Private Equity Firm Purchases Taylor Lumber
On July 1 private equity firm
Resilience Capital Partners LLC (Cleveland) completed the acquisition of
Taylor Lumber Inc. (McDermott, Ohio) and its subsidiaries. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. "We focus on cyclical businesses—kind of old-economy companies that have good core products, and Taylor Lumber really fit that category," said
Ki Mixon, principal at Resilience Capital Partners. "We at Resilience have been interested for a long time in niche home products and saw Taylor Lumber as a neat product." Taylor is best known for the riftsawn and quartersawn red oak and white oak lumber and flooring. "What we did here was came in and recapitalized the business to give it a lot of liquidity and ability to grow," Mixon said, adding that Resilience feels the home building economy is at or near the bottom. "While we don't expect it to shoot up, we feel good about the next five or 10 years."
Ron Cozean is now president at Taylor; there are currently no plans for further personnel changes, Mixon said.
Aacer Flooring and Wolf River Lumber Exit Receivership
Aacer Flooring LLC (Peshtigo, Wis.) and
Wolf River Lumber Inc. (New London, Wis.) exited Chapter 128 receivership July 9. After several rounds of bidding, the companies' assets were purchased by special purpose LLCs
Aacer Acquisition LLC dba Aacer Flooring and
Wolf Investment Acquisition LLC dba Wolf River Lumber, respectively; both special purpose LLCs are backed by the firms' primary creditor,
Greenstone Farm Credit Services (East Lansing, Mich.). "Aacer Flooring has taken a significant last step toward positioning the business as a force once again to be reckoned with," saving 141 jobs in Peshtigo, according to a release from Aacer CEO
Todd Braun. A release from Greenstone Farm Services stated: "Operating these facilities will be an ongoing process of which its success will be dependent on a sustained economic recovery, including continued demand for the wood products produced by Aacer Flooring and Wolf River Lumber." On March 30 Aacer and Wolf River filed for receivership. The two companies are closely related; previously, the Ort family was a primary shareholder in both companies and some of the firms' debt obligations were cross-collateralized, Braun said.
Sika Corporation Purchases Greenstreak Group
Sika Corporation (Lyndhurst, N.J.), subsidiary of
Sika AG (Baar, Switzerland), has acquired
Greenstreak Group Inc. (St. Louis), a corporation with annual revenue of approximately $30 million. Greenstreak, which dates back to 1950 and has about 100 employees today, manufactures engineered waterstops and joint seals, doweling systems, architectural form liners, pipeline protections, and a wide range of forming accessories. Sika says the acquisition strengthens the company's position in the North America construction industry, particularly in the area of engineered waterproofing. Greenstreak will retain its management team and operate as a subsidiary under Sika Corporation.
European Parliament Bans Illegal Timber
The
European Parliament, the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union (EU), recently voted 644-25 in favor of banning the import and sale of timber obtained through illegal logging, according to
guardian.co.uk. Effective in 2012, the new rules will close a loophole that allowed firms to import timber that was logged illegally. Mirroring the United States' Lacey Act, all companies importing and selling timber will be required to show that they exercised due diligence to ensure the timber was logged legally.
Massachusetts Bans Lacquer Sealer
On July 2 Massachusetts lawmakers banned the possession, sale and application of lacquer sealer; the law takes effect 180 days after signing. The first violation of the law is punishable by a fine of no less than $2,500, while a second offense can be punishable by a fine of no less than $5,000 or a prison sentence, or both. The law defines lacquer sealer as "a clear or pigmented wood finish, formulated with nitrocellulose or synthetic resins to dry by evaporation and without chemical reaction, having a flashpoint below 100 degrees Fahrenheit, including clear lacquer sanding sealers." The new law follows the deaths of five contractors who were applying lacquer sealers in Somerville and Hull, Mass.
EPA Under Fire After Lapse of RRP Rule's Opt-Out Provision
Two days after the EPA's July 6 lapse of the Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) Rule's "opt-out" provision—which allowed homeowners to "opt-out" of having their contractors follow lead-safe work practices if there were no children under six years of age in the home—
National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB) and a coalition of housing groups said they plan to sue the government agency. According to an NAHB release, the groups will challenge EPA's action on the grounds that the agency substantially amended the rule without any new scientific data and before the regulation was even put into place on April 22, 2010. "Even under the original rule, the opt-out provision was not available in homes where small children or pregnant women live," said NAHB Chairman Bob Jones. "That shows that this change provides no additional protection to the people who are most vulnerable to lead-based paint hazards." The RRP rule requires certification of training providers and lead-safe work practice certification for individuals involved in the construction and remodeling industry; the rule aims to minimize instances of lead poisoning in children.
NAHB Lobbies for Increased Builder Access to Credit
National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB) announced it successfully lobbied House lawmakers to help builders get the same access as other small businesses to loans from a $30 billion program created by H.R. 5297, the Small Business Lending Fund Act of 2010. According to an NAHB release, "The House measure would provide $30 billion in capital to community banks to expand small business lending. Of particular interest to NAHB members, the last-minute change to the legislation allows the fund to be used to help ease the severe shortage of acquisition, development and construction (AD&C) loans for small building firms." The bill now awaits action in the Senate.
