Cable Management
10 minutes with… Simon Greenwood of MK Electric
For anyone within the electrical industry, the name MK Electric is synonymous with wiring devices. Millions of buildings across the country – domestic, commercial, industrial and beyond – include MK Electric products. This success was built from the work of one man, Charles Arnold, who set up the Heavy Current Electric Accessories Company in February 1919 with just two employees and some second-hand machinery in North London.
Today, the business employs hundreds, who each work to uphold the business’s reputation for quality, reliability and safety. As MK Electric celebrates its centenary, we spoke to sales director, Simon Greenwood, to learn more about his role in keeping the company at the forefront of the industry.
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What is your career background?
I’m relatively new to MK Electric, having started my new role just five months ago. It’s
an exciting time to join, with all the centenary celebrations taking place during the year. My previous role was sales director at Zumtobel Lighting, and prior to that I was commercial director of the European arm of General Electric, where I worked for seven years.
What does your role at MK Electric involve?
I’m the sales director for the UK and ROI markets. I’m responsible for a group of sales
managers, of which about two thirds are focused on working with our channel partners, a network for electrical distributors across the country. The rest of the team works with end users, consultants, architects and installers on demand generation, essentially being the go-to people
for information and advice on products and system design. This covers everything from arranging bespoke wiring device finishes for a high-end residential development, to advising on cable management solutions such as underfloor power in commercial offices or anti- microbial solutions in the healthcare sector.
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What do you like most about working for MK Electric?
Not only is MK Electric part of Honeywell, a global organisation with a wealth of
resources, but also retains its local identity – more than 80 percent of products sold in the UK are also manufactured here - mainly at the Southend, Essex site that opened in 1961. We also have our own, independently accredited testing facility on site, supporting our quality, reliability and safety principles, as well as 3D printing equipment that supports both product and tooling developments. This means we can
Simon Greenwood
offer great service to our customers. Any flexibility in customer demand can be responded to and managed very quickly and easily by a local team that understands the market.
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What’s your proudest achievement?
It’s early days yet, but I’d say my proudest achievement is the way the business and
customers have embraced me. I feel humbled by the opportunity to work here, as MK is a fabulous brand and I consider it the ‘jewel in the crown’ of my career, especially with the prospect of contributing to the next 100 years of the company’s future.
What’s your plan to drive the company forward?
The goal is to drive product demand to increase sales via our distributors and create demand on their behalf, by working with the specification community and adding value to them through our product and service offerings. For example, we are continuously improving our MK Design Service, so that we can offer solutions for a multitude of applications. So, if there’s a new development planned, such as student housing or commercial premises, our goal is to make sure MK Electric is specified and installed. We’re hoping to achieve this by working with our distributor partners, so they can rely on us for hassle-free solutions for them and their customers every time.
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16 | electrical wholesalerFebruary 2019
How was the electrical industry changed/evolved since your
career began?
It has become extremely fragmented. I worked in lighting for about 30 years, and at the beginning there were probably about four
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