Graybar Telecommunications Overview

Graybar is the awarded supplier of telecommunications and security products through the U.S. Communities program. Utilizing the pooled power of public agencies nationwide, the program lowers your overall project and purchasing costs, while providing the quality of service and expertise customers expect from Graybar.

Graybar has proven it has the fortitude, commitment and passion to remain one of America’s largest and best telecommunications, security and networking distributors. As one of North America’s largest employee-owned companies, it benefits from having both the power and stability of a big corporation and the integrity and drive of a neighborhood business. Great people delivering on great ideas to build relationships that work is our approach to delivering the highest quality products and service to customers and suppliers.

A focus on quality and customer service lies at the heart of the organization. This is evident in Graybar’s registration to the recognized international quality standard, currently known as ISO 9001:2008. Graybar has also achieved registration to TL9000, addressing the industry-specific needs of our telecommunications customers. Graybar employees strive for error-free performance and continual improvement through the quality process. We gauge our success by our customer's satisfaction.

Graybar Telecommunications Pricing

Pricing applies to normally stocked Graybar materials. Discounts are based on Graybar List Price or Cost in effect at time of order. The majority of pricing on the Graybar contracts is based on a list less discount structure. Cost-Plus discounting is used for market sensitive commodities. Graybar cannot sell at levels above the base contract price and reserves the right to offer a lesser discount where large quantity discounts or supplier negotiations are available. Pricing was established through a competitive solicitation process with Los Angeles County, CA. Our Pricing Commitment through Los Angeles County and U.S. Communities agreements dictate that Graybar lead with the U.S. Communities contract first and foremost for any opportunity within the applicable government procurement segment. Our telecommunications and security contract represents pricing discounts from an extensive list of best-in-class suppliers offering unique opportunities to streamline your supply chain and find innovative or integrated solutions.

Graybar Telecommunications Benefits

• Targeted 5% savings for agencies using traditional procurement practices
• Specialized Sales Support: Dedicated to U.S. Communities participating agencies
• 240-plus locations provide local inventory, delivery and will-call counter service
• Technical Specialists: Data Centers, Communications, Networking, Security
• Structured Cabling Solutions
• Local inventory, delivery and counter service
• Advanced customer reporting capabilities, summary billing
• E-Business: Graybar.Com, E-Catalog, EDI, EFT, Punch-Out, Hosted Content
• Cross reference files, bar coding
• Storeroom management commodity management, bin management, vendor managed inventory
• On-Site services, Material staging, Just-In-Time Delivery
• Customer technical training
• Emergency services: ISO 9001:2008 Registered

Graybar Telecommunications Shipping

Graybar drivers gather delivery information using their mobile phones – running Xora TimeTrack service – while the built-in GPS tracks the driver’s location. To check on a delivery, you just contact your customer service representative for complete details.

Consolidation of Orders:
Graybar uses the order consolidation process when items for a single customer order are being obtained from various sources and are to be re-shipped as one shipment to the customer. The items are transferred to a Graybar branch location, from one or more Graybar shipping locations, for reshipment to the customer on a single Graybar invoice number. The Graybar invoice number at the receiving location may also include items from its own local inventory.

Graybar Telecommunications Contract Information

Graybar Telecommunications FAQ

Graybar offers many different methods for order processing, including electronic exchange (EDI, XML, and flat file), Web-enabled self service, e-procurement punch-in, e-catalog syndications to e-procurement applications, Web services, and traditional channels such as phone, fax, e-mail, and counter service. Technology enables all of these channels and focuses on making them seamless and efficient.

Graybar supports most business processes including the full quote-to-cash and purchase-to-pay processes. Overall, Graybar supports 21 transaction sets so you can be sure that we can work with you to automate many of your manual or paper-based supply chain processes.

• Reduce operating costs
• Reduce total acquisition costs
• Speed up business cycles
• Eliminate major sources of errors
• Support quote-to-cash process
• Support purchase-to-pay process

Put the power of ShopGraybar to work and simplify your procurement of communications, networking, and security products. ShopGraybar is available to you 24/7 so you can access it in your office, at home, on the road or at the job site. Find the products you need quickly and easily and access the necessary product information to make the right decision. Searching can be done using a variety of options and refining your search allows you to quickly find what you’re looking for. Once you find the item, you can easily add it to a cart, a favorites list or a quotation request. Checking your price or availability for an item is easy and placing the order is quick. If needed, orders can be routed for approval or you can choose to pick up the order at one of our many locations. All of your orders can be tracked including the ability to get a proof of delivery regardless of how you placed the order with us. Your quotation needs are serviced on ShopGraybar including the creation of the quote, the review of the quote, the request for changes to a quote and the conversion of the quote to an order. Accounting personnel can easily retrieve invoices online and there is even a way to request a material return.

• Procurement card / credit card management capabilities
• All information is in real time
• Customer-specific pricing and product availability
• Order status
• View/print invoices
• Quotations – create, review, order
• Favorites lists
• Proof of delivery
• Order approvals
• Detailed product information
• Extensive search functions
• Search refinement on product features
• Product images, specification sheets, MSDS sheets
• Report requests
• User security to restrict access to specific functions

To order online, log in using your Graybar user id and password. To obtain a user id and password click on the "contact us to request an online account".

