November 3, 2008

WinWholesale Opens Seattle Windustrial

Leave a Comment / Free, Companies, Top Distributor Sectors, News, Subscriber Only / MDM Staff

WinWholesale Inc., Dayton, OH, has opened Seattle Windustrial in Kent, WA, to provide mechanical contractors from Olympia to Bellingham with a complete line of pipes, valves, fittings and accessories. The new company provides counter sales and delivery service.

Mike Baker is president of Seattle Windustrial. He joined WinWholesale in 1996 and previously was president of Portland Windustrial in Oregon and Elko Windustrial in Nevada.

WinWholesale Inc. is a leading distributor of domestic and industrial supplies and materials. The privately-held company consists of more than 470 wholesaling corporations in which WinWholesale is an equity partner, and also Noland Company, a wholly-owned subsidiary with nearly 100 locations. ...

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SYSCO Sales Up 5% in 1Q

Leave a Comment / Free, Grocery & Foodservice Distribution, Companies, Top Distributor Sectors, News, Subscriber Only / MDM Staff

Houston, TX-based Sysco Corp. reported sales for the first quarter of fiscal 2009 ended Sept. 27, 2008, were up 5% to $9.9 billion from the first quarter 2008. Profit was $276 million, up from $266 million in the first quarter 2008.

Our operating companies continued to generate impressive results in the midst of a prolonged and difficult business environment," said Richard J. Schnieders, Sysco's CEO.

Food cost inflation, as estimated by the change in Sysco's cost of goods, was 8.3% for the quarter.

Sysco operates 180 distribution facilities serving more than 400,000 customers. For the fiscal year 2008 that ended June 28, 2008, the company had more than $37 billion in ...

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Bosch Rexroth to Acquire German Manufacturer

Leave a Comment / Finance, Mergers & Acquisitions, Free, Top Distributor Sectors, Power Transmission/Motion Control/Fluid Power, News, Subscriber Only / MDM Staff

Bosch Rexroth AG has agreed to purchase Germany-based Interlit Joistgen GmbH, a developer of systems for cooling and lubrication. Additionally, Bosch Rexroth has agreed to acquire the associated German production company MSG Maschinen- und Stahlbau GmbH. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

With the acquisition of the two companies, we are strengthening our business with the machine tool industry and are reacting to the increased customer demand for single-source complete solutions," said Albert Hieronimus, chairman of the Executive Board for Bosch Rexroth AG.

In 2007, Interlit Joistgen had turnover of over €13 million with 20 employees. MSG's turnover was €7 million euros, with 80 employees.

Bosch Rexroth is in more than 80 ...

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AMETEK Acquires Muirhead Aerospace

Leave a Comment / Finance, Mergers & Acquisitions, Free, Top Distributor Sectors, Power Transmission/Motion Control/Fluid Power, News, Subscriber Only / MDM Staff

AMETEK, Inc., Paoli, PA, has acquired U.K.-based Muirhead Aerospace Limited, a manufacturer of motion technology products and a provider of avionics repair and overhaul services for the aerospace and defense markets. Muirhead Aerospace is a subsidiary of Esterline Technologies Corporation, and has estimated 2008 sales of $54 million.

Muirhead Aerospace expands AMETEK's penetration in motion control products for the aerospace and defense markets, including actuators and other specialized linear motors, complementing our existing technical motor capabilities,"said Frank S. Hermance, AMETEK CEO.

Muirhead Aerospace will become a part of AMETEK's Aerospace &Defense division, which supplies engine and aircraft sensors and monitoring systems; data acquisition units; ...

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Barnes Group Sales Down 6.5% in 3Q

Leave a Comment / Free, Companies, Top Distributor Sectors, News, Subscriber Only / MDM Staff

Barnes Group Inc., Bristol, CT, an international aerospace and industrial components manufacturer and logistical services company, reported third quarter 2008 profit of $28.9 million, an 4.6% increase over the prior year third quarter. Sales declined 6.5% for the quarter to $337 million.

For the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2008, sales increased 2.6% to $1.1 billion in a year-over-year comparison. Profit for the period was $97 million, up 15.9%.

Barnes Distribution sales dropped 6.4% to $123.5 million in the third quarter of 2008. Organic sales decreased $9.6 million, or about 7%. Lower sales were driven by softening in the North American transportation and manufacturing-related segments, and lower organic sales in Europe.

Operating profit for the ...

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Manufacturing Contracts in October

Leave a Comment / Economic Trends, Research & Analytics, Free, News, Subscriber Only / MDM Staff

Manufacturing contracted in October, according to the the nation's supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM Report On Business.

The PMI indicates a significantly faster rate of decline in manufacturing when comparing October to September. According to ISM, it appears that manufacturing is experiencing significant demand destruction as a result of recent events, with members indicating challenges associated with the financial crisis, interruptions from the Gulf hurricane, and the lagging impact from higher oil prices.

This is the lowest level for the PMI since September 1982 when it registered 38.8%. In the report, inflationary pressures dissolved as the Prices Index fell to 37%, the lowest since December 2001 when it registered 33.2%. Export orders also ...

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Lessons from Harley-Davidson Motor Company

Leave a Comment / Free, Strategy, Management, Subscriber Only / Lindsay Young

Harley-Davidson Motor Company's former director of communications Ken Schmidt told participants at the Power Transmission Distributors Association annual Industry Summit this past week that they cannot compete successfully if they are doing business exactly the same way as their competitors are.

Everyone says they offer the best quality, reliability and service. Who doesn't?" he asked. "From my perspective, competing with words like quality and reliability is next to impossible."

The key in his mind, however, was simple: People do business with people they like or with people they were referred to by people they like. Schmidt argues that customers don't make logical, rational decisions, but instead their decision to do business with you starts in their gut. So, ...

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Parker Hannifin Acquires Aqua Pro

Leave a Comment / Finance, Mergers & Acquisitions, Free, Companies, Top Distributor Sectors, Power Transmission/Motion Control/Fluid Power, News, Subscriber Only / MDM Staff

Parker Hannifin Corp., Cleveland, OH, a manufacturer of motion and control technology, has acquired Aqua Pro, Inc., a manufacturer of reverse osmosis filtration systems for military, commercial and pleasure marine applications. Aqua Pro sales for fiscal 2008 were $33 million. Results will be reported as a component of Parker's Industrial North America segment. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

With manufacturing centers in Gardena and San Fernando, California, Aqua Pro does business as Village Marine Tec and Offshore Marine Laboratories. Sales and service locations are located in California, Florida, Hawaii, Virginia, and Washington. The company sells to Original Equipment Manufacturers including boat and ship builders, independent distributors, U.S. military ...

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Interline Brands Sales Down 3.8% in 3Q

Leave a Comment / Free, Companies, Top Distributor Sectors, Facilities Maintenance (MRO), News, Subscriber Only / MDM Staff

Interline Brands, Jacksonville, FL, distributor and direct marketer of MRO products, reported sales for the third quarter 2008 were down 3.8% to $317.5 million from the 2007 period. Profit was $13.7 million, down from $15.9 million in the prior-year period.

Interline's facilities maintenance end-market, which comprised 70% of sales, declined 2.4% during the third quarter on an average daily sales basis, and declined 3.7% on an average organic daily sales basis. The pro contractor end-market, which comprised 19% of sales, declined 10.1% in the quarter and the specialty distributor end-market, which comprised 11% of sales, declined 3.6% for the quarter.

Sales in Interline's recently integrated AmSan brand grew by roughly 3.8% on an average organic daily sales ...

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