Hardwood Floors E-News - 3/17/2008

The NWFA held its Wood Flooring Inspection School March 10-13 at its training facility in St. Louis. Don Conner of Mullican Flooring led the school of 25 students and was assisted by Glen Miller, assistant technical training director of the NWFA. Volunteer instructors included Drew Kern, Floor Works; Jon Namba, CFI; Tim Moore, Moore & Neville Inspection & Consulting Services; Richard Kass, Master Flooring Inspectors; Howard Brickman, Brickman Consulting; Cathy Duncan; and Ginna Kennedy, Ginna Kennedy Law Office. Armstrong World Industries Inc. (Lancaster, Pa.) reported fourth quarter 2007 net sales of $852.4 million, 4 percent higher than fourth quarter net sales of $817.3 million in 2006. Wood flooring net sales of $188.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2007 decreased 2 percent from $192.6 million the prior year. This decrease was primarily driven by the weak U.S. residential housing market, which reduced the sales volume of solid wood flooring. For all of 2007, the company's net sales were $3,549.7 million compared with $3,425.9 million for 2006, an increase of 1 percent.

Baker's Creek (Jackson, Miss.) has opened a new manufacturing facility located at 1245 Adams Lane, Edwards, MS 39066. The phone number is 601/326-3130.

Torlys Inc. (Toronto) has rebranded its line of environmentally friendly floors as SmartFloors. The company also celebrated its 20^th anniversary at Surfaces 2008 in February.

Imago Floors (Norwalk, Conn.) was voted Best New Product of the Show at Surfaces 2008 in a vote held by show organizers. Surfaces attendees selected the company's ecologically friendly wood flooring.

Ecore International (Lancaster, Pa.), manufacturer of QT Sound Installation Systems, has produced a guide that explains how QT floor products can contribute to obtaining LEED points. The guide can be downloaded at http://www.ecoreintl.com/upload/contents/249/EPG8003-1006.pdf.

The Wood Cellar Ltd. (Melbourne, Fla.) has named Allstate Flooring Distributors (Clifton, N.J.) its exclusive distributor for the New Jersey, New York and Connecticut areas for Wood Cellar's Relica and Arbor Creek lines of engineered wood flooring. The company is also seeking other distributors.

Start 'N Finish Hardwood Floors (Weddington, N.C) has selected Tom Duffy Company (Fairfield, Calif.) as a distributor.

Lon Musolf Distributing Inc. (Vadnais Heights, Minn.) held a contractor workshop at its Vadnais Heights location on Wednesday, March 12. Vendors participating in the workshop included Basic Coatings, Absolute Coatings, Dura Seal, BonaKemi USA, Duratool and Timbermate USA. More than 110 customers attended the event.

Dbm Hardwood Flooring (Norcross, Ga.) is seeking partnerships in the Northeast and western United States. Interested distributors wanting to see samples, tour dbm's facility or discuss the opportunity should contact David Dau at [email protected] or Don Andert at [email protected].

Bostik Inc. (Middleton, Mass.) has promoted Richard A. D'Autilio to general manager of the construction and distribution division. He formerly served as director of sales and marketing.

Clear Lake Living (Spartansburg, Pa.) has hired 11 national territory managers. Michael May manages the mid-Atlantic south region covering New York City, New Jersey and Maryland; Matt Bartkowski manages the Northeast region including Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Vermont, Massachusetts and Rhode Island; Dan O'Boyle manages the mid-Atlantic north region covering Pennsylvania, north and central New York and West Virginia; Matt Kelly manages the east Great Lakes region including Ohio, Michigan, Indiana and Kentucky; Don Schmal manages the East region covering North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia; Greg Landry manages the Southeast region covering Georgia, Florida, Alabama and Mississippi; Sam Messerly manages the west Great Lakes region covering Illinois, Missouri, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska and the Dakotas; Dave Barnard manages the Southwest covering Southern California, New Mexico and Arizona; Saul Nunex manages the West including Northern California, Nevada, Oregon and Washington; Keli Jennet manages Utah, Idaho, Montana, Colorado and Wyoming; and Scott Bapst manages Canada, in addition to serving as the company's technical expert.

Premier Flooring Solutions (Anaheim, Calif.) has hired Stephen Stewart as territory sales representative. His territory includes Northern California from Santa Cruz to San Francisco. Stewart previously owned and managed a retail business in San Leandro, Calif.

