Keeping the availability of aluminum up

“Aluminum prices keep on rising”, “aluminum isn’t available”, “aluminum stocks have fallen to critical levels”.

These are just a handful of headlines out of the news from the past year. Due to a broad variety of reasons the prices of all raw materials, including aluminum keep on rising and the availability of aluminum is getting less. This also affects the wire and cable market and we as supplier of materials specific for the cable and wire market see the disadvantages these developments bring with them.

For HEC-Holland, this situation presents a challenge. However, we also saw an opportunity to strengthen our supply chain. We believe that reliable partnerships are essential when market conditions become difficult.

Strong relationships with our suppliers

Our HEC Shanghai Office worked hard to build a strong relationship with our aluminum supplier. This close cooperation create a firm foundation for our business. As a result, this lead to a strong availability of aluminum supplies at an affordable price. In the same time, our supplier has been looking into their own supply chain. They made sure the supply chain was optimized for a solid cooperation with HEC-Holland. Strong relationships help us to respond to changes in the market. Furthermore, it allows us to support our customers when availability of a raw material becomes more difficult.

Local aluminium converting

An important advantage we have, is our ability to slit aluminium tapes in our own warehouse in The Netherlands. Last year we invested in an aluminium cutter to expand our local converting capabilities. This investment gives us more flexibility and strengthes the availability of aluminum. Instead of depending entirely on external converting partners, we can now process aluminium tapes ourselves. therefore, we can respond more efficiently to specific customer requirements.

Our local converting capabilities are especially valuable for customers in the European cable and wire market. We can provide aluminum materials in the dimensions required for different applications. This helps us offer a more complete service to our customers.

Reliable supply for our customers

Currently, HEC is able to keep the availability of aluminum up and supply the customer with the needed materials, which is something we are very proud of. We work closely with our supplies and partners to keep a reliable supply chain.

At the same time, we remain focused on quality and competitive pricing. We understand that reliable material availability is important for our customers and their production planning.

Therefore, we will continue to invest in strong partnerships, local converting capabilities and a reliable supply chain. Our goal is simple: to provide the right aluminum materials when our customers need them.

Curious about opportunities in the cable and wire market for your company? Feel free to contact your account manager or send us an e-mail.

Introducing Nicole Brockötter – Who am I?

Today we are introducing Nicole. Nicole can you tell us more about yourself? Hi, my name is Nicole Brockötter. I am 51 years old and live in a small town called Duiven, nearby Arnhem.

About 10 years ago, I started working at HEC-Holland as a Commercial Assistant. This was also my background and a role i had before. After a few years of experience in this position I was promoted to Account Manager. In this role, I am responsible for the Benelux and the German market. I am raised as a german bi-lingual. this is a major advantage in this line of field. This allows me to communicate with customers in their own language.

Genuine interest in others and humour go hand in hand with me. As a result, I like to make contact and get energy from maintaining and expanding my network. I believe I have an eye for detail, a passion for representing my job and like to share my knowledge with others.

It’s all about bringing real value to both parties and the best way to do this is by building strong and long-lasting partnerships through reliability and in-depth knowledge of markets, products and customers situation.

I see myself as an outgoing, open minded, spontaneous, and loyal person who likes to achieve goals and building relationships with colleagues and customers.

Besides work, I enjoy going out with my daughter, friends and family. I live together with my daughter and our animal friends Shiva, a French Bulldog, and my 2 cats Cooper and Schimanski. Furthermore, a glass of wine and a nice m

Feel free to contact our office or connect with me on LinkedIn or via e-mail. 

Thank you for reading the article on Introducing Nicole. We hope you enjoyed it. 

New partnership for Fiber Reinforced Plastic (FRP)

HEC-Holland is thrilled to announce its new partnership with the renowned company Xiao Bao, a leading manufacturer specializing in a wide array of Fiber Reinforced Plastics (FRP). The collaboration brings about a transformative change in the FRP industry, with a focus on innovation and diversification.

Expanding Horizons: Special FRP Solutions

In addition to the standard and upjacket FRP versions, Xiao Bao also produce special solutions specifically for anti-rodent protection and armor-plating. One of their expertises is producing FRP that can effectively replace galvanized steel wires, particularly in subsea power cable applications. This advancement paves the way for subsea power cable producers to venture into uncharted territories. It makes it possible to lay cables at greater depths, revolutionizing the industry.

