PETERMAN LurrlBER, Ir,..

FONTANA. CA., 10330 EIM Ave., Fontana, Ca. 92335, (7141 829-3466 Qr3) 585-8657

LAS VEGAS, NV., 2901S. Highland Ave., Bldg 1D, Las Vegas, Nv. 89109 002\ 733-4011

FOR CUSTOM MILLING you can count on us to do a better' more professional job in serving all your custom milling needs' our Indian Hill Milling Inc. subsidiary, conveniently located at our new Fontana plant, will do a better job for you'

Sales of housewares manufacturers hit a record $17.5 billion in 19g0, an increase of lls/o over 1979, Ronald A. Fippinger, managing director of the National Housewlrei Manufacturers Association, 8nnounced.

"Despite the various uncertainties of last year's economic climate," he said, "the housewares industry pretty well held its own and started lggl on an optimistic and upbeat note. The first year of the '80s decade proved to be the biggest-ever sales year for manufacturers."

One out of three manufacturers (3390) reported 1980 total sales of more than $5 million, while nearly half (4990) reported sales of under $2.5 million last year, according to the survey.

The report shows that manufacturers' sales directly to retail outlets in 1980 continued the trend set over the past decade, reaching a record 8l9o of the industry,s total g17.5 billion sales last year. Of the $14.2 billion volume to retailers, 29go went to mass merchandisers; while catalog showrooms and department stores, with l29o each, tied for second place. Discount stores, a category not previously defined by respondents in the ongoing annual survey, ranked third, at 8 go.

The l99o of manufacturers' total sales to wholesale outlets in l9g0 was at the lowest level in the l4-vear history of the study. Of that $3.3 billion volume, housewares,/hardware distributors, together with electric housewares distributors, accounted for more than half.

An average of 8lgo of manufacturers' orders were filled immediately in 1980, comparable to five years earlier; and the average number of days accounts receivable were outstanding was 51, as against 53 days in 1975. However, the 23t/o of receivables paid within 45 days was the lowest in the five-year period.

An inventory of the housewares industry's prevailing attitudes and anticipated problems for l98l indicates that manufacturers' most signicant concerns relate to rising interest rates and costs ofoverhead. as well as collections or accounts receivable time. The former concerns were noted by 360/o of manufacturers, and the latter by 2lo/o; whereas just two years ago, only nine 9o and five go, respectively, noted those problems for 1979.

The study also indicated that manufacturers perceive a change in r-etailgls' buying attitudes. Among the l09o who cited this as a newlyrecognized problem for 1981, there were references to some retailers "reducing their inventories and concentrating on more utilitarian and practical, rather than luxury or high-ticket items." Only one go of manufacturers reported they anticipate no problems of any kind this year.

Color preference trends for housewares set in previous years were maintained in 1980. Almond, at 48s/0, for kitchen appliances and accessories, is the highest noted kit- chen color since the popularity of avocado in the early 1970s, with white ranking second for 1980. Brown, almond and white are the top colors for serving and buffet products and accessories, in that order. Brown, white and blue rank one-two-three for bath and closet products and accessories. Finally, green, yellow and brown are the most popular colors for outdoor products and accessories, in that order.

TRAVELIiIG the territory t0 see his members, executive v.p.'of the Arizona Lumber and Builders Supply Association, Frank Davis, (second trom lefi) is here seen at South Bay Forest Products'C0., 0ranoe. Ca., which ioined the association iast velr, joining a number ot Southern California iirms that belong lo the Arizona group. pointing to Lhe Tap is South Bay piesident Jim Frodsham, at right Oou! Wittis. At teft, another visiting Arizonian, Marv Setzer, Westwood Builders Supply, Phoenix.

Computer language can be overwhelming when you first shop for a small computer. A few basic terms will help the communication Process.

ierminal: television-like devices on which information is displayed. Cathode-ray-tube models are recommended wlth display panels large enough to show 24 lines of 80 characters each. The keyboard used to change the copy should be the same as a regular

The Merchant Magazine typewriter. A separate calculator-style keyboard facilitates numerical entries. liord length.' the number of bits of information a computer cin handle in one operation. A 16-bit word lengih is the minimum for business; home computers can operate with eight bits.

Printers: type out information on paper' Letterquality models give a typewritten look b-ut are more expensive than the matrix printers which form letters out bf dots and sometimes require special paper. It is more economical to buy the letter-quality in the beginning than to upgrade from a matrix tYPe.

Ruggectness: durability of the equipment' Look for a sturdilhassis, easy to remove circuit boards for servicing, exterior panels to protect equipment.

Bit: the smallest unit of information a computer can recognize.

Byies: equal to iight bits, measures a computer's capacity. -RAM: main random-access memory which stores software and programs. A business-system memory requires 64,000 bYtes.

Disks: auxiliary memory-storage devices which augment the RAM. Number, size, and type are determined by need. (One 4Vz " floppy disk holds 250 customer billing files.)

-Expansion: modification necessary to add terminals, storage capacity or a different printer including cost'

Uisradins: using terminals, software, and peripheral "quipm"nt *ith more powerful models when expansion limits are reached.