Electrical Marketing's LiveWire

A-D announces 2011 sales results

Jim Lucy — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 18:57:47 +0000

AD Announces Electrical Divisions’ 2011 Year-End Results
Commitment to Independent Distributors Yields Double-Digit Growth
Affiliated Distributors (AD), Wayne, Pa., released their Electrical Divisions’ year-end results with US sales having grown 19% to $11.2 billion and Canadian sales having grown 10% to $852 million, respectively. AD Affiliates also set new records for both net distributions and return on remittances.

David Oldfather, president, Electrical Divisions, said “Our commitment to exclusively supporting independent Electrical divisions of all sizes is definitely yielding some impressive results. In addition to experiencing above market growth during this past year, our Affiliates added over 950 new Distributor employees, made 14 acquisitions, and approved the addition of 38 new Clean Energy Suppliers to the AD Preferred Supplier list.” Oldfather adds, “Our AD Clean Energy program, along with AD’s willingness to pursue new growth opportunities for both our distributors and suppliers should help stimulate additional growth in 2012 and beyond.”

According to Bill Weisberg, CEO, “In spite of tremendous market uncertainty and stiff competition, our independent Distributors and Suppliers battled back from the depths of the Great Recession to sales levels that now exceed their peak in 2008.”

Heard @NEMRA

Jim Lucy — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 17:44:14 +0000

Standing-room only at the three sessions by John Hoelz of J.F. Nolan and Associates on selling with tablets in the electrical market. HoelZ says 11 manufacturers are already on-board with RepFiles, the cloud-based content management system for electrical product info. He hopes reps will bring up RepFiles at their one-on-one meetings and group briefings at NEMRA today. Check out EW’s article on RepFiles here:
http://ewweb.com/reps/electric_point_contact/

Rep News: Myers & Associates names Ragle to sales management post

Jim Lucy — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 22:15:53 +0000

Myers & Associates Electrical Sales (Norman, Okla.): Clint Ragle, LEED AP, is the new director of medium voltage sales for the state of Oklahoma. He will direct all agency efforts for the industrial division of Copper Power Systems, DSG Canusa, Olsun Electrics and Pencell Plastics. Specific product responsibility includes medium-voltage transformers, switches, capacitors, terminations, and wire & cable. Ragle’s client base will include engineers, contractors, distributors and end users.

Rexel acquires Liteco in Canada’s maritime provinces

Doug Chandler — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 20:40:08 +0000

Rexel, Paris, France, said it has acquired Liteco, the largest independent distributor of electrical supplies in the Canadian Maritimes region. This acquisition complements Rexel’s position as the largest electrical distributor in Canada, one of the world’s largest markets. Rexel said the move is consistent with its strategic aim of strengthening its market share in key mature markets.

Founded in 1976 and headquartered in Fredricton, New Brunswick, Liteco has 13 branches in the provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island employing about 120 people to serve a large base of customers in the residential, commercial, industrial and marine sectors. Liteco posted sales of approximately €50 million (about US$66 million) in 2011 and its profitability is in line with Rexel’s operations in the country, Rexel said.

Rexel has over 200 branches across Canada that added about €1.2bn (just under US$1.6 billion) to the Rexel Group’s consolidated sales and posted double-digit organic growth (+11.4%) in 2011.

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Platt Electric Supply to open six new branches

Jim Lucy — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 22:48:17 +0000

Platt Electric, Beaverton, Ore., has six new locations under construction in Tracy, Calif.; on the Intel campus in Hillsboro, Ore.; and in Arlington, Enumclaw, Kent and Port Angeles, Wash. When these branches open the company will have 110 locations in seven western states. In addition to these new locations, Platt Electric Supply will be adding six additional branches in the next few months.

Reuters says ABB looking for blue-chip automation companies to expand business in U.S.

Jim Lucy — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 15:40:18 +0000

ABB is still on the hunt for more acquisitions in the United States and wants to bolster its automation business, according to this Reuters report.

Thomas to lead GE Industrial Solutions sales in Canada

Doug Chandler — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 13:39:51 +0000

GE Energy’s Industrial Solutions business (NYSE: GE) has appointed Adrian Thomas as the new regional sales leader for Canada. Thomas has overall responsibility for sales of GE Energy’s electrical distribution products and services in Canada, including switchboards and panel boards, uninterruptible power supplies, metering products, circuit breakers, motor controls and capacitors, as well as electric vehicle supply equipment. He is based in Montreal but will oversee sales operations at key facilities across the country, including Calgary and Toronto, GE said in a release.

Thomas began his career at GE Canada as a large-motors designer in Peterborough, followed by a transition to a marketing role for GE Energy in Montreal that featured a combination of sales and commercial operations. Later, Thomas held various positions with TMEIC, an industrial systems, drive and motor manufacturer, in Roanoke, Va., where he developed international sales experience covering growing markets in Taiwan, India and North America. He is a graduate of McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, with a bachelor of science in engineering.

Dakota Supply Group acquires Wisconsin’s W.A. Roosevelt

Jim Lucy — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 18:49:48 +0000

Dakota Supply Group, Fargo, N.D., has acquired Wisconsin-based W.A. Roosevelt, a distributor of plumbing, electrical and HVAC products. W.A. Roosevelt, which has almost 100 employees, has locations in La Crosse, Madison, New Berlin, Plover and Rice Lake, Wis. The company was founded in 1868.
According to a DSG press release announcing the acquisition, W.A. Roosevelt will retain its name and staff, and while it will become a division of DSG, virtually all other proceedings will be “business as usual” for customers and manufacturers alike. This new partnership will add Wisconsin and the northern Michigan to DSG’s service area, which currently includes Minnesota, South Dakota and North Dakota, as well as portions of Iowa, Wyoming and Montana.
Established in 1898, the employee-owned DSG sells not only electrical products but plumbing, HVAC, communications, utility, metering technology, automation, and waterworks products. The company has 400 employees and was ranked #39 on EW’s most recent Top 200 listing.

Siemens agrees to buy RuggedCom

Doug Chandler — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 17:41:36 +0000

The Munich, Germany, corporate offices of Siemens announced today the company has entered into an agreement to acquire RuggedCom, Concord, Ontario, Canada, in a friendly, board-supported takeover bid.

The Canadian company is a provider of communications and networking solutions such as routers for harsh industrial environments. The total transaction value is estimated at about C$382 million (about US$381 million). RuggedCom’s board unanimously supports the takeover, is recommending that RuggedCom’s shareholders accept the offer, which is a contrast to their recommendation against a takeover by Belden about a month ago.

With annual revenues of approximately US$94 million (fiscal 2011) and approximately 360 employees, RuggedCom provides robust, industrial-quality Ethernet communication products and network solutions. These products are used primarily under rough environmental conditions – for example, in power distribution, in refineries, or in traffic control systems. The move expands Siemens’ offerings for the smart grid market, among others.

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Wall Street Journal report on ABB acquisition of T&B

Jim Lucy — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 14:48:05 +0000

Wondering what Wall Street analysts think about this blockbuster deal? Check out this Wall Street Journal report. T&B stockholders have got to be pretty happy. According to the Business Wire release announcing the deal, “The acquisition price represents a 24 percent premium to Thomas & Betts’ closing stock price on Jan. 27, 2012 and a 35 percent premium to the volume weighted average stock price over the past 60 trading days.”