Smith Names Rocky Xu as Vice President of Global Purchasing

Rocky will oversee Smith’s purchasing activities and expand global procurement strategies

Houston, TX (February 9, 2022) – Smith, a leading global distributor of electronic components and semiconductors, today announces the appointment of Rocky Xu to the position of Vice President of Global Purchasing. He will work alongside Mike Pursley and Todd Snow, who also hold the same title, to oversee Smith’s global purchasing initiatives.

“Smith’s best-in-class procurement team is backed by our detailed industry analysis and up-to-the-minute forecasting tools to provide quick and seamless support to our customers around the clock and around the globe,” said Rocky. “I look forward to working alongside our global purchasing team to develop a larger pool of competitive resources that will help sustain Smith’s accelerated growth and drive us toward the new and exciting opportunities ahead.”

Rocky began his career at Smith as a Procurement Specialist in 2006. He was named Purchasing Manager in 2012 and to his most recent role – Director of Purchasing, Asia – in 2015. With more than 15 years at the company, Rocky will use his expertise to identify and implement innovative strategies to optimize Smith’s procurement program and provide even greater support to customers to help them mitigate the challenges of shortage situations, obsolescence, and lifecycle management.

“Rocky has worked to cultivate our global purchasing team from the ground up and helped position us as a strategic supply chain partner for our customers,” said Bob Ackerley, Smith’s Co-Founder and Director. “Throughout the current semiconductor shortage, Rocky’s focus on building strong relationships with our suppliers will allow us to raise the bar across the industry in terms of quality excellence and value-add service.”

About Smith

Founded in 1984, Smith sources, manages, and distributes the electronic components that go into everything from mobile phones and computers to appliances and directional drilling systems. In 17 cities around the world, Smith’s legion of employees communicates in 50 languages and dialects and buys and sells components 24 hours per day, generating global annual sales in excess of $3.4 billion in 2021. Smith is always moving: helping manufacturers navigate market shifts; customizing supply chain solutions; testing components using cutting-edge technology. The support of Smith’s flexible Intelligent Distribution^TM model optimizes customers’ supply chains from beginning to end, including offering customized options for IT asset disposition that deliver maximum ROI, sustainability, and security. Smith’s testing and logistics hubs in Houston, Hong Kong, and Amsterdam cover critical areas like quality management, counterfeit prevention, and environmental safety. Smith’s operations, purchasing, and sales worldwide are seamlessly integrated with the company’s global IT infrastructure, offering real-time, global inventory and logistics visibility. Smith is the leading independent distributor of electronic components and ranks number eight among all global distributors. For more information, please visit www.smithweb.com or reach out to a Smith representative any time of day at +1 713.430.3000.

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For more information, contact:

Rich Witmer
Smith, Senior Director of Marketing
+1 713.430.2141