MURRAY HILL, N.J. & NEW PROVIDENCE, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Airco Distributor Association, one of the largest buying groups in the U.S. industrial gases industry, is changing its name to reflect its close relationship with Linde North America. The ADA is now the LDA, Linde Distributor Association.
Linde North America, a member of The Linde Group, a world leading gases and engineering company, provides marketing and administrative support to the association, which enables its independent gases and equipment distributor members to leverage their purchasing power to achieve volume discounts and earn rebates from equipment suppliers.
The buying group was established in 1993 and has grown to include 70 member companies who have over 400 retail locations throughout the U.S. Together, LDA members make over $1 billion in annual purchases and have earned some $25 million in rebates in the group’s lifetime. The products purchased include: wire and cable, abrasives, tools, gas apparatus, leathers and clothing, MIG and TIG replacement parts, plasma cutting equipment, replacement torch tips, welding helmets, cylinders, cryogenic storage equipment and tank maintenance.
“This name change makes all the sense in the world,” said Mark Falconer, LDA co-chairman and president of Minneapolis Oxygen Company. “Linde gives us the support and name recognition of a global gases company which is critical to the viability of the association. The new name reinforces and leverages the impact of Linde’s commitment to help retain and encourage the active participation of existing distributors and help recruit new members.”
Members should look for rebranded LDA presence online at LDAbuy.com, in trade journals and at trade shows, including the Gases and Welding Distributor Association (GAWDA) annual meeting and the LDA annual meeting.
The Linde Group is a world-leading gases and engineering company with around 48,700 employees working in more than 100 countries worldwide. In the 2010 financial year, it achieved sales of EUR 12.9 billion (USD 17.9 billion). The strategy of The Linde Group is geared towards long-term profitable growth and focuses on the expansion of its international business with forward-looking products and services.
Linde acts responsibly towards its shareholders, business partners, employees, society and the environment – in every one of its business areas, regions and locations across the globe. Linde is committed to technologies and products that unite the goals of customer value and sustainable development.
For more information, visit Linde North America for a list of Linde’s U.S. distributors.