Industry News
We would like to take this opportunity to give a special thanks to this month's sponsor -- Metropac. Metropac sells exclusively to wholesalers, OEM’s, and manufacturer reps, throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. Major product lines include, Honeywell, Invensys, Johnson Controls, Robertshaw, White-Rodgers and much more. Visit their redesigned web site at www.metropac.com to see their complete product offerings. Or call their sales department at 800-852-HEAT(4328)
To find out more about special e-newsletter advertising opportunities, please contact your Wholesaler sales rep by visiting www.thewholesaler.com.
Metropac's Annual Fall Stock Up Promotion
AUGUST 3rd thru 21st ONLY!
Lowest prices of the season plus great bonus prizes.
Fall is just around the corner, and that means it’s time for Metropac’s annual fall stock up promotion. Stock up now for the heating season and take advantage of our lowest prices of the season on Caleffi, Honeywell, Johnson, White Rodgers, Robertshaw, Taco and other major product lines. Fall stock up orders will be accepted August 3rd thru August 21st only.
Visit www.metropac.com to download the Fall Stock Up Promo.
Granite Group opens new Conn. location
In July, The Granite Group officially cut the ribbon at their new 300 Sackett Point Road, North Haven, Conn., location. The Granite Group purchased the former Arpino Supply location in February but decided to host this Grand Opening event after updating the counter area and racking the warehouse for greater inventory. The event featured demo trailers from Carlin, Uponor and Triangle Tube, working displays by Kohler and Mitsubishi, and interactive booths with Buderus, Taco, Superstor, State Water Heaters and Lasco. It also included introductions to Granite Group Management, a fully catered lunch and a whole host of door prizes. The Granite Group, headquartered in Concord, N.H., is now a 26-branch distributor of plumbing, heating and cooling products. At the heart of their network is a 160,000-square-foot central distribution warehouse in Londonderry, N.H. They are also the parent company of The Ultimate Bath showrooms with locations in: Concord, Manchester, Rochester and Exeter N.H., Worcester and Lowell, Mass., Putnam and Groton, Conn.,, Rutland and Burlington, Vt., Portland, Maine, and Westerly R.I.
PMI leads Green coalition in Texas
A coalition led by the Plumbing Manufacturers Institute recently helped Texas join California as the second state nationwide to require high-efficiency toilets (HETs) in all new residential and commercial construction. An HET is defined as a water closet that uses no more than 1.28 gpf, or 20% less than the 1.6-gpf models mandated by the National Energy Policy Act of 1992. Texas House Bill 2667, which was signed into law by Gov. Rick Perry on June 19, also sets maximum showerhead flow rates at 2.5 gpm and urinal flush volumes at 0.5 gpf. Effective September 1 of this year, the legislation mandates that toilet and urinal manufacturers phase in HETs over the next four years, starting with 50% of in-state sales by January 1, 2010, and culminating with 100% by January 1, 2014. In addition, HB 2667 contains two other key provisions:
- Any plumbing product certified by the federal WaterSense(r) Program is exempt from the new Texas efficiency standards.
- Repeals all manufacturer product-filing fees and testing requirements, formerly required by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
YC Supply opens Design Center
When YC Supply opened their new design center last month in Lancaster, it contained over a dozen bathroom and kitchen vignettes. But even more appealing for the customer and contractor alike is their unparalleled approach to doing business. YC teams-up with plumbing and remodeling contractors at the design-phase of the project so the homeowner can visualize their bathroom or kitchen before demolition ever begins. YC accomplishes this by working with the homeowner at the beginning of the project. YC Design Center has two certified interior designers on their team, and puts their design skills to use. Designers start with an in-home assessment of what is currently in place and what the homeowner would like to change. Following the in-home assessment, the YC designers help the homeowner through the cumbersome - and often stressful - selection process by assisting them in choosing the plumbing fixtures, vanity type, colors, wall and window treatments, flooring and accessories to pull the room together.
