don't mess with texas - phcp pros

JANUARY 2010VOL 65, NO. 1

News of Plumbing • Heating • Cooling • Industrial Piping Distribution

Brauer Supplyopens KC DCSt. louIS — Brauer Supply, the 129-

year-old family owned HVaC, ther-

mal insulation, air filtration and

fastener wholesaler headquartered

here, opened a distribution center in

the Kansas City Metro area. the new

24,000-square-foot facility is located

at 74 South James Street in Kansas

City, Kan., and features a showroom

and extensive inventory of equip-

(Turn to St. Louis... page 73.)

AHR Expo to fetteinnovators for ’10WeStPort, Conn. — nine companies

offering a variety of exciting, new

and innovative products have been

selected as winners of the prestigious

aHr expo Innovation award. the

winners will be honored at a special

ceremony at the event on January 26.

In addition, one of these nine cate-

gory winners will be selected as the

overall winner of the 2010 aHr

expo Product of the Year award at

(Turn to Innovation... page 73.)

(Turn to HVAC... page 86.)

Chris Couvillion, Houston-area sales manager for Ferguson, and Ty Tipton, principal

and owner of Tipton Company, are bullish on the benefits of Navien tankless water

heaters and are seeing a great demand for them in the Houston market. In dealing with

customers, they particularly stress the environmentally friendly engineering of the units,

which can lead to tremendous energy savings and water conservation, along with the

fact that they can be used in a broad range of applications. Learn more in a feature

article that begins on page 56.

Don’t Mess With Texas

Johnstone meetingfeatures awardsPortland, ore. — Johnstone Supply

Inc., a national leader in HVaCr dis-

tribution, hosted a successful and op-

timistic 2009 annual Member’s

Meeting in dallas this fall. despite a

INNOVATION TIMES FOUR.

Please see our ad

on page 23.

2010 Indu

stry

Fore

cast

Issue!

For

ecas

t beg

ins o

n pag

e 24

.

It’s Easy Being Green… and Warm!

Fujitsu makes it hard not to be green with a Federal Tax Credit of 30% and utility bill savings of up to 50%*.

With today’s economy in turmoil, green is the “in” color. Most people don’t realize that as much as half of the energy used in their home goes to heating and cooling. Fujitsu’s energy efficient ductless mini-split heat pumps can save homeowners up to 50% on their heating and cooling bill.*

Homeowners can claim 30% of the equipment and labor costs (up to a $1,500 limit) in 2010 on qualifying Fujitsu systems: 9RLS, 12RLS, 15RLQ. Fujitsu has the most efficient heat pump in North America — 26-SEER, plus 10 Fujitsu systems are ENERGY STAR® qualified in 2010.

Heat pumps provide year round heating and cooling solutions. If winter temperatures in your area drop below 14°F� , heat pumps can be combined with fossil fuel equipment to create a dual-fuel system (part electric, part oil, gas or propane), minimizing expensive fossil fuel costs.

To find out how you can become a Halcyon Dealer and how being green can

make you more green, visit

www.fujitsugeneral.com

November 1 - January 31, 2010Consumers directly receive

up to $300 on select systems.

*Savings may vary based on model selected, hours of operation and geographical location. Example given based on 26-SEER system versus 13-SEER system. Some Fujitsu heat pumps are rated down to 5°F or even 0°F. A load calculation should be performed for proper sizing.

26-SEER12-HSPF

See contact information on page 90

6 • •THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010


IN THIS ISSUE

The Front Pagein houston, Ferguson and tiptonCompany are working to change themindset of contractors and consumerswhen it comes to tankless waterheaters. and it’s paying off. among thebenefits they cite are energy savings,water conservation and the versatilityto be used in a broad range of appli-cations. Read more from their per-spective and that of a local contractorin a feature beginning on page 56.

In the Newsardente Supply’s WaterSpot covers 10,000 sq ft .......10

PVFShare.com launches in December......................12

niBCo offers improved warranty .............................18

Industry forecast for 2010Peter Schor: Better days ahead for showrooms .....24

MorriS BeSchloSS: PVF sector sees light at

the end of the tunnel...............................................25

talBot Gee: hVaCR recovery flat to mild;

stimulus dollars might tip the balance ...................32

Jack hester retires after 41 years at F.W. Webb........40

a. o. Smith hosts star-studded rep party

and golf extravaganza ...........................................50

long-time rep Richert passes away ..........................66

haRDi convention in pictures; association

elects first woman president ..................................68

affiliated Distributors awards top performers..........80

long-time industry personality and publisher

Jack Bittner dead at 86..........................................82

Product review ..................................................74 – 78

Watch for our 9th annual survey of

purchasing decision-makers! also,

Morris Beschloss reports on the U.S./Canadian comeback

of the venerable Walworth Company.

