August 2006

Kennametal Inc., Latrobe, PA, has opened its new Tianjin, China, manufacturing facility less than a year after the company first announced groundbreaking for the operation.  Located in the Tianjin Economic Development Area (TEDA), the facility, initially sized at 160,000 square feet, will employ 200 people in manufacturing and advanced engineering and design activities. The operation […]

Strategic Distribution, Inc., Bristol, PA, provider of maintenance, repair and operating(MRO) supply chain management services, reported revenues of $37.2 million for the second quarter 2006, compared with $33.7 million for the same period last year. The increase was attributable to $1 million within the existing customer base and $2.9 million from new customers, offset by a

Crane Co., Stamford, CT, a diversified manufacturer of highly engineered industrial products, has agreed to purchase Noble Composites, Inc., a privately held company specializing in the manufacture and sale of premium, high-gloss finished composite panels used by motorhome and travel trailer manufacturers, for $72 million in cash.  Noble is in Goshen, IN, where it employs

Modern Distribution Management’s June Inflation Index, which measures a cross-section of industrial supplies, was up 0.35% from the previous month, and up 3.96% from June 2005. Summary of MDM Inflation Index for the past 12 months: June 2006 Index 263.0May 2006 Index 262.1April 2006 Index 262.1March 2006 Index 262.1Febuary 2006 Index 261.2January 2006 Index 260.2December 2005

Net income fell to $3.3 million from the $3.5 million reported in the second quarter of last year. For the first half of the year, sales were $577.4 million, up from $530.8 million in the first half of 2005. Net income for the period was $5.7 million, down from the $8.8 million recorded in the

The following case study is excerpted from Driving Growth and Shareholder Value: The Distribution Value Map” published by the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors.A large, U.S.-based electrical components distributor (ECD) had to keep track of the pricing on 550,000 materials from 5,000 vendors. Some of the pricing was maintained at a national level and some at

business in the first quarter.Like many distributors, Airgas has had to implement price management initiatives throughout its business to keep up with the pace of raw materials price increases. Airgas and Praxair Distribution both announced price increases in the past month to compensate. Airgas says that move was to “stay ahead of the curve.”In addition,

ahead when customers (in North America) get wise to the fact there may be cheaper imports around,” he says.Fish expects prices will eventually fall in 2007 closer to prices seen in 2005. “The people who buy the more sophisticated products won’t get the full benefits of this,” he says. “The cheaper grades of steel would

BlueLinx Holdings Inc., Atlanta, GA, a distributor of building products in North America, has acquired Austin Hardwoods, a privately held hardwood lumber distributor in Austin, TX. The acquisition expands BlueLinx’s presence in the Southwest and is expected to enhance the company’s ability to service industrial customers in certain local markets.Operating since 1972, Austin Hardwoods distributes

Diversified industrial manufacturer Eaton Corporation, Cleveland, OH, has agreed to acquire Dover Resources’ Ronningen-Petter industrial fine filtration business. Dover Resources is a subsidiary of Dover Corporation. Dover Resource’s Ronningen-Petter fine filtration business had 2005 sales of $30 million. It provides filters and components to customers in end markets that include the oil and gas, pulp

Rexnord Corporation, Milwaukee, WI, a manufacturer of highly engineered precision motion technology products, focused on power transmission products, reported sales grew 20.2%, excluding the acquisition of Falk, in first quarter fiscal 2007 over the prior-year quarter to $288.4 million. Approximately $25.2 million of this increase was due to the timing of the Falk acquisition in

>SalesThe U.S. Census Bureau announced that June 2006 sales of merchant wholesalers, except manufacturers’ sales branches and offices, after adjustment for seasonal variations and trading-day differences but not for price changes, were $331.1 billion, up 1.4 percent (+/-0.5%) from the revised May level and were up 13.5 percent (+/-1.0%) from the June 2005 level. The

US Electrical Services LLC has built a $300-million distribution business in the Northeast with three acquisitions since May. The company plans to reach $500 million in revenues by year end. In this interview, President and CEO Richard Worthy discusses USESI’s business model, consolidation in distribution, and the goals of private investors.Richard Worthy is a seasoned

Applied Industrial Technologies, Cleveland, OH, reported sales for its fiscal year ended June 30, 2006, increased by 10.7% to $1.9 billion from $1.7 billion in fiscal 2005. Net income rose 30.6% to $72.3 million versus $55.3 million the previous year. Sales for the fourth quarter increased 11.2% to $504 million from $453.3 million in the same

Interline Brands, Inc., Jacksonville, FL, a distributor and direct marketer of maintenance, repair and operations products, reported sales for the second quarter of 2006 increased 15.6% over the comparable 2005 period. Sales for the quarter ended June 30, 2006, were $235.4 million. Average organic daily sales growth for the second quarter was 11.8%.Interline recorded a

Industrial gases distributor Airgas, Inc., Radnor, PA, has agreed to acquire Houston, TX-based Aeriform Corp., an independent distributor with 29 locations in Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Kansas. Aeriform has 240 employees and annual sales of $65 million.  About 58% of its revenue comes from gas & rent, with the balance from traditional welding hardgoods. “This will be