Electrical Marketing's LiveWire

NJ solar boom seeking life support

Doug Chandler — Tue, 22 May 2012 15:59:06 +0000

New Jersey’s boom in solar power installations, driven by lucrative solar renewable energy credits, made the Garden State second only to California in installed solar power capacity. Now it’s reached a point of saturation where solar installers are looking for legislation to keep their industry alive. According to a post on the blog Knowledge Problem, the solar power glut has “lobbyists for both the solar power industry and unionized solar installers descending on the state capital, pleading for imposition of still higher purchase requirements on electric power consumers. The rallying cry has been to “save the jobs” created by the solar power purchase mandate.”

Electric Supply Center hires Rossman as energy specialist

Jim Lucy — Tue, 22 May 2012 13:01:52 +0000

Electric Supply Center (ESC) (Burlington, Mass.): David Rossman is the company’s new energy specialist. He has 30 years of experience in the electrical market, including working for another electrical distributor where he helped customers make the best use of the Mass Save programs available in Massachusetts. Rossman graduated from Massasoit Community College and is the chairman of the Southeastern Regional Vocational Technical High School Advisory Committee for the Electrical Program and serves on the Bristol Plymouth Regional Vocational Technical High School Advisory Committee for Electrical.

Wang joins Maxlite as product marketing manager

Jim Lucy — Tue, 22 May 2012 12:59:51 +0000

Maxlite ( West Caldwell, N.J.): Jim Wang is now product marketing manager and will report to Pat Treadway, MaxLite’s director of product marketing. Most recently, Wang served as product manager for Simkar. He has also worked for Holophane, Hubbell Lighting and Cooper Lighting. Wang has received nearly 40 patents, has an MFA in optical kinetic sculpture from the University of Kentucky and a BFA in industrial design from the University of Illinois.

KeyBanc/EW survey finds conditions improving for electrical distributors

Doug Chandler — Mon, 21 May 2012 21:43:04 +0000

KeyBanc Capital Markets and Electrical Wholesaling magazine have published the latest of their quarterly surveys of economic conditions in the electrical distribution market. They found improvements in just about every parameter they looked at, from inventory support for pricing to hiring plans, though expectations among distributors focused on residential and utility markets continue to underwhelm.

Read “Steady Progress” at ewweb.com.

Financial Times article offers additional insight into Amazon Supply launch

Jim Lucy — Mon, 21 May 2012 16:05:43 +0000

Still lots of chatter in the market on Amazon’s move into the MRO market. Check out this Financial Times article.

General Cable Corp. moves into aluminum wire and cable market with purchase of Rio Tinto’s Alcan Cable

Jim Lucy — Mon, 21 May 2012 15:59:28 +0000

General Cable Corp., Highland Heights, Ky., took a giant step into the aluminum wiring market with the purchase of Rio Tinto plc, the owner of Alcan Cable.
According to information on General Cable’s website, Alcan Cable employs approximately 1,050 associates in its aluminum cable manufacturing and distribution facilities servicing the energy and construction markets in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and China. On an annual basis, the Company estimates the acquisition will contribute approximately $650-700 million in revenues at current metal prices.
In that press release, Gregory Lampert, president and CEO, General Cable North America, said, “The addition of aluminum construction cables further expands the range of products we offer to distributors serving electrical and industrial contractors and increases our capacity to efficiently serve our electric utility customers with transmission and distribution products.” Details

UPDATE… Mad Money’s Jim Cramer weighs in on Eaton purchase of Cooper Industries

Jim Lucy — Mon, 21 May 2012 15:32:22 +0000

Mad Money’s Jim Cramer has been a big fan of Eaton Corp. and its CEO Sandy Cutler for some time now. Click here to see what he has to say on this deal and why he thinks Eaton stock is a better buy than Facebook right now.

Eaton Corp., Cleveland, announced its plans to buy Cooper Industries, Houston, in a deal that’s sure to send shockwaves throught the electrical market and bring Eaton into many new markets, including lighting, hazardous equipment, utility products, fuses, wiring devices and strut. The combined company would have had historical 2011 revenues of $21.5 billion, according to an Eaton press release. Cooper’s stock price surged 25% on news of the acquisition.
While the conference call announcing the acquisitions focused for the most part on the financial aspects of the deal, Sandy Cutler, Eaton’s CEO, did touch on the addition of utility products to Eaton’s product mix, and seemed particularly excited about the potential of growth within this product area. Details
Presentation on acquisition from Eaton Corp. 5/21 conference call

More to come later today…

Commerce Dept slaps tariffs on Chinese solar

Doug Chandler — Fri, 18 May 2012 19:27:55 +0000

The U.S. Department of Commerce yesterday announced that it would order tariffs of 31% and more on solar photovoltaic (PV) panels imported from China after a preliminary finding that Chinese companies were selling panels in the United States at prices below fair market value — i.e., dumping. If this preliminary finding is affirmed by U.S. trade officials this fall, will have a significant effect on the cost of solar power development and possibly on the availability of panels in the U.S. market.

“More than 60 Chinese firms, including Suntech Power Holdings Co., the world’s largest solar panel maker, and Trina Solar Ltd., face a 31% duty on their exports to the U.S., retroactive to shipments made in February. All other Chinese exporters of solar cells will be hit with a tariff of 250%,” said a story in the Los Angeles Times.

The tariffs come on top of penalties of less than 5% ordered by the Commerce Department in March after finding the manufacturers were illegally subsidized by the government of China. That ruling was seen as moderate by both U.S. manufacturers of solar panels, who had sought the Commerce Department’s intervention, and U.S. solar developers who buy panels. This ruling? Not so moderate.

Yesterday the Coalition for Affordable Solar Energy (CASE) warned that the steep tariffs could spark a trade war between the U.S. and China, and that the increased cost of solar panels “will ultimately come right out of the paychecks of American solar workers.”

The Coalition for American Solar Manufacturing (CASM), a group of U.S. PV panel-makers and supporters, called the ruling “a very positive first step.”

Pike Research predicts contraction in commercial lighting market after 2021

Doug Chandler — Fri, 18 May 2012 18:59:21 +0000

Pike Research, in a study released today, makes the case that the market for commercial lighting will grow strongly through about 2021, when it will hit about $54 billion, then it will contract through the remainder of the ’20s, back down to about $30 billion. Why? Solid state lighting.

LEDs will displace more than 52% of the global market for lamps in commercial buildings by 2021, Pike says. Then “the combination of declining prices for LED lighting and the accompanying extended lamp lifetimes will have the effect of shrinking the overall value of the market,” said a release announcing the report.

Here’s where you get the full study: “Energy Efficient Lighting for Commercial Markets” What do you think?

Ruud Lighting wins Walmart outdoor lighting contract

Jim Lucy — Wed, 16 May 2012 17:05:34 +0000

Ruud Lighting, the Racine, Wis.-based subsidiary of Cree Inc., Durham, N.C., will supply WalMart with outdoor lighting fixtures according to this report in Milwaukee’s Business Journal.