Inventory Management – What’s your strategy?

In today’s on-demand market, proper inventory management is critical for success. Having the materials you need, when you need them, is one of the key factors in determining your performance as a supplier. With a heavy emphasis being placed on On-Time Delivery, being able to react to your customer’s needs quickly and effectively can have a huge impact on future business opportunities. For many companies, this means carrying additional inventory to ensure materials are on hand at all times, which can be particularly problematic for small businesses with limited cash flow or storage space.

Carrying costs can represent as much as 20% to 30% of total inventory value. Tangible costs such as storage, handling, and insuring goods are obvious, however intangibles such as opportunity cost due to reduction of cash flow, or the cost of deterioration and obsolescence of goods are often overlooked. With an increasing number of items restricted by shelf life or customer-driven product age limitations, these types of costs are more prevalent than ever.

The solution? A partnership with FDH Aero, a proven leader in effective inventory management.

With a wide range of flexible Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) options, we offer tailor-made programs that provide comprehensive solutions based on your specific business model. We don’t believe in one-size-fits-all, we focus on what makes sense for you and your customers and build from there. Whether your strategy is “just in time” delivery, on-site Vendor Inventory Management, blanket orders with scheduled ship dates, or a unique combination of several approaches – we’ve got your inventory management needs covered. With millions of dollars in inventory and same day turnaround for most orders, we have the resources to provide you with the materials you need, when you need them, every time. Some of the benefits of our VMI programs are:

  • Reduced Inventory, Overstocks and Stock Shortages: Not having the right products in stock can be a big problem for you and your customers. Having too much product can be just as damaging to your bottom line – our VMI programs eliminate these issues and allow you to focus on your growth and success.
  • Smaller Manufacturing Footprint: Floor and shelf space are valuable assets in your production facility, and extra inventory only uses up that space without contributing to immediate income or production needs. Additional storage not only means greater overhead costs, but that space could go toward manufacturing activities for other production floor opportunities.
  • Increased Sales: Implementing a VMI can increase sales by giving you the ability to deliver your products faster than your competitors. Reduced lead times will boost the quality of customer service and foster brand loyalty. This means more returning customers and increased sales over time.
  • Less Responsibility: When you reduce the financial and operational burden of managing inventory, it lowers costs, reduces admin work, allowing you to minimize inventory while simultaneously maximizing profits. Spend less time and resources on maintaining purchase records and issuing discrete orders. Let us do the work for you!

Contact your sales representative today to inquire about our VMI programs.

Whitmor/Wirenetics Product Spotlight: Heat Shrink Boots

With the largest stocking inventory of heat-shrink boots in the United States, Whitmor/Wirenetics provides over 50,000 possible combinations to give you the exact fit, form, and function your project needs. With temperature ratings from -75° C to +200° C, we have options suitable for every industry including mil-aero, commercial, automotive, and more.

Not sure what shape or material type is right for your application? Our experienced product engineers are standing by to assist you every step of the way. Whether you’re looking for strain relief, cosmetic coverings for cable division spots, environmental sealing, encapsulating or mechanical support, we have the solution you’re looking for.

Materials and Wire Boot Varieties

Working with boot materials such as polyolefin, fluid-resistant elastomers, fluorocarbon blends, low-smoke fire hazard elastomers, and viton-polyester blends, Whitmor/Wirenetics offers a variety of wire boot types, including:

  • High and low profiled, straight bottle shaped transitions
  • High and low profiled, right-angled style transitions
  • T-shaped and angled t-shaped transitions
  • Y-shaped transitions
  • 2, 3,  and 4-legged fan-tailed transitions
  • 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6-legged in-line transitions
  • End Caps
  • Custom shapes, modifications, sizes, and colors

Value Added Services for Heat Shrink Boots

Regardless of the application, Whitmor/Wirenetics offers value added services such as adhesive lining, potting ports, drain holes, custom labeling, and bar-coding.  With 10 different material types and 8 adhesive options, we can help you create a custom design that will give you the solution you need.

You can browse our extensive catalog of heatshrink shapes here or contact one of our specialists today to find out more:

Are Rising Copper Prices Impacting Copper Wire and Cable Prices?

Due to the volatile cost and limited availability of raw materials, acquiring copper domestically has recently undergone its fair share of challenges. Manufacturers, distributors, and end-users of copper wires and cables have all felt the global impacts of the rising pricing trendline.

Number three on the world’s most used metals list, one-third of the world’s supply of copper comes from Chile, and copper’s number one stockpile is China. Traded at the London Metal Exchange, COMEX, and at India’s Multi-Commodity Exchange, the standard contract for copper weighs twenty-five thousand pounds.

