Seattle's Dunn Lumber Rolls Out First Hybrid

Eleven-unit Dunn Lumber, Seattle, Wa., has added to its pickup and delivery fleet the first Kenworth mediumduty, hybrid-electric truck in the U.S.

"Dunn Lumber strives to be an environmental leader, and we're excited to put the new Kenworth mediumduty hybrid into service as a step to help reduce emissions and improve fuel economy," said Rob Dunn, c.e.o. of Dunn Lumber.

The vehicle is designed to enhance fuel economy by up to 30Vo in startand-stop applications. Kenworth is offering limited production of medium-duty hybrid trucks for municipal fleets and utility companies this year with full-scale production expected to follow in 2008.

Above 30 mph, the hybrid operates like a standard diesel vehicle with all power coming from the engine during steady driving conditions. Below 30 mph, it uses a combination of diesel and electricity with the system automatically switching between the two modes of operation. Electricity generated through regenerative braking is stored and used,for acceleration, assisting the diesel engine.

Dunn's new Kenworth Class 7 hybrid, which can carry a payload of up to 16,000 lbs., features a Peccen PX-6 240 hp engine, integral transmission-mounted motor/generator, framemounted 340-volt battery, and dedicated power management system.

"We've been extremely happy with the performance of the new Kenworth hybrid," said Mark Geyer, fleet manager for Dunn in Seattle. "It's still very early. but fuel economy is up an estimated 357o in the first few weeks of operation compared to one of our similarly spec'd Kenworth T300s. The truck also looks great and is extremely quiet, which is a big plus."

The Dunn Lumber fleet includes four Kenworth T800 Class 8 trucks and six other Kenworth medium-duty conventionals that run between 20,000 to 26,000 miles annually to meet the needs of customers in Seattle's healthy home project and construction market.

"We cannot afford downtime, so we rely on Kenworths," added Geyer, who will receive service support on the new hybrid from Kenworth Northwest, its local truck dealer.

Temple Selling Timberlands

Temple-Inland, Austin, Tx., has agreed to sell 1.55 million acres of timberland to an investment unit of Campbell Group Inc., Portland, Or., for $2.38 billion.

Earlier in the year, Temple-Inland announced it would spin off its financial-services and real-estate operations and sell its timberland, but retain its manufacturing operations.

The company expects to net $1.8 billion from the sale, of which $700 million will be used to pay down debt and $1.1 billion will be distributed to stockholders as a special $10.24-pershare dividend.

The sale, anticipated to close in the fourth quarter, includes a 2o-year fiber supply agreement for pulpwood and a l2-year fiber supply agreement for sawtimber.

Campbell also agreed to continue Temple-Inland's conservation standards and focus on environmental stewardship.

In all, Temple-Inland owns 1.8 million acres of timberland in Texas, Louisiana, Alabama and Georgia.

Buyers Booted For Kickbacks

Home Depot fired four merchandising managers for allegedly accepting kickbacks totaling as much as $ I million, in exchange for stocking stores with tile and other flooring products from unnamed Asian vendors.

Spokesperson Jeny Shields said the three men and one woman were fired in late July for "not following company ethics and business conduct." He described the four as lower-level managers who worked at company headquarters in Atlanta, Ga., but would not name them or say how long they had worked for the chain.

"It is important to note that this matter does not have a material effect on our consolidated financial conditions or results of operations," read a

Depot statement. "Maintaining our ethical standards is of utmost importance to The Home Depot and is something we enforce strongly."

Depot said that an unidentified person brought the matter to the company's attention and it started reviewing the situation immediately. Although the matter is under investigation, it was not clear if any criminal charges had been or will be brought.

As a result of this incident, Depot instituted a "zero-tolerance policy when it comes to gifts and entertainment of any kind when it comes to the vendor-merchandiser relationship. "

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