ColumnsRiCh SChMitt: Make 2010 better ...............8

Dan holohan: are you a PC?.................20

John MaRtin: lessons learned ................62

Beschloss BeatWeldbend

Morris Beschloss talks with Jimmy Coulas, head

of Chicago-based Weldbend. Coulas explains

how Weldbend maintains the highest standards

by manufacturing all its products in-house under

the strictest quality control ...........................80

Next Month

317L is now available at warren,

along with Duplex 2205, Alloy 20, a600, C276, Aluminum and

Stainless pipe, valve, fi ttings and fl anges.

45 Years of Superior Service. Selling through distributors ONLY,

worldwide HOUSTON, TX

CHARLOTTECINCINNATI, OH

SALT LAKE CITY,LAKELANDWEB SITE:

Since 1963

By popular demand


8 • •THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010SMART MANAGEMENT

Resolutions for a successful 2010H

ere’s wishing everyone a

happy and prosperous 2010.

Many wholesalers have told

me they are glad that 2009 and the

worst of it is over. There certainly has

been an improvement in the economy

and business climate compared to

where we were a year ago. We can all

be thankful for that.

I still don’t think that there will be

a magic recovery back to the levels

we saw during the boom years. We

have all come to understand that a big

chunk of the housing boom was

based on selling property to people

who were never going to be able to

pay for their house. In my way of

thinking, that means that we never

really achieved the levels that we all

believed were there. The massive

greed in some of our lending institu-

tions was truly amazing. I will say

that I remain concerned that a lesser,

but similar, situation may face us as

commercial property loans come up

for renewal in the next couple years.

Some of these situations can best be

described as submerged. So keep a

careful eye on your business in 2010.

As with the weather, we cannot

change the economy — we can only

prepare for it and ride it out. There

are, however, many things that we

can all be doing to make the best of

it. In a recent visit to my dentist, I no-

ticed a sign that said, “Only floss the

teeth that you want to keep.” In addi-

tion to making me feel guilty about

my own flossing schedule, it oc-

curred to me that this is a good basis

for my personal New Year’s resolu-

tions for 2010. In addition to flossing,

there are many activities in our busi-

nesses where a mantra of “Only do

this if you want a good outcome” can

help us focus on the right things. So

here is my starter list for 2010. I hope

you will make your own appropriate

additions.

• Only pay attention to the cus-

tomers that you want to keep. It is

surprising that many wholesalers still

have not increased their contact with

customers in this tougher business

climate. As I have said in other

columns, spending a couple hours a

week at the counter is great, but it is

just not the same — not even close.

Get out to the customer’s shop and

listen to his view of the economy.

Understanding how things look

through his eyes gives you a huge leg

up on your competition.

You may actually be able to adjust

your approach to provide the specific

products and services that he really

wants, needs and values. This means

you can better serve the customer and

you can probably do it more efficiently.

Talk to all sizes and types of customers

that you serve. While you should al-

ways be talking with your big, impor-

tant customers, it is easy to forget that

these companies are not necessarily

representative of the rest of the cus-

tomers that your company serves and

wants to serve in the future.

Consider the mistake that some

manufacturers made as they chased

the big box stores. Years ago, one

manufacturer confided, “We know

how to sell to the big boxes, we just

don’t know how to make money

doing it. They make us do costly

back-flips to get their business. They

continually demand additional con-

cessions. They threaten to drop us like

a hot potato if we resist any of their

mandates. And they expect us to smile

as if they are doing us a favor. We’re

terrified that they will go elsewhere if

we refuse any of their demands. Since

we beefed up our manufacturing ca-

pacity to meet their needs, the loss of

their business might take us into

bankruptcy. To make matters even

worse, all the wholesalers who helped

build our brand are now so mad they

can’t see straight and all the loyalty

that we earned over the years is gone,

gone, gone.”

The moral of the story is: Pay at-

tention to all types and sizes of cus-

tomers so you have a good balanced

customer list. This makes you less

vulnerable to problems with a single

customer or type of customer.

• Only show appreciation to the

customers that you intend to grow.

All customers like to feel appreciated.

So as you are visiting them, make

sure to say thanks for their business

and tell them that you will work hard

this year to deserve a greater share of

their business.

• Only show appreciation to the

employees that you want to keep.

