Graybar Electric Co. (St. Louis, Mo.): Steven Horst is now V.P., service and administration. He’s a 16-year Graybar veteran who most recently served as national market manager for construction. Horst also worked in Graybar’s IT organization on process and systems development related to the company’s launch of SAP. Horst has a B.A. in psychology from Washington State University.
Archive for the ‘Channel Chatter’ Category
Graybar’s Horst takes on new role as V.P. of service and administration
Chase promoted to branch manager of three Border States Electric branches
Border States Electric (Fargo, N.D.): Justin Chase is now branch manager for BSE’s Pewaukee and Green Bay, Wis., and Kingsford, Mich., locations. He joined the company in 1997 and has held a variety of positions at the corporate office in Fargo, N.D., including supply chain services manager and supply chain services alliance manager. He also served as the company’s supplier diversity manager and is the past board chair of the Midwest Minority Supplier Development Council, a National Minority Supplier Development Council affiliate serving Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, and western Iowa. Chase received his bachelor’s degree from Minnesota State University Moorhead, Moorhead, Minn.
NEMA to Host Webcast on Latest Lighting Management Technology
The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), Rosslyn, Va., will present a webcast on Thursday, Sept. 15 from 1-2 p.m. (EDT), hosted by Building Operating Management magazine. The event focuses on the latest lighting control technologies, strategies and systems that will enable building managers to approach net-zero energy use and achieve sustainability goals.
In addition to highlighting the latest information on digital lighting controls, wireless systems, advanced daylighting and window shade controls, and occupancy sensors, the webcast will address energy code compliance and intelligent building systems integration. This webinar is available at no charge. To register, click here.
ElectricPilot.com adds new product info
ElectricPilot.com, a search engine focusing on the electrical industry search engine that’s loaded with links to the websites of thousands of electrical manufacturers, electrical distributors, reps and other electrical firms, now posts new product information on its site. Alan Wulff, the company’s president and founder, says ElectricPilot.com hosts more than 20,000 companies in the electrical, communications and utility industries.
Billtrust acquires Invoice Connection
Billtrust, Jamesburg, N.J., which provides outsourced billing services to many electrical distributors, announced the acquisition of Invoice Connection, an automated invoice and statement delivery company headquartered in Carlsbad, Calif. No financial details were disclosed.
Invoice Connection has a significant presence in wholesale distribution vertical, Billtrust said in a release announcing the deal. Billtrust’s suite of services is particularly aligned with the needs of that market, and the acquisition provides additional value to the customers they serve, the company said.
“Our respective companies have a great deal of respect for each other because we share the same unwavering commitment to client service,” said Flint Lane, Billtrust CEO and president. “Customers coming into the Billtrust fold will have access to an even broader range of print/mail and electronic billing services.”
DDI System offering webinar tomorrow on turnkey ERP systems
The free webinar will be held 11:00 a.m. EST. Click here for more info.
Graybar in-house restaurant certified green
The Green Restaurant Association has named the Extra Thyme Cafe, an eatery inside Graybar’s Centerpoint facility in Maryland Heights, Mo., its newest certified Green Restaurant in the St. Louis area. Extra Thyme Café, owned and operated by Kim Cuddeback, earned the Two-Star Certification for its efforts to go green and is only the third restaurant in Missouri to do so.
Extra Thyme has been serving breakfast and lunch to Graybar employees and guests for more than eight years. Cuddeback had wanted to use more eco-friendly packaging for years but had nowhere to compost or recycle it. Once Graybar started implementing its green building strategy, which included building-wide single-stream recycling and composting, things changed.
“We used to have six overflowing trash cans each day,” Cuddeback said in an announcement on Graybar’s Facebook page. “Now we fill less than a three-gallon bucket with trash. The rest is composted and recycled.”
The savings in waste are due largely in part to Kim switching to new types of packaging that are compostable or recyclable. This packaging switch also gave Kim major points for her Green Restaurant certification. Next she plans to shoot for the GRA’s three-star level, which will involve more local sourcing of food and further reductions in packaging.
Great Q&A with Alan Ruud of Ruud Lighting and Cree’s Chuck Swoboda
If you are interested in Cree’s recent acquisition of Ruud Lighting, check out this Q&A on Seeking Alpha.
Obitituary: Jim Newton of Oakes Electric
Jim Newton, 84, of Oakes Electric Supply/Horizon Solutions, Holyoke, Mass., passed away on Aug. 11 at his home in South Hadley, Mass. There was no one quite like Jim in the electrical business. He learned the industry from his father at Oakes Electric Supply before venturing off into several new pursuits, including Sales Tech Corp., a sales, marketing & training company, and Profile Systems, one of the electrical market’s early players in e-business.
Family was #1 with Jim, and he enjoyed grooming his son, Jim, Jr. (Newt), to take over management of the company. Jim always liked to joke that he knew he had done a good job training him — and that it was time to try something new — when he arrived at work one day to find his desk in the parking lot.
Jim wrote for Electrical Wholesaling for decades and created the Electrical Products Education Course (EPEC) for the National Association of Electrical Distributors (NAED), a brilliant training program that still exists today. He also trained hundreds of electrical salespeoople over the years as part of Sales Tech. I can still hear his gravelly voice and thick New England accent telling any one of his many sales tales. He loved the business of sales in general and the electrical market in particular. I saw him last about four years ago at Oakes Electric Supply, where he was involved in a labor of love — putting together an Electrical Museum that housed industry photos and artifacts.
His obituary says that instead of sending flowers, he wants you to take a friend to lunch. He was one of my mentors in the electrical business, and I am glad I did that the last time I saw him. We enjoyed a Fribble together at his favorite Friendly’s restaurant near Oakes Electric Supply.
Jim Newton obituary
Cree buys Ruud
In what may be one of the more interesting acquisitions in the lighting business this season, Cree Inc., Durham, N.C., announced that it’s acquiring privately held lighting fixture manufacturer Ruud Lighting, Racine, Wis., for a net outlay worth approximately $525 million in combined cash and stock.
Among the benefits cited by Cree when the deal was announced today were Ruud’s position in the market for LED outdoor lighting and its sales organization.
“This acquisition creates a market leader for indoor and outdoor LED lighting, accelerating adoption and expanding the market for both Cree’s LED systems and components. Other synergies include increased access to the lighting market through expanded sales channels and operating leverage from increased economies of scale. Through a broader presence in the lighting systems market, Cree gains additional knowledge and expertise to develop the next generation of industry-leading, lighting-class LED components,” the release stated.
Ruud will stay in Racine as a division of Cree Lighting and Alan Ruud takes a seat on Cree’s board. More to come.