Xiao Bao specialties

Apart from the standard line of FRP products, Xiao Bao offers a range of specialties unique in the market. One such specialty is the production of Carbon Fiber Composite Cores, which serve as a vital supporting element for overhead cables. These cores have great strength and durability, making them a preferred choice for critical applications. In addition, Xiao Bao manufactures high voltage insulation rods, further showcasing their commitment to innovation and high-quality FRP solutions.

The partnership between HEC-Holland and Xiao Bao is a milestone for both companies. With their expertise in specialized FRP solutions and innovative products, HEC-Holland can look forward to a new era of possibilities, ensuring enhanced performance, durability, and versatility in various applications for the cable industry. This collaboration is a testament to both companies’ commitment to advancing the FRP industry and pushing the boundaries of what is achievable.

More information on Xiao Bao?

If you interested in more information about this article and how we can help your company? Please contact us. Our team is more than happy to give you more details on our services and possibilities we provide.

If you are interested in our supplier and what their products can do for your project(s)? Our account managers are eager to give an online presentation and tell you about the possibilities.

Don’t forget to follow us on LinkedIn and stay informed about our latest news.

Visit the Tape workshop

We want to welcome you to join our Cable Tape workshop in June 2022 in our home country, the Netherlands. During the last years much expertise has been lost, due to natural reasons such as, reorganisations, retirement of experts or shift to other strategic expertise fields.

We see this as an opportunity to show you why HEC-Holland is your partner in the cable industry. We want to connect the professionals in the world of cables and invite them all to interact with each other. And as an organization with extensive knowledge in the cable industry we want to teach and inspire you. By creating a tape workshop we hope we can get engineers in the field of cables to come together in one place and help each other and inform on relevant topics in order to make your cable projects a success now and in the future.

Workshop programme

In this Tape workshop we will talk about the different aspects of several types of tapes. The themes include, for instance, norms and standards of tapes as cable materials. We also provide you with advices on how to process, use and optimize the choice of one or a combination of tapes in order to reduce costs and to increase effectiveness of the tape (combinations).

The HEC-Holland Tape workshop will be primarily for process, design and strategic technical procurement engineers.

The workshop will be a 2-day course and besides our own technical engineers, there will also be other experts in the field of cables who will attend as speakers.

Find detailed information on this event in this special Tape workshop June 2022 flyer.

Register for the tape workshop

Are you interested in in attending our workshop, then click on the link below and tell us who will visit the workshop and we will book your place.

Important! We have limited availability so book early to guarantee your place, preferably before 1^st Februar 2022.

At HEC-Holland, we continuously look for ways to improve our service and create more value for our customers. As part of this commitment, we are expanding our converting capabilities with local aluminum tape converting.

This new capability allows us to convert aluminum tapes locally and tailor them to the customers requirements. By bringing more converting capacity closer to our customers, we can offer greater flexibility, shorter lead times and a more efficient supply chain.

Expanding Our Aluminum Converting Capabilities

Our converting facility has been an important part of HEC-Holland’s growth. We already convert waterblocking tapes and other cable materials to customer-specific dimensions. With the addition of aluminum converting, we are expanding these capabilities even further.

The new slitting machine is designed to process aluminum tapes according to the required specifications. This means we can offer a wider range of converted materials directly from our facility.

For our customers, this provides an additional level of flexibility. Instead of supplying standard materials only, we can prepare the material to the dimensions and format required for their production process.

Local Converting for Aluminum Tapes

Local converting gives us greater control over the complete process, from material handling and slitting to winding, packaging and delivery. Our converting specialists work closely with customers to understand their requirements and provide materials that are ready for production. Depending on the application, aluminum tapes can be converted into the required widths and formats to fit specific cable constructions and production processes.

This approach is part of our make-to-order strategy: providing the right material, in the right format, at the right time.

Tailor-Made Converting for the Cable Industry

Every cable production process has its own requirements. That is why HEC-Holland focuses on flexible, customer-specific converting solutions.

Our converting services include slitting, cutting, winding, labelling and packaging. We can convert a broad range of cable tapes and foils, including PE, PET, PP foam, mica and metal tapes such as aluminum, steel and copper. 