The Spring 2008 remodelestimates.com Remodeling Sentiment Report, a semi-annual survey of 5,000 U.S. homeowners, reveals that 92 percent are reducing their remodeling plans due to falling home prices and concerns over the recession. Of those surveyed, 87 percent said the cost to remodel was their biggest concern, and in an effort to save money, 64 percent planned to do some of the work themselves. For more information, visit remodelestimates.com. Oshkosh Designs (Winneconne, Wis.) has updated its Web site at www.oshkoshdesigns.com.

BuildDirect (Vancouver, British Columbia) has launched a building products blog at blog.builddirect.com and a social media newsroom at newsroom.builddirect.com.

Synthetic Surfaces Inc. (Scotch Plains, N.J.) has updated its Web site at www.nordot.com.

Long Floor (Richmond, Va.) is looking for a motivated individual with excellent sales skills. The ideal candidate will be a self-starter capable of developing and maintaining a customer base. The position includes excellent salary and benefits package. Résumés and salary requirements should be sent to [email protected] or P.O. Box 5223, Richmond, VA 23220.

A well-established hardwood flooring manufacturer in Ohio is seeking a self-motivated, hands-on individual. Qualified candidates will have knowledge of solid hardwood flooring production, the ability to train employees, a minimum of three years in management and the ability to maximize production yields. Résumés should be faxed to 800/901-5685.

Horizon Forest Products (Raleigh, N.C.) is looking for a motivated individual with excellent sales skills. The ideal candidate will be a self-starter who is able to develop and maintain a customer base. An excellent salary and benefits package are offered. Résumés and salary requirements should be sent to [email protected].

Diversified Millwork (Denver) is seeking a sales professional with experience in building material sales, specifically moldings and millwork. Experience in commercial projects is a plus. The company offers a salary plus commission, health insurance, paid vacation and participation in its 401(k) plan. Résumés should be sent to [email protected].

A dealer/contractor located on the East Coast is seeking a wood flooring manager and salesperson for metro New York. This position entails project management from specifying and ordering through installation and finishing. The ideal candidate will be knowledgeable of all aspects of hardwood flooring and must be able to read blueprints. Outside sales experience is a plus. Résumés and salary requirements should be sent to [email protected].

The NWFA will hold an Advanced Intermediate Installation, Sand & Finish School August 26-29 in Atlanta. For more information, e-mail [email protected] or visit www.nwfa.org.

Lon Musolf Distributing Inc. will hold its customer appreciation/vendor open house and workshop on Wednesday, April 23 from 4-8 p.m. at its Vadnais Heights, Minn., location. A Lund fishing boat will be raffled off. To register, call 651/484-3020.

The Builders Association of the Twin Cities will hold general contractor continuing education classes on March 18 in Roseville, Minn. Roy Reichow of National Wood Flooring Consultants Inc. (Cedar, Minn.) will present his seminar Understanding Wood Flooring 101: When Wood, When Not. For more information, visit www.batconline.org.

The North American Association of Floor Covering Distributors (NAFCD) will hold its 37^th Annual Conference and Distribution Marketplace October 29-31 at the Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel and Convention Center in Schaumburg, Ill. For more information, visit www.nafcd.org.

Decorative Flooring (Port Saint Joe, Fla.), in conjunction with NWFA, held a Custom Wood Floor School March 13-15 featuring industry experts Daniel Boone, Joe Boone, Bob Goldstein, Jon Cross and Jim Garth. The school was sponsored by Bostik, Festool, Powernail, Professional Coatings and others. For more information, visit www.woodfloorschool.com.

The National Association of Wholesalers will hold a classroom educational course June 9-13 at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. For more information, visit www.naw.org/wdmc08.

Public awareness about environmental issues is at an all-time high, and increasingly, consumers are doing their part by choosing products that have a minimal impact on the environment. Fortunately, the facts are clear: Wood flooring is the only flooring option available that is completely sustainable. In addition, wood flooring also has the least impact on our environment. It is carbon-neutral, uses fewer fossil fuels in its production, has less water consumption in its production and has the longest service life of all flooring options. Take a look at the NWFA Industry Research Foundation's Life Cycle Analysis for Solid Hardwood Flooring conducted by the University of Wisconsin. The study analyzes the environmental impact of wood flooring and several flooring alternatives. Each flooring type is compared for harmful air emissions, water consumption, total primary energy consumption and product life expectancy. To see the full report and the supplemental analysis, go to www.nwfa.org and click on the "What's New" link. Or contact the NWFA at 800/422-4556 (U.S.), 800/848-8824 (Canada) or 636/519-9663 (local and international) or by e-mail at [email protected].