Tri-Ed Splits from Tyco, Acquired by Investment Group

Feb. 3, 2005
Tri-Ed puts into place a new management team whose history stems from years of managing ADI

Tyco distribution channel Tri-Ed Distribution has now broken away under the leadership of former president of ADI Steve Roth and private equity firm Wheatley Partners. Roth, who most recently served as CEO of Terk Technologies, will serve in the CEO position for the newly independent distributor.

The company, which is a top wholesale distributor of low-voltage and security products, operates a total of 26 sales offices in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico, and with the separation, Tri-Ed is now the largest independent security distributor in North America, according to a statement from the company.

"Tri-Ed has made tremendous strides in the last few years and has built a strong foundation for future growth," said Roth in a prepared statement. "Our long-term plan lays out an aggressive investment and growth strategy, and Tri-Ed is well positioned to gain significant share in the North American Security Distribution Market."

Pat Comunale, COO of Tri-Ed, and another executive with a longstanding history with both ADI and Terk, indicated that the separation from Tyco would strengthen the company.

"The independence is so significant because we can be wholly unbiased to our customers and vendors," said Comunale in a statement to the press.

Tri-Ed will have James Rothstein serving as senior vice president. Rothstein is another veteran of ADI, and most recently served as senior vice president at FatWire Software.