What started only eight years ago in Jon Will’s garage, has become a sizeable supplier of quality nails to the pallet industry. Jon Will, owner and president of Michigan Fastener, said, “We have almost doubled our plant capacity over the last year and are adding new customers and products every day. We have added new equipment and increased the size of our wire storage and finished goods storage. We have grown a lot over the last few years thanks to happy customers.”
An experienced cold header who worked for 20-plus years for another company. Jon Will knows what it takes to produce quality metal products and is taking this drive and dedication to build his own company. Today, Michigan Fastener is continuing to grow, increasing production and storage capabilities. Michigan Fastener recently added new equipment to produce large coil nails for the automated pallet manufacturing industry. These 3,000-count coils (9M per box) fit in any machine that uses large coils, such as Raycos and Woodpeckers.
Will shared, “Customers absolutely love our nails because we produce a true diameter with a larger head. Many import suppliers are bringing in nails that are not true to the stated size and have very small heads. So, if it's a 0.99 size, we're making it that size. Using the actual specification equals more nail for your money. That makes a big difference. The truer the size, the better nails run in guns. We strive for no jams and consistency.” Will continues, “We are supplying a higher quality nail made from hard American steel.”
Michigan Fastener recently started carrying and supplying pneumatic tools and nailers for automated machines and hand production. This enables the company to provide nails to customers accustomed to getting their tooling from their nail suppliers. Will said, “We don't charge anything for guns. We supply some EVERWIN, but mostly we supply our own branded Mi-FAST guns, which are like a Max gun (same manufacturer). We offer several different nail gun sizes too.” Michigan Fastener will supply new guns if equipment breaks or gets too old to function correctly. “Our customers use nail guns to make money. The last thing we want are issues,” explained Will.
In the past few years, many organizations have experienced problems related to the supply chain, not receiving products timely. Producing nails in the United States reduces the impact of global trade on the supply chains and can reduce costs. “The market is always changing. Why buy multiple containers overseas and have to wait, in several cases, months for them to work through the supply chain and then sit on them? Why go through that process when you can order on demand from us and adjust to the market? We understand our customers need to be competitive, so we do everything we can for them,” stated Will. “Not to mention, I've talked to many customers in the last six months, and they're stuck in these programs and pay a ridiculous amount of money for nails. I mean absolutely ridiculous,” he continued.
Although Michigan Fastener can ship nationwide, most of its customers are in the Midwest, Northeast, East, and South. Steel is sourced from Liberty Steel in Illinois. “We want to give our customers the best possible price on the market and discourage a significant stock build-up on our customer’s floor,” declared Will.
In addition to collated nails, Michigan Fastener also provides bulk nails. Will explained, “We offer machine-grade bulk nails, anything from 1 to 4 inches. With the addition of a wash plant. Michigan Fastener has improved the general quality of nails to create a new industry standard.”
Will added, “We just put in a new wash plant that produces really clean, shiny chrome-like nails. These are probably the nicest, cleanest nails I have seen. This new process is just phenomenal. These are top-notch and high quality.” The idea is to minimize the impact dirty nails can have on equipment. Jon Will’s team will also work on custom orders to meet individual customer specifications. Will said, “We will tackle a lot of unique requests. We even do pinning nails for burlap baskets.” For more information, visit www.michiganfastener.com or call (810) 728-4005.
