American Standard Completes Merger
   The leaders of American Standard America, Crane Plumbing Holding Corp. and Eljer Holding Corp. announced the completion of the merger of their respective companies. The new combined company will conduct business under the name of American Standard Brands. Donald C. Devine, previously president and CEO of American Standard America, has been named CEO of American Standard Brands, effective immediately. Go here for more details.

Sale of Elkay Canada Ltd. Complete
   Elkay Plumbing Products Division (PPD) announced it has completed the sale of its Elkay Canada Ltd. operations to Novanni Stainless Inc., a newly formed company owned by Oakville Stamping and Bending Ltd. (OS&B) and Supreme Metal Products Inc. OS&B, a privately held company, manufactures overflows, traps, lavatory drains, tubular brass fittings and flexible supply hoses. Supreme Metal Products Inc., also a privately held company, manufactures sink strainers. Novanni Stainless Inc. will continue to manufacture Wessan, AMI and other Elkay branded products in the Coldwater, Ontario, facility. Go here for details.

Ferguson  opened its new 4,500-sq.-ft. showroom in Cranberry Township, PA, on March 10, 2008, attached to their current location at 1214 Freedom Rd. The showroom features a gallery showcasing plumbing, appliances and lighting. Jim Battista is showroom manager.

L to R: Gina Rueff, Thomas Lighting, and Stephanie Johnson, Wiseway.

Wiseway Supply , Florence, KY, recognized manufacturers and manufacturers reps at its eighth annual award night. Among those honored for their performance in 2007 were: Thomas Lighting, Showroom Manufacturer Marketing Award; Lutron, Showroom Manufacturer of the Year (small tier); Nutone, Showroom Manufacturer of the Year (large tier); Penny Merkle, Progress Lighting, Showroom Rep of the Year and Showroom Rep Regular Visits; John Patsey, John Patsey Sales, Showroom Rep Follow-up/Followthrough.

 Go here  for a list of distributor-focused networking events at the upcoming 2008 K/BIS.

The Decorative Plumbing & Hardware Association (DPHA, booth S1062) will hold a breakfast keynote and networking event during the 2008 K/BIS on April 12, 7:30-10:00 a.m., at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, McCormick Place. Keynote speaker Mike Rockstroh, founder of the RB Strategy Group, will address "Solid Change Management in a Soft Market: How to Take Charge and Outcompete." E-mail kbisbreakfast@dpha.net or visit www.dpha.net for details.

The theme of the 2008 Design Idea Center at K/BIS is: "Your Kitchen. Your Bath. Your Way. Designs for Every Lifestyle and Life Stage." The 10,000-sq.-ft. booth (S4058) features kitchen and bath designs from five consumer magazines: Kitchen and Bath Ideas, Better Homes and Gardens, Traditional Home, Country Home and Midwest Living.

Viking will debut several Julien sinks at their 2008 K/BIS booth S4082 at McCormick Place in Chicago April 11-13. Julien's Worktop UrbanEdge, Undermount UrbanEdge, Worktop Classic and Undermount Classic with tilt-out drawers (pictured) will debut alongside Viking's new collections.

Lasco Bathware now offers the Builder Services program that provides planning consultation and take-off suggestions, on-site advisors, expert installation teams that can navigate the intricacies of ADA compliance, and follow-up work upon a project's completion to make sure the products look as good as the day they were installed.

Tankless water heater manufacturer Noritz America has joined The Make It Right Foundation to help rebuild New Orleans. The foundation, created as a result of actor Brad Pitt's vision, is dedicated to build 150 green, affordable, energy-efficient homes in New Orleans' Lower 9th Ward.

Tim Shellenberger

Rheem Manufacturing Co. has named Tim Shellenberger vice president, general manager, Tankless Water Heating. Shellenberger, a 25-year industry veteran, most recently served as senior vice president, research and development engineering for Rinnai America Corp.

Julie Lemieux

Julien has named Julie Lemieux the new regional sales manager for the Julien Home Refinements Division. She had been with the company for more than three years as Business Development Manager, primarily with the Commercial division.

Moen Inc. has announced the promotion of Arthur Gallagher to the position of regional manager of Commercial Sales, Northeast Region. He joined Moen in 2001 as a territory manager and was promoted to senior territory manager in 2006.

Elkay Manufacturing Co.'s Walter E. Reilly, corporate vice president and chief human resources officer, plans to retire from Elkay at the end of March 2008. Reilly's role at Elkay included activities such as labor and employee relations, organization and leadership development and employee health and wellness.

American Standard has become the first founding partner of the innovative GreenPlumbers training and accreditation program. The goal of the program is to make this training free and available to all plumbers across the nation.

Fat Spaniel Technologies Inc., a provider of monitoring and reporting services for distributed energy systems, announced a partnership with renewable energy systems manufacturer EnerWorks Inc. to deliver smart solar hot water systems.

ALNO recently joined the U.S. Green Building Council to serve on LEED or USGBC committees to shape the future of LEED and green building.

Nearly 200 people gathered at the recent 2008 Green Manufacturing Summit in Milwaukee presented by Bradley Corp. in partnership with Wisconsin's Focus on Energy, to share green strategies to offset rising utility costs and increased global competition.

The Clean Chute line of trash removal products from Enviro-Trash Concepts permits the homeowner to easily remove trash and recyclables from the kitchen food preparation area via a stainless steel door and attached chute installed in the wall or back splash. The system eliminates the need for kitchen trashcans or compactors.

Ventex has introduced an odorless, eco-friendly, high-efficiency 1.28 gpf toilet that removes the odor and bacteria from the bowl through a heavy-duty exhaust fan that is attached to the back of the tank. The fan also removes the humidity from the rest of the bathroom, eliminating mold and mildew.

Sloan Valve Co. has received Platinum-level awards in the 2008 Awards for Design Excellence (ADEX) competition for its UPPERCUT Dual-Flush Flushometer (pictured right) and its SJS-1750 sensor-operated foam soap dispenser.

California Faucets has launched the new Virtual Faucet Creator at www.calfaucets.com . This new Web-based tool provides anyone with the ability to design their own custom bathroom faucet or kitchen faucet by combining any spout style with any handle, in any of over 25 decorative finishes (pictured left).

The American Supply Association (ASA) has announced seminars to introduce the Essentials of Profitable Showroom Sales course starting March 27 in Columbus, OH. The course will be taught by Hank Darlington, Supply House Times' showroom columnist.