruder commented, “A lot of pallet companies are experiencing a lot of turnover and this adds to safety challenges, and the Viper program helped us have better tools and training to accommodate new workers, boost production and improve safety all at the same time.”
One thing Viper did was look to consolidate and simplify the nail program. Ruder said, “Viper made recommendations to help us consolidate our SKUs and reduce the number of the type of nails that we were buying, which makes us more efficient.”
With tools maintained on-site, downtime was significantly reduced. Jamie raved, “Viper took over the management of the nail and tooling program so I don’t even have to think about it anymore. What used to be a huge problem is now completely off my radar screen.”
Woodpecker Nailing System Solves Labor Issue for C.W. Price Enterprises
Focusing on specialty pallets has helped C.W. Price maintain a strong business. The company has moved from long runs of common sizes to shorter runs of specialty designs. For years the company made most of those pallets by hand. But labor challenges have made it imperative to find a way to automate and reduce labor needs.
Homer Townsley, vice president of sales for C.W. Price, observed, “We have gone from having applicants come through the door almost on a daily basis to where we are lucky if we have a few applicants come through here once per month.”
Located in Missouri, the company faces labor challenges and has found automation to be a worthwhile solution. Townsley said, “The labor pool is not very robust right now. We are sitting here scratching our heads trying to replace people when they leave. This machine has allowed us to move some of our better guys to other jobs.”
Townsley explained, “The Woodpecker Jr. is there everyday building a good pallet, and I can put a new hire on the machine and make it work just fine.”
This gives the company flexibility to put more senior employees on other tasks and put new hires on the position and still be very productive. The Woodpecker Jr. can produce about 450-500 pallets per day with one worker whereas four experienced builders used to produce about 600 pallets per day.
Townsley bragged, “We build a lot of complicated specialty pallets that have almost a solid top with maximum coverage and very little gaps between the boards. We tend to use thin deckboards. It is very labor intensive when building this design on the hand tables. But this Woodpecker does a great job with that design.”
C.W. Price operates its own scragg mill and cuts lumber to size. Based on the customer specification, C.W. Price cuts the lumber so there is just a quarter inch gap between the boards.
Townsley raved, “The Woodpecker Junior is about the only machine we have found that can handle really thin lumber and can produce this design with no problems.”
Other approaches they tried frequently resulted in broken boards. He explained that it was easy to changeover from different designs, reload the nails and train new workers.
Townsley said, “The machine produces a better looking pallet than what some builders can make by hand. Every day it produces quality pallets. There are no shiners. The Woodpecker Jr. has helped us improve our quality while cutting staff requirements.”
Viper made on-site visits to help C.W. Price to determine what machine would be best. Not being just a voice on the end of the phone and getting to know their operation helped to make the best recommendation possible.
And the big surprise was the cost, he estimates it will pay for itself in 1-2 years.
Pallet Factory Finds Tool Improvement Thanks to Viper
Viper has worked with The Pallet Factory headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee for a number of years. Through a pallet nail program, Viper helped The Pallet Factory reduce nail-related safety issues. Recently, The Pallet Factory added a new Industrial Resources repair line, and Viper worked to adapt the nail guns to work with the line. A key approach is to help customers with any aspect of its nail or nailing issues.
“Todd Mazur of Viper has put together a top notch team. Viper has always treated me great and delivers a good quality nail. Viper keeps us updated on what is going on in the market so that we can plan in terms of costs,” commented Michael Doyle, president of The Pallet Factory.
The Pallet Factory is one of the few licensed companies that is producing 9BLOC pallets. This requires a special nail, and Viper is one of the few companies that is licensed to provide 9BLOC nails.
One of the big advantages of working with Viper is its focus on responding to industry issues. Mazur explained, “When the anti-dumping issue arose and there were nail shortages all across the country, our customers, such as The Pallet Factory, didn’t experience any problems. We were so involved in their business and kept in communication so they knew there would not be a problem supplying nails.”
Viper to Launch Innovative Nailing System
Identifying a need in the range of nailing machines offered on the market, Viper has in development its own Viper-branded nailing system. Called the Viper 3000, it will compete with the Viking, GBN, Storti and Cape lines, according to Mazur.
Mazur stated, “Our system is a continuous nailing machine where most nailing machines have to stop to shoot a nail. We have some technology that will nail a pallet and never stop.”
He estimated his machine can produce 6-8 pallets per minute depending on the pallet design. The Viper 3000 uses collated nail guns to handle the nailing process.
Mazur explains the biggest benefit is the price point and simplicity of the machine. He said the Viper 3000 competes against a different market than even the bigger Woodpecker system. The Viper 3000 will be able to produce between 2500-3000 pallets in a shift. He said it will be competitive to other high-speed nailing systems for basically a fraction of the cost.
Mazur commented, “The Viper 3000 will cost less than other high-speed nailers to service and maintain because it has a simpler design.”
Wagner said, that “80% of the problems that you have with a high speed nailing line is with the nailing devices.” He added that the simplicity of the Viper 3000 will greatly reduce these issues.
The first unit is set to be installed at a plant in Missouri later this month. Unlike a bulk nail machine where fixing a problem in the nailing head can take 20 minutes to a few hours. A unique bracket will allow for quick tool changes to reduce downtime. The Viper 3000 is made in the USA with a license to an engineering company that specializes in packaging, pallet assembly and palletizing equipment.
Viper Experiences Impressive Growth
Established in 2009, Viper has grown 30% or more every year since the company started. And since it began during the financial crisis that has been an impressive run. Viper sprung up out of the Bostitch business when the nailing giant decided to spin off its industrial division and work through distribution.
Viper has decided to focus on the pallet sector because that is what it knows best. Wagner said, “Part of the demise of Bostitch was that it lost focus on its industrial business…The pallet industry –that’s where our experience and passion has always been.”
