Security Sales & Integration June 2021 - 29

est suppliers to the security industry, Anixter
Int'l and Ingram Micro, ended 2020 with
new ownership. The former was merged into
WESCO Int'l while the latter was acquired by
Platinum Equity Partners. " The acquisition is
expected to further strengthen Ingram's competitive
advantage in the Cloud, while speeding
digital transformation and accelerating
the company's expansion of their solutions
and services portfolio, " says Dave McClary,
market strategist, Security Business Unit, Ingram
Micro.
Smaller " tuck-in " deals have been seen as
well, including Resideo adding Norfolk Wire
& Electronics and Shoreview Distribution to its
ADI Global Distribution business this spring.
According to ADI President Rob Aarnes, those
buys " will help drive our continued growth in
adjacent markets. " The company's nimbleness
to accommodate its customers' evolving needs
during an unprecedented event has helped well
position it for such acquisitions.
" We put together a dedicated team early on
to monitor the situation globally and make necessary
changes to our business to keep our facilities
running and continue serving customers, "
says Aarnes. " ADI quickly made modifications
in all locations, like implementing curbside
pick-up, to minimize interactions and ensure
customers could safely continue to access essential
goods. We focused on service offerings that
matched the 'new way' people were working,
whether from home or with contactless transacsecuritysales.com
tions,
including paperless billing, extended return
policies, online returns, flat rate shipping
options and more. "
Distributors also leveraged virtual communications
like Zoom to maintain face-to-face
interactions with dealers and integrators. Platforms
such as that helped suppliers continue
to show and demonstrate new products, lend
system design guidance and tech support, as
well as training. The use of recorded videos and
online presentations was also leaned on to allow
security contractors to tap into educational
opportunities.
Now with the end of the pandemic in sight,
these pivots and adjustments will serve as additional
means for distributors to maintain an
even tighter bond and value-add to their dealer/integrator
customers. And with additional
new technology prospects emerging out of the
crisis, many vertical markets getting back up
to speed and spending freezes being lifted, the
overall outlook is bright indeed.
McClary and Aarnes are among the wholesale
security and automation products distributor
representatives addressing those issues
and more in the roundtable just ahead. Accompanying
them with their own perspectives
are: Dan Wild, senior director of strategic relationships,
Jenne; Dennis Holzer, executive
director, PowerHouse Alliance; Tony Sorrentino,
president, North America sales, ScanSource;
and Clint Choate, security market
director, SnapAV.
Due to the pandemic, ADI
implemented safety measures
across 200+ sites. That included
PPE, plexiglass shields at sales
counters, hand sanitizing stations,
social distancing markers,
employee daily assessments
and cleaning protocols.
We're seeing
Cloud-based
products gaining
traction, in video
surveillance and
access control
categories.
- Dave McClary,
Ingram Micro
JUNE 2021 Security Sales & Integration 29
COURTESY ADI
http://www.securitysales.com
Security Sales & Integration June 2021

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