• The Northwestern Lumber Association and the Wisconsin Retail Lumber Association will merge formally on Jan. 1. Wisconsin will continue to have its own annual meeting; the next one will be Feb. 10-11 in Wisconsin Dells, Wis. More
• JT’s Lumber Co. of Rhode Island officially began operations this week as a unit of Long Island, N.Y.’s Riverhead Building Supply. JT will keep its name.
• Parr Lumber of Hillsboro, Ore., closed its Milwaukie, Ore., yard effective Oct. 31.
• ProBuild’s facility in Meridian, Idaho, will be honored by three city groups tonight for its recycling efforts. According to a press report, the ProBuild yard recycled 145,545 pounds of material over the last year
.• Ralph A. Esty and Sons Lumber Co. of Groveland, Mass., has closed after 92 years of operation.
• How intense can building material dealers get? Green Bay Packers fan Joel Fleischman of Campbellsport (Wis.) Building Supply got so worked up over Bret Favre playing for the Minnesota Vikings that he started a website called JudasFavre.com and is selling shirts with Favre’s old Packers number and word “Judas” on the back. Revenue from the sales go to a charity.

Industry/Product Briefs

• Fiberon has expanded its distribution agreement with CertainTeed Corp. to promote even more Fiberon decking and railing products. Beginning this week, CertainTeed will tout Fiberon decking that incorporates PermaTech surface technology, along with Fiberon’s primary composite decking product and a complementary PVC composite railing line.
• Snavely Forest Products elected Mark L. Spargo a vice president of the company..
• BlueLinx has begun distributing LifeTime Lumber in Northern California.
• Owens Corning announced a new program that simplifies recycling asphalt shingles for its Preferred Roofing Contractors. Based on a pilot conducted in Indiana, Owens Corning will roll out the program nationally, starting in the Midwest.
• Tarco introduced NR500 Ice and Water Armor to its LeakBarrier underlayment line of products.
• FibaFuse is rolling out Paperless Wall Reinforcement, a new way to reinforce plaster walls and permanently repair damaged walls and ceilings.
• MAI Doors has revamped its website, www.maidoors.com.
• Kolbe has published a new "Green Initiatives" brochure that shows how its window and door products can contribute to sustainable design projects. The brochure also describes how its products can help owners comply with green building programs.
• Bob Wiltse, the former marketing director at Concord (Mass.) Lumber Corp., announced the creation of The LBM Marketing Network, designed to help small and mid-size retailers “sell more, profit more and capture greater market share.” The package includes marketing and advertising ideas, teleconferences, online discussion groups, and a marketing review.

Do you have a question, a tip, or a sage piece of wisdom? Feel free to contact ProSales' editor, Craig Webb, at cwebb@hanleywood.com.

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