RS Components

RS Components is a business to business supplier of industrial and electronic components, specialising in same day dispatch and high stock levels. RS Components are based in Corby, Northamptonshire and employs over 2000 people in their UK operation.

The company operates a catalogue based distribution of electronic, electrical, electromechanical and industrial components. RS Components, or RS, was founded in 1937 and is part of the Electrocomponents Group. Their product range is used to support professional users in many different job functions. The company objective is to provide a part for every job covering all stages of production from R&D and preproduction to maintenance and repair.

The company pride themselves in being Europe's leading distributor of electronic, electrical and industrial components. They aim to deliver good products and stock availability with easy ordering, free delivery and technical help. Another important selling point is their next day delivery. Businesses in the UK may order their products online, by phone, fax or in person through their network of trade branches.

UK General Manager is Paul Quested who joined RS Components as Head of Finance in 2007 and then took on the role of GM in October 2008. Guy Magrath is head of Marketing; he joined Electrocomponents as a Graduate Trainee in 2004, as part of the Graduate Management Development Programme.

Trade Branches

The RS trade counters are available in 16 locations throughout the UK and stock over 165,000 products as well as offering extra services such as kitting, same day courier and consolidated delivery, a calibration service and special offers.

Trade branches can be found in Aberdeen, Birmingham, Bristol, Corby, London/South - Gatwick, Glasgow, Leeds, London/East - Bow, London/West - Heathrow, London/North - Watford, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham, Nuneaton, Southampton and South Wales.

Account holders can download a satellite navigation tool online to keep track of the nearest RS branch when on the move; the tool is available for Tom Tom, Garmin and Navman.

Online presence

Through their e-commerce site, customers have access to 300,000 products from 1.200 leading manufacturers. Apart from finding products and stock availability, free next day delivery online customers also benefit from free technical assistance through a comprehensive online document library that includes over 101,000 documents covering RS, manufacturer, semiconductor, CHIP and Health & Safety data sheets. Over 60 engineers and technical experts are also available to answer specific product details and help customers find exactly what they need. Other online resources include: a unit converter, energy saving calculator, timer functions, thermocouple guide, DIN rail selector and a resistor calculator. A quick and easy to use part search facility helps visitors find exactly what they are looking for.

Worldwide Operations - Electrocomponents

The business trades as RS in the UK, Europe and Asia, as Radiospares in France, Radionics in Ireland and Allied Electronics in North America. The Group, Electrocomponents, operates in 27 countries, and reach customers in another 38 countries via their distributors. The Group distributes over 500,000 electronic and industrial products to over 1.5 million customers via their product catalogues, e-commerce sites and trade counters.

Group Chief Executive is Ian Mason and Simon Boddie is the Group Finance Director, they both joined the Group in 2005.

Product Range

The RS product range include connectors, semiconductors, capacitors, relays, switches, resistors, LEDs, indicators and power supplies. They also supply batteries, cables, control gear, fans, plumbing, hosing, HVAC, security, tools, books, IT, safety and test and measurement products.

Finance

The Group manages around 40,000 parcels on a daily basis, with an average customer order of around £100 and annual revenue of £975 m. Electrocomponents is a member of the FTSE250 Index and is listed on the London Stock Exchange.

History

The Company was founded in London in 1937 when PM Sebestyen and J H Waring identified the need for radio repair shops to quickly acquire spare parts. Operating from a London lock up garage this was the start of Radiospares who offered their customers an efficient service, with a 'replacement for every job' and 24 hours service, which was almost unheard of during this time. Throughout the Second World War, Radiospares helped to keep the nation's radios working providing spare parts where they were most needed.

Some key events in RS History

• 1928: Allied Radio founded in Chicago
• 1937: Radiospares founded in London by JH Waring and PM Sebestyen
• 1947: Radiospares establishes an export link with the newly founded Radionics in Dublin
• 1954: Radiospares products are aimed at industry and product range is extended beyond radio and television spares
• 1967: Radiospares floats on the London Stock Exchange as Electrocomponents Plc
• 1971: Radiospares changes name to RS Components
• 1884: Opens warehouse in Corby
• 1990s: Various acquisitions and start-ups are taking place in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and several other countries around the world
• 1998: RS launches their award winning internet trading channel in the UK
• 2003: Awarded 'E-business Strategy of the Year' award by UK National Business Awards
• 2004: Same day despatch offer launched in China
• 2008: Production Packaging offer is launched across UK, Europe and Asia Pacific

Present and Future

RS realises that new technology is vital to keep ahead and afloat in this business, being a step ahead in their product offering as well as their online presence. RS Components have a strong focus on their e-commerce service, moving towards an online business with a steady increase in sales and revenue from their e-commerce platforms - today 50% of sales are achieved over the internet.

RS has recently improved search and browse capability and launched a new online price checker facility which is an online tool, updated on a weekly basis that compares RS product prices with other suppliers.

Contact address: RS Components Ltd, DPN 64, Birchington Road, Corby, Northants, United Kingdom, NN17 9RS. Tel: 0845 850 9900, Fax: 01536 405682

To keep up with company news you can follow RS on Twitter http://twitter.com/RSElectronics and keep up to date with their latest offers on http://twitter.com/RSOffersUK.