qtion news

Carolinas-Tennessee Building Material Association has enlisted Lanny Moore to address "How to Hire, Train & Keep Great Employees" and "Yes, You Can Get Double Digit Profits" at the CarolinasTennessee Leaders' summer idea exchange July 15-18 at the Maggie Valley Resort & Country Club, Maggie Valley, N.C.

Virginia Building Material Association will hold its summer conference Aug. 12-15 in Virginia Beach.

The agenda features exhibits, memory expert Paul Mellor, committee meetings, golf and tennis tournaments, children's programs, and dinner/dance/casino night.

Kentucky Lumber & Building Material Dealers Association appointed Ron Goode, Cole Lumber Co., Paducah, chairman of its 95th annual convention Feb. 7-8 at the University Plaza Hotel & Convention Center, Bowling Green.

Florida Building Material Association has adopted the theme "FBMA in Paradise" for its 79th annual convention and trade show Nov. 4-6 in Fort Lauderdale. Among the changes are a casual "No Neckties" format and choice of golf in the morning or afternoon, so exhibitors can use the morning to set up their booth (or sleep in).

Dealers Gear Up For Confab

"New Tools, New Rules" is the theme of National Lumber & Building Material Dealers Association's 83rd annual convention Oct. l3-16 in Hilton Head. S.C.

Presentations include:

Keynote address by Roger Blackwell, addressing demographic trends;

. "Industry Consolidation," moderated by George Judd, Georgia-Pacific, with panelists Ben Phillips, Pelican; Manco Snapp, International Paper; Tony DeCarlo, LMC, and Allan Lang, Pulte Homes Corp.;

. "Lumberyard of the Future," with Wayne Wiggleton, Ace; Ray Gaster, Gaster Lumber, Savannah, Ga.; Dale Boozer, Boozer Lumber, Columbia, S.C.; Chris Krauter, Krauter Storage Systems;

. "lnstalled Sales" by Lumberjack's

Joe Natko and BMA's Roy Budeson; o National Associaiion of the Remodeling Industry representatives on "Remodelers: What Brings Them Back?"; o "Innovative Ways to Recruit and Retain Employees" by Deborah Hayden, Tindell's, Koxville, Tn., and Patti Williams, Brown Lumber & Supply, and

. "Sprawl buste/'Al Norman, with l0 reasons to take a stand against big boxes.

Also on the agenda: vendors showcase, committee meetings, golf toumament, and Technology Day, focusing on the Intemet, electronic commerce, dispatch and delivery software, and other new support tools,

"We find that local lumberyards aren't up to speed with technology the way their customers are. Contractors we work with often use the Internet at night to check their invoices. Even if the store is closed, they can send us e-mail."

- Jim Hopwood, v.p. offinutc4 Wickes Inc.