By combining our material knowledge with our converting expertise, we can help cable manufacturers optimize their production process and reduce unnecessary handling.

More Flexibility, Shorter Lead Times

Expanding our local aluminum converting capabilities is another step in strengthening our service to the European wire and cable industry.

With our production facility, we can respond more flexibly to customer requirements while keeping converted materials closer to the market. This helps us improve lead times and provide a more efficient solution for customers who require specific dimensions or formats.

We are looking forward to putting our expanded aluminum converting capabilities into practice and continuing to develop our converting services in line with the needs of our customers.

For more information on our ability to produce aluminium tapes, please contact us.

Working Visit to Hanwha: Strengthening Our Partnership

Our working visit to Hanwha focused on strengthening our collaboration. We value long-term partnerships with suppliers and customers in the wire and cable industry. During our visit, we explored Hanwha’s plans for expanding its production of crosslinkable polyethylene (XLPE). The new production facilities in Yeosu represent an important investment in future capacity.

We were also able to see how Hanwha is preparing for increasing demand in the global cable market.

Expanding XLPE production capacity

The new fully automated production system gives way for a further grow in our XLPE capacity. The completion of the production site is expected by 2021 ~ early 2022. Along with this expansion Hanwha is also investing in an automated warehouse, especially dedicated for their Wire and Cable products. This also will be ready at the same time.

Hanwha is a strong global player in the Cable and Wire Industry and sees an overall increase in needs of their products and aims high on sustainability and has a clear vision for a brigher future. To showcase this and their intentions, they are building a new HQ in downtown Seoul. Their new office is near completion and ready for the 21st century. The building features are astonishing, with solar panels fully integrated in the exterior of the building. Which where produced by Hanwha’s sister company called Q-Cell.

A stronger focus on Europe

Hanwha took great care of us and made sure the visit was one to remember. For this memorable and special occassion they reserved their very own company helicopter to transport the team of HEC-Holland and our valuable customers. We as HEC-Holland are confident that our partner Hanwha Chemical is ready to further roll out their strategy for Europe, and strengthen the presence within the Wire and Cable market especially in Europe. 

We greatly appreciate the hospitality shown by Hanwha during our working visit Hanwha Chemical in their homeland. The experience strengthened our partnership and gave us a better understanding of their future plans.

Contact us

Do you like to know more on our trip to Hanwha Chemical or want to get in contact with us? Feel free to contact our office and get in contact with one of our team!

SHWX and HEC-Holland: Strengthening our collaboration

SHWX is a valuable partner for HEC-Holland in the international cable and wire market. At the time of the agreement, the collaboration supported the expansion of local capacity in China. This development was intended to improve flexibility and strengthen the supply of quality materials to European customers.

Furthermore, the collaboration created opportunities to respond more efficiently to changing customer requirements. Shorter lead times and reliable product availability were important benefits for customers.

The partnership also reflected HEC-Holland’s approach to building long-term relationships with suppliers and industry partners. By working closely together, both companies could better understand market developments and customer needs.ith the new expansion in China, HEC-Holland and SHWX further increases their market share within the European market of the cable and wire industry. The new local capacity will get into place within the first quarter of 2020 to serve our customers. On the newly made collaboration Mr. Lurkin commented: “This partnership is a big step forwards for both companies. The European cable industry will benefit greatly from this collaboration. Not only will it give more flexibility on the market, lead times of quality products will also get shorter.”

Expanding Converting Capabilities

At the same time, HEC-Holland continued to invest in its own converting capabilities in Tilburg, the Netherlands. The company expanded its product lines and production capacity to offer more customer-specific solutions.

The investment included a state-of-the-art slitting machine for converting aluminium tapes. This equipment enabled HEC-Holland to produce tailor-made dimensions according to customer requirements. At the time, the machine could process aluminium tapes up to 4,100 metres per pad.

As a result, customers could benefit from greater flexibility and more precise converting options. These capabilities complemented HEC-Holland’s distribution activities and strengthened its role as a solution-oriented supplier.

More information?

If you want more information on this article, please feel free to contact us. Our account manager will be more than happy to give you more details on our services and possibilities.