Brexit - Your Questions Answered

We are well prepared

Like all Irish businesses, we worked hard to prepare for the UK leaving the EU.  Following are the answers to some of the most commonly asked questions we have received post brexit from our customers. We hope you will find this resource useful and rest assured, we are here to support you.  Please reach out to your Account Manager if any of your questions remain unanswered. We will be updating this page on a regular basis as we receive enquiries and the situation develops. 

General

How confident are you that your company is responding well to any changes post brexit?

We had been well prepared for all possible Brexit scenarios and we had already put in place practical measures to pro-actively mitigate any disruption to the supply to our customers in Ireland and the UK, and to protect our workforce. Our teams are still working hard to respond to any changes following brexit.

 

Supply

Are your EU suppliers offering assistance for Brexit and in what way?

Hilti Ireland is supplied via the Hilti Group who manufacture and source our products. We continue to work closely with colleagues in our European headquarters to ensure a seamless transition on both sides for Brexit

Has your company evaluated its own supply chain to ensure a smooth transition? 

Yes, our supply chain remains suitable and effective.

What proportion of your supplies are obtained from Europe? 

Almost all Hilti products sold in Ireland and the UK are sourced from Europe. Further to this, the Hilti Group is global and already manages the supply of goods to many other Hilti operations based in countries outside of the EU. The Group operates through 29,000 employees in over 120 countries and we are assured that our production lines are not affected by Britain’s exit from the EU.

Has the level of your stock holding changed for Brexit?

Yes, we had been building stock in our Dublin and Manchester warehouses throughout November and December 2020 on our most popular product ranges in order to mitigate any potential import delays at UK borders.

Do Hilti Ireland & Hilti GB both have the relevant EORI numbers for Ireland and the UK?

Yes.

What mitigations are in place to ensure continued supply of products in Ireland?

Hilti continue to work closely with logistics partners in Ireland and GB to ensure continuity of supply for our customers. Additional safety stock is built in both Ireland and the UK to support any potential delays at borders.

COSTS/ PRODUCT

Have you put in place a Duty Deferment Account to deal with any duty or VAT payable on imports? 

Yes, and we previously increased the capacity of this arrangement as a security measure. 

Will your product range change as a result of Brexit?

No, there will be no changes to product range as a result of Brexit.

Will any of your products increase in price as a result of Brexit?

We are not anticipating any general price increase following the agreement reached between the EU and UK.  Our product prices will be kept under review and adjusted only if necessary.

With CE marking being superseded by UKCA marking, please advise when will UKCA marking be in place for your products?

Hilti is closely monitoring guidelines regarding the new United Kingdom Conformity Assessed (UKCA) marking. The CE marking, as well as the EU product conformity requirements, will continue to be accepted by the UK authorities until 1st January 2023. We have initiated work towards obtaining the UKCA marking and the corresponding product conformity requirements to ensure full product compliance as soon as the new regulations apply.

Can you confirm that the products that you will be supplying for construction will comply to the correct EU notified bodies?

Yes. We comply with notified bodies according to EU law and this will continue after the transition period. There will be no change to products in Eire and the Northern Ireland products will conform in the timescales required by the different regulations.

Will there be an impact on pricing due to new customs processes and import duties?

The Free Trade Agreement between the UK and the EU has clarified that no tariffs will be imposed on products which are manufactured in and sourced from the EU, and vice versa.  We do however expect there will be an increase to our operating costs in handling new customs processes for products imported into the UK and import duties for some products. We do not anticipate any change to our current product prices as a result of the Brexit agreement, although of course our pricing will be kept under review and adjusted if necessary. 

Service Levels / IMPACT ON PEOPLE

Will you source alternative products from outside the EU and if so which ones?

There are no plans currently to change source of supply for our products.

Will any of your products have an extended lead time as a result of Brexit and which ones?

We do not expect extended lead times for any products and had already built a supply of safety stock in Dublin.

Does your business employ any EU nationals and if so what impact has Brexit had on staff resourcing?

As a global organisation, Hilti employs people of many nationalities and diversity plays a key part in our strategy.  We continue to employ EU nationals in GB and over the last year have guided our employees on the necessary steps to ensure they retain the legal right to live and work in the UK.  

What logistical adjustments if any have you made/will you make?

We continue to work closely with transport and logistics partners to ensure continued supply to our customers in both Ireland and the UK.

DATA PROTECTION

Will the GDPR still apply to the UK? 

In summary, the GDPR was brought into UK law as the ‘UK GDPR’. We had followed these developments closely to ensure we were fully prepared for the end of the transition period. More information on this topic can be found on the Information Commissioner’s Office website at https://ico.org.uk/ or on the Irish Data Protection Commission website at https://www.dataprotection.ie/

What will the UK data protection law be?

The Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018), which currently supplements the UK GDPR will continue to apply. More information on this topic can be found on the Information Commissioner’s Office website at https://ico.org.uk/ .

How is Hilti going to protect my data privacy?

Hilti will continue to ensure customer privacy rights are upheld as we always have. You can find information about what we do to protect your personal data and how to exercise your privacy rights on our website.

BREXIT - GOV.UK

  • Information about EU Exit including the article 50 process, negotiations, and announcements about policy changes as a result of EU Exit

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