Choosing the right Portable Cutting Tools Supplier
For companies supplying a range of products to the industrial, engineering, installation and fabrication sectors, it is important to choose a reliable supplier for your portable cutting tools.
(Portable cutting tools are a sub-section of the cutting tools market. This distinction accounts for the fact that some of the largest cutting tool suppliers (for example Dormer, YG-1, Guhring, Kennametal) are focused on the CNC market, and hardly supply tooling that is suitable for applications where the operators have to take the tooling to the jobsite or the workpiece.
The UK Portable cutting tools market has changed significantly in the last decade with the closure and consolidation of some brands, and the emergence of others. Respected brands such as PowerBor, Universal, Jancy are no longer readily available, and increasingly Cordless magnetic drills are being used for sitework applications due to increased safety and workholding.
Impact Rated cutting tools have also significantly changed the options available for portable cutting tool solutions. These tools are specially designed to work with the rotary impact mechinism of a standard impact wrench. The main benefit for the user is increased productivity due to the high torque deployed, and also the safety benefits of decreased kick-back compared to conventional methods
The criterea used to develop this report focuses on UK based companies that offer portable cutting tools in these categories. The companies currently included in this assessment are
- 1. Holemaker Technology Ltd (HMT, Versadrive Brands)
- 2. FEIN Power Tools UK Ltd
- 3. JEI Cutting & Drilling Solutions (Formerly Jancy UK)
- 4. OSL Cutting Technologies Ltd (Rotabroach, Unibor, Halls Brands)
To declare an interest, this report has been commissioned by Holemaker Technology Ltd, using publicly available information as of August 2024.
SECTIONS. The report will assess
- 1. Financial information based on 2023 company accounts
- 2. Basket spend on quick change impact rated cutting tools
- 3. Product Range Comparision
- 4. Product performance tests
- 5. Suggested criteria for assessing a portable cutting tools supplier
SECTION 1. FINANCIAL INFORMATION ▼▲
| Company | Fein UK | OSL | JEI | HMT | ||||
| Balance Sheet Category | Change from 2022 to 2023 | Change from 2022 to 2023 | Change from 2022 to 2023 | Change from 2022 to 2023 | ||||
| Cash at bank | £304k | -28% | £457k | -16% | £864k | 26% | £662k | 31% |
| Current Assets | £1M | -11% | £5.0M | -19% | £2M | -5% | £2.6M | 4% |
| Current Liabilities | £3M | -1% | £7.0M | -3% | £2M | 16% | £777k | -16% |
| Net Worth | £-2M | -6% | £3M | -12% | £3k | -96% | £1.9M | 16% |
SECTION 2. BASKET SPEND COMPARISON OF ONLINE DEALER PRICING ▼▲
| PRODUCT CATEGORY |
Size | HMT Versadrive | FEIN Vario |
OSL/ Rotabroach SiteHero |
| ADAPTERS | 1/2" | €55 | €60 | €115 |
| TAPS | M10 | €48 | €48 | €44 |
| M12 | €60 | €75 | €61 | |
| M16 | €72 | €73 | €90 | |
| M20 | €93 | €95 | €105 | |
| M24 | €110 | €112 | €110 | |
| REAMERS | 10mm | €56 | n/a | €60 |
| 14mm | €64 | n/a | €70 | |
| 18mm | €77 | n/a | €80 | |
| 22mm | €100 | n/a | €105 | |
| STEP DRILLS | 4_12mm | €57 | n/a | €65 |
| 4_22mm | €79 | n/a | €85 | |
| 4_30mm | €99 | n/a | €105 | |
| STEP CUTTERS | 8 to 16mm | €96 | n/a | €100 |
| 14 to 22mm | €113 | n/a | €120 | |
| 18 to 26mm | €139 | n/a | €150 | |
| DRILL BITS | 6.8mm | €24 | €27 | n/a |
| 8.5mm | €27 | €32 | n/a | |
| 10.2mm | €30 | €34 | n/a | |
| 12mm | €36 | €39 | n/a | |
| COUNTERSINK | 16.5mm | €48 | €50 | n/a |
| 20.5mm | €57 | €60 | n/a | |
| 25.0mm | €72 | €72 | n/a | |
| 31.0mm | €85 | €85 | n/a |
SECTION 3 - PRODUCT RANGE AVAILABILITY ▼▲
| HMT | OSL | Fein | JEI | |
| Impact Driver Adapter | Yes | |||
| Impact Wrench Adapters | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Extension Adapter | Yes | |||
| Weldon (Magdrill) Adapter | Yes | |||
| SDS Adapter | Yes | |||
| Morse Taper Adapters | Yes | |||
| Clutched Tap Adapters | Yes | |||
| Left Hand Drillbits | Yes | |||
| Bolt Extractors | Yes | |||
| Impact Die Threaders | Yes | |||
| Chamfer Tool | Yes | |||
| Turbotip Drill Bits | Yes | |||
| Drill Bits | Yes | Yes | ||
| Step Drills | Yes | Yes | ||
| Reamers | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Step Cutters | Yes | Yes | ||
| Impact Taps | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Long Series Taps | Yes | |||
| Spiral Flute Taps | Yes | |||
| Oversize Taps | Yes | |||
| Drill Taps | Yes | |||
| HD Drill Taps | Yes | |||
| Impact Countersink | Yes | Yes | ||
| Drillsink | Yes | |||
| Short Series Holecutters | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Long Series Holecutters | Yes | |||
| XL Series Holecutters | Yes | |||
| Multsink | Yes | |||
| Ultra Drill Bits | Yes | |||
| TCT Countersinks | Yes | Yes | ||
| Standard Cutters | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| XL Cutters | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Cordless Magdrills | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Compact Magdrills | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Large & Reversible Magdrills | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Extra Large Magdrills | Yes | Yes | ||
| Lubricants | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Burrs | Yes | |||
| Countersinks | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Modular Toolkits | Yes | |||
| Coolant Pump | Yes | |||
| Totals | 40 | 12 | 13 | 12 |
SECTION 4: PRODUCT TESTING COMPARISON ▼▲
TBC in due course
SECTION 5: SUGGESTED CRITERA TO ASSESS A PORTABLE CUTTING TOOL SUPPLIER ▼▲
| Warranty System | |
| Field Sales Support | |
| Online Training | |
| Merchandising | |
| Online ordering Hub | |
| Nextday deliveries | |
| Marketing Support | |
| Dealer Support | |
| Customer Service | |
| Stockholding |