Issue Date:4/4/2005
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Issue Date:4/4/2005
Hardwood Floors E-News Monday, April 4, 2005 Issue 260 Next issue published April 18, 2005 Deadline for items: April 13, 2005 Send news to [email protected]
------------------------------------------------------------------------Manufacturer News Virginia Abrasives Corporation (Petersburg, Va.) has announced it will open a West Coast distribution facility in Simi Valley, Calif. The second location will allow customers in the mountain and West Coast states to extend their same-day orders by three hours. "Customers will get to talk to a live person until 8 p.m. ET, which extends our call center an additional three hours," says A.J. Winstead, national sales manager. For more information, call 800/996-7263 or e-mail [email protected].
Mapei America (Deerfield Beach, Fla.) has added a team of in-field technical consultants in each region of the United States and Canada to ensure that its customers get timely support when they call in with a technical question. These consultants will be supported by the technical services staff at Mapei's U.S. headquarters in Deerfield Beach and at the Canadian headquarters in Laval, Quebec. "This expanded organization will provide Mapei customers with faster response times and more efficient site reports," says Mike Micalizzi, Mapei Corporation's manager of technical services. Powernail Co. Inc. 's (Lake Zurich, Ill.) address has changed to 1300 Rose Road, Lake Zurich, IL 60047. The phone and fax numbers remain the same.Distributor News Erickson's Flooring & Supply (Ferndale, Mich.) held conferences on February 5, 19 and 26 that offered training in three classes: Basics and Fundamentals of Installation, Advanced Skills and Key Business Techniques. NWFA-certified professionals, Erickson's sales team and other industry experts conducted the Basics and Advanced classes. Vendors that participated in teaching included Curtis Richard, Primatech; Tony Miraldi, Somerset Hardwood Flooring; Jesse Bush, 3M; Tom Peotter, Oshkosh Floor Designs; Paul Ruiz, Glitsa American; Tony Ziola, BonaKemi USA; and Larry LeFevre, Dura Seal. Each year at its seminar, Erickson's honors a vendor that has gone above and beyond the call of duty in areas of communication, product development and strengthening relationships. Smith Flooring (Mountain View, Mo.) is the winner for 2004. Erickson's will hold more seminars in 2006. For more information, call 800/225-WOOD or visit www.efs.bz.
Lon Musolf Distributing (Vadnais Heights, Minn.) held a workshop March 9, with more than 85 flooring installers in attendance. Attendees heard from two sources on how to apply a lien. The company's next workshop will be held on April 6 from 4 to 8 p.m. at its Vadnais Heights location, where attendees will learn the latest in finishing techniques. For more information or to register, call 651/484-3020.People News Lauzon Distinctive Hardwood Flooring (Papineauville, Quebec) has named Louis Morin vice president, strategic developments.
Powernail Co. Inc. has named Tom Coates its national sales manager, replacing Ron Domkowski, who has retired. Wood Flooring International (Delran, N.J.) has hired Elissa Wenster as its western regional sales manager. Wenster, formerly with Armstrong, will be serving the company's West Coast distribution. She can be reached at 856/764-2501, ext. 137, or [email protected]. Long Floor Supply Inc. (Richmond, Va.) has promoted Scott Brooks to branch manager of its Raleigh, N.C., location. Long also has added Norm West to its sales staff in Raleigh. West will call on retailer and contractor accounts in eastern North Carolina and South Carolina. Both Brooks and West can be reached at 888/547-9226. Contractor Refined Hardwood Flooring (Wilmington, N.C.) has named Jack Johnson Employee of the Year for 2004. Johnson is one of the newest employees of Refined Hardwood Flooring, and he has a willingness to learn and excellent work ethic, the company says. William "Bill" C. Bell of Kempfer Sawmill Inc. (St. Cloud, Fla.) is the new president of the Southern Cypress Manufacturers Association (SCMA) (Pittsburgh, Pa.), and Phil West of Coastal Lumber Company (Weldon, N.C.) is now vice president. SCMA members voted for the new officers at the association's annual meeting held March 11.By the Numbers Strip shipments for February 2005 totaled 50,358,000 board feet, down 2 percent from the 51,646,000 board feet shipped in February 2004, according to NOFMA: The Wood Flooring Manufacturers Association. Year-to-date strip shipments totaled 102,575,000 board feet, down 3 percent from the 106,152,000 board feet shipped in the first two months of 2004.
