Rexel Canada Inc. operates throughout Canada under four banners, Nedco, Westburne, Rexel Atlantic and Rexel Utility.
Westburne’s story began in 1926 when a gas boom in Turner Valley, Alberta prompted a group of Calgary businessmen to form a small exploration company. This company, Ainsworth Oils Limited, later became Commonwealth Petroleum Ltd., which John Scrymgeour and his partner Bill Atkinson acquired in 1959. Mr. Scrymgeour was Chairman of the Board of Westburne International Industries Ltd. and he later combined Commonwealth and General Petroleums of Canada, two of the oldest contract drilling firms in Canada, to launch the Westburne group of drilling companies.
With the future in mind, Westburne Oil Company Limited changed its name subsequently to United Westburne Industries Limited.
In 1971, United Westburne entered the Canadian electrical supply industry, and continued to expand through various acquisitions over the years. Indeed, 1979 was a pivotal year for United Westburne in the electrical supply industry when it completed the acquisition of Nedco and Zentronics from Northern Telecom.
These acquisitions established United Westburne as a major nationwide distributor of electrical, electronics and telecommunications products to the commercial and industrial market sectors. Commencing in 1986, Westburne added refrigeration, air conditioning and ventilation supplies to its product line through a series of acquisitions of Canadian companies involved in these areas in Canada and the United States.
In 1995, United Westburne changed its name to Westburne Inc. and continued to expand in Canada and the United States by completing various acquisitions that added 81 branches to its existing network. In forty years, Westburne has become the largest North American wholesaler and integrated distributor of construction, industrial and commercial supplies.
On September 25, 2000 Rexel SA, a world leader in the distribution of electrical supplies with a presence on 4 continents and in more than 30 countries entered the Canadian market by completing the acquisition of all the shares of Westburne Inc. Thus Rexel Canada was born.
Recently, Rexel Canada acquired Wesco Utility and renamed it Rexel Utility. Rexel Utility is the distributor of choice for investor-owned utilities (IOUs), public power municipalities, rural electrification associations (REA’s) and contractors seeking solutions for transmission, distribution and substation projects.