Electrical Equipment Distributors
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 8,000 electrical equipment and parts distributors in the US consolidate products across many manufacturers to offer customers wide selections, reasonable prices, and a single point of contact. Major product categories include switchgear and switchboard apparatus; wiring and cable; lighting fixtures; industrial controls; conduit, raceway, and fittings; power and distribution transformers; and motors and generators.
Competition from Alternative Channels
Electrical products are available through a wide variety of channels, including manufacturers, retailers, energy service companies (ESCOs), product specialists, niche service distributors, and distributors of other trades.
Counterfeit Electrical Products
Counterfeit electrical products, often produced outside the US, have infiltrated the supply chain and are raising distributors’ liability risk.
Industry size & Structure
A typical electrical distributor operates out of a single location, employs about 21 workers, and generates about $16 million in annual revenue.
- The electrical distribution industry consists of about 8,000 companies which generate $132 billion annually and employ 171,600 workers.
- Most electrical distributors are small, independent operations - 56% of electrical distributors have a single location and 68% employ fewer than 10 workers.
- Customers include building contractors (29% of sales), other wholesalers and distributors (24%), industrial businesses (10%), retailers (8%), businesses for their own use (19%), and government (4%).
- Large companies include International Electric Supplies, Rexel (Gexpro), Sonepar USA, WESCO Distribution, Graybar Electric, and Consolidated Electrical Distributors.
Industry Forecast
Electrical Equipment Distributors Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Nov 22, 2022 - Grid-Enhancing Technologies Needed to Bridge Clean Energy Transformation Gap
- At the recent WIRES conference in Washington DC, electricity industry panelists suggested transmission planners and regulators should use “grid enhancing technologies” (GETs) to quickly ramp up transmission capacity as the country transitions to clean energy, according to Utility Dive. To meet clean energy goals and support the growing number of electric vehicles and homes, annual US transmission spending will need to triple, according to UK-based electric power and gas firm National Grid. However, because transmission projects can take a decade to build, electric utilities need to optimize their grids with GETs. Examples of GETs include digital substations, power flow technologies, advanced conductors, energy storage, and advanced power flow controllers. WIRES is a trade group consisting of transmission providers and customers, regional grid managers, and equipment and service firms.
- On a seasonally adjusted basis, the total value of power project construction put in place decreased by 0.3% in September 2022 compared to August, according to the US Census Bureau. Unadjusted power project construction spending was down 8.1% in September compared to a year earlier and fell 11.4% on a year-to-date basis from the first nine months of 2021.
- Electrical equipment Distributors that rely on component suppliers in China may experience some supply chain issues amid a continued slowdown in Chinese manufacturing activity and exports. While conditions have improved, China’s zero-COVID policy continues to pose challenges for the country’s manufacturing sector. The Caixin China General Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose slightly to 49.2 in October from 48.1 in September. A reading below 50 suggests that output is contracting rather than expanding. While output and new orders declined, they did so at slower paces, and purchasing levels grew for the first time since May. However, exports contracted for the third consecutive month amid ongoing cost pressures. Input costs rose for the first time in three months, but manufacturer selling prices declined for the sixth straight month as producers promoted sales to move goods.
- North American construction and engineering spending in 2022 is expected to grow by about 8%, according to FMI’s fourth-quarter 2022 North American Engineering and Construction Outlook. However, growth may be tempered by ongoing challenges, including inflation, higher interest rates, supply chain issues, labor shortages, and geopolitical turmoil. Construction subsectors that are expected to see the strongest growth, ranging from 5% and up, include: residential, commercial, manufacturing, water supply, sewage and waste disposal, and conservation and development. Subsectors that are projected to post 2022 growth between 0% and 4% include amusement and recreation, communication, healthcare, and highway and street. Education, public safety, lodging, office, religious, power, and transportation are forecast to see flat-to-negative growth.
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