It’s true, we all should feel fortunate

that we have a job. However, in a

people-intensive business like whole -

saling, developing a team of the best

and brightest is an ongoing and ex-

tremely difficult challenge. Part of

keeping a great team is to show ap-

preciation for their contribution. Ide-

ally, the appreciation is in a tangible

form, but in these times, many com-

panies are not able to provide such

monetary rewards. Most employees

understand this reality. There is ab-

solutely no reason you cannot thank

people personally, send a note, fire

off an e-mail or make a phone call.

• Only coach the employees who

you want to perform at the highest

levels. Even in this economy, every

employee decides, every day, to give

the job 110% or 75%. In most com-

panies, either level of effort is a

“passing grade,” but the company op-

erates a lot better when the team is

trying to excel, not just pass. Appre-

ciation is important, but ongoing

coaching keeps people on task and

helps them improve their game.

Every pro team has a coaching staff

that creates the game plan, and then

is at the game to execute and adjust

the plan as the game progresses.

• Only put GPS devices in the

delivery trucks that you want to

delivery efficiently. I have men-

tioned before that GPS trackers seem

to make the delivery process more ef-

ficient. I think it will help your out-

side sales force too, but the

technology isn’t quite as mature as it

is for truck tracking. (FYI, I don’t

own stock in a GPS company, I just

think it makes sense and is now af-

fordable.)

• Only provide customer-aware-

ness training to the employees who

you want to treat your customers

well. Every employee with any cus-

tomer contact needs instruction in the

do’s and don’ts of customer relation-

ships. This includes your drivers

since, in many companies, the great-

est face-time with customers is not

your salespeople, it is your truck driv-

ers. So it makes sense to help them

develop good customer skills. (As an

aside, consider teaching all employ-

ees, including your drivers, to gather

customer and market information in

the process of helping customers. Ask

your drivers: How does the cus-

tomer’s business look? Which of our

competitors is there? What other

products should we sell them? Over

the years, some of the best customer

insights have been provided by the

drivers. Instruct them in what you

want to know and how to report it to

the sales and marketing team.)

• Only ride with outside salespeo-

ple who you want to be effective.

Many of your salespeople will object

to this premeditated, deliberate act of

field sales management, but it is ab-

solutely critical if you want to deploy

a top-notch outside sales team.

(Turn to Make 2010... page 84.)

• Be sure to visit www.thewholesaler.com for web exclusive articles and videos! •

BY RICH SCHMITT

Management specialist

Pay attention to all types and sizes of customersso you have a good, balanced customer list.This makes you less vulnerable to problemswith a single customer or type of customer.

Showing our true colors.

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Starting January 1, 2010, California’s new law, CA AB1953, prohibits the “use of any pipe, pipe �tting or plumbing �xture, solder, or �ux that is not lead-free” in public water systems. We’re not waiting around; we will have all the lead-free* product you would expect us to have, in advance of this date, and will work with you on this worthwhile e�ort. No wonder we’re the leading supplier of globally sourced, code compliant plumbing and PVF products. Look for the Matco-Norca Lead Free logo and buy with con�dence.

* Lead-free products contain less than .25% weighted average lead content on wetted surfaces.

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Ardente Supply opensnew WaterSpot showroom NATICk, MASS. — Homeowners, architects and

others remodeling existing homes or designing

new ones can get expert help, and see and touch

the latest in bath, kitchen,

heating, cooling, plumbing

and lighting systems, at

Ardente Supply’s 10,000-

square-foot WaterSpot design

center in Natick, Mass.

Visitors can experience

beautifully crafted room vi-

gnettes featuring the latest

sinks, door pulls and locks,

lighting, faucets, whirlpools,

saunas, vanities, towel racks,

soap dishes, shower systems

and tubs. Ardente Supply co-

owner Mark Ardente ex-

plained, “We have faith in

America, we are expanding

our facilities and our product offerings when our

competitors are consolidating. We are position-

ing ourselves as a leader in our industry, and we

know that providing a visual and tactile show-

room experience inspires great design ideas. Ex-

citing ideas ultimately translate into home

settings that people love to live in.”

The new Natick store, which welcomed over

240 guests to its grand opening event in October,

is the largest WaterSpot showroom yet. It is de-

signed to create a vibrant experience, and dis-

plays a great variety of products for easy

comparison. Visitors can receive planning and

design assistance and review top brands such as

THG, Visual Comfort and Hinkley Lighting,

Porcher, Hansgrohe, Jado, Dornbracht, TOTO,

Rocky Mountain, Omnia and Baldwin Hardware.

