Rutherford, a wholly owned subsidiary of JSE-listed Hudaco Trading (Pty) Ltd, has announced that Martin Peterson will take over the reins as its new Chief Executive Officer from February 2014, upon the retirement of the company’s current CEO, Bob Cameron-Smith, who has been with the Group for the past 41 years.

Peterson, a Chartered Accountant, was appointed from Filter & Hose Solutions, another Hudaco Group company. He was part of the management team that originally owned Filter & Hose Solutions and was very involved in the sale of this business to Hudaco in 2010.

“Taking over the leadership of such a mature and well-entrenched business is exciting and challenging,” Peterson says. “With four different product ranges, four markets and four sales forces, Rutherford is certainly not a one-dimensional business. The power tool business operates in a particularly stimulating market, because of the tough competition in this arena. It’s necessary to pay close attention to range, pricing and route to market, as it’s very much a moving target.

“However each of the four divisions is headed up by directors who are experts in their own right and these assets, together with the depth of skills across the entire business, will provide an excellent platform for building future growth.”

Cameron-Smith comments that Peterson’s excellent commercial background and open mind, combined with the strengths of the existing business, are a definite recipe for future success as the company continues to consolidate its position as a leading supplier.

Cameron-Smith moved over from another part of the Hudaco Group to Rutherford 21 years ago, when the company was primarily focused on marketing Makita power tools and woodworking machinery. Under his leadership, Rutherford restructured in 1998 by incorporating three of the Group’s trading businesses, Mercury Marine, VI Instruments, and FTS Industries and rationalising non-core product ranges.  

“We made it a focus of the business to build these brands and our efforts have paid off, because today Mercury is number two in the local market and Makita is one of the leading power tool brands — very possibly the second or third biggest privately owned Makita distributor in the world. Rutherford’s fourth division, F.T.S Industries, has become the largest importer and distributor of blind rivets and riveting tools to all sectors of Southern African industry and VI Instruments, trading in high-tech instrumentation for the construction and mining industries, has earned the distinction of being the market leader in compaction measurements for road construction.”

Today Rutherford employs 205 people across its Johannesburg head office and warehouse, and major distribution centres in Durban and Cape Town, as well as a sales office in Port Elizabeth.

100 years
In 2012 Rutherford celebrated 100 years of service to the Southern African industrial arena.
The company holds three key ISO accreditations: ISO 9001-2008 for quality, ISO 14001-2004 for environment and OHSAS ISO 18001-2007 for occupational safety and these standards are continually updated to incorporate the latest amendments.

Rutherford has occupied the same headquarters in Germiston for decades, with 5 500 m2 of warehousing and 1 600 m2 of office space. Full technical support and back-up services are offered from this site, as well as the other centres.