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Delivery delayed? Don't blame the manufacturer...
Recumbent and specialised bike makers suffer as Shimano shortages scupper schedules
Raw material shortages in the Far East, and high demand, have led to serious shortfalls of Shimano components arriving at cycle manufacturer's factories. Among those hard-hit are many of the relatively small-volume manufacturers of specialised bikes and trikes.
The shortages have been an active topic of discussion on trade websites of late. Shimano, naturally enough, are prioritising deliveries to their biggest customers who have the most purchasing clout. For everyone else there's little left over. Manufacturers report receiving just a fraction of the product they order - with long delays expected for the remaining units. The same goes for cycle shops and dealers. Even national distributors have low stocks, and in-demand items are not being replenished. Shimano appear to have done their best to inform their distribution chain of the expected delays, but that doesn't really soften the blow much.
This is an international problem: I've spoken to manufacturers from several continents who face similar issues. One recumbent maker, faced with a delivery of just 10 Deore rear hubs out of an order of 150, is actively investigating alternative suppliers. SRAM, Sunrace, Bitex and the like are all expected to be working flat-out to ramp up production to 'fill the gap' - but they're also affected by the difficulty of getting hold of raw materials. One (unverified by me!) story reported that the steel shortage is so acute in Taiwan that manhole covers are being stolen from the streets to be melted down...
Another recumbent maker told me that they'd been over-ordering for months, stockpiling what components they could. They were also hanging on to slightly defective components, preferring to spend time re-working them in-house rather than risk sending them back for replacements which might never arrive.
So what does this mean to the consumer? Many won't be affected, as manufacturers use up existing stocks or fit alternative components where possible. But for some machines it just won't be possible to complete an order without the bits physically there to bolt onto an otherwise-finished bike.
So while the manufacturers tear their hair out trying to get the parts together please be patient. I've also been told by manufacturers who pride themselves on good communication and 'delivery when promised' that they find the situation particularly frustrating. As they don't necessarily know themselves when the precious stocks of bits will turn up - and how many will be in the box when they do - it's extremely hard for them to give reliable delivery dates to their waiting customers.
So although from what I gather order levels are generally good in the recumbent and specialised bike business, it's a challenging year to meet that demand.
If you're in the bike trade further coverage of the Shimano and raw material shortages can be found at the bike trade site bikebiz.com - an index of these articles is here on the public-access part of the site.
Posted on 07 May 2004
Your comments ...| From: Mike ([email protected]) on 06 May 2004 |
My LBS has had some manufacturers deliver their product without components and used their in stock supplies to meet a customers desire for immediate delivery. There is a loss for the shop or the manufacturer as the cost to the dealer is often twice that to the manufacturer. If you have something not being dellivered see if you can cooerce the manufacture and dealer to such a plan...and ride on!
Mike |
| From: Arch ([email protected]) on 06 May 2004 |
Drat! I think they're on to me. I'll have to transfer my shedfull of Taiwanese manhole covers to another location.
Maybe instead of recycling steel food cans like I do now, I should stockpile them and sell to the highest bidder... Presumably, if the demand for steel is increasing so much, so will the demand for aluminium and other materials of which there are only finite sources. Is this going to do for us before global warming etc? |
| From: steve green ([email protected]) on 06 May 2004 |
There are stories in the trade about shortages of many raw materials, and reports of dramatic increases in the prices of steel, aluminium and titanium. I have also seen a story about armed robbers stealing tubes from a factory in Taiwan.
Maybe Taipei should be twinned with (insert your own "favourite" den of thieves)... |
| From: Rob ([email protected]) on 06 May 2004 |
We received an order of bar end shifters - essential for many recumbents - this week with one pair missing and we were told that we had landed the last supplies available in the UK...
So how come we're suddenly short of steel? There must be plenty of it out there suitable to recyc... There are half a dozen 4x4s I'd nominate on my street alone!
Rob |
| From: Carlton Reid ([email protected]) on 06 May 2004 |
| Passwords for BikeBiz.com? Not necessary. 90 percent of the news stories now go on the public news part of the site, http://www.bikebiz.co.uk/daily-news/ I've been banging on about the steel/rubber/Shimano/alloy shortages for months! The public news part of the site has been live for a few months. |
| From: Richard Corfield ([email protected]) on 07 May 2004 |
So what does this mean for people who already have shimano equipped bikes/trikes and may wish to get spares at a later date? Hopefuly there's enough standardisation in the fittings to fit alternatives.
Could steel shortage hit us before the much predicted oil shortage? |
| From: Span Tally ([email protected]) on 07 May 2004 |
| "So what does this mean for people who already have shimano equipped bikes/trikes and may wish to get spares at a later date?" asketh the Corfield. It means you are stuffed. You'll have to buy a complete new left-handed blivet, rather than the bits to mend the old one. No change there, then. |
| From: Peter Eland ([email protected]) on 07 May 2004 |
Just spoke to another manufacturer who is specifying SRAM wherever possible.
Also have just updated the story with a link to the public-access story on bikebiz - thanks Carlton. |
| From: Robert Stein ([email protected]) on 07 May 2004 |
whoohh! We managed to get the last 58 hubs from Bitex, and they have now not a single disc brake on stock... Last time we talked, they said it's not a problem if we need 500, they always have them on stock. Not anymore... The number of alternatives is rapidly decreasing. And it's the same with Italian Beretta and Czech Remerx (Alloy rims), so we go for Alex rims from Taiwan with "only" 30 days of waiting time after the order is placed (meaning no stock there either...)
Fortunately we don't have too much orders... or is it so?
I think that in the next few months to come, only those who have parts on stock will be able to accept orders if this situation continues.... |
| From: Paul Bailey ([email protected]) on 08 May 2004 |
| Do any of the manufactures want to offer the recumbents without any of the parts affected by shortages - muttering 'I must have a few spare parts in the garage.............' |
| From: Lars Lehtonen ([email protected]) on 09 May 2004 |
> Don't blame the manufacturer.
Can I blame the manufacturers for speccing so much Shimano that the rest of the component manufacturers aren't large enough to make up for Shimano when it has problems? |
| From: Robert Stein ([email protected]) on 09 May 2004 |
to Paul:
We build frames and frame sets only. 90% of inquiries contain a statement about no knowledge about bike parts. So, I guess we had to offer something. We were investigation the Taiwan products for years, but until now, people were not happy to pay for anything unless it had a Shimano name all over it... We introduced Bitex hubs, and now several manufacturers use their hubs and brakes. We already have a longish list of potential new names, but we have to make the customers believe that they are not going to get rubbish... It's a long and hard way to go... |
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