Steadily rising rates per unit since July 2019 saw a slight dip in cost (correlating to China exporting more raw material inventory) in February 2021. Yet, the price of importing copper is once again on the rise. The lack of influx of this vital metal has direct causality on the copper-based marketplace, including the availability and cost of copper wire and cables.

How Can FDH Electronics Assist You During a Copper Shortage? 

Being proactive against the dwindling supply to end-users and escalating prices, FDH Electronics continues to invest in a package of wire and cable to help keep costs from fluctuating. Considering these are uncertain times in the copper commodity market, we have stocked up to help our customers mitigate shortages.

However, we are fully committed to helping our Mil-Aero clients maintain the acquisition of essential wiring and cable components for vital equipment applications, including defense, space and air travel, and satellites. In response to the current international copper shortage, we are working behind the scenes with our strategic suppliers to limit the impact to our valued end-users. One such example is FDH Electronics TE Copper Wire Stocking Package.

About the TE Copper Wire Stocking Package From FDH Electronics

Comprised of Spec 44 and 55 Wire (M81044, M22759, and M27500 constructions), these top-of-the-line wires and cables provide exceptional chemical resistance to defluxing agents, hydraulic fluids, fuels, etc. and are temperature rated from -65˚C to 150/200˚C (and up to 400˚C in short bursts).

Spec 44 and 55 products from TE Connectivity are insulated with radiation crosslinking to resist electrical arc tracking in wet and dry conditions (aircraft applications). They are fully functional in harsh weather environments, and have cut-through and creep resistance. Special additives increase flame retardance and flammability. The products also come in medium and lightweights, are outer space suitable and are constructed with single or dual walls; all reasons these are the backbone of the Mil-Aero industries and the go-to choice for multiple critical applications.

Additionally, many other copper wires and cables are readily available, in stock, and ready to ship out to meet your specific specifications and requirements. Examples include M17 ( COAX ), AA / QQ B575 ( Braid), M16878, M85485, DATA CABLES, BMS ( Boeing Matl Standard), EN / ANSE (Euro & Airbus Specs). We also proudly offer an extensive range of high-quality cable management and identification solutions, conduit, heat shrink, solder sleeves, and shrink boots prepped and ready for on-time delivery, including M23053, M83519, MS3109, MS3117.

Click here to Request a Quote for your TE Stocking Package or call us today to find other right-fit solutions for your specific applications at (800) 847-7127. For more real-time information on shortages, solutions, and current product offerings, price locks, and promotions, follow FDH Electronics on LinkedIn.

BJG & Eaton – Making the Right Connection, Each and Every Time

BJG Electronics (now FDH Electronics) was founded in 1979 with the knowledge that military and aerospace customers would want to do business with a company that maintained the highest quality standards and always put its customers first. To always ensure this is true, it is our responsibility to choose the right solutions every time.

When those solutions are connectors, backshells, or even conduits, we turn to our close relationship with Eaton Souriau-Sunbank, a global leader that has proven its dependability and innovation for over a century.

Our customers rely on us to work with only the highest quality products. We know interconnect products must be durable and reliable under incredibly demanding and unique conditions to ensure high-power systems are ready when they are most needed, whether within a plane, defensive platforms, missiles, ground-based vehicles, battlefield connectors, microphones, radios, radar, satellites, or any of a myriad of mission-critical applications.

Our team here at FDH knows that even the smallest part of any electrical system is mission-critical and can mean the difference in not only efficiency and effectiveness, but also in lives. We believe that recognizing this and providing the right solutions for each application is just the first step in providing outstanding customer service and experiences to those we work with.

The reliability in quality and delivery that Souriau-Sunbank by Eaton brings to interconnect products is exactly why FDH Electronics has more Sunbank inventory than anyone in the world, coming in as the #1 distributor worldwide. We also are in the top 5 distributors in the world for Souriau in both inventory and sales. We carry available inventory measured in the millions of pieces.

When you work with FDH Electronics, you know you can rely not only on the quality of the product but that it will arrive when you need it most with quick order turnarounds.

Who is Souriau-Sunbank by Eaton?

From their start, more than 100 years ago, Eaton has developed products and services that have become globally recognized. Their mission is to improve the quality of life and the environment through the use of power management technologies and services, and they do this through sustainable solutions that help their customers effectively manage electrical, hydraulic, and mechanical power – more safely, more efficiently, and more reliably.

As a power management company with over 92,000 employees, they also do business in more than 175 countries. They are dedicated to improving people’s lives and the environment with power management technologies that are more reliable, efficient, safe, and sustainable.

In 2019, Eaton Corporation acquired Souriau-Sunbank Connection Technologies (with facilities in France, the Dominican Republic, India, Morocco, Mexico, and the United States). Adding Souriau-Sunbank’s highly engineered electrical interconnect solutions for harsh environments specifically created for customers in the aerospace, defense, industrial, energy, and transport industries to their already well-established offerings.