NWFA Searches for Next Executive Director/CEO
The
NWFA is seeking candidates to replace Executive Director/CEO
Ed Korczak, who plans to retire at the end of 2011. Qualified candidates must have at least 10 years of executive management experience and leadership, an educational degree, demonstrated management skills, knowledge of building membership bases and conventions, familiarity with working with a board of directors and committees, experience managing a diverse staff, and excellent oral and written communication skills. Interested candidates can submit a résumé (not to exceed two pages), salary and compensation history, as well as contact information for four references, to
executivesearch@nwfa.org. For more information, contact the NWFA at 800/422-4556 (U.S. and Canada) or 636/519-9663 (local and international).
Manufacturer News
MAPEI Americas (Deerfield Beach, Fla.) recently added 44,000 square feet of warehouse, shipping, quality control and office space at its Delta, British Columbia, manufacturing facility. The addition brings the facility's total footprint to 78,779 square feet.
Hamberger Flooring's (Rosenheim, Germany) HARO parquet flooring has received Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) certification. PEFC is the world's largest forest certification organization.
Mullican Flooring (Johnson City, Tenn.) recently funded 30-second advertising spots on giant LED screens in New York's Macy's Herald Square for its Johnson City neighbor, East Tennessee State University (ETSU). The advertising spots extolled ETSU's basketball program. An estimated 1.5 million people reportedly view the LED screens each day.
Distributor News
Silverwood Flooring (Toronto) has been named the exclusive distributor in Canada for solid wood flooring manufacturer
Junckers Hardwood Inc. (New York). Silverwood will carry Junckers' complete product line.
T & L Distributing LP (Houston) has been named a distributor for
From The Forest LLC's (Weston, Wis.) Medallion From the Forest brand of engineered flooring in Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana. Interested dealers can contact T & L at 800/888-0601.
Pine Wood Floors (Roatan, Honduras), manufacturer of long leaf heart pine floors, is seeking U.S. distributors. For more information, contact
Ollie Thompson at 817/471-3870 or
ot@olliethompson.com.
People News
Armstrong World Industries Inc. (Lancaster, Pa.) named
Matthew J. Espe CEO and president effective later this month. Espe brings 30 years of experience in sales, marketing, distribution and management of global manufacturing businesses to Armstrong. Espe currently serves as chairman and CEO at Ricoh Americas Corporation, a document management solutions and services company; formerly, he served as CEO at IKON Office Solutions Inc., a $4 billion office equipment distributor and services provider.
Unique Wood Floors (Hopkins, Minn.) has added
Daniel Wing to its sales team. Wing can be reached at 952/994-9696 or
danielwing@uniquewoodfloor.com.
Summitt Forest Products (Santa Fe Springs, Calif.) has named
John W. Paine regional sales representative in south Texas. Paine will represent Summitt's Private Reserve Handcrafted Hardwood Flooring brand and can be contacted at
johnwpaine@hotmail.com.
By the Numbers
On the Web
Wickham Hardwood Flooring (Wickham, Quebec) has launched a website at
www.wickhamhardwood.com.
Mullican Flooring has launched a consumer-oriented website at
www.mullicanflooring.com as part of its 25th anniversary celebration in 2010.
Basic Coatings (Toledo, Ohio) has redesigned its website at
www.basiccoatings.com.
Mark Your Calendar
Horizon Forest Products (Raleigh, N.C.) and
Long Floor (Richmond, Va.) will host DuraSeal Demo Days at their Virginia and Maryland branches in July. Locations and dates are: Chesapeake, Va., July 13; Richmond, Va., July 14; and Beltsville, Md., July 16. All events will be held from 8 a.m. to noon and will feature a product demonstration.
Roy Reichow of
National Wood Floor Consultants Inc. (Cedar, Minn.) will hold a Radiant Heat and Wood Floors seminar July 21 from 8 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at the Mermaid Event Center in Mounds View, Minn. Reichow, along with co-presenter
Wes Sisco of
Uponor (Apple Valley, Minn.), formerly Wirsbo, will present ideas about best applications for installing wood floors over radiant heat and facilitate a Q&A discussion. To register, call 763/413-7897; the cost is $35 and includes breakfast.
Lon Musolf Distributing Inc. (Waukesha, Wis.),
Powernail Company Inc. (Lake Zurich, Ill.), and
Basic Coatings will host a Made in America Luncheon July 23 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 1900 Airport Road in Waukesha. Events will include lunch, prize drawings and new product demonstrations by Powernail's
Gene Jarka and Basic's
Josh Neuberger. For more information, contact
Tony Gerasch at 262/513-5634.
Gehl Flooring Supply Inc. (Madison, Wis.) will host the Great American BBQ July 29 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 6630 Watts Road in Madison. There will be food, prizes, product demonstrations and specials on numerous products. Basic Coating's
Josh Neuberger will be on hand to answer questions about finish and hardwood floor maintenance. For more information, contact
Brad Disrud at 608/288-8228.
Job Watch
Gerry Schappell is seeking a position within the hardwood flooring industry. Schappell most recently served as vice president/general manager of Cikel America LLC before resigning June 30 by mutual agreement with Cikel's board of directors. Prior to joining Cikel, Schappell spent 21 years with Hoboken Floors. He can be reached at
woodfirst@aol.com or 407/756-8059.
NWFA Member Services
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aminster@frontline-advisors.com.
The NWFA is offering a financial service for its members, B2B CFO. It is designed to help small- to mid-market companies understand and control their financial performance. Three services are available. NWFA members can call a financial management hotline toll-free at 800/422-4556 to ask any finance-related question. .. 
