This is the inaugural issue of the new e-newsletter brought to you by Supply House Times, PM Magazine and PM Engineer Magazine. The Bath & Kitchen eNews will be produced twice monthly and will provide the latest updates on new products, events, statistics, codes, design ideas, profit tips and industry news.
For editorial information, please contact the editors of this e-newsletter, Pat Lenius, managing editor of Supply House Times, at
leniusp@bnpmedia.com or 630-694-4335, or Kelly Johnson, special projects editor, at johnsonk@bnpmedia.com or 630-694-4379.
For information about advertising in the Bath & Kitchen eNews, please contact your sales rep or Scott Franz, publisher of Supply House Times at franzs@bnpmedia.com or 937-748-9975.
Craft-Art, a manufacturer of solid wood countertops, appointed Colin Maclean (pictured) to the new position of general manager. He will be responsible for all company operations.
Saniflo named Christopher Peterson West Coast regional sales manager. He will manage its network of independent sales representatives in the 23 U.S. states located west of the Mississippi River and report to Saniflo national sales manager Bob Lechner.
Also, Debbie Eisenbrey was named office manager for Saniflo’s Edison facility, and Robert Irvin was appointed technical service manager for the U.S.
Jacuzzi Whirlpool Bath named Joy Archer director of customer service. She has 20 years of experience in customer service and software systems.
Villeroy & Boch hosted the Triangle of Weimar, a summit between German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Jacques Chirac and Polish President Lech Kaczynski to discuss Franco-German-Polish relations, at its Old Abbey headquarters in December.
For the next six months, F.W. Webb is inviting contractors at its local F.W. Webb locations to enter “F.W. Webb’s, Watts WaterPEX Challenge” and try their skills by completing a series of standard PEX plumbing tasks. The champion will drive away in his/her choice of a 2007 pick-up truck or professional contractor’s van.
The American Standard Ingenuity Tour, a mobile showroom, visited Murray Supply Co. in Winston-Salem on Nov. 8 and the wholesaler’s Fuller House Kitchen and Bath showroom on Nov. 10.
The mobile showroom displays the latest innovative designs and exclusive technologies available from American Standard. Products range from faucets with self-cleaning features to relaxing whirlpool tubs.
InSinkErator awarded a $10,000 kitchen makeover to Jill Thaxton of Del Rio, TX, the grand prize winner of its “If You Can Stand the Heat, Get in the Kitchen” contest. She submitted a 100-word essay that described the role an InSinkErator instant hot water dispenser would play in her dream kitchen. InSinkErator also awarded 50 other essay writers with an instant hot water dispenser.
Speakman Co. says its showerheads are now the specification standard in bathrooms of half a million hotel and motel rooms in North America, including Marriott Hotels and Resorts, Hyatt, Crowne Plaza, Hilton, Sheraton, Doubletree, Courtyard, Wyndham and Westin hotels.
Jacuzzi Whirlpool Bath says an actual Jacuzzi-brand toilet was selected to serve as the model for the one “starring” in the computer-animated adventure film, “Flushed Away.”
Julien Home Refinements™ teamed up with designer Troy Adams to create the “Julien Bathroom Suite by Troy Adams Design,” which marries his sophisticated style and design with Julien’s hand-crafted stainless steel. Featured components from the suite include a freestanding-island vanity and wash area, a teak-framed stainless steel soaking tub, a foot bath, Tansu step cabinet and a concealed toilet bench.
Swanstone released a Green Building brochure to educate builders and remodelers on the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards for sustainable materials. It provides information on the LEED requirements and the credits that can be earned for using Swanstone products.
PremierDPH, a new decorative plumbing and hardware buying group, held its kick-off conference in Dallas in December. The group, formed by Buying Group Services, began operations in September and includes 17 members with 24 showrooms.
Bill Mathisen is executive vice president of Buying Group Services, which also manages the Bath & Kitchen Buying Group (BKBG).
THG USA, the importer of luxury bath products from the House of Tetard-Haudiquez-Grisoni (THG) in Normandy, France, has partnered with designer Jamie Drake to offer The Jamie Drake Bath Collection by THG. The collection was unveiled last spring at the Drake Hotel in Chicago. A dreamlike bathroom suite, framed by light blue walls and sheer, silky curtains, featured bathroom fixtures lined with faux crystals.
Security Supply, based in Selkirk, NY, relocated its Glens Falls branch to a new facility in Nov. 2005. The move to a single-story, 24,000-sq.-ft. building enabled the wholesaler to double the size of its Bath Expressions showroom.
A grand opening was held last September for more than 125 guests, including Glens Falls Mayor Roy Akins, manufacturers reps, Security Supply’s corporate officers and associates from the five local branches, as well as builders, contractors and designers.
Crawford Supply Group, Morton Grove, IL, opened a showroom at 15905 Ryerson Road, New Berlin, WI. It includes a gallery presentation of lifestyle suites and new products from Kohler, as well as bath and kitchen products from Sterling, Pearl, Acryline, Elkay, Blanco, Delta, Hansgrohe, Grohe, Moen, Cifial, Fairmont Designs and others.
Eljer says the most effective way to reduce the sewage flow from a house is to reduce the toilet waste, which usually accounts for about 40% of the sewage flow. Using a 1.1-gal. toilet rather than a 5-gal. toilet will reduce sewage flows from a home by about a third. This means longer periods of time between septic treatments and less chance of having a septic emergency.