Activant Solutions introduces Prophet 21 version 12.0
"Before we began writing code for Prophet 21 version 12.0, we did an in-depth analysis of industry trends, including having extensive conversations with our customers, to determine what features to include," said Kevin Roach, executive vice president of Activant Solutions Inc. "Our goal with this release of the Prophet 21 software is to help distributors increase efficiencies in their business, helping them through this recession so they will be positioned to take advantage of the opportunities expected to arise during the economic recovery." In addition to the enhanced user interface, new customer relationship management tools provide ready access to information, allowing users to streamline their day-to-day processes while improving customer service. Attributes of the Prophet 21 software's production order and secondary processing functions have been combined into a labor tracking, job costing process that provides true light manufacturing capabilities. Distributors may assign technicians, track labor costs, and issue necessary material through a series of processes that manage the entire production process, whether the manufacturing stages are completed by the distributor or a third party. The Wireless Warehouse Management Solution Workbench capability is designed as a tool for the warehouse manager/supervisor to dynamically manage the flow of transactions within their warehouse operation.
New Products
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Gasket for low temps The patent pending Flush Gap™ gasket features enhanced sealability in low temperatures. Variety of sizes from 1"to 8". Center rib fits flush over the gap between the pipe ends and closes off the gasket cavity. This allows for the reduction of moisture and ice build up, which can cause gaskets to leak under freezing conditions. Features triple sealing ribs on each gasket seal face that enhance sealability under less-than-ideal pipe surfaces. Anvil International.
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Automatic feeding system Power-Vee™ automatic feed drain cleaner’s simplified feeding system is lighter and is easier to operate; squeeze the lever and the cable feeds at a rate of up to 16 ft per minute. Unclogs drains from 11/4" to 3" dia and at a distance of up to 50 ft. Automatic feed can quickly adjust to take any cable from 1/4" to 3/8" without tools or additional parts. General Pipe Cleaners, a Divsion of General Wire Spring. |
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Sturdy water cooler This 14 Gauge vandal-resistant Water Cooler is available in both single and bi-level models (HVR8HD, HVR8HD-BL). Ideal for high-traffic applications, especially those prone to tampering or misuse, such as schools, recreation centers and correctional facilities. Has a heavy-duty 14 gauge stainless steel cabinet with an integrated basin and front access panel. Self-closing, vandal-resistant pushbutton is easy to operate without grasping or twisting; screened vents prevent harmful objects from being inserted into the cooler. Halsey Taylor. |
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Sump pump system The Pro Pak 53 is a preassembled sump pump system complete with this company’s Model 53 primary pump and Model 507 backup pump. The Pro Pak offers extra protection when the primary pump fails due to power outages with 71/2 hours of continuous pumping on a fully charged battery. The Pro Pak 49 is also available, featuring a Model 49 primary pump. A 3-year warranty is included on both systems. Zoeller Pump Co. |
Movers & Shakers
Bradley Corp. promoted Erik Mullett to VP-Division 10 sales. Mullett joined Bradley in 1999 and most recently was regional sales manager for Division 10 Products. His responsibilities have expanded to develop the traditional sales channel operations for Bradley's Accessory, Mills Partitions and Lenox Locker product lines. Continuing the company's family-owned tradition, which dates back to 1921, Erik and his brother Bryan are the fifth generation of the Mullett family to lead Bradley.
Jim Pletcher joined BrassCraft as senior director of wholesale sales. Pletcher will add his extensive experience in contractor services and building products to BrassCraft's growing customer support staff. Most recently, he spent six years as VP-national accounts for M/I Homes, and earlier spent 15 years with Weiser Lock.
Eemax Inc. appointed Kevin M. Ruppelt president and CEO. He succeeds Dave Corrado, who will stay with Eemax as an outside director. During his 26-year executive career with General Electric, Ruppelt last served as GM for the Water and Energy Management within the Consumer and Industrial business. His other positions at GE included engineering, quality control, production planning, warranty management, international distribution, call center, sales & inventory planning, interactive marketing, eBusiness, and product management.
HARDI announced that Alan Beaulieu, principal and executive VP of the Institute for Trend Research, has been designated the HARDI chief economist. Over the past year, Beaulieu and his team have been producing the monthly HARDI HVACR Sales Trends Report. Beaulieu will continue to correlate regional and national HARDI sales trends data into the quarterly T.R.E.N.D.S. Report as well as producing the Executive Summary and regional reports. HARDI recently kicked off a series of Interactive Regional Forecasting programs, an audio-only mini-seminar, for each of the HARDI U.S. regions. In these sessions Beaulieu gives a live in-depth explanation about the information in the regional reports and respond to questions from participants. |