EGGER is a family business, founded in 1961, with its first chipboard plant in St Johann, Austria, which is still the company’s head office today.
Distribution Sales Manager, EGGER UK Ltd.
Since then the company has grown to 18 plants in seven countries and 26 Sales offices worldwide with over 9,000 employees. EGGER has two plants in the UK; Hexham in Northumberland and Barony in Ayrshire.
The EGGER Group is one of the largest manufacturers of wood based materials in Europe. Its products are used in the construction, furniture and interior design sectors. Catering for all markets, EGGER products can be seen in walls, roofs and flooring in residential/commercial applications, offices, hotels and retail outlets.
Gary Muir, Distribution Sales Manager at EGGER UK Ltd, spoke to Warehouse & Logistics News.
WLN –What are your best-known products and services?
EGGER UK produce a wide range of construction flooring products for housebuilding, timber frame, offsite modular, merchant customers and of course EGGER OSB HDX boards for industrial/commercial and mezzanine flooring applications.
WLN –Which market sectors and countries are your customers in? Which ones are growing fastest?
From our UK HQ we supply into UK and Ireland. Primarily to the mezzanine flooring market, however EGGER OSB HDX is also suitable for racking, shelving, working platforms and decking applications, therefore we focus our activities in these industry areas also.
WLN – How do your products benefit your customers’ businesses?
Running out of warehouse space can be a daunting prospect for any business. Especially with the disruption and high costs associated with relocating premises. Installing a mezzanine floor in an existing premises is a cost effective and efficient solution to space management problems. Optimising existing floor space and potentially doubling the area for a one off cost.
EGGER OSB HDX is ideal for this application and being 30mm thick (as oppose to typical 38mm chipboard alternative) means it’s around 20% lighter, this despite the panel size being 11% larger. This means customers get more coverage per board and it’s easier to manoeurve saving time and money on site.
WLN –Why should customers choose you as their main supplier in your area?
EGGER are known throughout the industry for producing quality products to a consistently high standard. We are always looking to evolve existing materials and develop innovative new ones. By listening to our customer’s feedback we can ensure the best products available to suit their needs.
WLN – What’s business been like in the past year? How have conditions changed over this period and how have you reacted?
The reduced availability and increased costs of raw materials across the panel industry has had a major impact on production costs. Where possible we have, and will continue to try to absorb these costs for as long as possible through production efficiencies and investments in technology. We have also put some products on allocation to allow for continuity of supply into the market.
WLN – What’s been your most outstanding recent project?
Wyder Engineered Timber Systems expanded its production facilities on-site by creating a 280 sq.m mezzanine level using EGGER OSB HDX boards. Dave Williams, Company Director at Wyder Engineered Timber Systems, said: “We specified EGGER OSB HDX panels to create the substrate floor for the mezzanine level because of its performance. The panels are denser and stronger than traditional 38mm chipboard and offer superior insulation and sound reduction from the factory noise below”.
Having a long standing customer use our product for their own construction project, we felt, was a testament to the quality of EGGER OSB HDX and the trust our customers have in EGGER products.
WLN – How have you fine-tuned your offering in the last 12 months and why?
Following discussions with our end users, EGGER OSB HDX boards are now sanded which provides us with added benefits, particularly with wear and tear. It also allows us to look at future developments with potential coatings for various site requirements.
WLN –What recent enhancements have you made in customer service?
Over the past months we have expanded our building products sales team, giving us the ability to increase the support we give to our customer base. We now also have a dedicated customer services team.
Focusing purely on our building products customers, they are on hand to deal with orders, enquiries and information requests.
WLN –What factors do you see affecting your business in the coming year? How will you turn these into opportunities?
Continued pressures from raw material shortages and high costs will definitely be a consideration for the coming year. We have developed EGGER OSB HDX, so although only 30mm thick it actually has higher point loads and UDL’s than 38mm Chipboard, therefore using less material in production.
WLN – Are you planning to branch into any new areas, target new customers and take on more people?
With the use of automotive warehouse technology on the increase we see EGGER OSB HDX, with its sanded surface, becoming the go-to product for mezzanine flooring. We hope to develop this area with the help of our increased team of sales managers.
WLN – Are you investing in new premises and extra staff? What about staff development and training?
Development and training are key to our growth and success, we have various internal training schemes, including EGGER Kompact, where training is provided to all employees, by employees. We have also identified product training needs within our merchant network, and as a result, have developed an e-learning training course which will be rolled out to all of our suppliers. Ensuring they have the most accurate, up-to-date knowledge of EGGER building materials.
WLN – Are you involved in any major trade shows or other industry events over the next year?
We will be attending various customer and supplier events, along with regional NHBC shows throughout 2018.
WLN –What big news from Egger can our readers look forward to seeing in Warehouse & Logistics News in 2018?
News on our continued investment into not only our UK operation, but the wider EGGER group facilities across Europe. Including our OSB plant in Raduati, northeastern Romania. We will also be developing our existing product range in response to customer requirements.
WLN – And finally, if you had to sum up your company in a tweet what would it be?
EGGER UK – a pioneering and innovative wood-based manufacturer. Providing customers with the best possible products for their construction needs.
EGGER UK LTD
0845 602 4444
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