Issue Date:2/23/2009
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Issue Date:2/23/2009
Manufacturer News Mannington Wood Floors (Salem, N.J.) has entered an agreement in which Elegant Living (Sui An Industrial Zone, China) will manufacture hardwood products under the Mannington brand name in China; Elegant Living will also distribute Mannington's U.S. flooring products there. The products will be co-branded as "Elegant Living-Mannington." The products will be phased in throughout this year at more than 500 retail locations in China.
Boen Hardwood Flooring Inc. (Martinsville, Va.) is now selling directly to dealers in Georgia and Florida. Custom Wholesale Floors Inc. previously distributed Boen's products in those states. For buying information, contact Jim Duffey at [email protected] or 303/548-4827.
Greyne Custom Wood Co. has moved its operations to Charlotte, N.C., from Baltimore. Its new mailing address is: 8520 Crown Crescent Court, Charlotte, NC 28227. The company began operations in the 12,600-square foot facility in January. Prior to the move it spent more than $1 million on renovations, the lion's share involving the implementation of a VOC-free finish application system.
Powernail Company Inc. (Lake Zurich, Ill.) held its first Contractor's Installation School January 15-16 at its headquarters. Twenty-three students attended the school, which was led by Training Director Daniel Boone. The company is holding another installation school Feb. 25-26 at its headquarters. The cost is $399, including lodging and some meals. To register, call 800/323-1653, ext. 3052, or visit www.powernail.com.
Mohawk Industries (Dalton, Ga.) was ranked No. 9 in Training Magazine's "Top 125" training organizations. The list identifies Fortune 500 companies that are dedicated to training and learning development. This is the company's third straight year on the list.
Mapei Corporation (Deerfield Beach, Fla.) again sponsored NASCAR's Robby Gordon in the Daytona 500 on Feb. 15. Gordon, driving the No. 7 Toyota Camry, finished the race in 34th place.
Distributor News Erickson's Flooring & Supply Company (Ferndale, Mich.) has moved its Indianapolis branch; the new address is 8802 Bash St., Suite G, Indianapolis, IN 46256-1288. For more information, call 866/963-9663.
Knight Hardwood Flooring Inc. (Indian Trail, N.C.) has opened a new branch in Raleigh, N.C., at 1200-115 Corporation Parkway. Jeff Auton, formerly of Cherokee Wholesalers Inc., is the branch manager. Auton can be reached at 919/291-2426. The branch's fax number is 919/250-0189. In addition, the company has hired John Collie as an outside salesman for dealers and contractors in eastern North Carolina. Collie has four years' experience in the region. He can be reached at 252/916-2824.
G.R. Distributors Inc. (Winnipeg, Canada) won the Spirit Award at Mirage/Boa-Franc's (St-Georges, Canada) annual distributor dinner held in Las Vegas early this month. The award recognizes the Mirage distributor that has demonstrated outstanding performance during the prior year; G.R. Distributors was recognized for posting the largest percentage growth in 2008.
Dealer/Contractor News Mr. Sandless (Aston, Pa.) held its annual convention in Las Vegas on Feb. 20-22. An awards ceremony was held Feb. 20; Mr. Sandless Northeast PA, owned by Luke Anastasio, took home the Franchise of the Year honor.
People News Mullican Flooring (Johnson City, Tenn.) has named Edward Hampton national builder manager. Hampton is based in Atlanta and will work with builders and general contractors to expand and develop new single-family and commercial units to include Mullican's products. Hampton previously held several high-ranking managerial positions with Pella Southeast, an affiliate of Pella Corporation.
By the Numbers January housing numbers continued their precipitous decline. January single-family housing starts were at an annual rate of 347,000, or 12.2 percent below the December rate of 395,000, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. Overall housing starts reached a record annual low of 466,000, down 16.8 percent from December's estimate of 560,000. That rate is 56.2 percent below the January prediction of 1,064,000. Meanwhile, single-family building permit applications fell 8 percent in January to 335,000; the December 2009 rate was 364,000. The overall application for building permits fell 4.8 percent to an annual rate of 521,000. December's revised annual estimate was 547,000 permits. Building permit issuances are down 50.5 percent from the January 2008 estimate of 1,052,000.
Builder sentiment in the U.S. remains near a record low, according to the National Association of Home Builders' Housing Market Index (HMI). This month it raised a single point to 9. Any reading over 50 indicates that more builders view sales conditions as good than poor. The HMI comprises three indices. The index gauging current sales conditions rose a single point to 7, while the index gauging prospective buyer traffic rose three points to 11. The index gauging sales expectations for the next six months fell to a new record-low of 15.
Mark Your Calendar Oak Products of Illinois (Tinley Park, Ill.) has a Synteko Day scheduled for Wednesday, March 11 at 8:30 a.m. Johannes Boonstra, Synteko's technical director, will be on hand to demonstrate applications of Synteko finishes and answer questions. Customers are invited to participate in demos and enjoy coffee and doughnuts.
Brickman Consulting (Norwell, Mass.), an all-purpose wood flooring industry consultancy, is planning Advanced Wood Floor Inspections courses throughout 2009. Upcoming dates and locations include: March 16-20, Monroe, N.C.; April 17-21, Bridgewater, Mass.; and May 8-12, Bridgewater, Mass. Courses outside of Bridgewater will be limited to 12 students; Bridgewater courses will be limited to eight students. The cost is $1,795 and includes daily lunch, class materials and texts. For more information, contact Howard Brickman at 781/659-7209 or [email protected]. For the full class schedule, see www.brickmanconsulting.com.
Job Watch Welco Floor Coverings (Vancouver, Canada) is seeking an independent sales and services agent to cover California to support its dealers. For more information, contact Sales Manager Marc St-Cyr at [email protected].
Association News The National Association of Wholesalers-Distributors (NAW) (Washington D.C.) is holding its annual education course, the Wholesale Distribution Manager's Course, June 8-12 at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. Educational topics will include sales management, value-added services, market-focused planning and supply chain management, among others. Registration is $4,595 for NAW members and $5,695 for nonmembers. For more information, visit www.naw.org/wdmc09.
Ad Deadline for NWFA Convention Issue Approaching March 5 is the deadline to reserve ad space in Hardwood Floors' April/May 2009 issue. For more information, contact Publisher Kris Thimmesch at [email protected] or 800/722-8764, ext. 107. The Hardwood Floors media kit is available online at www.nwfa.org/member/magAdvertise.aspx.
NWFA Member Services Sponsorships for the NWFA's 2009 Convention in Long Beach, Calif., to be held April 28-May 1, are available to all Wood Flooring Expo exhibitors. With more than 4,000 attendees expected, sponsorships are a great opportunity to promote your company efficiently and affordably.
All sponsorships are available on a first-come, first-served basis, with the previous year's sponsor having first right of refusal. Sponsorships include hotel room keys, badge lanyards, convention bags, pens, padfolios and lead retrieval units. Additional sponsorships are available for the golf outing, including tees, golf balls, towels, visors, greens, and other giveaways for 150 participants, along with pins for hole-in-one, closest-to-pin and longest drive.
Each sponsor program includes signage at the sponsored event, coverage in on-site promotional materials, right of first refusal for future shows and additional benefits specific to the sponsored event.
For more information, 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].