The Company, through its wholly owned subsidiary, Simpson Strong-Tie Company
Inc., designs, engineers and is a leading manufacturer of wood construction
products, including connectors, truss plates, fastening systems, fasteners and
pre-fabricated lateral systems used in light-frame construction, and concrete
construction products used for concrete, masonry, steel construction and for
concrete repair, protection and strengthening, including adhesives, chemicals,
mechanical anchors, carbide drill bits, powder actuated tools and fiber reinforced
materials. The Company markets its products to the residential construction,
light industrial and commercial construction, remodeling and do-it-yourself
(“DIY”) markets. The Company also provides engineering services
in support of some of its products and increasingly offers design and other
software that facilitates the specification, selection and use of its products.
The Company believes that the Simpson Strong-Tie brand benefits from strong
brand name recognition among architects and engineers who frequently specify
in building plans the use of the Company’s products. The Company has continuously
manufactured structural connectors since 1956.
The Company attracts and retains customers by designing, manufacturing and
selling products that are of high quality and performance, easy to use and cost-effective
for customers. The Company aims to manufacture and warehouse its products in
geographic proximity to its markets to provide availability and rapid delivery
of products to customers and prompt response to customer requests for specially
designed products and services. The Company maintains high levels of inventory
to operate with little backlog and fill most customer orders within a few days.
High levels of manufacturing automation and flexibility allow the Company to
maintain its quality standards while continuing to provide prompt delivery.
The Company intends to continue efforts to increase market share in both the
wood construction and concrete construction product groups by:
maintaining frequent contact with customers and private organizations that provide
information to building code officials;
continuing to sponsor seminars to inform architects, engineers, contractors
and building officials on appropriate use, proper installation and identification
of the Company’s products;
continuing to invest in mobile and web applications for customers, utilizing
social media, blog posts and videos to connect and engage with customers and
to help them do their jobs more efficiently; and
continuing to diversify product offerings to be less dependent on residential
housing.
The Company’s long-term strategy is to develop, acquire or invest in
product lines or businesses that have the potential to increase the Company’s
earnings per share over time and that:
complement the Company’s existing product lines;
can be marketed through the Company’s existing distribution channels;
might benefit from use of the Company’s brand names and expertise;
are responsive to needs of the Company’s customers;
expand the Company’s markets geographically; and
reduce the Company’s dependence on the United States residential construction
market.
New Products. The Company commits substantial resources to new product development.
The Company believes it is the only United States manufacturer with the capability
to test multi-story wall systems, thus enabling full scale testing rather than
analysis alone to prove system performance. The Company’s engineering,
sales, product management, and marketing teams work together with architects,
engineers, building inspectors, code officials and customers in the new product
development process.
The Company’s product research and development is based largely on products
or solutions that are identified within the Company or as customers communicate
to the Company as well as the Company’s strategic initiatives to develop
new markets or product lines. The Company’s strategy is to develop new
products on a proprietary basis, to seek patents when appropriate and to rely
on trade secret protection for others. The Company typically develops 15 to
25 new products each year.
new connectors for wood framing applications;
new wood shrinkage compensating devices;
new cold formed steel bridging and kneewall connections;
new structural screws for wood, metal and composite decking applications;
new mechanical anchors were introduced for use in hollow wall conditions and
for overhead applications; and
the repair, protection and strengthening line of products received code approvals
for their carbon fiber fabric and laminate systems.
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