Roden Electrical Revs Up A-B/Rockwell Business In Alabama Auto Market

May 27, 2005
In a major expansion of its industrial automation offering in Alabama, Roden Electrical Supply Co. Inc., Knoxville, Tenn., has been awarded the Area of Primary Responsibility (APR) for Rockwell Automation and Allen-Bradley product lines in the Montgomery, Ala., territory. Roden expects to open a branch in Montgomery by June.

In a major expansion of its industrial automation offering in Alabama, Roden Electrical Supply Co. Inc., Knoxville, Tenn., has been awarded the Area of Primary Responsibility (APR) for Rockwell Automation and Allen-Bradley product lines in the Montgomery, Ala., territory. Roden expects to open a branch in Montgomery by June.

The company also plans to sell Allen-Bradley products in Tuscaloosa, Ala., through an acquisition. Roden Electrical Supply has signed a letter of intent to purchase Tuscaloosa Electric Supply, which already had the Allen-Bradley APR for that region. Once the acquisition is finalized Tuscaloosa Electric will operate as Roden Electrical Supply at the Tuscaloosa location. The acquisition is expected to be finalized in June.

Tuscaloosa’s current CEO and principal owner Ed Minges will continue with Roden as a special consultant responsible for strategic customer retention and growth. Gary Anderson, current general manager and partial owner, will also be retained to assist with integration initiatives.

Roden already has the Allen-Bradley/Rockwell Automation APRs in Alabama at its Birmingham and Huntsville locations, as well as at its branches in Dalton, Ga.; and Chattanooga, Cleveland, and Knoxville, Tenn.

Roden Electrical Supply’s four Alabama branches (counting Tuscaloosa, once the acquisition is finalized) will supply several key automotive plants: Honda (Odyssey and Pilot models) in Lincoln, Ala.; Hyundai (Sonata and Santa Fe models) in Montgomery; and Mercedes Benz (M class model) in Tuscaloosa. Roden Electrical Supply also supplies a Toyota Engine Plant and an International Diesel Engine Plant in Huntsville, Ala.

Sam McCamy III, Roden Electrical Supply’s president and CEO, is excited about building the company’s existing automotive business and base of non-automotive MRO and OEM customers in Alabama. He said the position of the dollar against world currencies gives offshore automotive producers strong incentives to increase production capacity in the United States and in the region.

“The automotive companies that have located here are market share leaders in their respective market segments,” he said. “We are a player in the automotive business in Birmingham, and we have a great plan to pursue it in Montgomery. A third piece of that puzzle, Tuscaloosa, is now in place.”

Roden Electrical Supply is the nation’s 117th largest electrical distributor, according to EW’s 2004 Top 200 listing. The company, which had 2003 sales of $43.3 million, has 11 locations in Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee.

In a joint statement, McCamy and his brother, Jeff, the company’s vice president, said, “We are in an excellent strategic and financial position, having established an automated central distribution center and streamlined accounting operation, to demonstrate strong earnings and achieve our aggressive growth objectives. We are a committed Rockwell Automation distributor and we are dedicated to serving our customers with the Rockwell product authorization as our cornerstone.

“We also believe in creating a strong team of local professionals. The Montgomery opportunity was a perfect opportunity for our growth, service and people philosophies to flourish, and we greatly appreciate the confidence Rockwell Automation has placed in us.”

John Hill, Roden’s vice president of industrial sales for Alabama, said the company’s local electrical and automation professionals have a combined experience base exceeding 115 years in the business.

“We wanted to hit the ground running, take care of existing customers, and launch into a growth phase quickly,” he said. “Getting good people was first on our list to accomplish that.”

A company statement said the team also includes contractor-oriented professionals, because Roden Electrical supply intends to be a player in Montgomery’s electrical contractor market. Logan Hill, vice president of construction sales, will oversee the development of contractor sales in Montgomery. Roden plans to begin shipping immediately in the Montgomery market using its Roden Red logistics network and a total system inventory exceeding $9 million.