Distribution World

Panasonic Industrial Europe has extended its distribution agreement with MSC to establish a pan-European deal to focus on smart metering technologies.

RS Components has added FCI's automotive connectors to its catalogue in what is a new departure for the distributor.

The general election is two months away and the UK gets a new manifesto for manufacturing.

Call me a cynic, but the timing of the publication of the first National Strategic Skills Audit seems like pure opportunism.

The general election is two months away and the UK gets a new manifesto for manufacturing. 

I believe something similar happened before the last three elections.

Sadly, neither Labour nor Conservative has given the engineering and manufacturing sector much of their attention.

NTK Technical Ceramics has received a supplier of the year award from the C-MAC MicroTechnology.

It is the first company to receive this award which covers the business year to September 2009.

Is the UK car industry on the mend?

The signs may be encouraging with car sales up by 26.4% in February compared with the same month last year, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

Nu Horizons has said it is to lose the Xilinx franchise in June.

It is probably no surprise that Xilinx is reviewing its distribution strategy. The programmable logic business is changing.

Tektronix is the latest company to set-up an online community where users of its test systems will share information and take part in discussion forums.

TTI's proposed acquisition of Flightspares tells us that the period of rationalisation in the electronics distribution market has not yet finished. 

Farnell has set up a forum within its element14 online community to discuss issues around alternative energy technologies.

Samsung has appointed YEG Opto, the opto electronics division of Young Electronics, to distribute their range of medium and high power LEDs in the UK and Ireland.

DRAM sales are set to go up and to the right in 2010, something they haven't done for three years, says marketwatcher iSuppli.

DRAM sales could jump by as much as 40.4% in value this year to hit $32bn, estimates iSuppli.

ZF Electronics has appointed Mark Mills as distribution manager for all its Cherry brand products.

RS Components has signed a global franchise agreement with EPCOS.

Schroff has been appointed as the UK technical representative for McLean Cooling Technology, the Minnesota-based manufacturer of products designed for cooling electronic systems.

The component distribution market is emerging from the dark days of the 2008/2009 downturn with important lessons learnt.

Tighter control of inventory in the supply chain is a must and do not underestimate the importance of the internet in the recovery.

RS Components has extended its business relationship with ABB to create a global franchise for its product lines spanning electrical, interconnect, power and control products.

In what is another example of how broadline distributors are working with suppliers on joint product marketing, RS will also help ABB in product introductions.

APRO, the Taiwan-based supplier of industrial-grade NAND flash storage devices, has teamed with ProSaleTech and Phoenix Systems Engineering & Technologies (PST) to expand its presence in the European market.