NWFA Holds Subfloor School
The NWFA held a Subfloor Preparation & Installation School May 21-23 at its training facility in St. Louis. Technical Services Advisor
Frank Kroupa led the instruction of 19 students. He was joined by assistant technical training directors
Rusty Swindoll and
Glen Miller. Volunteer instructors included
Dayle Moore and
Steve Lima, Bostik Inc.;
Ken Razor and
Robert Moffett, Ceno Group;
Mark Long, Chemque Inc.;
Larry Scott, DriTac Flooring Products LLC;
Roger Barker, Fortifiber Building Systems Group;
Mark Lamanno, Franklin International;
Alan Blake, GAF-ELK Corp.;
Nick Motto, Motto's Flooring;
Daniel Boone, Powernail Company Inc.; and
Woody Hilscher, UFloor Systems Inc.
Manufacturer News
Mannington Mills (Salem, N.J.) has been recognized by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection for its efforts focusing on environmental responsibility. Mannington was evaluated on factors such as programs to reduce emissions and greenhouse gases, conservation of water and energy, and reducing hazardous waste.
Wellmade Floor Coverings (Wilsonville, Ore.) has established a fund for the Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) to benefit victims of China's recent earthquake. Donations are accepted by visiting any branch of Wells Fargo Bank and donating to the China Earthquake Relief Account; mailing a check or money order to the fund; wire transfering directly to the fund (account route code #121000248 for domestic, SWIFT code #WFBIUS6S for international); or by contacting the Wellmade office. Checks should be made out to either China Earthquake Relief Account or RCSC. For more information, contact Bruce Baxter at 866/582-0848.
Mapei Corporation (Deerfield Beach, Fla.) sponsored wheelchair racer Renzo Martinez, who placed first in his division in the Gatorade half marathon in the Dominican Republic April 19.
Distributor News
Allwood Import LLC (Portland, Ore.) has selected
Plumly Flooring (Winchester, Va.) as a distributor for northern Virginia; Washington, D.C.; and Baltimore. Plumly will also provide the facilities for an East Coast distribution center for Allwood Floors. Plumly will hold a Customer Appreciation Day at its Fairfax, Va., location to celebrate this agreement. For more information, call Kevin or Johan at 703/641-0345.
Robina Wood Floors (Kennesaw, Ga.) has selected three new distributors: T & G Hardwood (Roseville, Minn.) as a distributor for the upper Midwest; Professional Hardwood (Shelby Township, Mich.) for northwest Ohio and Michigan; and Forte Hardwood Flooring, a.k.a. G.W. Lumber & Millwork (South Burlington, Vt.) for Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and parts of New York and Connecticut.
Clarke American Sanders (Springdale, Ark.) has selected Samy Santa Flooring Depot (Duluth, Ga.) as a distributor.
Dealer/Retailer News
Lumber Liquidators (Toano, Va.) sponsored
Travis Kvapil, driver of the No. 28 Yates Racing Ford, at the 2008 Coca-Cola 600 on May 25 at Lowe's Motor Speedway.
JW Floor Covering and ReSource Flooring (San Diego) held a Grand Opening for its Design Center showroom May 22 at its San Diego headquarters. Former San Diego mayor and radio personality Roger Hedgecock performed the ribbon cutting.
People News
Basic Coatings LLC (Toledo, Ohio) has hired four regional sales managers:
Brett Miller covers Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado and New Mexico;
Wayne Highlander covers California, Oregon and Washington;
Jim Yoder manages Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois and Kentucky; and
Josh Frink covers Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia.
Premier Flooring Solutions (Anaheim, Calif.) has hired Wendi McCluer as a sales representative for California. McCluer was previously in customer service for Premier.
Blue Evolution Limited (Shropshire, England) has hired Gary Oldfield as U.K. and Ireland hardwood flooring sales manager. Oldfield will be based in the U.K., but will travel to Ireland frequently. He has 25 years of experience in the hardwood flooring industry and is a third-generation hardwood flooring professional.
Mark Your Calendar
The NWFA will host an Advanced Intermediate Installation, Sand & Finish School at its training facility in St. Louis June 9-12. For more information, e-mail
[email protected] or visit
www.nwfa.org.
Birch Creek Millwork Inc. (Terreton, Idaho) will hold an open house June 12-14 for its 8,400-square-foot warehouse addition and new 4,000-square-foot office/showroom space. For more information, contact Dwight Scott at [email protected]
By the Numbers
Housing starts for April 2008 were at a seasonally adjusted 1,032,000 units, according to the
U.S. Commerce Department. This is 8.2 percent above the March 2008 figure of 954,000 units but is 30.6 percent below the April 2007 rate of 1,487,000 units. The increase was due entirely to the rise of multifamily starts, as single-family starts dropped to the lowest monthly production rate since January 1991. Single-family housing starts in April were 692,000 units, down 1.7 percent from March and 42.2 percent from April 2007.
Home prices fell 3.1 percent in the first quarter of 2008 compared with the first quarter of 2007, according to the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight. This is the sharpest decline in the 17-year history of the home-price index. The index also fell 1.7 percent from the fourth quarter of 2007 to the first quarter of 2008, the largest quarterly price drop on record.
The overall National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) fell a single point to 19 for May 2008, just one point from its record low of 18 set in December 2007. The index gauging current sales conditions declined one point to 17, while the index gauging sales expectations for the next six months dropped three points to 27. The index gauging traffic of prospective buyers declined two points to 17.
On the Move
VerMeister USA (Seattle) has changed its name to
VerMeister America Inc. and moved to P.O. Box 3011, Walla Walla, WA 99362. Its toll-free number is 866/413-5667.
Distribution Brothers (Eau Claire, Wis.) has moved its Des Moines, Iowa, location to 10079 Hickman Road, Urbandale, IA. Chris Phillips is managing the location and can be reached at 515/265-1726.
On the Web
Final Touch Wood Filler (Galax, Va.) has opened an online store at
www.shop.finaltouchwoodfiller.com.
Job Watch
Wood Pro Inc. (Auburn, Mass.) is seeking territory salespeople for its New England region to call on floor covering dealers. The company offers salary plus commission and an excellent benefits package. For more information, e-mail Outside Sales Manager
Peter Nolan at
[email protected].
US Plank Flooring (Portsmouth, Ohio) is looking for commission-based independent sales representatives for the Texas-Southwest area and for Southern California. Résumés should be sent to [email protected].
Distribution Brothers is seeking a full-time warehouse manager with wood flooring experience for its Des Moines location. Résumés should be sent to [email protected].
For Sale
Two flooring businesses are for sale in Florida. They have been established for 20 years in Ocala and Winter Haven, respectively. Each would require a $35,000 to $50,000 down payment. For more information, call
Josh Swartz at 863/307-9900 or e-mail
[email protected].
Revamp Your Image
Hardwood Floors needs real dealer/contractor marketing pieces to be redesigned by a professional design expert for its Sharper Image column. To have a piece considered for a redesign, hardwood flooring contractors and dealers should send in their newspaper ads, magazine ads, Yellow Pages ads, direct-mail pieces or company brochures to: Sharper Image, Hardwood Floors, 4130 Lien Road, Madison, WI 53704.
NWFA Member Services
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 smallest 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].