CALBDYDAR

Listings are often submitted months in advance, Always verify dates and locations with sponsor before making plans to attend.

October

National Hoo-Ifoo-Ette Club - Oct. 14, board meeting, Seattle, Wa.;(503) 672-6528.

National Hardwood Lumber Association - Oct. l4-l1. annual meeting, Omni Netherlands Plaza, Cincinnati, Oh.; (901) 3771818, lfardware Wholesalers Inc. - Oct. 2l-24, market Indianapolis, In.; (219) 748-5300.

Forest Products Conference - Oct. 15-17, Sheraton Grand Torrey Pines Hotel, La Jolla , Ca; (617) 27l-0030.

National Forest Products Week - Oct. 15-21.

North American Wholesale Lumber Association - Oct. 17. regional meeting, Rose Garden Sports Arena, Portland, Or.; (800) 527-82s8.

Saie - Oct. 18-22, building materials show, Bologna, Italy.

National Hardwood Day - Oct. 20.

Colorado Woodworking Show - Oct.20-22, National Western Complex, Denver, Co.; (800) 826-8257.

Cotter & Co. - Oct. 20-24,5t. Louis, Mo.; (312)975-Ut3.

San Diego lfoo-Hoo Club - Oct. 2l-22, casino weekend, Flamingo Hilton, Laughlin, Nv.; (619) 263-3131.

American Hardboard Association - Oct. 2l-24. annual meeting, Sun River Resort, Sun River, Or.; (708) 934-8394.

National Sash & Door Jobbers Association - Oct. 21-25, annual convention, Marriott's Copley Place and Sheraton Boston Hotel, Boston, Ma.; (708) 299-3400.

Woodworking Machinery & Supply Show - Oct.27-29, International Centre, Toronto, Canada; (416) 491-7565.

Ace ffardware Corp. - Oct. 27-30, fall convention, Colorado Convention Center, Denver, Co.; (708) 990-6600.

Forest Products Society - Oct. 30.Nov. 1, drying conference, Hyatt Regency Bellevue, Bellevue, Wa.; (608) 231-1361.

November

Western Wood Preservers Institute - Nov. 1-4, annual meeting, Newport Beach Marriott Hotel & Tennis Club, Newport Beach, Ca.; (206) 693-9958.

Building Industry Show - Nov. 2-3, Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim, Ca.; (909) 396-9993.

Lumber Association of Southern California - Nov. 2-4, annual meeting, La Quinta Resort, La Quinta, Ca.; (619) 564-3312.

Mountain States Lumber & Building Material Dealers Association - Nov. 2-5, fall conference, Inn at Loretto, Santa Fe, N.M.; (800) 365-0919.

Specialty Tools & Fasteners Distributors Association - Nov. 4-8, show, Honolulu, Hi.

Batimat'95 - Nov.6-11, expo, Paris, France; (617) 426-8200.

American Fiberboard Association - Nov. 7-8, annual meeting, Chicago, Il.; (708) 934-8394.

Pacific Coast Industrial & Machine Tool Show - Nov. 7-9. Convention Center, Santa Clara, Ca.; (800) 286-2882.

Lumber Merchants Assn. -Nov. 9-ll, annual convention, Hyatt at Fisherman's Wharf, San Francisco, Ca.; (916) 369-7501.

Western Building Material Association - Nov. 10-14, annual convention, Red Lion Inn-Lloyd Center, Portland, Or.; (360) 943-3054.

Creditors Battle For Preston

A federal bankruptcy judge has approved converting Preston Lumber, Cloverdale, Ca., from a Chapter 7 liquidation to a Chapter 1l reorganization, so creditors may be able to reopen the mills.

Although it is usually the debtor that pushes for a Chapter ll, Preston Lumber owner James Blevins has not appeared in court, nor has his attorney. The company would be handed over to its log suppliers, who initially forced the company into bankruptcy to prevent its sale for $1.3 million to RJS Timber Products, headed by Roger Burch (see Sept., p. 24).

The suppliers, owed $3.1 million, feared if the company was sold, all the money would go to Sumitomo Bank, which is owed $9.5 million.

A financial and operational plan showing how the company can be saved has been submitted on behalf of supplier Richard Priest, Healdsburg. Under the yet-to-be-approved plan, suppliers would form a new company, Russian River Sawmills, to assume control of Preston's two idle mills.

Priest would serve as president, Dean Rose as operations manager, and creditor Gary Luiz as general

Mountain States Lumber & Building Material Dealers Association's fall management conference Nov. 2-4 at the Inn at Loretto in historic Santa Fe, N.M., will focus on "People: Your Most Valuable Asset."

Speakers include Jim Pence, James M. Pence & Associates, addressing "Better manager. Luiz vows he can supply the firm with enough logs to continue operations through the spring.

The plan claims the smaller Philo, Ca., mill could be running by Nov. 1, with the Cloverdale plant up by May. The mills would net a profit of $1.6 million in the first year, the plan said.

