Insight

In addition to new product ideas, and constant improvement of existing products, HEICO Group – the German manufacturer of bolt locking devices, pre-tensioning technology and cold forged parts – has invested greatly in sustainability, including the implementation of an environmentally conscious and resource saving production process.

Tobias Grobe, head of sales and marketing at HEICO, explains: “Today, sustainability is more relevant than ever. For a long time, we at HEICO have been continuously working on numerous projects to make our company more sustainable. For instance, a responsible treatment of people and nature, as well as energy and the resource saving manufacture of our products, are already part of our company ethos.”

By just looking at the company’s premises in a rural, but an infrastructurally well-developed region close to the Ruhr metropolises, it quickly becomes clear how much value HEICO places on sustainability and environmental awareness. The roofs of the production halls are adorned with a photovoltaic system; next to the production halls there is a company owned thermal power station; and all around the administration buildings, and halls, there are many green areas with fruit trees. 

One of the highlights for the employees and visitors to the site is the HEICO animal park, which is also part of HEICO’s sustainability concept. The park not only serves as a home for animals such as goats, donkeys, mini horses, and alpacas, it is also used as a place of learning by local kindergartens and elementary schools. 

The company’s own thermal power station, which is connected to a nearby biogas plant, supplies energy in the form of electricity and heat. HEICO also uses the thermal energy to heat its washing systems – while the electricity generated is fed into the general power grid. 

Another important contribution to the sustainable use of energy is made by the painting systems – through heat recovery during the thermal afterburning in the painting process.

It is not only heat that is cleverly used in the modern production facilities at HEICO. The coolant for the inductors of the hardening plant is cooled by an open air cooler on the roof of the production halls. At an outside temperature of up to 17°C [62.5°F] the cooling medium can be cooled down in this way without an additional cooling unit.

“The HEICO-LOCK^® bolt locking devices, as well as the products from the HEICO-TEC^® series, meet the highest quality standards. Our intention is to produce durable products that can be reused several times and thus conserve our resources. A long product lifetime ensures proportionally more sustainability.” explains Tobias.

At the recent Fastener Fair Global show in Stuttgart, Germany, HEICO also launched a new product variant, HEICO-LOCK^® Plus, that offers price conscious users an attractive alternative to securing their bolted joints. 

The HEICO-LOCK^® Plus is a bonded version of a hexagon nut and a wedge lock washer pair, which are available in steel and stainless steel. Also new are the tension bolts, which for now complete the HEICO-LOCK^® product portfolio for pre-tensioning particularly large bolted connections.