Eligible agencies include: States, State Agencies, Counties, Cities, Special Districts, K-12 Public & Private Schools, Public & Private Colleges and Universities & Non-Profits.

Through cooperative purchasing laws, the U.S. Communities pricing, by virtue of its public bid language, meets the requirements for bidding in all states except New York, New Jersey and Louisiana. This allows agencies to use the pricing without taking the time to create bid documents, entertain multiple vendor inquiries and document the bids. Placing the order through Graybar allows them to utilize a quality vendor repetitively without the cost of using unknown or less reliable vendors.

Using Graybar and the U.S. Communities program assures an agency they are getting a very competitive price on any size order. Therefore, driving smaller quantity orders along with larger ones to Graybar provides the agency with maximum value for everything purchased. There are no costs, minimum quantity requirements or spend limits associated with using the Graybar U.S. Communities program.

The U.S. Communities pricing is the same pricing used to win the electrical and comm/data public bids for the County of Los Angeles, California. The County of Los Angeles is the largest county in the United States and spends more money than 44 states do! Therefore, your agency can buy at these same levels regardless of their size. While every price is not the lowest in the country, the overall competitiveness of the agreement is outstanding.

The key value for the agency is resource savings. Most agencies today are spread thinner than ever. Agencies are downsizing administrative departments and retiring or departing purchasing and maintenance positions are left unfilled. The Graybar U.S. Communities program provides a mechanism to save the time and costs associated with obtaining quotes or preparing bids. The timesavings allow the department to accomplish its work tasks more efficiently with the personnel on hand.

Go to the U.S. Communities Web site at www.uscommunities.org and click the "Register to Participate" link.

Communication suppliers and products provide the voice, data, video and control networks we are all accustomed to and rely on every day. Graybar is the vital link in the supply chain helping the government customer power and network their factories, campuses and facilities with speed, intelligence and efficiency. Following our core values of teamwork, reliability and resourcefulness, Graybar works to the advantage of the government customer by anticipating and identifying their needs and providing them with cost-effective solutions to implement for their locations.

Graybar is also the channel of choice for the leading manufacturers in the communication market. Together we provide cost-effective and efficient ways to bring products, services and solutions to the marketplace. We represent only the industry leaders who manufacturer the highest quality, standard compliant products. Our relationship with communication product manufacturers is unique as we utilize leading-edge information technology and logistics capabilities to raise the bar on performance and value for our government customers.

Graybar's talented, resourceful and reliable employees work to the advantage of our government customers by providing a wide variety of skills and services. Highly-trained account managers, Network System Specialists and specialized sales representatives are available to provide project planning, design consultation, project management services and training programs. Graybar maintains inventory and ships the most common communication products through an extensive network of nearly 240 Graybar branches throughout North America. This network is backed up with a very large regional zone warehouse network providing depth of common project materials as well as rare slower-moving items also available for immediate delivery. Graybar prides itself in providing Just-In-Time Delivery to meet the expectations of our customers.

• Targeted 5% savings for agencies using traditional procurement practices
• Specialized Sales Support: Dedicated to U.S. Communities participating agencies
• 240-plus locations provide local inventory, delivery and will-call counter service
• Technical Specialists: Data Centers, Communications, Networking, Security
• Structured Cabling Solutions
• Local inventory, delivery and counter service
• Advanced customer reporting capabilities, summary billing
• E-Business: Graybar.Com, E-Catalog, EDI, EFT, Punch-Out, Hosted Content
• Cross reference files, bar coding
• Storeroom management commodity management, bin management, vendor managed inventory
• On-Site services, Material staging, Just-In-Time Delivery
• Customer technical training
• Emergency services: ISO 9001:2008 Registered
• Cable Cutting
• Cable Paralleling

• Allen Tel
• APC
• Berk-Tek
• Chatsworth
• CommScope
• Cooper Notification
• Corning Cable Systems
• Cortelco
• Ditek Corporation
• D-Link
• Federal Signal
• Great Lakes Case & Cabinet
• IMC Networks
• Liebert
• Mohawk
• Ortronics
• Panduit
• Pelco
• Plantronics
• Siemon Company
• Transition Networks
• Tyco (AMP)

Graybar Telecommunications Solutions

• Technology Specialists – experts who provide the product and service solutions to Network, Secure and Maintain your facilities with speed, intelligence and efficiency
• E‐commerce – ShopGraybar/U.S. Communities E‐Commerce Marketplace
• Data Centers: Products and Solutions to Upgrade, Power, Cool, Secure and Light your communication rooms
• Intelligent Transportations Systems: Communicate With, Control and Secure Roadways, Airports, Bus, Rail and Ports
• In‐Building Wireless Solutions – aka Distributed Antenna Systems to extend communication and cellular coverage
• SmartStock ‐ inventory management to cut waste and lead times and lower the cost of purchase orders
• Graybar Financial Services – competitive value added financing solutions to support facilities improvements

• Full Line of Comm/Data and Security Products
• Data/Communication
• Networking & Wireless
• Copper/Fiber Cabling, Connectivity & Termination
• Power Backup & Power Protection
• Racks, Cabinets & Enclosures
• Raceway, Wireway & Conduits
• Security ‐ Cameras, Monitoring, Entrance Protection, Fire, Intrusion
• Paging, Signaling & Notification
• Tools & Other related communication commodity materials