-Wheel Driwe Sp1yder

rNew Stability and safety systems

.Light-weight, better distribution (some models weighing only 3,500 lbs.)

.3,000-5,500 lb. lift capacity r Extend-A-Fork reaches across truck rNew counterweight system allows picking up longer, wider loads

.Engine and wheel motor options o2-Wheel and 4-Wheel drive models available.

BOB OSBORNE'S CUSTOMERS ARE THE PICKIEST BUNCH about White Lighlning's full line of caulks and sealants, grve us a call. Ibhff;[fJCftf$dff

OF BUILDERS AND PAINTERS IN THE NORTHEAST. HE KNOWS pRtcE rs IMPoRTANT, BUT QUALITY lS WHAT COUNTS. AND HE KNOWS HE'D BETTER KEEP PLENTY OF WHITE LIGHTNING IN STOCK.

"The builders and painters around here work on homes costinq up to d million dollars. Ol course they're picky," sdys Bob Osborne of Ridgefield Supply in Ridgelield, Connecticut. "When we starled cdrryrng White Lightning, these guys were skeptical. But we got it into lheir hands dl our Pro Show and they saw the smoolh llow dnd whiler tinish. lt was lhe most popular product line oul oI over a hundred. Then when they got it on the job and saw it didn't crack, had great slop-flow, |//,ttnE plus it even hdd rust and mildew inhibilors-well, now they won't use any- - --ffrrtrL th.ng else." Don't miss oul on this loyal kind of business. To lind ou, .or.

Gomputer Forum For Forest Industry

ForestNet, an electronic bulletin board system which reportedly could "interconnect all the people in the forest industry around the world," was slated to begin round-the+lock operation Aug. l.

Based in Eugene, Or., the system is designed to speed the dissemination of infonnation within the forest industry worldwide, permitting two-way communication on vital pending legislation, industry news and subjecs such as log expors, the best uses of radiata pine and the computerization of sawmills.

Typical users will be timberland owners, governmental agencies, and buyers and sellers of products from finished lumber to Christmas trees. Some companies will input their entire catalog of available equipment or industry services, while others will merely describe the products or services they make available or are seeking.

Global communication is provided through ForestNet's access to the huge public network Internet.

The subscription network is available to anyone with an IBM-mmpati- ble computer of model 286 capability or greater, modem, mouse and separate, dedicated telephone line.

The modem allows users to communicate with other subscribers via electronic mail and the mouse pennits scanning ForestNet's menus, transferring to appropriate sections of the data-base and exchanging data both in and out of the system.

An annual subscription costs $14.95 per month.

"$uote" of the Month

"There isn't a magic number (of Northern Spotted owls) that's enough in science. All of these decisions in the end turn out to be moral decisions..."

-JackWardTlnnws

U. S. Forest Semice Chief

Floods Strand Georgia Yards

Days of torrential rain in July caused severe flooding throughout south Georgia, bringing the building materials industry to a momentary halt.

Flooded roads and bridges forced closure of businesses all along the flood plains. One yard, Georgia Building Supply, Montezuma, was "totally wiped out " July 5 when a levee broke, flooding the entire town.

Waters reached 36 feet high, submerging the business and destroying all inventory. Six days later, officials were allowed in the building to begin inspection, clean-up and rebuilding.

Orders for drywall, doors and windows began trickling in at Giles Building Materials, Albany, though residents are "still in the tearing out srage, seeing what they can salvage."

"It's loo early now," agrees Bill Parks, Building Materials Wholesale, Albany. "People are stripping off drywall and insulation. They'll be coming in within 30, 60, 90 days."

Mills in the area seem to have escaped major damage, though they are expected to experience log problems for several weeks due to swamped trees and access roads.

New Regulations Effective For Florida Retailers

Several new Florida regulations will affect lumber and building material retailers, especially those operating in Dade Cormty.

Believing that tougher building codes could have saved the county from much of the $25 billim in damage caused by Hurricane Andrew two years ago, Dade County established rigorous wind and water resistance standards for roofs, windows and doors and a warning systern for buyers of building materials.

A mandatory black and orange sign must be posted in any outlet selling lumber, hardware or building materials to warn that naterial sold on the premises "may not be in compliance with the minimum requirements of the South Florida Building Code.' Although the regulation will not be effective until Sept. l, many dealers in the area are already complying with iL

Unrelated to building codes but also affecting lumber and building material retailers, a Florida Department of Environmental Protection regulation aims to reduce mercury contamination in the state. Business- es that generate more than l0 spent fluorescent light bulbs per month can dispose of them only by recycling or in a permitted, lined landfill.

Effective since July I, the ruling allows businesses generating fewer than 10 spent bulbs a month to dispose of them in their trash. However, state officials hope mmicipalities will establish collection and recycling procedures that eliminate dl spent fluorescent bulbs from landfills.

Florida Dealer Task Force

Florida Lumber & Building Material Dealers Association and Florida Home Builders Association have jointly organized a Residential Building Industry Task Force to develop guidelines "to promote quality, cost effective residential constmction tbrough consistent interpretation and enforcement of residential building codes, and to make recurmendations regarding production of affordable and safe housing in Florida."

The committee has divided into two sub-committees to consider the stat€ building ode and code administration.

At the May 4 neetings in Orlando, they recommended inviting realtors, lenden and homeowner association f€presentatives to the next meeting in the fall. Sub-commiuees will continue to meet during the summer.

Remodeling Permits Fall

Remodeling permit values in Oe South fell 3.3% from 53,66,2,46 in 1992 to $3,541,370 in 1993, Bureau of Census figures show.

Tbe highest increase was 13.7% in Oklahoma. Kentucky's -15.5% was the most severc decrease.

Although only about 13% of all residential remodeling projects receive permits, permit values can be used !o track mfrtet trends.

