Issue Date:3/20/2006
"These transactions are part of our program to grow Armstrong's flooring business in North America. The investments will reduce our product cost, increase our manufacturing capacity in engineered wood, and significantly expand our portfolio of premium solid wood products," commented President and CEO of Armstrong Flooring Products Americas, Frank Ready.
The Homerwood acquisition adds wide and hand-scraped products to Armstrong's solid wood product lines. Capella manufactures engineered flooring in 3/8- and 3/4-inch thicknesses.
"We've only owned Capella for just under two years, so we were surprised that it happened this quickly," said Capella President Shannon Fuller. "It's a real compliment to us that a company the size and quality of Armstrong would seek us out for acquisition."
Armstrong has said that it intends to keep the Capella brand in place and that there will be no distribution changes for the Capella brand at this time, Fuller said. Capella's 200 employees will retain their seniority, and the number of employees is expected to increase as Armstrong utilizes the plant's capacity. The plant currently operates at about one-third of its capacity, estimated by Fuller to be between 20 and 30 million square feet per year.
No more details on the HomerWood acquisition or the Chinese partnership were available at press time.
Armstrong currently operates 41 plants in 12 countries and has approximately 14,900 employees worldwide. Armstrong has been operating under bankruptcy since the company filed for Chapter 11 in December of 2000 as a consequence of asbestos litigation.
LOBA GmbH & Co. KG (Ditzingen, Germany) now has a toll-free number for the U.S.: 800/230-6456.
Chinafloors Timber Shanghai Co. Ltd. (Shanghai, China) has obtained its PEFC-Chain of Custody number and is now able to sell FSC- and PEFC-certified oak flooring. For more information, contact Karel Vervaet at [email protected] or visit http://www.chinafloors.com.
Art Flooring (Temecula, Calif.) is seeking a long-term partner to manufacture a modular wood floor. For more information, contact Ed Iannici at [email protected].
Cefla American Finishing (High Point, N.C.) is providing formal accredited courses in industrial wood finishing, including Production Finishing of Wood Products, Maximizing Performance of Automatic Spraying Lines, Operation and Preventive Maintenance of Your Existing Line, and New High-Tech Coating Technologies. For more information, contact Minda Joyner or Bob Kostelnik at 336/662-9813.
Mannington Mills (Salem, N.J.) is accepting nominations for its 2006 Stand on a Better World Awards. These awards recognize women across the country who influence their communities socially, economically and environmentally. Nominations can be made at http://www.standonabetterworld.com now through August 31.
Preverco Inc. (St-Augustin-de-desmaures, Quebec) will invest $2.5 million this year to improve the production efficiency of its hardwood flooring products. Most of this investment will go toward a high-tech flooring grade and defect scanner.
Graf Brothers Flooring (South Shore, Ky.) has appointed Merle B. Smith Company (Burr Ridge, Ill.) to distribute all its rift and quartered products in the Chicago area.
Front Range Hardwood (Johnstown, Colo.), a new distributor serving northern Colorado, is looking for manufacturers. For more information, contact Richard Wynkoop at Front Range Hardwood, 372 Mountain View Road, Units 9 and 10, Johnstown, CO 80534 or by e-mail at [email protected].
Atlantic West Flooring Distributors (Denver) has relocated to 12150 E. 46th Ave., Denver, CO 80239. The company now has a 37,500-square-foot facility and a two-story office with a showroom area.
Tarkett Residential (Whitehall, Pa.) has awarded Reader's Wholesale Distributors (Houston) its 2005 Distributor of the Year Award.
Anderson Hardwood Floors (Clinton, S.C.) awarded its Distributor of the Year 2005 Awards at Surfaces 2006 to Design Flooring Distributors (Deerfield Beach, Fla.) for the Anderson brand and Tom Duffy Company (Fairfield, Calif.) for the Virginia Vintage and Appalachian product lines. Top Performer 2005 awards went to R.A. Siegel Company (Atlanta) for the Anderson line; Wheeler Inc. (Orlando, Fla.) for the Appalachian line; and Design Flooring Distributors for the Virginia Vintage line.
South American Woods (Lake Oswego, Ore.), through its subsidiary Andes Flooring Inc. (Lake Oswego), is looking for a manufacturer's representative in the Midwest and Northeast for its line of long and wide hand-scraped prefinished engineered flooring. For more information, contact Rob Fallow at [email protected] or visit http://www.sawoods.com.
Total housing starts for the month of February were down 7.9 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 2.12 million units, according to the U.S. Commerce Department. Single-family home construction dipped 2.3 percent to 1.8 million units.
The March National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index fell one point from 56 to 55. Both the current and expected sales components declined slightly to 60 and 62, respectively.
The International Wood Products Association is holding its 50th Annual World of Wood Convention April 5-7 at Loews Ventana Canyon Hotel in Tucson, Ariz. This convention brings together importers, producers, wholesalers and service providers, among others, to discuss the latest issues concerning trade in imported hardwood and softwood products from both tropical and nontropical producing regions.
W.D. Flooring will host Contractor Days at the Tampa, Fla., branch of Custom Wholesale Floors Inc. (Jacksonville, Fla.) on May 10.
Higuera Imports (Poulsbo, Wash.) is looking for an experienced salesperson to handle the day-to-day operations of established wholesale and contractor bamboo flooring accounts, as well as new accounts. Some travel is required. Résumés should be e-mailed to Scott Langhans at [email protected].
Madeira Floors (Toronto) is looking for a retail sales consultant. The consultant will be responsible for following through on leads generated by extensive marketing campaigns and estimating projects. Résumés should be e-mailed to [email protected] or faxed to 905/851-5956.
