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2019 Top 10 European Connector Suppliers

By John Bishop | July 09, 2019

The results of the Bishop & Associates 2019 European Customer Satisfaction Survey of the Electronic Connector Industry are in. Here we reveal the top 10 European connector suppliers for overall best performance.

Top 10

Bishop & Associates has completed its biennial European Customer Satisfaction Survey of the Electronic Connector Industry, which evaluated 30 connector manufacturers. A total of 312 customers answered 17 questions relating to important issues such as quality, pricing, delivery, lead times, technical support, and more to determine the top 10 European connector suppliers.

2019 Top 10 European Connector Suppliers distribution of survey results

The Top 10 European Connector Suppliers – Best Overall Performance

The overall performance rankings were determined by averaging customer responses to 11 questions related to quality of products, price competitiveness, turnaround times, and other characteristics using the following numerical scale.

6 = Extremely satisfied
5 = Very satisfied
4 = Satisfied
3 = Dissatisfied
2 = Very dissatisfied
1 = Extremely dissatisfied

The following table identifies the top 10 European connector suppliers that received the highest customer evaluations in overall best performance by average score, total responses, and base of operation origin.

2019 European customer survey Top 10 for best performance overall

Samtec, ept, and Phoenix Contact respectively placed first, second, and third in the 2019 European Customer Survey. Molex, which placed in the top 10 for the first time, is also this year’s most improved, up 12 places to tenth in 2019. In addition to Molex, another newcomer in this year’s list of top 10 connector manufacturers in the overall performance group is Radiall.

Samtec has held the first position for more than a decade. Alan McLean, Samtec’s European VP of Sales, explains why. “Samtec understands the importance of culture – known as our ‘Samtec DNA,’ our culture is embedded in everything we do. The principles of Speed, Flexibility, Innovation, and Win/Win guide and drive our associates to provide exceptional service to our customers and partners every day, through delivering Sudden Service, taking ownership, and thinking creatively to propose solutions that fit each situation,” he said.

“Europe, with 24 different languages and 28 separate currencies spread across 44 countries, is truly unique in its rich history and economic climate.  While we operate globally, receiving our 11th Bishop Report Number One slot proves that Samtec exceeds expectations by appreciating the unique aspects of local culture in Europe, and understanding customers’ application and commercial requirements as individuals.”

An extensive lineup of forward-looking products also gives the company an edge, said Danny Boesing, product marketing director at Samtec. “Simply put, we strive to provide cutting-edge products and industry-leading signal integrity expertise and technical support to allow customers to optimize their entire serial channel in a high-performance system,” he said. “Examples include our NovaRay and AcceleRate products, and Flyover technology.  To support that goal we have six technology centers that focus on high-speed cable, advanced interconnect design, system signal integrity, microelectronics, optics, and precision RF.”

Around the world, Samtec’s people work together. “I hate to use the buzz word that we have synergy, but we do actually have synergy, again, because of our service DNA. We communicate, we work together as a team with customers, we’re not divided by business units, and we have the systems and infrastructure in place to solve problems for our customers.  We stress communication and try to create systems to make it happen.  That probably sounds simplistic but it’s the essence of what we do.”

The following table is a comparison of this year’s 10 top European connector suppliers’ overall performance ranking versus the previous four years in which the survey was conducted. 

Samtec placed first in the last five European customer satisfaction surveys of the electronic connector industry. Molex experienced the largest increase in rank from 2017 to 2019, jumping from 22nd to 10th place. Samtec, Phoenix Contact, WAGO, and HARTING all placed in the top ten in the last five European customer satisfaction surveys and ept has placed second or third during the same time frame, with exception of 2015, when it did not receive enough evaluations to be considered.

This is the first in a series of articles related to the results of the 2019 Bishop & Associates European Customer Satisfaction Survey of the Electronic Connector Industry. The articles to follow will further highlight the top 10 companies based on product quality, delivery timeliness, price competitiveness, and technical support. To purchase the full report, please 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.

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