Melville, New York, March 26, 2009 – MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc., participated in the Indirect Procurement portion of Procure Con 2009, which was held February 10 -12 in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Erik Gershwind, Senior Vice President of Product Management and Marketing at MSC, participated in a panel discussion entitled “Exploring Market Intelligence – The Maturation of Strategic Sourcing as a Function.”

“In terms of market intelligence, companies need to realize that the traditional playbook no longer applies,” says Mr. Gershwind. “We’ve always believed that data from the previous quarter is highly applicable to current decisions. With the current environment, that data is already irrelevant. To make decisions under current conditions, companies need to take a much more hands on approach to market data, using direct contact with customers and suppliers to obtain firsthand information.”

The economy was a key topic of concern throughout the show and many attendees focused on how their activities could be refined to best impact their companies. Key themes that emerged throughout the show included:

-    Treat procurement and purchasing as a vital aspect of the business – Procurement groups will play a major role in weathering the economic downturn and should be included in business decisions.

-    Follow a rigorous sourcing process – Procurement, especially of indirect supplies, must be subject to a highly visible and clearly defined process to maximize savings and minimize waste.

-    Test the security of your supply chain – As companies are reducing inventory to reduce costs, so are their suppliers. Test regularly for weak links and evaluate supplier risk to minimize exposure.

-    Evolve as necessary – The severe downturn has opened companies up to change and it is the perfect time to evaluate and improve processes, especially for those companies with the cash flows to afford investment.

About MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc.
MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. is one of the premier distributors of Metalworking and Maintenance, Repair and Operations (“MRO”) supplies to industrial customers throughout the United States. MSC distributes approximately 590,000 industrial
products from approximately 3,000 suppliers to approximately 364,000 customers. In- stock availability is approximately 99%, with next day standard delivery to the contiguous United States on qualifying orders up until 8:00 p.m., Eastern Time. MSC reaches its customers through a combination of approximately 27 million direct-mail catalogs and CD-ROMs, 97 branch sales offices, 912 sales people, the Internet and associations with some of the world's most prominent B2B e-commerce portals. For more information, visit the Company's website at http://www.mscdirect.com.