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Baird Research: Distributors Expect Growth in 2026

William Attardi on November 30, 2025

In the exclusive tED magazine/Baird research for the 2025’s third-quarter, NAED distributors point to indications of “healthy mid-single digit” growth for next year. 18 distributor companies representing more than $7 billion in annual sales responded to the third quarter survey, which showed revenue growth in the third quarter and a rise in pricing trends. Respondents say they expect to see a 5.4% growth rate in electrical next year, along with a 4.5% growth rate in Datacomm. Those forecasts are generally in line with the broader distribution industry, which anticipates a 4.7% growth rate next year. Baird Research: Distributors Expect Growth In 2026

NAED Attends “Unleashing Alaska”

William Attardi on November 7, 2025

The event titled “Unleashing Alaska,” touched on recent Trump Administration efforts to unleash vast oil, gas, and mineral extraction in the state, and forward-looking efforts to craft durable policy by codifying permitting reform through efforts like the SPEED Act, which NAED supports. According to Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions (CRES), today’s permitting bottlenecks have been estimated to delay $1.5 trillion in projects that are awaiting final approval.  Further, these delays are responsible for a 30% increase in construction costs for developments and $140 billion in lost annual revenue. These efforts, combined with broad-based permitting reform, have the potential to have significant impacts on America’s capacity to extract more oil, natural gas, and minerals in the future. NAED Attends “Unleashing Alaska” – electrifiED

NAED Backs NEMA Tariff Incentive Proposal

William Attardi on September 9, 2025

Electrical equipment and grid components are the backbone of America’s energy, manufacturing, grid, and AI dominance priorities. To power growing demand for electricity, industrial capacity, and data centers, more of this infrastructure must be produced here at home. NEMA’s tariff incentive framework introduces a three-pronged approach to targeted, time-limited tariff incentives that support the Trump Administration’s industrial policy and energy objectives:

  1. Capital Investment in U.S. Manufacturing Incentive: A tariff offset equal to any capital investments made to build or expand a domestic manufacturing facility, available for up to three years after the facility is operational.
  2. Grid Infrastructure Incentive: A tariff offset for goods or raw materials used to build or operate our power infrastructure essential to global competitiveness, including but not limited to substations, on-site generation, distribution equipment, and data centers.
  3. Domestic Manufacturing Incentive: A tariff offset for manufactured goods that meet federal domestic content requirements.

NAED applauds NEMA’s innovative approach to incentivizing domestic manufacturing and grid expansion. To read NEMA’s tariff incentive proposal, click here.  NAED Backs NEMA Incentive Proposal – tEDmag

Powering the Future: Insights on the Growing Electrification Market

William Attardi on August 14, 2025

As electricity demand continues to grow, the electrical distribution industry is uniquely positioned to help lead the transformation of the energy landscape with the services, materials, and solutions needed to support its customers and drive progress. To help members navigate this shift, NAED’s Education & Research Foundation, in partnership with Ducker Carlisle, presents the research study: Electrification Drivers, Disruptors, and Scaling Your Business. This study delivers valuable insight into:

  • What’s driving electrification—and what may disrupt it
  • The most promising project areas for distributors
  • How to strategically scale and prepare your team

NAED Electrification Research

NAED Statement on House Ways & Means Committee Reconciliation Bill

William Attardi on May 13, 2025

 Wes Smith, President and CEO of the National Association of Electrical Distributors, provided the following statement: The businesses we represent—located in every state and Congressional district—have seen firsthand how the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) has fueled growth across the electrical distribution industry, from small enterprises to large distributors. By lowering marginal tax rates, enhancing expensing provisions, increasing the estate tax threshold, and establishing the 20% small business deduction under Section 199A, the TCJA has been a powerful catalyst for economic progress. We applaud the pro-business, pro-growth tax provisions, including the Section 199A deduction, enhancements to the 179 expensing, modifications to the Estate Tax, and the temporary restoration of Bonus Depreciation.  NAED Statement on House Ways & Means Committee Reconciliation Bill – tEDmag

The Statue of Liberty was made with copper but due to oxidation, it turned green.

When the “Lady in the Harbor” first arrived in New York in 1886, she didn’t look like the mint-green icon we know today. In fact, for the first twenty years of her life, she stood as a towering, metallic beacon of reddish-gold. Designed by French sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi and engineered by Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, the statue was a gift from France to America. To build her, Bartholdi chose copper for three practical reasons:

  • Malleability:It could be hammered into elaborate, thin sheets.
  • Weight:Copper is lighter than stone or bronze, making it easier to ship 350 individual pieces across the Atlantic.
  • Durability:It was strong enough to survive a 27-day ocean voyage and the harsh winds of the harbor.

When she was unveiled on October 28, 1886, her skin—made of 300 copper sheets roughly the thickness of two pennies—shone with a bright, metallic brown luster. The transformation from “penny-colored” to “patina-green” wasn’t planned. Bartholdi actually expected the statue to age into a deeper, darker red. However, the unique environment of New York Harbor—a mix of salt air, moisture, and industrial pollution—triggered a process called oxidation.

The Timeline of Change:

  1. 1886–1900:The bright copper dulled into a dark, muddy brown.
  2. 1903:The first hints of a light green crust, or “patina,” began to appear.
  3. 1906:The color change was so controversial that Congress nearly stepped in. They appropriated $62,000 to paint the statue back to its original color, but the public protested, calling the idea “sacrilege.”
  4. 1910–1920:The statue was a patchy mix of brown and green until 1920, when the oxidation was complete, leaving her entirely teal.

While we now view the green color as iconic, it actually serves a vital structural purpose. The layer of verdigris (the green patina) acts as a protective shield. It seals the copper underneath, preventing the metal from further corrosion and weathering.  By the time the color fully changed, a new generation of immigrants had arrived in America seeing a green statue.