June 9 2009
Volume 39, Issue 11 - 06/10/2009
39
11
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UK-based building materials distributor Wolseley plc reported sales for the nine months ended April 30, 2009, were £12 billion (US$19.2 billion), up 0.2% year-over-year. Excluding the impact of foreign currency, sales were down 15%. Pre-tax profit fell 80% – 88% in constant dollars – to £72 million (US$115 million). Continued weakness across most markets, led by the commercial and industrial sectors in the U.S., and significant declines in the UK and Ireland and Nordic region, have led to continued cost reductions for the distributor. In the nine-month period, Wolseley has reduced headcount by 13,746 worldwide – including the elimination of 5,317 positions through the exit from Stock Building Supply in the U.S., effective …
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Modern Distribution Management’s April Inflation Index, which measures a cross-section of industrial supplies, was down 0.11% from the previous month, and up 5.73% from April 2008.
Please click below to view a print-ready pdf of the MDM Inflation Index for April 2009, listing the 10 individual product categories that make up the index. …
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This is the pdf of this issue of Modern Distribution Management. Apply the full $24.95 pay-per-view cost toward an annual subscription (within 30 days of purchase), which includes two issues a month plus access to more than seven years of online archives and market data. Call 1-888-742-5060 or email info@mdm.com to subscribe.
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After more than 30 years in manufacturing, Douglas K. Woods left his position as president of Parlec Inc., to become president of the Association of Manufacturing Technology. Woods has a long history in the machine tool industry, working at all levels, from small tool and die shops to multibillion-dollar machine tool corporations. Woods recently spoke with MDM Associate Editor Jenel Stelton-Holtmeier about the impact of the auto industry bankruptcies and financial woes in other sectors, the role of AMT in the channel, and trends in manufacturing technology.
This is the first of a series of interviews with association presidents about trends in industrial, construction and other distribution markets.
MDM: In just the past few months, both …
- Premium
Many of our readers are seeing direct impacts from the wrenching transformation taking place in the U.S. auto industry. While it is easy to focus on the negative and sensational news our national media regurgitates constantly, there are some important takeaways from this situation for distributors and manufacturers who sell through independent distribution channels.
First: The recent financial meltdown did not cause the downfall of the Big Three. The financial crisis precipitated what arguably was more than two decades in the making. Remember the ghost of Ignacio Lopez, GM’s purchasing chief in the 1990s?
In the 20-plus years I have been covering industrial distribution channels, the supply-chain relationship between these manufacturers and their …
- Premium
With the acquisition of ORCO Construction Supply, HD Supply White Cap Construction Supply business is taking advantage of ways to grow in a tough marketplace. ORCO filed for bankruptcy protection at the end of April; it will surely not be the last distributor to be purchased out of bankruptcy. White Cap president Tom Lazzaro spoke with MDM about the acquisition and other initiatives the distributor is pursuing.
CEO Joe DeAngelo told MDM after Home Depot sold HD Supply in 2007 that acquisitions would remain a key growth strategy for the wholesaler-distributor. He saw plenty of opportunities in particular for the company’s specialty construction business, White Cap Construction Supply.
Yet as the marketplace crumbled – led by the …
- Premium
HVAC distributor Watsco Inc. and air conditioning product manufacturer Carrier Corp., a unit of United Technologies Corp., are moving forward with their plans to form a joint venture that will distribute Carrier, Bryant and Payne products throughout the U.S. Sunbelt, Latin America and the Caribbean.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has granted early termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 related to the joint venture.
When it closes, the deal will nearly double Watsco’s sales. Watsco is a distributor of air conditioning, heating and refrigeration equipment, parts and supplies in the HVAC/R industry, operating 412 locations serving 40,000 customers in 34 states.
Watsco and Carrier’s …
- Premium
Wholesale distribution executives should not underestimate the impact of changes to compensation programs on their work force. To manage this sensitive area in these difficult times, a smart, proactive approach is needed to effectively manage human capital.
With today’s economic environment and turbulent times, it is no surprise that many companies have had to reshape their business as executives scramble to keep their companies afloat. Business leaders are challenged to find a balance between current finances and long-term strategy.
