How TEC Group Delivered 45 Transformers Faster Than Anyone Said Was Possible

Project Overview

Industry: Colocation Data Centers

Client: Market Leading COLO Developer / Operator

Region: Ohio

TEC Group Role: Electrical Manufacturers' Representative

Primary Equipment: MV Transformers, Circuit Breaker Components, LV Smart MCCBs, RPP, and PDU Components

Project Type: Multi-site campus development

A market-leading colocation developer needed 45 medium-voltage transformers delivered fast — faster than any competitor said was possible. TEC Group delivered them in under 29 weeks, beat the nearest competitor's lead time by 7 weeks, and came in within budget. That single project became the foundation of a multi-campus electrical procurement partnership that scaled from $20 million to $41 million in a single year.

Delivery Time 29 Weeks

45 MV transformers delivered from PO acceptance

Lead Time Advantage 7 Weeks Faster

Than every competitor who bid the project

Schedule Improvement 8 Weeks Saved

Lead time improvement for the E-OEM after LV transition

Cost Reduction 6 % Less

Component pricing reduction after manufacturer transition

Documented results from a single colocation data center project — Ohio, 2025

The Challenge

Colocation data center operators don't have the luxury of waiting. When a new data hall comes online, tenants are already committed, revenue is already contracted, and every week of delay has a direct cost that shows up on the balance sheet.

For this market-leading colocation developer, the electrical procurement challenge was straightforward on paper and brutal in practice:

45 medium-voltage transformers — 3,500 KVA liquid-filled units — needed to be specified, sourced, and delivered on a schedule that the market said wasn't realistic
Every competitor who bid the project came back with lead times 7 weeks longer than what the project required
LV components for RPPs and PDUs needed to be engineered to work seamlessly with a new manufacturer — a transition that typically introduces risk, delays, and cost overruns
The manufacturer needed to be on the Approved Manufacturers List before a single PO could be issued — requiring factory coordination that most reps can't facilitate

Finding equipment wasn't the problem. Finding a partner with the manufacturer relationships to hit the schedule, navigate the AML approval process, and engineer a seamless LV transition — that was the problem.

The TEC Group Approach

TEC Group doesn't manufacture equipment. They don't install it either. What they do is harder to replace — they sit between the manufacturers and the project teams, and they make the whole chain work faster and more reliably than it would without them.

When this colocation developer needed 45 transformers on an impossible schedule, TEC Group did what most vendors couldn't — they picked up the phone and called the right person at the right manufacturer. Not a distributor. Not a regional office. The manufacturer.

That relationship made the difference:

All 45 MV transformers — 3,500 KVA liquid-filled units — were delivered in under 29 weeks from PO acceptance, beating every competitor's quoted lead time by 7 weeks
TEC Group coordinated directly with LS Electric's facility to bring the channel partners and end user to the factory for an in-person AML approval — the kind of access that doesn't happen through a catalog relationship
LV Smart MCCBs and controls were engineered specifically to ensure a seamless transition to the TEC Group manufacturer — eliminating the integration risk that typically comes with switching suppliers mid-project
That engineering work resulted in an 8-week lead time improvement for the E-OEM and reduced component pricing by 6% — without compromising spec compliance

The project came in on schedule. The components came in under budget. And the colocation developer had found a procurement partner they could build a program around — not just a vendor they called once.

How It Works

Manufacturers

LS Electric & partners

→

TEC Group

Your electrical manufacturers' representative

→

EPC / OEM Teams

Panel builders & distributors

→

Data Center Projects

North Texas colocation campuses

TEC Group serves as the single point of contact between leading manufacturers and the project teams building North Texas colocation infrastructure.

What This Means for Your Next Project

When you bring TEC Group in as your electrical manufacturers' representative, you're not adding a vendor to your list. You're adding a coordination layer that most project teams don't have — and don't realize they're missing until a lead time slips or a spec doesn't match.

Here's what that looks like in practice:

Your EPC team sends TEC Group the spec — TEC Group translates it into a manufacturer-specific BOM the same day
Instead of calling three distributors and getting three different lead times, you get one answer from the manufacturer directly
When the design changes — and it always does — TEC Group absorbs the update and keeps the procurement chain moving
One Houston-based contact manages manufacturer coordination, documentation, and delivery across every active site

The Ohio project wasn't a special case. It was TEC Group operating the way they always operate.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does an electrical manufacturers' representative do for data center projects?

An electrical manufacturers' representative like TEC Group serves as the technical and commercial link between equipment manufacturers and the EPC firms, OEM panel builders, and distributors managing construction. For data center projects specifically, that means translating electrical specifications into accurate bills of material, securing production capacity before lead times become a problem, and maintaining a single point of contact across every manufacturer relationship — so project teams aren't chasing answers from multiple vendors while a construction schedule is running.

Why do EPC firms and OEM panel builders work with TEC Group instead of going direct to manufacturers?

Going direct to a manufacturer works when you're buying one product for one project. It breaks down when you're coordinating circuit breaker components and transformers across 10 to 15 colocation campuses simultaneously, with specs shifting and deadlines that don't move. TEC Group's direct relationship with LS Electric's Bastrop, Texas facility — a regional engineering and production hub — gives project teams access to lead time accuracy, secured capacity, and technical support that a standard distributor relationship doesn't provide. One call covers the full scope.

What electrical equipment does TEC Group support for colocation data center projects?

For the North Texas colocation portfolio, TEC Group supported a 50/50 mix of circuit breaker components and transformers — the core of medium- and low-voltage power distribution across multi-building campus developments. TEC Group also supports switchgear, electrical busway, cable tray systems, and related power distribution equipment, depending on project requirements. If you're unsure whether TEC Group can support your specific equipment scope, the fastest answer is a direct conversation with the team.

Can TEC Group support colocation or data center projects outside of North Texas?

Yes. TEC Group is headquartered in Houston and has active data center project experience across Texas, with growing coverage across the continental United States. The team is currently supporting project specification efforts in Texas, Arizona, Louisiana, and Tennessee — markets where data center construction activity is accelerating rapidly. If you have a project outside these areas, contact TEC Group directly to discuss scope and coverage.

Your Next Data Center Project Deserves a Partner Who's Already Done This.

Market-leading colocation operators don't find TEC Group by accident — they find TEC Group because it's already embedded in the manufacturer relationships that keep complex electrical procurement moving. If you're planning a colocation, AI, or industrial electrical project in Texas or beyond, the conversation starts with one call to a Houston-based team that already knows your manufacturers, understands your specs, and has the track record to prove it.

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TEC Group - Ohio Transformers Case Study