Sales of new single-family houses in February 2005 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,226,000, according to estimates released by the Commerce Department. This is 9.4 percent above the revised January rate of 1,121,000 and is 5.2 percent above the February 2004 estimate of 1,165,000.On the Web Refined Hardwood Flooring has launched a Web site at www.refinedhardwood.com.
Job Watch Long Floor Supply has openings for inside and outside sales representatives in Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina. Ideal candidates must have at least three years' experience in the hardwood flooring industry as contractors or in sales. An excellent compensation package, and health and retirement benefits are available for qualified candidates. Résumés should be sent to [email protected] or sent to Luther Carroll, P.O. Box 5223, Richmond, VA 23220.
Signature Innovations LLC dba Signature Hardwoods (Wood Dale, Ill.), a manufacturer and importer of European hardwood floors, is seeking a purchasing/sales executive to run the Purchasing Division. The position requires extensive travel to Europe. A B.A. or B.S. degree, a minimum of four years' experience purchasing hardwood and the ability to speak Polish are required. The position offers benefits and a competitive salary to experienced candidates. Interested parties should send a résumé and professional references to Veritas Business Consultants, c/o Signature Innovations LLC, 555 W. Arlington, #404, Chicago, IL 60614, fax to 630/766-4620 or e-mail to [email protected]. Margaritelli USA Inc. (Easton, Mass.), a manufacturer of engineered hardwood floors, is seeking experienced, independent sales representatives to expand its existing customer network in the central United States. Applicants should have proven experience in the wood flooring market and an existing client portfolio. Résumés should be sent to [email protected]. CEL Enterprises (Jacksonville, Fla.), a wood gymnasium floor installation company, is seeking an experienced crew leader with sanding, refinishing and wood floor experience. The position requires travel in Florida and Georgia and includes a full-time salary. Those interested should call 904/641-4981 and leave a name and phone number, or e-mail [email protected]. Positions are available in O'Fallon, Mo., for hardwood installation and sanding and finishing. Candidates must have a valid driver's license and pass a drug screening test. For more information, call 636/240-7632.Mark Your Calendar The much-anticipated NWFA Education Conference and Wood Flooring Expo will be held April 13-16 in Honolulu. The show offers a full slate of educational and technical seminars, the Expo, and a variety of networking events, including a special NWFA luau. On the final day, the winners of the NWFA Wood Floor of the Year Awards will be announced. For more information, visit www.nwfa.org or call 636/519-9663 (local and international), 800/422-4556 (U.S.) or 800/848-8824 (Canada).
The WFCA/NWFA Intermediate Installation and Sand & Finish School will take place April 26-29 in Anaheim, Calif. For more information, visit www.nwfa.org, e-mail [email protected], or call the NWFA at 636/519-9663 (local and international), 800/422-4556 (U.S.) or 800/848-8824 (Canada). The National Association of Floor Covering Distributors (NAFCD) will hold the NAFCD Management Conference, "Business Theory Put into Practical Action," May 13-15, 2005, at The Ohio State University campus in Columbus, Ohio. The program focuses on specific floor covering issues, with examples and workshop sessions drawn from the industry. The conference offers an interactive study program from the purchasing, marketing, merchandising, warehousing and branch outlet disciplines of the floor covering industry. Attendees can bring their own laptop computers and participate in case studies to apply what they learn. For more information, call 312/321-6836 or visit www.nafcd.org.Looking for Contractors Are you a wood flooring contractor who goes to extreme lengths to get to your jobs? Do you have to travel by boat, plane or four-wheel-drive vehicle to reach the job site? Do you have to handle extreme tropical weather, extreme cold or other unusual conditions when installing, sanding and finishing hardwood floors? If so, Hardwood Floors would like to hear from you for an upcoming article. E-mail Editor Kim Wahlgren at [email protected] or call her at 800/722-8764, ext. 125.
NWFA Member Services A few months ago, the NWFA launched ListServ to allow members to communicate with each other about industry-related issues. While many members enthusiastically started using the free service, others found the number of e-mails to be disruptive. For this reason, the service has been changed to allow each member the opportunity to control his or her participation. Effective January 6, all NWFA members who had not actively used the service, or specifically requested to be included on Listserv, were removed from the service. If you were affected by this change and want to reactivate your participation, contact the NWFA at 636/519-9663 (local and international), 800/422-4556 (U.S.) or 800/848-8824 (Canada).