EIFI celebrates 40 years
29 May 2017
As its president, Anders Karlsson reminded his seminar audience at Fastener Fair Stuttgart: “EIFI is 40 years old”. This year the European Industrial Fastener Institute (EIFI) will celebrate the anniversary of the historic meeting that resulted in its foundation.
It was on 6th September 1977, when the president of the French C.S.B.V.F., (Chambre Syndicale de la Boulonnerie et de la Visserie Forgeés), Mr H. Lorrain, brought together representatives from already established national fastener associations and individual companies from fourteen countries: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy, Germany, the UK, Liechtenstein, Norway, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. During their meeting held in Paris, it was decided to establish a European association named the ‘European Industrial Fasteners Institute’ (EIFI), based in Cologne, Germany, from January 1978.
The steering committee of the newly constituted EIFI was unanimously agreed upon at the same meeting. The fifteen delegates selected to head the European association were: Mr Herdies (Belgium),
Messrs Bergner, Deubert, Kulbe and Schumacher (Germany), Messrs Biju-Duval, Conchon, Laurent, Layeillon (France), Messrs Laker, Leek, Lynall (Great Britain), Mr Huitema (Netherlands), Mr Fontana (Italy) and Mr Strauli (Switzerland).
A first working group was also established, with the task of drawing up the EIFI statutes and aims and objectives for the association. This group comprised the secretaries of five national associations: Messrs Altmann (B.I.B., Austria), von der Heide (D.S.V., Germany, which was also founded in 1977), Buchart (C.S.B.V.F., France), Peplow (B.I.F.F., Great Britain) and Quaglia (U.P.I.V.E.B., Italy). At a meeting on 30th November 1977, the newly constituted steering committee unanimously voted in Mr H. Lorrain as the first president of the EIFI. After several meetings of the working group, the final version of the EIFI statutes was approved on 20th October 1978.
Experts in bolts, screws and nuts recognise the names of those who not only wrote the history of the European fasteners sector, but who, with their commitment, enthusiasm and farsightedness, decided forty years ago to found the European Industrial Fasteners Institute.
President Anders Karlsson, vice-presidents Enio Fontana and Tillmann Fuchs, the board and all EIFI members today proudly honour the work of these founding fathers, expressing their sincere thanks to them and to their families, as well as to their successors and related companies.
EIFI aims and objectives
The industry with which the EIFI is concerned is the production of bolts, nuts, screws and rivets of both ferrous and non-ferrous metals and other industrial fasteners. The task of the EIFI is to look after and further the joint economic, professional, technical and scientific interests of the members in the following ways:
- Exchanges of practical experience in product groups and committees.
- Information and consultation on all matters relating to the EIFI’s objectives.
- Preparation of aids for decision making.
- Representation of the interests of the European fasteners industry vis-à-vis authorities, public bodies and other organisations at international level and buyers and suppliers.
- Encouragement of studies and research work and collaboration with scientific institutes.
- Coordination of European activities in the technical field and cooperation in the field of international standardisation.
- Public relations.
- The EIFI shall not derive any profit from its activities.
