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Wireless becomes big enough business for Ingram Micro to climb aboard

Wireless has finally caught the attention of one of the world's biggest IT distributors, Ingram Micro - which only recently started its specialist networking division - and six months on, has decided that wireless networking deserves its own group.

Ingram resells most of the top wireless technology names to second-tier resellers - dealers, installers, and value-added systems houses - but until the end of last year, when it bought out the Cisco arm of CST, a specialist networking distributor, it had no division dedicated to network comms.

"We set up networking services business earlier this year," a company official said today, "and we've been progressively expanding that side of the business. Wireless, we've decided, needs its own specialist group within the network division, which is based in Maidenhead where CST ran its Cisco operation."

The company's director of sales for networking services, Neville Ebanks, said: "We're offering a single point of contact for all elements of a wireless connectivity solution and installation. The team will provide customers with a high level of specialist support as they look to capitalise on the demand for wireless solutions in a broad range of vertical market sectors."

The wireless team, said Ingram officials, "will support sales; we do also have marketing specialists and technical support people. We're talking about two absolutely dedicated wireless specialists, supported by 17 additional networking specialists who have wireless as part of their remit. And we're offering finance support as well."

The team will be responsible for "raising awareness of the opportunities surrounding wireless connectivity" said Ingram. It will also be promoting "the comprehensive range of wireless solutions available through Ingram Micro Networking Services" - naming 3Com, Cisco and D-Link from a list of wireless providers that also includes TDK (Bluetooth) plus Intel, Compaq, and Belkin.

Commenting on the launch of the wireless solutions team, Neville Ebanks, director, sales, Ingram Micro Networking Services, said: "A growing percentage of our customers are now recognising the commercial potential of wireless connectivity and are now looking to capitalise on the many vertical market opportunities surrounding technologies such as Bluetooth, Wireless LAN and wireless WAN."

The emergence of the mobile workforce and the proliferation of multi-site businesses "have heightened the need for wireless solutions that can provide a physical link between a company's employees and its corporate network," said Ebank. Many sectors such as health, leisure and education "are now opting for wireless technology in a bid to maximise efficiencies and improve communications. Our role is to raise awareness of the potential of wireless connectivity and help our networking customers to identify the opportunities and solutions that are available to them."

The official announcement quotes Paul Malcolm, UK country manager of 3Com Business Network Company (BNC): "This specialist division highlights how important wireless solutions are becoming. Ingram Micro's specialist support will complement 3Com's complete end-to-end range of wireless products by showing customers how they can reap the benefits of going wireless."

Ingram is contactable through http://uk.ingrammicro.com/