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Climate Registry Recognizes Armstrong
Armstrong World Industries (Lancaster, Pa.) has achieved Climate Registered status for its participation in The Climate Registry, a non-profit organization that operates the only carbon footprint registry in North America. Members of The Climate Registry measure, publicly report and third-party-verify their greenhouse gas inventory. According to an Armstrong release, Armstrong is the first and only company to date to have three years of global emissions records, from 2006 to 2008, verified in accordance with The Registry's program. In addition, Armstrong was recognized for committing to reduce its greenhouse gas footprint by 10 percent as part of the Climate Registered reduction program. "The Climate Registered status validates the robust data we've been tracking internally is accurate and reliable, and ties this work to our corporate sustainability goals," said Steve Pfeiffenberger, vice president, environment, health and safety at Armstrong.
NWFA Holds Jigs and Staircase Workshop
The NWFA held a Jigs and Staircase Workshop in St. Louis Sept. 21-24; 18 students attended the sold-out event. NWFA's Steve Seabaugh led the course, while NWFA's Frank Kroupa assisted. Volunteer instructors included Tony Robison (Consult Inspect Design Inc.) and Bob Humphreys (Majestic Wood Floors Inc.).
August Home Sales Mixed
Sales of existing single-family homes rose 7.4 percent in August to an annual rate of 3.62 million homes from 3.37 million in July, according to a release from the National Association of Realtors. Even with the rise, however, the rate of sales for existing single-family homes remains 19.2 percent below the 4.48-million mark set in August 2009. Overall, existing home sales rose 7.6 percent in August to an annual rate of 4.13 million from a rate of 3.84 million in July; the current figure is 19 percent below the rate of 5.10 million homes set in August 2009.
Sales of new single-family homes in August were at an annual rate of 288,000, according to a release from the U.S. Department of Commerce. This figure is unchanged from the July rate but is 28.9 percent below the August 2009 rate. The median sales price of new houses sold in August was $204,700, up from $204,000 in July; the average sales price for new houses sold in August was $248,800, up from $235,300 in July.
Manufacturer News
Sheoga Hardwood Flooring & Paneling Inc. (Middlefield, Ohio) is now RPP-certified under the NWFA's Responsible Procurement Program (RPP). Sheoga can now use the "From U.S. Renewing Forests" label on its products; products bearing this label come from forests in which hardwood timber growth exceeds loss through harvest and mortality. This program from the NWFA is a "valid incremental approach toward socially and environmentally responsible forestry," according to the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).
Mirage/Boa-Franc (Saint-Georges, Quebec) is offering U.S. consumers a mail-in cash rebate of up to $750 for orders of 1,000 square feet or more. The rebate is part of Mirage's "Fall in Love With Mirage!" sales event, which will take place Sept. 27 to Nov. 20. To be eligible for the rebate, consumers must purchase Mirage Classic, Mirage Engineered, or Mirage Lock flooring from a participating dealer; all species, colors, and widths are eligible. Participating dealers are marked in Mirage's dealer locator. Also, for orders of 450 square feet to 999.9 square feet, Mirage will give consumers a $300 rebate; consumers ordering 200 square feet to 449.9 square feet of flooring will see a $125 rebate.
Distributor News
Harco Clear Coatings (North Brunswick, N.J.) has added the following distributors: KO Floor Supply (Riverside, N.J.), Crown Wood Floors & Supplies (Green Island, N.Y.), and Hall Flooring (Stamford, Conn.). For more information, contact Michael Schnurr at [email protected] or 732/821-3200, ext. 330.
Goodfellow Inc. (Delson, Quebec) has been named a distributor of From The Forest LLC's (Weston, Wis.) From The Forest brand engineered and custom-ordered FSC-certified flooring in Canada. Interested dealers can reach Goodfellow at 800/854-5800 or [email protected].
Bluelinx Inc. (Atlanta) has been named a distributor for Wickham Hardwood Flooring's (Wickham, Quebec) Domestic, Cottage, and Mountain Home Collections. For more information, reach Bluelinx's Mark Brassard at 603/545-1590.
Garco Clear Finishes (North Brunswick, N.J.) has added the following distributors: EMG Flooring (Bridgeport, Conn.), Florida Hardwood Floor Supplies (Tampa Bay, Fla.), and Apache Wood Floors (Holmes, N.Y.). For more information, contact Michael Schnurr at [email protected] or 732/821-3200, ext. 330.
McKay Flooring (Glasgow, Scotland) is seeking U.S. distributors for its Whiskey Barrel Flooring; the flooring is made from used Scotch whiskey barrels. Interested dealers can contact Seamus Murphy at [email protected] or 44-141-440-1586.
Floor Style Products now offers hardwood flooring equipment repair at its Whittier, Calif., branch at 11558 E. Washington Blvd., Suites B & C. The repair service is open to Floor Style customers in Southern California, Arizona and New Mexico. Repair tech Andres Zuniga, who has more than 20 years of experience in the hardwood flooring industry and specializes in equipment repair, can be reached at 562/692-0143.
By the Numbers
Mark Your Calendar
The Malaysian Timber Council's (MTC) inaugural Global WoodMart 2010 will take place on Oct. 19-20 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre in Malaysia. The MTC bills the event as the "premier one-stop selling, buying and networking platform for timber products from Malaysia and around the world." MTC expects 90 exhibitors at the event, and the American Hardwood Export Council expects several of its members will be there, including Robinson Lumber, Graf Brothers, Bridgewell Resources LLC, Northland Corp, Sonoking Corp, Kretz Lumber Co. Inc and Baillie Lumber Company.
In Memoriam
Brett Ker, national account manager with Bona US (Aurora, Colo.), passed away over the weekend of Sept. 18-19 in Denver. Ker worked with Bona for the past eight years, serving as Midwest territory manager before being promoted to national account manager within the last few months. Ker is survived by his four children, ages 3, 6, 8 and 17. To help support Ker's children, Bona has created the Brett Ker Memorial Fund; donations can be made by sending a check or money order made out to: Brett Ker Benefit Memorial Fund, 2550 S. Parker Road, Suite 600, Aurora, CO 80014. For more information on the memorial fund, contact Chad Nordhagen at 303/371-1411.
Job Watch
David Zarzour is seeking a sales or marketing position in the floor coatings or related industries. Zarzour has five years' experience in all aspects of sales and marketing, customer relations, e-mail marketing, copy writing and lead management, focusing on distributors and contractors in the wood flooring industry. Zarzour is based in Cleveland and is willing to travel. Zarzour can be reached at [email protected].
This Week on the HF Website
Contractor Blog: Wayne answers questions on how he stained that ash floor.
Green Blog: Elizabeth explains formaldehyde and CARB issues.
Inspector Blog: Craig asks: Where are all the hardplates?
HF Forum: Discussions on orange peel, OSB problems and more.
NWFA Member Services
The NWFA has joined the Hardwood Federation Political Action Committee to protect its members, and all wood flooring professionals, from misguided public policies that may jeopardize the entire hardwood industry. The mission of the Hardwood Federation Political Action Committee is to educate the nation's lawmakers about the hardwood industry and to provide financial support to those congressional candidates who support it. To be successful, the Political Action Committee needs the support of industry members and leaders. To learn more about how contributing to the Hardwood Federation Political Action Committee, call 800/422-4556 (U.S. and Canada) or 636/519-9663 (local and international), e-mail [email protected], or visit www.nwfa.org.