Sometimes the smallest components carry the biggest consequences.
That was exactly the case in a long-running project between Chryspac and Fastenal involving incredibly small screws used in semiconductor testing equipment. While the parts themselves may have been tiny, the precision required to inspect them was anything but small.
Recently, former Fastenal employee Santos Rios sat down with our team to reflect on the partnership and the role Chryspac played in supporting one of Fastenal’s critical customers. Even though Rios left the company over a year ago, he still wanted to share the story because of the lasting impression the project made on him.
The process centered around microscopic screws used on sensitive circuit board assemblies for semiconductor and wafer testing equipment. Each screw had a special locking patch applied to its threads, and that patch had to meet exact specifications; not too much, not too little, and positioned precisely where it belonged.
According to Rios, every single screw was individually inspected by hand.
“We would acquire large amounts of these little screws,” Rios explained. “Then Chryspac would inspect them for the specs on the patchwork – the thread quality, defects, variances, damaged heads, missing threads – literally every screw individually.”
At the time, there were no advanced phone cameras or automated AI inspection systems available for a project like this. Chryspac relied on handheld cameras, specialized magnification equipment, and painstaking manual inspection methods to establish a reliable inspection standard that never changed once perfected.
And the stakes were high.
A single defective screw making its way into the final product could potentially create massive downstream costs. In fact, the estimated cost to correct a failure caused by an improperly patched screw was reportedly around $10,000 per occurrence.
For Chryspac CEO Bill Beckett, the project was one of the most fascinating examples of precision inspection work the company has ever handled.
“We picked up each screw individually with a jeweler’s tool,” Bill recalled. “It was painstaking work, but they had no errors. It saved the customer a lot of money and became a really strong relationship.”
That relationship is exactly what stood out most to Rios.
“I’ve never had any complaints from the customer,” he said. “Everything was always within specs.”
The project became more than just an inspection process. It became an example of how trust is built through consistency, communication, and attention to detail – especially when customers are relying on you to protect quality at every stage of production.
At Chryspac, we know quality work often happens behind the scenes. Sometimes it’s inspecting thousands of tiny components one by one. Sometimes it’s building systems and standards that customers can rely on year after year.
Either way, we’re proud to support our customers with the level of precision their products, and their reputations, depend on.
