The newly formed SourceAlliance.com (Milwaukee) website at www.sourcealliance.com is the result of a new, aggressive e-commerce strategy backed by Rockwell Automation and what it says is the largest distribution network in the industry. Its goal is to launch the broadest array of suppliers and distributors of electrical products at one Internet location. At its onset, it expects to use over 500 North American distributor locations as the core of its network to provide superior local service and delivery to customers seeking integrated supply and e-commerce arrangements for all electronic products.

SourceAlliance.com will be built on top of a $7 billion existing network that now serves more than 100,000 North American customers. In addition, SourceAlliance.com will have the ability to address the balance of the $70 billion total electrical market.

"The establishment by Rockwell Automation and its distributors of SourceAlliance.com represents the first major step toward evolving traditional industrial channels of distribution," said Frank Lynn, president of Frank Lynn & Assoc., Inc. "By combining efficient IT and logistics systems and technical support from local distributors, SourceAlliance.com will enable endusers to use this e-commerce channel without giving up the local distributor support they need."