Five companies have been honored with the title STIHL Supplier of the Year 2021. Among all of STIHL's suppliers around the world, these five stood out on account of their outstanding attributes in terms of quality, technology, innovation, service, and cost efficiency. In his speech thanking the nominees and winners, Martin Schwarz, STIHL Executive Board Member Manufacturing and Materials, emphasized the importance of good collaboration, especially in these challenging times, and talked about what makes a partnership successful. "One important aspect is being able to rely on each other," Schwarz said. "And we were always able to rely on you - especially last year. You won us over with your outstanding quality and excellent service. Despite the more difficult conditions, we once again succeeded in increasing our revenue and sales. By planning ahead, and with your support, we were able to keep our production activities running at full speed to continue supplying our customers to the best extent possible." For the STIHL Group, 2021 was a record-breaking year in four ways, with higher revenue, sales, production, and headcount figures than ever before. The family-owned business also broke through the 5-billion-euro mark for the first time in its 96-year history by generating revenue of 5.06 billion euros.
The tremendous importance of good, long-standing supplier relationships at STIHL is reflected not least in the decision to honor certain partners again after already having done so in previous years. Of the five companies to receive the award, one was recognized for the second time (L-edv GmbH & Co. KG), with two being acclaimed for the third time (Karcoma-Armaturen GmbH, Prüfrex Innovative Power Products GmbH). For the first time in two years, the companies being honored received their awards during a ceremony at Plant 2 in Neustadt.
The best suppliers in 2021 were:
- Karcoma-Armaturen GmbH (Sindelfingen, Germany)
Fuel fittings, filters, and valves
- L-edv GmbH & Co. KG (Waiblingen, Germany)
IT services
- Prüfrex Innovative Power Products GmbH (Cadolzburg, Germany)
Electronic control units and digital ignition systems
- SIMON Sinterlutions GmbH & Co. KG (Aichhalden, Germany)
Components for machine and systems construction, consumer goods, the sanitary industry, and the automotive sector
- Viking Rubber Co. A/S (Faaborg, Denmark)
Workwear
STIHL has been honoring the best suppliers for their outstanding performance every year since 1990. To date, a total of 113 suppliers have received this distinction, some of them several times.