A business development manager for Tyco International recently discovered a speedy, non-corrosive rebar fastener called the “Kodi Klip” and saw potential for a complementary gadget. Richard Hoffman, the Tyco sales manager, helped the firm develop a new power gun that shoots the little plastic clips and secures steel rebar joints in a matter of seconds.

'Nailing' Rebar. Gun would sell for just under $1,000.

“You can sell all the connectors and contacts in the world, but if you don’t have a tool, it’s not going to do you a lot of good,” Hoffman says. “It’s the whole razor/razorblade scenario.”

Last fall, Tyco teamed up with Jon Kodi of Lebanon, Tenn., a general contractor who invented the clip. Kodi perfected the patented, polycarbonate fastener, originally shaped from hardware-store materials, before introducing it at last year’s World of Concrete show. He now has an official endorsement from the ironworkers’ union and a deal with United Rentals to sell the clips nationwide. They range in size and cost from 10¢ to 16¢ apiece.

Tyco’s 18-volt cordless gun looks like a power nailer. A safety mechanism prevents it from firing accidentally. Scheduled for sale later this year, the tool would cost just under $1,000. “It’s going to be huge,” Kodi says. Tyco has a manual tool available now for $220.