Issue Date:9/29/2008
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Issue Date:9/29/2008
NOFMA's Mickey Moore, Powernail Company's Daniel Boone and NWFA's Frank Kroupa led the Wood Flooring Basics School, along with Rusty Swindoll, Glen Miller and NOFMA's John Rider. Volunteer instructors included: Galen Fitzel, 3M; Bob Sponamore, All Type Hardwood Flooring; Robert Goldstein, American Hardwoods LLC; Jim Yoder, Basic Coatings; Zachary Clavin and Matthew Thrane, BonaKemi USA Inc.; Mark Long, Chemque Inc.; Wayne Lee, Clarke American Sanders; William Costello, Dura Seal; Nace Hentschell, Glista American Inc.; Michael Kordash, Independent HWF's Inspection Services; Jared Mohler, Mohler's Custom Wood Floors; Nick Motto, Motto's Flooring; John Dupra, Norton Abrasives; Richard Wheeler, Porta-Nails Inc.; Johannes Boonstra, Synteko Floor Finishes; Mike Summers, UFloor Systems Inc.; and Joey Waugh and John Bizzle, Waugh's Hardwood Flooring.
The inspection school was taught by Joe Audino, Rode Bros. Floors; Andy Campbell, D.N.A. Floor Surgeons; Don Conner, NWFA Certified Professionals Inc.; Drew Kern, Flooring Works; Kevin Mullany, Benchmark Wood Floors Inc.; Jon Namba, CFI; Timothy Moore, Moore & Neville Inspection & Consulting Services; and Cathy Duncan, EZ Report Writing.
Manufacturer News Ceno Group (Houston) is currently donating 5 percent of customers' purchases to the Houston Ike Relief Fund. Donations will be made in each customer's name, and they will receive a receipt of donation 60 days after their purchase. Those wanting to make a donation directly can send it to: Houston Ike Relief Fund, 4550 Post Oak Place, Suite 100, Houston, TX 77027. Although Ceno Group is based in Houston, one of the main areas that bore the brunt of Hurricane Ike, the company was fortunate to have minimal damage, says company President Robert Moffett, adding that the company is asking customers to “bear with us†while the area's services and shipping are gradually restored.
Birch Creek Millwork Inc. (Terreton, Idaho) was No. 3,009 in Inc. magazine's “Inc. 5,000,†which annually rates America's fastest growing private companies. Birch Creek's revenue has more than doubled since 2004 from $1.9 million to $4.2 million, and the company grew about 118 percent last year. This is the second year in a row that the company has made the list.
Aged Woods (York, Pa.) won the 2008 Green Log Home and Lifestyles Award in the “Reclaimed Wood and Flooring†category for its re-milled wood floor covering products.
Bamboo Flooring Hawaii LLC (Honolulu) was recently ranked No. 36 in Pacific Business News' “ 2008 Hawaii's Fastest Growing Small Businesses.†This is the company's fourth time on the list.
Mohawk Industries (Dalton, Ga.) is accepting nominations for its GreenWorks Dealer of the Year Award until Oct. 31. The contest is open to all dealers that work toward sustainability in the areas of economic responsibility, social commitment and positive environmental initiatives. The winner will receive $5,000 to donate toward a sustainable cause.
FN Neuhofer Holz (Zell am Moos, Austria) held an open house Sept. 13 that attracted about 500 people. Raffles were held and tours were given to those interested in the manufacturer's machines and latest technologies.
Distributor News Baltic Wood USA (Newark, N.J.) has named Herregan Distributors Inc. (Eagan, Minn.) its distributor for much of the Midwest, including Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska, Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri and Oklahoma. Herregan's Addison, Ill., office and Baltic Wood held a Baltic Blitz Kick-off on Sept. 4.
Harco Chemical Coatings Inc. ( Brooklyn, N.Y. ) has added Crandall Worthington Company (Ferndale, Mich.), Above All Distribution (Prior Lake, Minn.) and Merle B. Smith Co. (Burr Ridge, Ill.) as distributors.
Preverco Inc. ( Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures, Quebec) recently added three distributors. Suncrest Supply ( Riviera Beach , Fla.) will cover Florida, and the contact there is Bruce Stevenson at 954/907-4677. Eastside Floor Supplies (New York) will cover New York, and the contact is Joe Craven at 212/426-8500, ext. 317. Onthank (Johnston, Iowa) will now cover Iowa and Nebraska ; that contact is Ed Best at 515/265-9801, ext. 101.
Pacific Blue Hardwood Flooring (Gardena, Calif.) has named Emerson Hardwood (Portland, Ore.) its distributor in Washington and Oregon. This is Pacific Blue's second distributor since the company's launch at Surfaces 2008. For more information, visit www.pacificblueflooring.com or www.emersonhardwood.com.
