Staff at RS Components go the Extra Mile for Sport Relief

CORBY, England, March 22, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

   Record number of staff raising money and volunteering to man phones

RS Components (RS), the trading brand of Electrocomponents plc (LSE:ECM), the world's leading high service distributor of electronics and maintenance products including safety boots and rechargeable batteries, has taken the spirit of this year's Sport Relief in its stride with more staff getting involved than ever before.

RS, renowned for stocking specialist maintenance products such as laser levels, is the third largest call centre for the Sport Relief appeal and this year records are set to be smashed with the highest number of employees to date volunteering to take pledges from members of the public on the night of Friday 23 March.  Last year 120 staff took calls for Comic Relief and this year's Sport Relief appeal will see over 160 staff from teams across the Corby based business donating their time to take pledges from members of the public.  

Paul Quested, RS UK General Manager, comments: "We are overwhelmed with how many people are willing to give up their free time to support Sport Relief. After working a full day in the office staff will then take thousands of calls from members of the public who want to donate money. It's a great cause and we are proud to be involved - both by donating our call centre and with all the fundraising being undertaken by staff."

RS will make the evening as fun for employees as possible, keeping everyone supplied with food and soft drinks and also running a prize draw with a range of fantastic goodies up for grabs. It will be a family friendly event, with children invited to join in the fun - while getting to see their parents hard at work!

Employees across the Corby site have already been going the extra mile for Sport Relief by getting involved in a variety of fundraising initiatives.

Teams from across RS have been aiming to out-do each other by coming up with wacky ideas and initiatives to raise money in the run up to and during the day on Friday. The sporting theme has been popular, with the UK Marketing team virtually travelling to the Group's office in Frankfurt by walking, rowing and cycling, and UK Finance hosting a mini golf tournament.

Tasty treats will be on sale during the day, with budding bakers donating cakes and other sweet treats which will be sold across the site. RS staff will also be able to take part in tombola's and prize draws and even a tough, brain-taxing quiz.

There will be a number of photo opportunities throughout the day and during the evening's telethon.

Useful facts and figures from Comic Relief 2011:
Number of calls taken: 4,200 - up from 2,045 in 2010
Total amount of money taken: £130,000 - up from £60,000 in 2011
Number of hours on the phones: 500 hours
Peak calling time: 2100-2130 but we also noticed peaks after key televised appeals

Visit  rs-components.com  for more information on all RS Components electronics and maintenance products; from electrical components to  lithium batteries.

About RS Components

RS Components and Allied Electronics are the trading brands of Electrocomponents plc, the world's leading high service distributor of electronics and maintenance products. Through operations in 32 countries and 17 warehouses, the Group serves 1.6 million customers worldwide and distributes 550,000 products ranging from semiconductors and optoelectronics to power tools and protective clothing. The product and service portfolio supports the entire product lifecycle from R&D through pre-production to maintenance and repair. The Group ships more than 46,000 parcels on the same day the orders are received.

Electrocomponents is listed on the London Stock Exchange and in the last financial year to 31 March 2011 had revenues of £1.18bn.

For more information, please visit the website at http://www.rs-components.com.

Further information is available via these links:

RS Components on Linkedin
http://www.linkedin.com/company/rs-components

Electrocomponents plc
http://www.electrocomponents.com