A perfect match: Neville, Harwick Standard ink new deal

PITTSBURGH—Good things, they say, come with time.

And that appears to be the case with the new partnership between distributor Harwick Standard Distribution Corp. and Neville Chemical Co.

After years of discussion, the two have reached a long-term agreement in which Harwick Standard will distribute Neville's low molecular weight thermoplastic and liquid resins, which have applications in the coatings, adhesives, ink and other rubber-related industries.

Both parties say it's not surprising that the two companies would come together. They are, after all, reflections of each other, at least when it comes to operational philosophies.

"It is all about the right fit," Bryan Shields, Harwick Standard senior product manager said during the International Elastomer Conference. "That is what we really look for when we are looking for different suppliers.

"We get notifications and emails from all kinds of people all over the world saying: 'Hey, would you peddle our product?' But we do a lot of due diligence before we ever get into an arrangement like this. And we are in it for the long haul. We are loyal and we hope our suppliers are loyal to us."

With the new agreement, Harwick Standard will be Neville's exclusive rubber industry distributor in both the U.S. and Canada.

And when it comes to exclusive agreements, Neville was careful to choose the right distributor.

"As we were looking to evaluate our distribution network, it was very evident that they were thoughtfully put together and strategic to their approach to the market," Matt Brown, Neville's director of sales and marketing, told Rubber News on the IEC expo floor. "They are extremely knowledgeable about this industry as a whole, but also their customers' application and their customers' needs. And that is where customer intimacy and customer relationships come into play."

Especially now.

The rubber industry, Brown noted, is undergoing a transformation as one generation prepares to pass the torch to the next generation. And as that happens, industry knowledge walks out the door with every retirement.

But a company like Harwick Standard, with its industry connections and deep industry knowledge, can help bridge those gaps for customers.

"Neville has gone through a significant transition over the last few years. Like a lot of organizations, we have lost a lot of legacy, a lot of our very tenured employees," Brown said. " … (For) some of the newer, younger generation it is really good to have someone like Harwick that still has that type of knowledge base that we can leverage or lean on."

So how does Harwick Standard do that? How does it connect so well supplier partners and customers in meaningful ways?

One way is by doing the little things that enhance customer service. Little things like phone calls.

"The most underused technology is the phone call," company President and CEO Ernie Pouttu said, recalling an article he read recently that relayed that same message. " … We get so much more accomplished in a phone call. Obviously emails and text messages make it easier to get a lot of things done in a short period of time, but when you have a phone call you can actually communicate and talk about more than just a yes or no answer."

And it's because of those little things that Harwick Standard has remained a pillar in the industry for 92 years.

It also happens to be the kind of thing that has allowed Neville to thrive for nearly a century. And that, in the end, is what makes this partnership a natural one.

"Next year will be our 100th anniversary, so we have been around and serviced the industry for a long time, rubber products and tires being one of them," Brown said. "I think the partnership with Harwick will help us expand that as well."

Perhaps, then it's no coincidence that 99-year-old Neville ended up partnering with 92-year-old Harwick Standard. Both, after all have proven themselves with time.

And, of course, relationships.

"I think the testament to Harwick is that we have maintained long-term relationships. Our goal is to, when we have a situation where we do enter into a principal contract, that that is a long-term relationship," said William Knezevich, Harwick Standard's vice president of marketing. "It is very important for us, and it is very important for the manufacturer to have a distributor that is also looking at it as a long-term relationship."