1981

A-D Founded. A-D is first buying group in the electrical industry with a national distribution strategy.

48 leading independents join with total annual sales of $450 million.

1982

National chains attempt to intimidate suppliers into not joining A-D. First suppliers to join include: Leviton, Carlon & Westinghouse.

1983

First A-D National Meeting held.

1984

A-D becomes largest buying group in the electrical industry. Total member sales exceed $1 Billion.

National Meeting expanded to include suppliers.

1985

Advance Transformer joins A-D and loses all their business with a major national chain. Membership rallies to support Advance and more than makes up the lost business. Major chains cease to threaten suppliers who join A-D.

A-D Networks created . . . first formalized structure within an electrical buying group to facilitate the exchange of best practices among non-competing companies.

1986

A-D committee structure established . . . each Network has a representative on each Committee.

Network Chairmen write first A-D Mission Statement, formalizing the commitment to developing mutually beneficial relations with Suppliers.

1987

A-D Supplier Advisory Council established . . . first Supplier council for any electrical buying group.

A-D expands membership strategy to include industrial-focused electrical distributors and suppliers . . . first group to recognize the need to serve both sides of the electrical market.

A-D Services committee develops the Sales Stimulator Program (SSP) to promote joint marketing activity between Affiliates and Suppliers. It is the first program of its kind for any electrical group.

1988

A-D makes public shift from "buying group" to "marketing group."

A-D Services committee develops a program to promote improved planning between Affiliates and Suppliers (Joint Marketing Agreements). It is the first such program for any electrical group.

Total member sales exceed $2.5 Billion.

1990

A-D approaches the U.S. Justice Department to seek approval for a program to help members jointly quote and sell multi-location end-users.

1992

A-D receives Justice Department Approval for National Account Program and begins to coordinate member bids for national business. It is the first joint bidding program for any wholesale buying or marketing group in the construction or industrial market.

1993

Copel, Canada's leading electrical buying group elects to join A-D. A-D becomes first electrical group with North American coverage.

1994

A-D starts new division for general line industrial supply distributors (ISD).

A-D becomes first group in industry to adopt strategy of leveraging a common back office to operate separate groups in synergistic industries.

Total member sales exceed $5 Billion.

1995

A-D successfully expands strategy by starting new division for Pipe Valves & Fittings distributors (PVF). A-D becomes first group for distributors and suppliers in traditional industrial PVF markets.

1996

A-D National Account Program wins numerous contracts and expands into separate A-D Division (The Sales and Technology Group). Offering to end-users now includes Integrated Supply.

1997

A-D introduces "A-D Net" to automate all group communications and marketing activity over the internet . . . first group to establish a secure extranet to integrate internet technology into its core business functions.

Total member sales exceed $10 Billion.

1999

A-D spins A-D National Accounts Program (The Sales and Technology Group) out of A-D and into a separate company, supplyFORCE.

2000

I.D. One, the other major buying group for general line industrial distributors, elects to join A-D.

A-D becomes the largest buying/marketing group in the industrial supply market.

2001

C. L. Watt, a leading buying group for independent plumbing wholesalers, elects to join A-D. A-D Plumbing Supply Division created. A-D members active in other plumbing groups elect to join new A-D division. Membership in A-D's PVF Division expands, as well.

A-D becomes the largest buying or marketing group in the Plumbing / PVF industry.

Total member sales exceed $15 Billion.

2002

A-D introduces EDI program to automate remittance and payment transactions between Affiliates and Suppliers. This is the first major effort to drive EDI adoption by any group in the industries A-D covers.

A-D introduces the Growth Incentive Bonus Program (GIBP) in its Electrical Division. GIBP is an innovative program to drive growth through monthly reporting of individual and group run rates to goal. Participating suppliers realize enhanced support; Affiliates realize enhanced incentives and returns.

2003

Growth Incentive Bonus Program introduced in Industrial Supply Division.

supplyFORCE restructures its business model and becomes distributor owned.

2004

A-D introduces the A-D Field Marketing Summit (FMS) program. This is the first ever group-wide program to drive annual planning down to the grass roots level between Affiliate sales and branch associates and supplier selling organizations.

A-D's Sales Stimulator Program (SSP) enhanced to focus on quality of results and streamlined to reduce transactions.

Electrical Supply Division implements a comprehensive expansion of reporting tools for members (including the A-D Circle of Profit report) to expand member A-D awareness throughout Affiliate management.

A-D holds separate annual meetings for each Division to maximize programming flexibility and interaction with Divisional leadership.

supplyFORCE stabilizes as a break-even business, providing quality national account services to distributors - nearly all of which are A-D members.

2005

Electrical Supply Division introduces the A-D Added-Value Program, a rating system that recognizes those Suppliers whose business practices promote Affiliate profitability and reduce overall supply chain costs.

Growth Incentive Bonus Program introduced in Plumbing & PVF Divisions.

A-D and supplyFORCE renew their strategic partnership - driving synergies and enhancements in the services provided to the organizations' common membership.

Over 50% of A-D members adopt the A-D Field Marketing Summit program.

Over 75% of A-D's remittance transactions are conducted via EDI or related web-based technology.

2006

The HVAC Group, the largest buying group in the HVAC industry, elects to join A-D, creating the HVAC Division. All eligible members of The HVAC Group become part of the Division, joined by existing members from other A-D Divisions.