Jason Sandefur

Grainger’s Canadian subsidiary, Acklands Grainger, acquired Excel Industriel of Granby, Quebec. Excel is a business-to-business broad line distributor of fasteners and other MRO supplies. Terms were not disclosed.

“We are very excited about joining forces with Excel,” said Court Carruthers, President of Acklands – Grainger. “They are a leading player in the Eastern Townships of Quebec and have a long history of excellent customer service.”

Grainger expects an incremental sales contribution of $11 million from this acquisition over the next year. The two existing Acklands – Grainger and Excel branches in Granby will be merged within the next 60 days. Web: excel.qc.ca/English

Fastener sales helped boost Grainger revenue by $349 million in 2007, with total sales growing 9% to a record $6.4 billion.

Sales at Canada-based Acklands-Grainger, which calls itself “Canada’s largest distributor of industrial, safety and fastener products,” increased 12.6% to $636.5 million during 2007, and earnings more than doubled to $44.2 million.

Grainger has added more than 38,000 fastener products to its catalog since 2006. Web: grainger.com �2008 FastenerNews.com