Arrow’s Asia/Pacific operations cover the Pacific Rim from China in the north to New Zealand in the south and from Korea in the east to India in the west. No other distributor–global or local–offers a network as broad. Together, this network of businesses produced sales in 2000 of $1.4 billion, an 84 percent increase from the previous year.

The explosive growth of manufacturing in China, Korea, and Taiwan, coupled with the migration of global original equipment and contract manufacturers to the region, led to increased demand and significant sales growth for Arrow. Our investments in our regional organization, warehousing and logistics, and management information systems gave Arrow a distinct advantage in responding to the ever-changing and expanding needs of these customers.

Throughout 2000 we continued to make significant investments in our business–in computer systems and value-added services training, Internet capability, warehouses, and sales operations. Consolidation of systems and a conversion to one MIS system across the region created the infrastructure needed to support our growth. Arrow Asia/Pacific sales and marketing teams now have instant access to information from customers, suppliers, and other Arrow operations around the world. This combination of training, systems and regional support, and the growth in sales in the region caused a significant increase in productivity, with sales per employee nearly doubling year over year.

Responding to the increased demand for products, we expanded our warehouse space in 2000 by 60 percent, adding more than 65,000 square feet. With more than $240 million in inventory in six strategically located distribution centers, we can now provide more sophisticated inventory bonding and materials management support. Also in 2000, increased demand for programmable logic devices led to our construction of a new, state-of-the-art programming center in Malaysia. Arrow leads the globe in programming components–both in terms of sales and units–and this facility will enable us to provide this valuable service on an even greater scale.

The power of Arrow systems, logistics, and people, combined with our local presence in each market, have made us the number one electronic components distributor in the region. Each day, our more than 800 employees in 37 locations across the region bring the best of this combination to thousands of customers.