"Other Room" Gabinet Market

A NEW MARKET is opcning up Fl fbr the lumber. burlding matcrials, and home center de alers as thc trcnd for built-in furniture beconres increasingly popular.

More and more home owners are discovering that the look and quality of fine furniture provided by cabinets nrade for kitchens and baths works well in other rooms. Alert to the ol.rportunity, cabinet nranufacturers are developing spccial purposc cabirrets designed spccifically for fanrily, living, dining ancl bedroonrs. With the introduction of these new products. the dealer is gorng to be able to compete for his share of the $3 billion householcl l-urniture market.

Wholc housc cabinet planning centers will enirble dealers to denronstrate the advantages ofthe functional nrodnlar cabinets and show how they can be substituted for costll, cusl.onr-nracle cabinetry. Tor"rgh cnough for ruggcd family usc, thc units give thc consumer the advantage of planning individual storage to uncluttcr his home, ancl save space whilc adding handsonre decorative l'eatures.

An addrtional advantage for the clcalcr is the honreowncr's ability to pu1, for the purchasc and installation of built-ins through a mortgage or homeowner loan. Built-in furniture along with built-in appliances, and wall-to-wall carpeting qualifies for this type of financing.

The dealer who decides to capitalize on this new market will find support and cooperation available fronr nran ulacturers, especial ly in the fornr of advertising. The National Kitchen Cabinet Association is llrunching a contntunieations and cducalional cl'fort directed at consumers with promotion alrcady distributecl to the editors rrnd rctrril adr ertising ntunugers ot' 2700 newspapers.

lndustry spokesnrcn predict "the other room" look will have ir.npact on both consunrers and the t rad c.

HAll0S0ME EUltT-ltl furniture is as versatrle as it is attractive.0uality appearance and rugged durability make it a logical choice lor the homeowner. Dealers can capitalize on the "other ro0m" use by offering customers help in planning individual storage Jor individual needs.

Plans to force manufacturers of foam insulation to remove the product from existing homes "would be catastrophic," says the National Association of Home Builders in response to a State of Massachusetts move to force removal of the formaldehyde foam..

Other states are expected to follow suit; cost estimates range up to $20,000 per house; more than 600,000 homes nationally have urea formaldehyde foam insufation. . . complaints of physical distress apparently triggered the action. for related coverage. see p. 6 of this issue.

Foam removal is tantamount to destruction of large sections of the house, experts say. . the Consumer Products Safety Commission is expected to consider instituting a national ban of the produclthis year, the State of Massachusetts banned formaldehyde foam last Nov. .

The State of Washington says 85%o - 90% of the timber blown down by the Mount St. Helens volcanic erruption con be salvaged, providedroads and bridges are promptly restored. major problems: effects of ash onlog cutting machinery and tree hauling vehicles.

WWPA, Portland, Or., formally requested the Trans-Continental Freight Bureau to squash the railroads' application for elimination of transit privileges. .

Arcata Lumber Co. is the new name for the former Simonson Lumber Div., Smith River. Ca.. of Arcata Forest Products Group, Arcata, Ca.

Palmer G. Lewis Co., Inc., Auburn, Wa., is negotiating sale of its Alaska subsidiary, Superior Building Supply, to Lanoga Corp. as part of the proposed deal .PGL would acquire Lanoga's Galco,a wholesale distributor based' in Tacoma. Wa. ..

After 5 straight monthly declines, housing starts in June (latest figs) popped up a record 30.4% while building permits, a harbinger of future construction activity, advanced a healthy 28.40/0, a strong indicator that the improved'activity would continue.

Starts hit a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,191,000 units, compared to 913,000 in May. the improved pace was still 37.6% behind June '79. single family starts were up 18.9010, multifamily housing was up a whopping 55.80/0.

Swanson Timber Co., is a new office wholesaler opened by Alan Swanson, 125 Preston Dr., Cloverdale, Ca... Goodyear Nelson. Sedro-Woolley, Wa., is now a subsidiary of Swaner Hardwood Co., Inc. Burbank, Ca. . . Villeroy & Boch Inc. is opening a showroom and warehouse in Anaheim, Ca.,. . . Payless Cashways has a No. Phoenix, Az., store in the works.

The Federal Trade Commission has rejected LouisianaPacific Corp.'s petition to keep its medium density fiberboard plant in Rocklin, Ca. . L-P's new computerized sawmill in Columbia Falls, Mt. is now operational.

Rolando Lumber Co., Inc. marked the opening of their new yard & office at 26A0 Williams St., San Leandro, Ca., with a well attended open house. . . Sterling Lumber & Investment, Denver, Co., is closing its wholesale div., keeping their retail yards.

The ldaho Pole Div., MacFarland Cascade, Tacoma, Wa., is building a new Wolman CCA plant in Bozeman, Mt., due to come on line later this yr. Idaho Timber Corp. has opened a lumber distribution and remanufacturing plant in Boise. Id. ..

Bldg. permits for single family homes rose 25.loh as permits for multifamily units climbed 32.40/0.. . National Association of Home Builders' economist Michael Sumichrast said that "Clearly, housing start Jigures reached the bottom in May". .

The prime rate, the base or lowest lending rate on corp. loans, is expected to fall again, to a general level of approx. l0t/tok in the next feh, weeks.. some foresee an 81/zo/o prime rate by the beginning of '81.

South Bav Forest Products has paved 2.5 acres of 8 acres recently added to their Orange, Ca., facility, as well as adding a dry shed and an 8 car Southern Pacific rail spur to complement their existing AT&SF 10 car rail spur. .

While reporting a 770/o drop in constuction for '80, F.W. Dodge is predicting a 500/o upswing for '81.. Masonite has reported 290 earning per share this year, vs. 890 last year.

U.S. business confidence

dropped to a record low in the 2nd quarter of '80 on the Conference Board's broad-based index. the fed. gov. plans to cut the timber harvest levels in the National Forests in '81, which is expected by industry to result in reduced supply of wood products and higher prices.