Spot the difference

that end users make the right informed choices. If sheer size is anything to go by, Aalco would be pretty near the top of the shortlist. Solutions reports.

Aalco claims to be the UK's largest, independently owned stockholder and carries vast stocks of stainless steel, copper, brass and bronze. But, with a history dating back to 1964 when it was founded, the company now employs over 750 people here in the UK and highlights a number of differences that, it claims, sets it apart from its competitors.

The first and most obvious difference between Aalco and its competitors is its sheer size. This is amply reflected in a massive stockholding capability which totals over 10,000 items of the most commonly used metals held in store at the company's central hub near Birmingham. Its size naturally affords the company favourable purchasing power to negotiate the keenest of deals with metal suppliers on all materials – which it is then able to pass onto customers – all 30,000 of them in the UK.

Secondly Aalco's independence means that the company is not allied to any one particular mill and can purchase material from a number of different quality sources, again passing on savings it makes to its customers. Then, as a well-established company that has a history stretching back nearly fifty years, Aalco's customers have the assurance of dealing with a financially stable and well respected supplier that they know will be around for some time to come – thus guaranteeing continuity of supply.

Localised service

But perhaps the thing that most sets the company apart is its structure. It operates through a network of service centres spread throughout the length and breadth of the UK – and each of the 18 centres operates a localised service as an individual cost centre with its own warehouse, stocks, manager, sales staff, machinery and delivery vehicles. As you might expect, these service centres vary considerably in size, but many are sizeable organisations in their own right. The largest has over 70 employees and has an annual turnover of approximately £30 million.

Each of the service centres has a considerable stockholding of material for particular customers or specific local industries but sources the most commonly used items from the central hub. Aalco's sales development director, Clive Bush, explains the benefits that this approach offers: “The size of our stockholding at the central hub enables us to negotiate the keenest deals – and this works particularly well with the most commonly used materials and items.”

He continues: “We undertake daily deliveries to each of the eighteen service centres throughout the country and this means that, via a centralised computer system, each centre has access not only to its own particular stocks but also the massive stockholding at the central hub. On stocked material in standard grades and sizes, delivery to the customer is usually within 24 hours of the order being placed.”

“Managers of each of the service centre also have the autonomy to source their own stock whenever the need arises – when customers need non-standard or bespoke items for specific applications for instance. This is dependent on demand, of course, but it means that each centre is effectively set-up to meet the needs of its own particular customer base. 70% of deliveries will come from the hub in Birmingham whilst the remaining 30% – the non-standard items – will be ordered directly on the customer's behalf by the local centre.”

“We believe the system works well for local customers because each centre is responsible for its own geographic area with no interregional competition in overlapping areas. This means that Aalco customers know exactly who is responsible for supplying them with a service and support that is both local and focused.”

Well-established links

Aalco stocks all commonly used forms of stainless steel (sheet, coil, plate, bar and sections as well as a full range of tube, pipe, fittings and flanges) and provides a complete range of processing services which includes cutting of bar, tube and pipe, processing of plate and coil, along with high quality surface finishing. The company also holds extensive stocks of aluminium sheet, coil, patterned sheet and treadplate, tube, bar, sections and free machining bar, stocking a wide range of different thicknesses and grades of aluminium plate (including marine grade).

This is backed by a number of ancillary services for aluminium plate such as cutting and processing and – at its Southampton service centre – there is a router service for the CAD cutting of bespoke profiles and shapes. The company supplies various specialist markets such as the construction, engineering, transport, signage, leisure and sporting goods industries, for which the sourcing of bespoke aluminium extrusions is an additional benefit.

“We have well-established links with high quality aluminium extruders from around the globe,” Mr Bush adds. “We hold a stock range of numerous extrusions in various alloys and our strong relationships with these leading extruders enable us to select the very best supplier for any job, regardless of shape, size or complexity. Again, Aalco's size, standing and purchasing power usually results in obtaining the most competitive prices for those clients needing such extruded aluminium sections.”

This is typical of the way that Aalco operates. Through a network of loyal, proven suppliers of its own, the company offers a whole gamut of ancillary metal services including electro-polishing, heat treatment, powder coating, painting and anodising, to provide more 'added value' to customers.

Customer retention is priority

For the same reason, the company runs basic metallurgy courses twice yearly for sales and QA staff in order to enhance customer relations. Mr Bush emphasises that the courses are relatively simple but proving very beneficial for both the company and its clients in the longer term. “The courses are wide ranging and give our employees a wealth of useful information such as how metals are produced at the mill, basic material composition, alloying elements as well as relevant specifications and standards,” he enthuses. “Staff also gain an understanding of why metals corrode and how different grades of stainless steel and aluminium offer different properties in terms of machineability and weldability. This enables us, as a company, to be able to talk to customers on a technical level and gives us a greater understanding of their requirements.

“Our UK service centres have a defined locality and therefore a limited number of potential customers so if we lose a client through poor service, there isn't a simple replacement waiting in the wings. For us, customer retention is our number one priority and our company ethos is therefore centred upon building longstanding relationships and providing the very best possible service”
“It is quite common for companies to cut back on investment, marketing and training during tough times but this is not the case at Aalco and we believe that this further differentiates us from our competitors,” he states. In addition to the ongoing training of service centre staff, there has been constant investment in plant and equipment – most notably in new CNC equipment at Southampton and a soon to be announced service centre in Essex.

Tricks of the trade

Also, the company has maintained and indeed increased participation in major UK trade exhibitions. March sees Aalco taking a large stand at ecobuild at London's ExCeL Centre, an exhibition that claims to be the largest and most dynamic in the architectural, building and construction markets and in June the business takes a major display at Sea Work in Southampton.
Furthermore, as part of the Amari Metals family, Aalco will also be exhibiting at Tube Dusseldorf in March and Aluminium Dusseldorf in October. “All of these activities are demonstrable proof that Aalco intends to remain at the forefront of metals supply,” Mr Bush concludes.

Aalco
www.aalco.co.uk