News of the Electrical Industry

May 1, 2003
SupplyFORCE and I.D. One Unite SupplyFORCE.com, a business that was launched by the Affiliated Distributors marketing/buying group to focus on integrated-supply

SupplyFORCE and I.D. One Unite SupplyFORCE.com, a business that was launched by the Affiliated Distributors marketing/buying group to focus on integrated-supply contracts and national accounts, has teamed up with I.D. One, Lockport, N.Y., the national industrial distributor cooperative.

The agreement adds more than $2 billion in incremental network sales to supplyFORCE.com, adds 300 locations to its distribution network and doubles the company's share of the industrial supply market, the companies said. The addition of I.D. One to supplyFORCE.com's existing network of distributors will bring the combined network sales of the company to just over $16 billion.

The deal will also bring supply-FORCE's combined network to just over $16 billion and add power transmission products and bearings to its product offering. Members of the two groups often were competitors in the industrial supply arena.

Grainger Launches Online MRO Marketplace In a move that will further strengthen W.W. Grainger Inc.'s hold on the industrial supply e-commerce market, the Lincolnshire, Ill.-based company announced the launch of its latest online portal, TotalMRO.com.

The company said customers will be able to buy maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) supplies such as tools, janitorial supplies, valves and pipes through the Web site.

Initially only customers of Ariba, Mountain View, Calif., can access the catalog. The company plans to sign agreements with other business-to-business e-commerce platform providers, exchanges and marketplaces soon, according to Elizabeth Olig, president of TotalMRO.com. The company also intends to open the site to anyone on the Internet later this year.

Square D Agrees to Buy EFI Electronics Seeing an opportunity for growth in the surge protection market, Square D Co., Palatine, Ill., has agreed to buy EFI Electronics Corp., Salt Lake City, in a transaction valued at about $14 million.

The acquisition adds to Square D's line of surge-protection products, which already includes surge-protection units for panelboards, switchboards, motor control centers and busway plug-in units, as well as equipment that protects residential power, data and telephone wiring. EFI's range of products includes industrial TVSS panels, hardwired/DIN products and surge plug-in strips.

Under the terms of the agreement, EFI will become a subsidiary of Square D. The merger is subject to customary conditions, including the approval of EFI Electronics shareholders.

EFI Electronics has approximately 80 employees and annual sales of $13 million.