With support from Whirlpool Corp., Remodelers Advantage®, a consulting firm specializing in the remodeling industry, has culled business tips from remodelers across the country to present “101 PowerTips: Great Business Ideas from America’s Top Remodeling Companies.” The book offers industry-tested ideas for running a more effective, efficient and profitable remodeling company, including marketing tactics for attracting top clients, production tips for employees, actions to “wow” customers, resourceful ways to manage finances and techniques to make remodelers’ businesses synonymous with high-quality workmanship.
CorStone launched the Optimum 5.0 series of premium undermount kitchen and lavatory sinks in bold new colors like Euro-metallics, along with mineral granite and brushed matte finishes. They are available in more than 50 colors. According to the company, these cast acrylic sinks are stain free and resistant to scratches and chipping.
Nuheat offers radiant electric floor-heating mats that can be easily installed under floors to provide even heat with no cold spots on tile, stone, laminate or engineered wood. Each mat is pre-built like an electric blanket. In addition to offering more than 60 standard sizes, the company can create custom mats for rooms with angles or curves.
Elkay introduced a custom matte finish option for its customized stainless steel countertops. The countertops are offered in a wide range of shapes and sizes. Elkay’s custom stainless steel countertops can be fabricated to match with many of the company’s sink styles. The new finish helps fingerprints and smudges fade into the surface. The finish is ground and hand-applied.
Advanced Modern Technologies Corp. offers the AEF-301 automatic faucet, which incorporates its patented BRV® technology with an AC/DC-powered automatic faucet system. By using a gear motor instead of a solenoid, the AEF-301 achieves a high level of reliability. The faucet spout is solid brass, available in various finishes. The control box is designed for easy installation and conceals all mechanical and electrical components.
Brondell introduced the Swash 800, which uses two retractable wands to provide a filtered posterior and feminine warm-water wash and features a warm air dryer. A wireless remote control gives users one-touch control of water pressure as well as water and seat temperature. It replaces traditional toilet seats and is designed to fit 98% of residential toilets sold in the U.S.
Sloan Valve Co. says its WES-4000 and WES-5000 waterfree urinals provide the same water-conserving and low-maintenance benefits as its other waterfree urinals but require less space due to their narrow profile styling. All feature a touch-free and mechanical-free design and adapt to existing drain outlets.
Danze introduced the Victorian-inspired Opulence two-handle wall-mount faucet with a 12-inch spout for the kitchen. It is available in chrome, antique copper, satin black, oil rub bronze and stainless steel finishes.
AFNY, the high-end New York showroom division of Brooklyn-based AF Supply Corp., introduced the Airstream faucet as part of its DaVinci collection. Its look is fluid, minimal and modern, designed by Bennett Friedman and Studio 21. Friedman is principal of AFNY and design director of the DaVinci Collection. Airstream is offered in polished chrome or satin nickel.
Chicago Faucets now offers the HyTronic line of sensor-operated faucets that feature a twin-beam system to provide a quick response time, while minimizing false activations. The dual beam feature can be adjusted to a single beam for enhanced performance in environments where there is a high level of interference.
Hansgrohe offers the Allegro kitchen faucet. Its high spout makes it easy to maneuver large pots and pans around the sink area. The flattened, more parallel arc of its spout provides extra clearance. Its pullout spray features a one-touch button. With a built-in spray-lock, the button allows users to click for hands-free use of the full and needle sprays.
Engineers and Specifiers! Here's your chance to sign up for your own e-newsletter … PM Engineer magazine offers a free twice-monthly newsletter that includes industry-specific news, events and product offerings. Click here to access the sign-up form and stay in-the-know.
THE "COLLEGE OF PRODUCT KNOWLEDGE" RETURNS! The best-read, most highly acclaimed product training series ever published in the plumbing industry has been updated and made available to fill the gaping hole in the plumbing industry's product knowledge training.
Supply House Times' "College of Product Knowledge" (CPK) was originally launched in 1979 and ran for 30 issues, culminating in a 300+ page reprint manual that became the industry's most widely used product education resource. CPK was justly acclaimed for its completeness, technical accuracy, clarity and readability.
Authored by plumbing product guru Don Arnold, who worked as a product design engineer with several leading plumbing manufacturers, thousands of copies of the CPK manual were purchased by industry companies and individuals until it finally went out of print many years ago. Yet, requests for it continued to pour in.
For the last several years, Don Arnold has authored periodic updates to address changes in various plumbing products since the original series ran. The new CPK includes these updates as well as the original articles.
Not only had many plumbing products changed over the preceding years, so has communications technology. The College of Product Knowledge has been republished in a CD format -- a 2-ounce disk being a more convenient medium than a 5-pound book. Moreover, it makes it easy to issue subsequent updates.
All information is contained in high-resolution PDF files. This collection contains no advertising, just 300 pages of solid information. Each product section is accompanied with detailed illustrations, as well as a quiz at the end. The CD version of "College of Product Knowledge" can be obtained for only $127. Quantity discounts are available.
To order, contact Candace Roulo at 248-244-1275 or via e-mail at rouloc@bnpmedia.com.
Wholesalers and suppliers that carry radiant and hydronic products will definitely want to sign up to receive "Radiant & Hydronics e-News," a FREE twice-monthly e-newsletter filled with all things "wethead." To opt-in to receive the free newsletter and stay up-to-date with all hydronic happenings, click here
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For comments, feedback, or to provide information for this newsletter, contact: Pat Lenius, Editor leniusp@bnpmedia.com
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