Electrical Contractor Newsletter | July 2026
Plugged In: Leviton’s Products and Support for Easier Industrial and Data Center Builds
It was a simple race between a veteran pin and sleeve installer and a recently hired rookie. Each man was handed a box with no branding or explanation. There were just two products to assemble, and a stopwatch.
We sat down with Ryan Sypniewski, Construction and Technical Sales Specialist at Leviton, who works closely with Electrical Contractors and Engineers, answering questions about infrastructure support and design, especially regarding data centers. He explained the story of the little contest that became a big deal.
Ryan set up the assembly race and gave the veteran installer a competitor’s product and the apprentice one of Leviton’s LEV Series 60A Pin and Sleeve units.
Ready. Set. Go.
Almost as soon as the race began, it was over. The veteran installer, seeing that he was rapidly losing to the new guy, stopped, put his competitor’s product down and stated there was no way he was going to win the assembly race.
“It was THAT dramatic,” Ryan explained.
This moment, in a Minnesota prefab shop, reinforced the point he makes when Leviton’s industrial and data center products get into someone’s hands. It showed how valuable these products were to the men in the race and their company, and to Ryan. “This is the real deal,” he said.
Not Bright and Shiny, But Extremely Important
In every movie there are the big stars and the supporting actors. Both are vital to the story, and good supporting actors can help determine whether the show is a smash hit or a fizzling flop. The same is true with pin and sleeve, temporary power, and wire mesh products.
“A lot of distributors and contractors are focused on higher-ticket items like the switch gear, lighting, conduit and wire which are also lower margins and higher risk. They walk past some of the key products like pin and sleeves, temporary power, and wire mesh solutions,” Ryan explained.
Pin and Sleeve Devices: Leviton’s LEV Series industrial pin and sleeve devices are built for the toughest environments. They are durable and perfect for data centers and electrical rooms. Designed with threaded housing, captive screws and quick lock pins, these devices significantly reduce assembly and installation time, dramatically bringing down labor time and cost. The LEV Series features remote monitoring with Inform™ technology via Wi-Fi for 24/7 insight including enclosure temperature and humidity, ground continuity, line and load-side voltage values and more.
Wire Mesh Safety Grips: Leviton wire mesh safety grips spread loads across a large surface area instead of a concentration at a single point that could weaken or damage a fiber optic cable, tube, or rope. Pulling Grips protect cable as it is pulled through cable trays or conduit, lessening the chance of breakage. Support Grips are weight-bearing grips that relieve stress on cables, and Strain Relief Grips help secure cables to connection boxes or electrical equipment by absorbing tension.
Temporary Power Connect: OSHA- and NEC-compliant temporary power connect products are rugged boxes, connectors, power strips, portable GFCIs and plugs that keep a job powered during construction. They are easily assembled and provide superior performance in a variety of environments.
The Sales Cycle: When to Get Involved
Ideally, engagement between contractor and engineer begins well before bid day by getting Leviton products in front of key decision makers so when the opportunity does present itself, labor savings and a roadmap are in place.
“The engagement starts way before they have a bid, the Contractor and Technical Sales team works well ahead of the project so the contractor knows what labor saving solutions are available,” Ryan explained.
Contractors and distributors need to have a working relationship with the Leviton sales team as well. They need to know what is available to them for each aspect of the job ahead. Having hands-on knowledge of products is important as well, because it helps move conversations from planning to actual use.
“I left a pin and sleeve sample in a contractor’s break room where every installer who passed through picked it up, held it and analyzed it’s benefits. Before any job was written, they already had a solid understanding of the product at hand which led to product credibility,” Ryan explained.
Labor/Time Savings is Key
Leviton’s simple but highly used and necessary industrial and data center solutions are designed to save time, and that time savings translates into huge labor cost savings.
A recent major market electrical contractor, for example, had to decline a signed contract because they didn’t have enough manpower to complete the job. This was only one of many instances where the major labor shortage in the industry has taken its toll on construction progress. Every labor minute counts. The Minnesota race showed why Leviton’s LEV Series matters: it was built to prove the speed and ease of installation.
“Anything they can do to front-load the labor, like prefab, or have a better, easier, and faster-to-install, price-competitive solution is what really matters these days,” Ryan said.
Leviton Design Tools for Contractors
For 120 years, Leviton has offered ways for contractors, builders, and industry leaders to find the best solutions for their project needs. Distributors should point contractors to these professionals for help on any part of the build.
The Leviton Quick Search Cross Reference Tool makes it easy to quickly compare Leviton products with competitor offerings. Leviton's Quick Search
Leviton construction and technical sales representatives. These professionals are a personal connection to finding solutions and making sure distributors and contractors have everything at their fingertips.
Leviton’s Data Center Solutions and Design Team supports data centers that need network infrastructure design help. The team can help build an optimal plan for structured cabling solutions and create a complete Bill of Materials. They can help with either on-site analysis or remotely.
Data Center Design Team or dc_team@leviton.com or call 1-800-722-2082
If you are a distributor wanting to be able to serve your customers more complete solutions or a contractor trying to save time and money and win the bid, start the conversation with Leviton’s data center professionals