2021 Top 10 Connector Manufacturers: Product Quality and Problem Handling

By Ron Bishop | January 24, 2022

The results of the 2021 Bishop & Associates North American Customer Satisfaction Survey of the Electronic Connector Industry are in. In this article, we reveal the Top 10 connector manufacturers for product quality and problem handling.

2021 Top 10 Connector Manufacturers – Product Quality and Problem Handling

Bishop & Associates has completed its 2021 North American customer survey, which evaluated 37 connector manufacturers. A total of 221 customers answered 18 questions relating to important issues such as quality, pricing, delivery, lead times, technical support, and more to determine the Top 10 connector manufacturers.

Responses were gathered from several sales channels. The distribution of responses throughout the sales channel is shown in the following chart.

Top 10 NA customer survey distribution of responses by sales channel

2021 NA Customer Survey responses by job function and sales channel

Note: 46% of participants were engineers and 23.1% were purchasers of connectors.

Survey participants were asked, “What is your level of satisfaction with the quality of products?” and “What is your level of satisfaction with the overall responsiveness in handling problems?”

Response choices were:
7 = Extremely satisfied 3 = Dissatisfied
6 = Very satisfied 2 = Very dissatisfied
5 = Satisfied 1 = Extremely dissatisfied
4 = Neutral

2021 Top 10 for Product Quality

The following table identifies the Top 10 connector manufacturers ranked by average score. These manufacturers received the highest customer evaluations for best product quality. The number of responses is also provided.

2022 Top 10 Connector Manufacturers for Product Quality

(*7.000 = Highest possible score)

Samtec, Phoenix Contact, and WAGO placed first, second, and third, respectively, in the 2021 North American Customer Survey. Amphenol, Hirose Electric, and TE Connectivity are new to this year’s list. Amphenol was the most improved company since the last time we surveyed in 2018, up 13 places from 20th to 7th in this year’s survey.

The following table is a comparison of the rankings of this year’s Top 10 connector manufacturers for customer satisfaction with product quality versus the previous four years in which the survey was conducted.

2022 Top 10 Connector Manufacturers for Product Quality – Last Five Surveys

Samtec placed first and second in the last five U.S. surveys. Phoenix Contact and WAGO have placed in the Top 10 in each of the last five years the survey was conducted. 3M Electronics has placed in the Top 10 in four of our last surveys and ranked 11^th in the 2016 survey. JST has moved from 21^st place in 2012 to 6^th place in 2021. Glenair also had a significant improvement in its product quality rank in 2021, moving up 12 positions from 16^th place to 4^th place.

2021 Top 10 for Problem Handling

The next table identifies the Top 10 companies that received the highest customer rankings for customer satisfaction with problem handling.

2021 Top 10 Connector Manufacturers for Problem Handling

Samtec, Eaton Interconnect/SOURIAU, and WAGO received the highest scores, ranking first, second, and third, respectively, for problem handling in the 2021 Customer. Phoenix Contact and Glenair, in 4^th and 5^th, achieved very good overall averages for problem handling. Eaton Interconnect/SOURIAU was the most improved when compared to the results from the 2018 survey, moving from 28^th place to 2^nd place.

The following table is a comparison of the rankings of this year’s Top 10 connector manufacturers for customer satisfaction with problem handling versus the previous four years in which the survey was conducted.

2021 Top 10 Connector Manufacturers for Problem Handling - Last 5 Surveys

Samtec, WAGO, Molex, Phoenix Contact, 3M Electronics, and Belden/Hirschmann/Lumberg have placed in the Top 10 for customer satisfaction with product quality in the past five surveys conducted.

This is the third in a series of 5 articles related to the results of the 2021 Bishop & Associates North American Customer Satisfaction Survey of the Electronic Connector Industry. To purchase the full North American Customer Satisfaction Survey of the Electronic Connector Industry report, call Bishop & Associates at 630-443-2702.

No part of this article may be used without the permission of Bishop & Associates, Inc. If you would like to receive additional news about the connector industry, register here. You may also contact us at [email protected] or by calling 630.443.2702.

2021 Top 10 Connector Manufacturers: Best Overall Performance

2021 Top 10 Connector Manufacturers: On-Time Delivery and Meeting Promised Ship Dates

Interested in customer survey results from prior years?

2019 European Customer Survey Results

2018 US Customer Survey Results

Like this article? Check out our other Industry Facts & Figures articles, our articles by Market, and a full listing of our 2021 Articles.

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Ron Bishop

President at Bishop & Associates Inc.

Ronald E. Bishop founded Bishop & Associates Inc., a market research firm that specializes in the world electronic connector industry, in 1985. The firm publishes “The Bishop Report,” a monthly research newsletter and connectorsupplier.com, a twice-monthly electronic publication. A staff of 20 researchers produces reports centered on geographic regions, end-use equipment markets, connector products, and interconnect technologies. The firm also provides executive placement services, conducts multi-client studies and customer surveys, and assists in merger-and-acquisition activity. The US headquarters is located in St. Charles, Ill., a suburb of Chicago. The firm also has offices in Brussels, Belgium; Sidney, Australia; and Hong Kong.