MRO buyers consider product availability, on-time delivery and other criteria as they select the suppliers that provide their companies with maintenance, repair and operations goods and services. So say MRO buyers when asked whether the role of price in the supplier selection decision and the way they measure supplier performance has changed during the recession, and if they are doing anything differently as the economy begins to recover. During the recession, companies looked to purchasing operations to reduce spending on MRO goods and services. And MRO buyers found industrial distributors bringing competitive pricing strategies to the negotiation table, especially for long-term agreements. Buyers say they got some good deals. But, perhaps more important, buyers also continued to look to distributors for help reducing costs. Suppliers are responding with innovative ideas on inventory management, process improvements and product substitutions. For MRO buyers, taking a strategic approach to sourcing goods and services is not new. Such an approach, they say, has seen them through the recession and will see them through the recovery as well.

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