Clarke American Sanders (Springdale, Ark.) recently added Green Point Hardwood (Portland, Ore.) to its list of distributors.
DriTac Flooring Products LLC (Carlstadt, N.J.) has added Mastercraft Flooring Distributors Inc. (Miami, Fla.) as a distributor for Florida and the lower southeast corner of Georgia.
People News Roger Guay is now vice president of sales and marketing at BSL Wood Products (Mont-Joli, Quebec). Guay has many years in senior management in both the consumer packaging and flooring industries. He can be reached at 800/463-8188.
Bostik ( Middleton, Mass.) has added three people to its Construction and Distribution Division. Wade Hagan is now a territory manager, overseeing Bostik's distributor and contractor customer relationships throughout Texas. Hagan brings 11 years of flooring industry experience, most recently with DriTrac Adhesive Group. Christine Krisko has been promoted to marketing communications manager and has been with Bostik for 10 years. Also, Richard Zeuli has been hired as marketing communications coordinator.
Mercier Wood Flooring (Montmagny, Quebec) recently hired Fred Hack as a sales representative. Hack has 30 years of experience in the hardwood flooring business, most recently with Mohawk Industries.
Baltic Wood USA recently named Dianna Dalenberg its sales representative to service Herregan Distributors Inc. Dalenberg can be reached at 312/972-3048 or [email protected].
Pacific Floor Products (Eugene, Ore.) has named Michele Solomons as its Wearmax California sales and marketing specialist. Michele is currently working with Old Master Products (Van Nuys, Calif.) to promote the product line.
Samy Santa Flooring (Duluth, Ga.) has added Randy Lovelace to its sales team as vice president of sales; he brings eight years of experience, most recently with Zickgraf Hardwood Flooring. Additionally, Samy Santa has hired Cathy Poulus as credit manager. She also comes from Zickgraf Hardwood Flooring.
Doug Dalsing is Hardwood Floors' new assistant editor. Dalsing comes to the magazine after graduating with a master's degree in journalism at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He can be reached at [email protected] or at 800/722-8764, ext. 139. Former Associate Editor Michelle Desnoyer has relocated out of state to pursue other opportunities.
By the Numbers August single-family housing starts fell from the July figure of 642,000 to 630,000, a 1.9 percent decline, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. Overall August housing starts fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 895,000, a 6.2 percent decline from the revised July estimate of 954,000. This figure is 33.1 percent below the revised August 2007 rate of 1,337,000 housing starts and is the slowest pace since January 1991.
Sales of new single-family homes also fell to the slowest pace in 17 years. The August figures fell from a revised July figure of 520,000 to 460,000, an 11.5 percent decline, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. This figure is 34.5 percent below the August 2007 estimate of 702,000.
The median sales price of new homes sold in August was $221,900, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. This is an approximately 6.2 percent decline from August 2007 figures, and about 5.5 percent down from last month's figures. The average price was $263,900. This figure is down about 12.4 percent from the August 2007 average sales price of $301,300. Last month's average sales price was $299,100, an 11.8 percent decline.
Sales of existing single-family homes slipped 1.4 percent in August, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.35 million homes sold is down from July's 4.41 million, and is 9.6 percent below last year's figure of 4.81 million. Overall sales of all types of existing homes dropped 2.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted rate of 4.91 million units from a revised July figure of 5.02 million. The Midwest and South regions saw slight increases in existing home sales. Sales in the Midwest increased 0.9 percent from July, while sales rose 0.5 percent in the South.
The median existing single-family home price fell 9.7 percent since August 2007 to $201,900, according to NAR.
Confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes rose two points in September, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). During the previous two months that figure was at an all-time low of 16. Newly enacted tax credits and the federal takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are two of the reasons for more confidence, NAHB President Sandy Dunn said in a statement. All three of the HMI's indexes rose this month. Indexes gauging current sales conditions and prospective-buyer traffic both rose one point to 17 and 14, respectively. Meanwhile, the index gauging sales expectations for the next six months rose by six points to 30, four points higher than one year ago.
Mark Your Calendar Basic Coatings (Toledo, Ohio) will hold a 1-day class covering finish application, re-coating and green solutions, at Atlantic West Flooring Distributors in Colorado Springs, Colo., on Oct. 21. Contact Brett Miller at 720/281-0405 or [email protected] for more information.
NWFA Member Services Are you looking for an affordable way to train your crew and/or customers? Consider hosting an NWFA member-sponsored school at your company location. Schools available include the Factory Finished Wood Flooring Installation School, the Wood Flooring Installation School, and the Wood Flooring Sand & Finish School. The cost for each school is $1,500 a day plus instructor expenses. For more information, contact the NWFA at [email protected].