1. I read that T & H is an
MRO market supplier. What does MRO mean?
MRO is an acronym for maintenance, repair, and operations — three
critical components of an industrial plant's existence.
MRO comprises all the goods and services required to keep
facilities and equipment
up and running. These goods and services cover a very broad
range of categories and include some of the following:
parts for infrastructure repair
replacement parts for
machinery
safety products for workers
cleaning products
for the physical plant
For example, a customer might need to replace
an electrical circuit breaker and require, in addition
to the hardware, safety goggles, rubber gloves, and a variety
of tools to do the job. Without these items in ready supply, the replacement
would be delayed and the plant would experience costly
down-time.
Grainger, our largest competitor,
with $5 billion in sales, lists over 200,000 MRO items
on their Web site. Their list includes such things as huge
electrical transformers, floor scrubbers and paper towel
dispensers. That's MRO!
2. Why is MRO so important?
MRO might seem unglamorous, but its importance to manufacturers
can not be overstated. MRO is important because a plant's
needs are extremely time-sensitive. Delays
cost money. For example, a replacement
part that is delivered late can cripple a manufacturer,
costing thousands to millions of dollars for each day of
delay.
Thus, purchasing from suppliers
that stock the right spare parts, deliver them on time,
and maintains a low cost structure is critical to plant
managers. Smart
companies depend on agile suppliers like T & H to manage their MRO
stock requirements.
3. What kind of
products do we sell into the MRO market?
MRO items include such things as:
adhesives and abrasives,
cleaning products
electrical equipment and supplies, fuel, lubricants, and paints,
heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment.
insulation and fasteners,
tools and instrument controls,
pipes, valves, and fittings,
wire and cable
4. We are a full service MRO
distributor. What does full service mean?
Full service means that a seller's interaction with a customer doesn't
end at the sale.
At Turtle & Hughes, full service means
adding value to the products we sell. We add value by
creating lasting relationships with our customers that
extend well beyond the product purchase. We add
value by supporting our customers
before the sale, at the time of the sale, and after
the sale. These
relationships and the personal service that goes with
them define the success we have enjoyed over the years.
5. What are specialists?
Turtle & Hughes not only supplies MRO products, it offers specialized
services that help customers manage those products. For
example, one of the unique strengths of the organization
is its staff of in-house technical specialists. Many of
these specialists are graduate engineers who fill a void
in the industry left by down-sizing and the decline
of the specialty distributor.
The specialist's job is to
support customers with the same
plant floor expertise that manufacturer
technicians and specialty distributors once supplied.
Some of the areas these specialists work in are: Abrasive technology
AC and DC variable-speed drive selection
Lighting design, layout, and selection
Material handling and storage equipment selection
Power transmission and cutting tool selection
Process control software support
Programmable control support
Switchgear and power turnkey support
Software engineering for custom reports
Vision and sensing layout
The specialist helps customers do their jobs by reducing costs and improving
efficiency.
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