As an Eaton brand, Souriau-Sunbank by Eaton is a world leader in high-performance interconnect technologies. When you need connectors that are guaranteed to make the right connection, every time, you can trust Eaton and BJG Electronics.

Connectors: Connecting Excellence

FDH knows connectors, and Eaton provides a wide range of connectors that we are proud to stand behind.

Their connectors are designed to withstand the harsh conditions that are presented from everything from the deep sea to deep space. Our team at FDH Electronics can also provide the connector assembly, inventory management, or custom design your connectors need.

When you need connectors that are guaranteed to make the right connection, every time, you can trust Eaton and FDH Electronics.

Get A Quote Today

Connectors We Carry

  • UTO Series
  • UTS Series
  • UTL Series
  • UTG Series
  • SMS Series
  • 06 Series
  • 09 Series
  • 8D Series
  • 853 Series
  • 8STA Series
  • 8TA Series
  • Micro38999
  • MQuick Series
  • JBX Series
  • D38999 Series
  • EN2997 Series
  • ENC Series
  • EN3155 Series
  • 8599 Series
  • 8291 Series
  • M39029 Series
  • Trim Trio Tooling
  • Trim Trio Backshells
  • UTS Accessories
  • HAUTL Series
  • HAUTS Series
  • RC/RM Series
  • SC/SM Series

Backshells: Mission Critical

Selecting the proper backshell for each application is mission-critical, and our partnership with Eaton means we provide the best selection in the world. Eaton’s connectors, backshells, contacts, and cable assemblies have paved the way when it comes to providing the benchmark for reliability in harsh environments.

If you are already familiar with the Eaton connectors, pairing Eaton backshells with Eaton connectors means the same high level of quality is applied to all points in the system.

BJG Electronics enjoys a unique partnership with Souriau Sunbank, distributing millions of pieces that can be trusted in the most challenging of applications. Our large stock of inventory means we can provide the backshells you need quickly.

Get A Quote Today

Backshells and Accessories We Carry:

  • D38999/22, D38999/32, D38999/33
  • M28840, M28876, M85049, AS85049, M38999
  • MS25042, MS25043, MS27501, MS27502, MS27506
  • MS27510, MS27511, MS3180, MS3181, MS3416, MS3115, MS3417
  • TXR

Conduits: Rugged Protection

FDH Electronics protects electrical systems in harsh environments worldwide with our rugged conduit solutions, both light and heavy-weighted. And our partnership with Souriau Sunbank means we provide conduit solutions from an organization that is known around the globe for their quality.

For example, Sunflex (a SUNBANK product) provides an extensive selection of braids, armoring sheathing, and convoluted fluorocarbon tubing for conduits. The rugged Sunflex conduit systems display high-temperature survivability (heat to +500°F / cold to -95°F) with long flexure life and superior shielding.

If you need conduit you can rely on, BJG and Eaton can provide the protection your application requires. Our partnership means we can quickly provide you with the right conduit solutions.

Get A Quote Today

Conduits We Carry

  • Flexible Conduit
  • Shipboard Interconnect and Conduit Solutions
  • Sunflex Solutions
  • MS3109, MS3117
  • AS85049
  • M23053
  • RNF, SFR, SCL, NT/ NTFR, TMS, VITON
  • VERSAFIT, DWP, CRN, ES
  • EMS, EPS, KYNAR, NST, PSTH, VFP, EMW
  • VTN, COLD SHRINK

Now Stocking TE MTC Rectangular Connectors

TE Connectivity MTC product line is a complete modular connector system consisting of lightweight, environmentally sealed miniature rectangular connectors (shell housings with removable inserts) and individually removable rear-release contacts.

Features

  • Low-profile rectangular design for high packaging density
  • Environmental sealing for aerospace applications
  • Modular components for design versatility and logistics savings
  • Lightweight materials for weight savings
  • Quick-disconnect or jackscrew mating hardware

Components

  • Available with quick- disconnect mating hard- ware, EME shielding accessories, and modular inserts that can accommodate a mix of signal and power crimp contacts and coaxial contacts
  • Minimized need for special termination tooling
  • Improved ease of manufacturing and maintenance

Configurations

  • Jack screws or quick- disconnect hardware
  • Stacked or panel-mounted next to each other without any provision for grip space
  • Save significant panel area
  • Available in 1-inch and 2-inch configurations
  • Modular removable inserts with size 22 and/or size 16 contact cavities can be combined into the 1-inch and 2-inch MTC housings

Inserts

  • Available in 20-cavity and 5-cavity versions
  • 20-cavity insert accepts size 20-22 (24 AWG to 20 AWG wire) crimp contacts
  • 5-cavity insert accepts size 16–14 crimp contacts
  • Rear release insertion/extraction of the contacts

Are you getting Genuine products from your supplier?