It could take up to three court hearings to get a plan approved, with the first set for Oct. 6 in Santa Rosa. The creditors would then have until Nov.

People = Better Profits;" trainer Jack Rice on "Are You Managing Your Business or Is It Managing You?" and "Employee Development: Training or Motivation," and trade magazine publisher Wyatt Kash, presenting a five-year strategic outlook on the retail building materials industry. Roundtable sessions will also be held.

13 to show the court they could successfully run the timber company.

"We're talking about some creditors who lost a lot of money. They want some time (to see if they can save the company)," said judge Alan Jaroslovsky, who will appoint a trustee to oversee the reorganization.

Sumitomo Bank and RJS Timber Products strongly opposed the conversion to Chapter 11, calling it a "stalling tactic" to hang up the sale.

Another Wholesaler Selling Independents Only

"You must bar code each stick of lumber. Your truck must be here on Tuesdays between 6:00 a.m. and 6:15 a.m., otherwise your shipment will not be accepted. Your prices must be much lower and include advertising dollars. Prices must be protected for a long time, no matter what happens to the market. Finally, we want a long time to pay your invoices."

Maddened by such demands from warehouse chains, Hall Forest Products Inc., Tacoma, Wa., has vowed to sell only to independent lumber yards.

Hall is sending customers a series of fliers detailing why it has never, nor will ever, deliver to any big box store. The first mailing included a petition signed by Hall owners and employees vowing to buy all their lumber products from independents.

Still, the company admits that selling to both big boxes and independents sounds like smart business, and doesn't slight other cedar distributors who sell both. Hall reasons that the independent who buys from such distributors is indirectly underwriting or financing their sales to the boxes.

So selling to big box stores that "flaunt their intention to eliminate the independent dealer from the distribution chain" doesn't fit Hall's niche.

"We have a keen interest in supporting the independent lumber yard," explained sales mgr, James Sherman.

"Through the years, it has been the traditional lumber yard that has bought our materials and indirectly fed our families, paid the doctor bills and sent our children to college."

Southwest Logging Ban

Logging is being banned on national forests in Arizona and New Mexico until the Forest Service finishes consultation on Mexican Spotted Owl-related forest plans, as required under the Endangered Species Act.

The Arizona district court judge also enjoined all timber harvesting on Navajo Indian lands until completion of consultation on the tribe's forest plan.

The owl was listed under the ESA in March 1993 by the Fish & Wildlife Service.

"I said, 'It can't be true. Nobodv is that stupid."'

- Rep. Jack Metcalf (R-Wa.), who persuaded the Forest Service to postpone painting newly exposed rocks along a highway through the Cascade Mountains to make them look older.

Gameron Ashley Buys Star

Cameron Ashley Inc., Dallas, Tx., has acquired the Arizona, Utah and Oregon businesses of building products distributor Star, Inc.

With 1994 sales of $37 million, the acquired operations are United Wholesale Distributors, Phoenix and Mesa, Az.; P/K Supply Co., Salt Lake City, Provo and Ogden, Ut., and Westar Building Materials, Eugene and Portland, Or.

Wholesaler Accused Of Fraud

The National Bank of the Redwoods has accused a Healdsburg, Ca., wholesaler of defrauding a bank subsidiary of $255,000 to save his now defunct Empire Lumber Co., according to the Press Democrat.

Owner Simon Procopenko's troubles began in l99l when he decided to add a home center across the street from his wholesale office. As the economy worsened, he sold his accounts receivable at a discount to the bank's factoring company, which would then collect the bills.

Procopenko finally sold the store to Garrett Hardware & Plumbing Co., Healdsburg. But while the sale was in escrow, the bank decided to close the company April 14 to preserve the inventory. The sale to Garrett was completed about a month later.

After the bank took possession of Empire's records, nine customers denied owing money to Empire. The bank's lawsuit claims they received "fraudulently transmitted invoices" that Empire knew had already been paid or were for goods never delivered or never even ordered.

Procopenko's attorney Glenn Smith attributed any misunderstanding to the company's financial struggles and being forced to shut down with one hour of notice at 4 p.m. on a Friday.

Confidence Slipping Again

Wholesaler-distributor confidence in cuffent business is waning for both the short- and long-term, according to the National Association of WholesalerDistributors' confidence index survey.

Many cited an inability to maintain high second quarter 1995 sales and profitability levels for short-term concern (next three months).

For the long-term (next 12 months), worries over increased competition, decreasing margins and an uncertain economy contributed to the slightly lower confidence level.

White Lightning Purchased

The Sherwin-Williams Co. has signed a definite agreement to acquire the assets of privately held White Lightning Products Corp., Bellevue, Wa.

The companies expect that the White Lightning brand will form the nucleus of a wholly-owned SherwinWilliams subsidiary.

The transaction is set to close at the end of October.

Whether your lumber or ours, hardwood or softwood, Precision specializes in hard-to-run orders. Next time your milltells you it can't be done...