These business decisions also require a close look at the deployment of human resources, including difficult decisions regarding layoffs, restructuring compensation programs and pay practices, reductions in benefits, …
- Premium
UK-based building materials distributor Wolseley plc reported sales for the nine months ended April 30, 2009, were £12 billion (US$19.2 billion), up 0.2% year-over-year. Excluding the impact of foreign currency, sales were down 15%. Pre-tax profit fell 80% – 88% in constant dollars – to £72 million (US$115 million). Continued weakness across most markets, led by the commercial and industrial sectors in the U.S., and significant declines in the UK and Ireland and Nordic region, have led to continued cost reductions for the distributor. In the nine-month period, Wolseley has reduced headcount by 13,746 worldwide – including the elimination of 5,317 positions through the exit from Stock Building Supply in the U.S., effective …
- Premium
Modern Distribution Management’s April Inflation Index, which measures a cross-section of industrial supplies, was down 0.11% from the previous month, and up 5.73% from April 2008.
Please click below to view a print-ready pdf of the MDM Inflation Index for April 2009, listing the 10 individual product categories that make up the index. …
- Premium
This is the pdf of this issue of Modern Distribution Management. Apply the full $24.95 pay-per-view cost toward an annual subscription (within 30 days of purchase), which includes two issues a month plus access to more than seven years of online archives and market data. Call 1-888-742-5060 or email info@mdm.com to subscribe.
- Premium
After more than 30 years in manufacturing, Douglas K. Woods left his position as president of Parlec Inc., to become president of the Association of Manufacturing Technology. Woods has a long history in the machine tool industry, working at all levels, from small tool and die shops to multibillion-dollar machine tool corporations. Woods recently spoke with MDM Associate Editor Jenel Stelton-Holtmeier about the impact of the auto industry bankruptcies and financial woes in other sectors, the role of AMT in the channel, and trends in manufacturing technology.
This is the first of a series of interviews with association presidents about trends in industrial, construction and other distribution markets.
MDM: In just the past few months, both …
- Premium
Many of our readers are seeing direct impacts from the wrenching transformation taking place in the U.S. auto industry. While it is easy to focus on the negative and sensational news our national media regurgitates constantly, there are some important takeaways from this situation for distributors and manufacturers who sell through independent distribution channels.
First: The recent financial meltdown did not cause the downfall of the Big Three. The financial crisis precipitated what arguably was more than two decades in the making. Remember the ghost of Ignacio Lopez, GM’s purchasing chief in the 1990s?
In the 20-plus years I have been covering industrial distribution channels, the supply-chain relationship between these manufacturers and their …
- Premium
With the acquisition of ORCO Construction Supply, HD Supply White Cap Construction Supply business is taking advantage of ways to grow in a tough marketplace. ORCO filed for bankruptcy protection at the end of April; it will surely not be the last distributor to be purchased out of bankruptcy. White Cap president Tom Lazzaro spoke with MDM about the acquisition and other initiatives the distributor is pursuing.
CEO Joe DeAngelo told MDM after Home Depot sold HD Supply in 2007 that acquisitions would remain a key growth strategy for the wholesaler-distributor. He saw plenty of opportunities in particular for the company’s specialty construction business, White Cap Construction Supply.
Yet as the marketplace crumbled – led by the …
- Premium
HVAC distributor Watsco Inc. and air conditioning product manufacturer Carrier Corp., a unit of United Technologies Corp., are moving forward with their plans to form a joint venture that will distribute Carrier, Bryant and Payne products throughout the U.S. Sunbelt, Latin America and the Caribbean.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has granted early termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 related to the joint venture.
When it closes, the deal will nearly double Watsco’s sales. Watsco is a distributor of air conditioning, heating and refrigeration equipment, parts and supplies in the HVAC/R industry, operating 412 locations serving 40,000 customers in 34 states.
Watsco and Carrier’s …
- Premium
Wholesale distribution executives should not underestimate the impact of changes to compensation programs on their work force. To manage this sensitive area in these difficult times, a smart, proactive approach is needed to effectively manage human capital.
With today’s economic environment and turbulent times, it is no surprise that many companies have had to reshape their business as executives scramble to keep their companies afloat. Business leaders are challenged to find a balance between current finances and long-term strategy.
These business decisions also require a close look at the deployment of human resources, including difficult decisions regarding layoffs, restructuring compensation programs and pay practices, reductions in benefits, …
