New Plant is Cornerstone of Worldwide Frameworks Program Led By Five PC Industry and Channel Assembly Veterans To Bolster Sales For IBM, Compaq, HP and Other Major Brands
MEMPHIS, Tenn., March 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Ingram Micro (NYSE:IM)
today handed major computer manufacturers the ability to build and deliver thousands of custom-configured PCs on a scale unlike any in the wholesale technology distribution channel. Today marked the grand opening of the first of five planned global megacenters for PC channel assembly and integration, with the ability to deliver product anywhere in the world in a matter of days.
Ingram Micro's half-million-square foot Memphis facility, the cornerstone of its global Frameworks(TM) Total Integration Services channel assembly program, can be expanded to produce up to two million custom-configured computer systems per year for companies like IBM, Compaq and Hewlett-Packard. With the flip of a switch on its assembly line, Ingram Micro has given brand names a way to provide resellers with the made-to-order systems customers are more frequently demanding. Ingram Micro can build and ship an approved order within three days.
Ingram Micro's reseller customers stand to profit from the company's competitive turnaround time. Debbi E. Milner, president of Jade Systems Corporation, headquartered in Long Island City, NY, said, "There is a need for resellers to remain profitable in our business. With Ingram Micro's custom configuration and channel assembly offering, we can focus on servicing and selling to our customers, which is what we do best. Ingram Micro's product selection, quality assurance and unparalleled delivery make them uniquely qualified to provide custom configuration and channel assembly services."
Working with Ingram Micro, the major manufacturers can now offer large and small business customers systems tailored to their specific needs via the reseller channels that provide the service and expertise to make them work right.
"This plant effectively combines the best of both the direct and two-tier models. Ingram Micro's channel assembly program, in partnership with its suppliers and resellers, matches the cost-effectiveness and fast time-to- market of the direct model, while offering the full sales, service and support provided by resellers," said Ed Pensel, senior vice president of global configuration operations.
The Memphis integration facility is strategically located within 30 miles of Ingram Micro's 600,000 square foot state-of-the art distribution center in Millington, Tenn.
Top-line executive team to lead Frameworks' worldwide expansion
Memphis is the first of five Frameworks facilities planned around the world. In addition to Pensel, Ingram Micro has assembled a five-person executive team with deep experience in PCs and custom configuration to lead Frameworks. They are:
* Chuck Dow, vice president of quality, Ingram Micro Frameworks, also
former director of worldwide quality assurance at AST Computer;
* Craig M. Hayes, vice president of operations, Ingram Micro Frameworks,
who formerly held managerial and director-level positions in
engineering and manufacturing at AST Computer;
* A. Saeed Ghaderi, vice president of engineering, Ingram Micro
Frameworks, former vice president of quality at Dell Computer and
director of quality engineering at 3COM Corp.;
* Mark Mahoney, vice president of Sales, Ingram Micro Frameworks, who has
spent eight years with Ingram Micro as a sales manager and senior
director;
* Tom Lohnes, vice president global materials, Ingram Micro Frameworks,
an eight-year veteran of Dell Computer where he held several positions,
including strategic procurement manager, director of materials for
North American operations, and director of worldwide OEM partner
development for portable products.
Ingram Micro plans to follow Memphis with a channel assembly megacenter in Europe by the fall of 1998, then expand into Asia, South America and Canada throughout 1999. All of the proposed integration centers will utilize the same technology and processes.
About Ingram Micro Inc.
Ingram Micro Inc., headquartered in Santa Ana, Calif., is the world's leading wholesale distributor of technology products and services, and a leading provider of assembly and integration services, with 1997 sales of more than $16.5 billion. The company and its affiliates operate in 31 countries distributing more than 145,000 products to more than 100,000 resellers in 120 countries.
Source: Ingram Micro Inc.
Contact: Kathleen Janson of Ingram Micro, Inc., 714-382-2046; or Steve
Hodgdon of Beaupre & Co. Public Relations, Inc., 603-436-6690, or
hodgdon@beaupre.com