Know Your Supplier

In today’s Mil-Aero market, one of the most critical challenges the industry faces is the risk of counterfeit or inferior substitute products infiltrating the supply chain. This risk increases substantially during times of severe supply constraints, such as the difficulties we see currently unfolding in the fluoropolymer market as well as increased manufacturer capacity limitations due to unprecedented demand.

Further complicating this issue, some suppliers are trying to hide the fact they are providing inferior substitutes by insinuating a product will still meet the same Mil-Spec construction and performance standards, despite the fact they cannot certify it to the required specification. This is in fact a false pretense, and typically the supplier lacks the internal testing ability required to even make such a claim.

You can protect your business and your customers from this predatory practice by requiring QPL certified products from your suppliers. These products have met the qualification requirements set forth in the applicable specification, including appropriate product identification, tests or qualification references.

The Choice is Simple

Whitmore/Wirenetics always provides certified QPL Mil-Aero products to our customers and partners around the globe. We’re also a QPL approved manufacturer of over 50,000 different constructions of M27500 cable in accordance with NEMA WC27500-2015.

When you buy from us, you’re not only getting world-class customer service, you’re getting the peace of mind that comes from knowing your supplier does the right thing – on every order, every time.

Whitmor/Wirenetics Receives Retention of Qualification under WC27500-2015

The NEMA WC27500 specification describes both shielded and unshielded cable constructions for avionics, aerospace, and airframe applications. With our vast array of military QPL approvals retained under WC27500-2015, our flexibility allows us to offer a wide range of choices for our customers, surpassing nearly all cable suppliers in the industry with this QPL.

In addition to our unmatched in-house ability to produce the optimal design for nearly any application, our 100 ft minimum on custom cables allows you to get what you need without the excess inventory & spend that comes with typical factory minimums. And with our unique Premium Expedite™ option, time is always on your side.

Our customers remain our #1 priority, and Whitmor/Wirenetics will continue to strive for the excellence our customers have come to expect.

Contact us today for more information on our capabilities or to get a quote:

Partner Product Spotlight: SumiMark® IV Marking System

We’re pleased to offer our customers the SumiMark® IV Thermal Transfer Marking System – which sets the industry standard as the most cost effective, versatile, easy-to-use and reliable marking system available. The SumiMark® IV is designed to create high quality marks on SumiMark® continuous and Sumitag™ formatted heat shrinkable tubing, plus a variety of other specialty products.

System Capabilities

•Prints on a wide variety of SumiMark® continuous spools and Sumitag™ formatted products ranging in diameters from 1/16” to 2” with expansion ratios of 2:1, 3:1 and 4:1 and a variety of colors
•Produces full or scored cut lengths ranging from 0.25” to 4” – in increments of 0.01”
•Prints high quality marks on round or flattened SumiMark® and Sumitag™ Heat Shrinkable Products, plus Cable Labels and Panel Labels
•Prints free-form serialized, graphics, logos, and barcodes
•300 dpi print head produces superior quality marks
•All marks meet the highest quality standards per SAE-AS5942 for print adherence

SumiMark® Heat Shrinkable Tubing Products

Sumitomo Electric Interconnect Products, Inc. offers a comprehensive selection of SumiMark® continuous heat shrinkable tubing products which are perfect for applications whereby flexibility and cost savings are needed.

Tubing is supplied on continuous spools and is cut by the SUMIMARK® Marking System, allowing you to create the exact length of marker you want without waste. There is minimal longitudinal change after shrinking, so your marks will not become distorted when installed.

Our highly trained specialists are standing by to walk you through the available product choices & help you find the solution that fits your needs.

Contact FDH Electronics for more information:
  • 1-800-822-WIRE
  • Sales.Electronics@US.FDHAero.com

Value Added Services from Whitmor/Wirenetics

In addition to our custom cable manufacturing capabilities, Whitmor/Wirenetics (now FDH Electronics) offers a wide array of value-added services to our customers. With state-of-the-art equipment designed to exceed today’s stringent requirements, we can help you provide your customers with the products they need while reducing your cost and lead time.

– Wire & Cable striping
– Surface Etching
– Twisting/Cabling
– Assemblies/Kitting
– Laser Marking
– Hot Stamping
– Tubing and Sleeve Marking
– Cut & Strip
– Custom VMI Solutions
– New Product Design & Engineering

Don’t see what you’re looking for? Chances are, we can do it! Contact us today for more information: Sales.Electronics@US.FDHAero.com