Other states with increases: Mississippi (13.2%), Arkansas (7-8%), Georgia (3.9%), Texas (3.1%), Tennessee (2.5%), Louisiam (2.27o) and North Carolina (0.6%). Permits dropped in Virginia (9.2Vo), Florida (5.5%), South Carolina (4.9%) and (Alabama (0.6%\.

NAWLA Says Canadian Lumber Duty ls Wrong

As the industry awaited the latest decisions in the l0-year battle over Canadian softwood lumber subsidies, resulting U.S. duties and changes in Canadian governmental stumpage pricing policy, North American Wholesale Lumber Association issued a position statement criticizing the countervailing duty.

NAWLA points out that since North America is considered to be one market, no border should exist between Canada and the United States in the sale and distribution of lumber products. It expresses the association's belief in free and unfettered trade in forest products and that all governments should resist the pressure of self-interest groups and remove all barriers to free trade between the countries, helping to ensure a reliable, consistent, and economical supply for lumber products for the home building industry.

Results were due eady this month of a re-examination of methodology used to rule Canadian softwood lumber imports hurt the U.S. industry. This was requested July 6 by a bination panel which found the U.S.

Intemational Trade Commission erred in ruling Canadian softwood lumber imports hurt the U.S. Due Aug. 1 was the decision of an Extraordinary Challenge Committee reviewing if Canadian members of a previous binational panel were biased by connection to the Canadian forest products industry.

ESA Reorganization Bills

Maintaining that although the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has requested $880 million for recovery of endangered plants and animals, "it cannot cite a single success story in the 20 year history of the Endangered Species Act"" Southeastern Lumber Manufacturers Association is asking the industry to contact legislators requesting support of bills S. 1521 and H.R. 1490 for ESA reauthorization.

Pointing out that costs imposed on the private s@tor are not included in the FY/S projections and that the federal government has no idea of the true cost of the endangered species program, SLMA says, "The well intentioned ESA has become a black hole for taxpayer dollars."

Recovery costs for the four most expensive plans, says the association: Atlantic green turtle, $88,236,000; loggerhead tutle, $85,947,000; bluntnosed leopard lizard, $70,252,000, and Kemp's Ridley sea turtle, $63,600,000.

Bald eagle and peregrine falcons are not included in the top 25 because their recoveries, despite being the biggest species recovery sucoess stories, did not come from the mandates of the ESA but from the banning of DDT, SLMA concludes.

Be Your Own Checker

Home center customers may one day tally up their own purchases electronically as they wheel through the aisles.

Recently previewed to supemmrket executives, the scanning device lets shoppers record the price of each item. Shoppers first register bank accounf numbers, then keep a running total of purchases and run their own register receipts. A cashier visually checks the tallied purchases.

o lHera.ffif o SpF o Weffiun W@ds o Doatg0ao Ffitr - [€8@h atb o Fflrypdoffi tsthnb :o{htrand Bmoftly o EHgp doocd hnctb -dhram heftW o Booe Shooft

Cleaning Up ln The Moulding Aisle

As moulding becomes increasingly a fashion product, the importance of displaying it in a pleasant sales environment also increases. Yet self-service moulding racks invite consumers to break bundles and pick through sticks. And an unkenpt moulding aisle can kill sales fast.

"Women in particulr are drawn to mouldings, and if they see a dirty, messy display, they'll turn around and walk ou!" says John Caroll, CanoU Moulding Co., Huntinglon Beach, Ca "They want them neatly organized in a display, properly labeled and price( with signage."

"It's unfortrmate," he adds, "but a lot of stores tend to forget about the moulding display."

Tbe point was driven home recently after Carroll shipped one home oent€r a rather large order. Tbe justpromoted store manager had no idea what to do with the 200 bundles, so he just bad them placed in any bin that wasn't full. "It looked like a bomb blew (the area) up," recalled Ctrroll.

The disributor's local sales rep'resentative spent 14 hours pulling out every stick and bundle, cleaning out the bins and reaganizing them. He then explained the importance of a neat display and a liule busekeeping to the new manager.

Though some disributors p'rovide basic moulding aisle mamEne@ for' retailers, Australian company Porta Mouldings takes it a step further. Porta has for some time been concerned about the effect of store and yard dust upon its @earan€ mouldings, racked and awaiting sale.

Yet it discover€d it nealy inpossible to markedly change retailers' behavior. So Pcta decided !o provful,e a regulr vacuum cleaning service to dealers displaying their Power Aisle racks. Sdes representatives make their regular calls on reiailers, wilh compact vacuums strapped to their backs o clean the strings and dust ont of the bonom of the mouHing bins.

"Few people really Olerafe soiled product on display," says Porta mrketing manager Bob Lamb. 'Yard management all too often simply dismisses grime and dust as inevitable andjust part of the business cycle, but professionally-nm stfies are demanding better, and tbey supptrt chrnge."

Lamb says thefu'Rack Vac" service 'ensures a better selling and stocking environmenl It can't totally resolve the issue but it's a positive step that will be actnowledged and x6slaim6[ by progressive resellen."

EDI: More Floor-Ready Goods

Retailers predict in three years, nearly half of all merctrandise will be processed using Electnmic Data Interchange for order ransrctionsrbotifi qltions and managed under Quick Response prognams, a process of r4idly replenishing product to retailers in short interval cycles.

In addition, half of all merchandise will be prepared by vendors in a 'floor ready''mode wberc all packaging and tagging is omplete before tbe merchandise is ship@ to the retailer, an International Mass Retail Assciation sudy r€ports.

Coupled with EDI, bo coding and scanning technologies, this 'floof r€ady" mode will minimize handling for retailers, allowing rerchandise to flow through the retail sup'ply line !o stores more rapidly.