ONLY A HANDFUL OF electrical distributors operate in Alaska. It takes a very special breed and exceptional competence to move products throughout the state’s 586,000 square miles of largely in- hospitable terrain with just 12,823 miles of public roads because it re- quires a complete and utter mastery of logistics. Distributors of electrical products must also possess consum- mate product expertise: full com- mand of the performance capabilities and limitations of every product they supply. “Competitors? We have a few. Some folks in the Lower 48 have tried their hand lately. They think Alaska is just like any other place. It’s not,” said Rob Gambill, who was a senior account representative and utility construction team leader for the Alaska district of Pittsburgh- based WESCO International at the time of the interview (he has since joined another company). “Distance is the biggest chal- lenge,” added Scott Thompson, Alaska district manager for WESCO, who works out of the main branch in Anchorage. “There are no roads west of Anchorage for 1,000 miles.” The state’s two largest cities, Anchor- age (population 291,826) and Fair- banks (population 32,469), lie on this same 1,076-mile-long road, as do Kenai and Wasilla, where WESCO’s second branch is located. Juneau is accessible only via water or air—as is Barrow, Ketchikan, and Sitka. “Elsewhere in the state, we rely on barges, planes, and ice roads,” noted Thompson. Crescent Electric, headquartered in East Dubuque, Ill., also operates in Alaska, with branches in Anchor- age, Fairbanks, Kenai, and Wasilla. Marty Odsather, district sales man- ager, agrees about the importance of logistical and product expertise. “We have become as much a logis-
This 48˝-diameter replacement pipe is headed up the
haul road to the Trans Alaska
Pipeline System, commonly
referred to as “the pipeline.”
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