WaterSpot Natick is located at 575 Worcester

Street (Rt. 9). Hours are 9 to 5 Monday-Friday,

9 to 7 Thursday and 10 to 5 Saturday.

Ardente Supply is Rhode Island’s oldest

plumbing, heating, cooling, lighting and indus-

trial supplier. The company is family operated

and offers over 160 years of combined experi-

ence serving homeowners, contractors, design-

ers, architects and engineers. The company’s new

location joins WaterSpot showrooms in Provi-

dence, Westerly and Woonsocket, R.I.

Call 800/485-7500 or visit www.water-

spot.com.

DAYTON, OHIO — Noland Company, a distributor

of plumbing supplies and heating and air condi-

tioning equipment in the Southeast since 1919,

has opened new locations in Florida and Virginia

to serve commercial and residential contractors

and their customers with HVAC equipment, con-

sulting services and luxury items for the home.

Noland is a wholly owned subsidiary of

WinWholesale Inc., one of the nation’s largest

distributors.

Noland Company’s Pinellas Park, Fla., loca-

tion serves contractors in four counties with

NuTone Heating and Cooling Products, the ex-

clusive brand. NuTone has one of the highest ef-

ficiency air conditioners in the industry at 24.5

SEER using IQ Drive Tech nology, said manager

Rick Brock.

The Falls Church, Va., Bath & Idea Center by

10 • •THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010INDUSTRY NEWS



Noland opens HVAC location, Bath & Idea CenterNoland Company serves the Washington, D.C.,

metropolitan area. The showroom provides con-

tractors and consumers with a pleasant atmos-

phere where they can talk with consultants about

their needs and see a range of products that in-

clude luxury items for bath and kitchen new con-

struction and remodeling.

The Falls Church showroom carries a variety

of brands, including American Standard, Grohe,

Brizo, Delta, Moen, MTI, MAAX and Acryline,

according to manager YoLanda Sarraga.

“The openings in Pinellas Park and Falls

Church are examples of how Noland will care-

fully grow the business in selected markets by

giving customers a competitive advantage

through superior service and quality products

provided by knowledgeable people,” said Jim

Adcox, Noland chief operating officer.

Customers gathered at the grand opening of the WaterSpot showroom.

Ardente brothers: (l-r) Mark, Evan, Paul, Bruce.

The showroom features stunning vignettes.


PVFShare.com successfully launches in DecemberHartFord, coNN. — there is a new

channel between member sellers and

buyers providing profitable solu-

tions to excess product for a bal-

anced inventory.

PVFshare.com launched on de-

cember 15, according to president

Paul Banville. this unique distribu-

tor-based web solution empowers

members to promote and sell excess

inventory to other members. PVF-

share.com facilitates sales of a dis-

tributor’s excess inventory of

industrial pipe, valves, fittings and

specialty products. this creates a

stronger cash flow and additional

warehouse space for more profitable

products and services.

“a cornerstone of our success is

our development of a strong network

that share similar core values includ-

ing authenticity, relationships, service

and growth,” said Banville. “Mem-

bers are empowered to sell/buy ex-

cess inventory that better serves their

local, unique and dynamic markets.”

Founders Paul Banville and ray-

mond Perrotti, with a combined 60+

years of industry marketing and sales

experience, established PVFshare.com in

response to recent and dramatic mar-

ket changes that have left many with

unbalanced inventories.

“PVFshare’s non-restrictive poli-

cies and broad market exposure cre-

ates a new and robust marketplace for

redistribution of excess inventory,”

Banville noted. “cash is freed up and

with additional shelf space; creating

profitable opportunities for members.

our site is so intuitive and transac-

tion-friendly, thereby creating a huge

pool of distributor members as buyers

and sellers. It’s a win-win solution.”

Product searches provide a com-

prehensive listing of all matching re-

sults, regardless of the warehouse

lo ca tion. the member is provided

contact information and quantities

per location. PVFshare.com is dis-

tributor centric; it is not a party to the

transaction and does not charge a

transaction fee. PVFshare.com facil-

itates the communications channel

between member sellers and buyers

within an open market environment.

Brad carstensen, president of

Boston Pipe and Fittings co. Inc., be-

lieves in this proactive approach for

distributors. “When we were intro-

duced to PVFshare.com, we recog-

nized the positive impact this site

would make to our business,” he said.

“the industry has been waiting for a

solution to excess inventories sitting

in distributor’s warehouses across the

country. to have the opportunity to

move this product, increase prof-

itability and be connected with new

distributors, it’s an easy decision to

join. We are certain PVFshare.com

will become an invaluable tool to our

business in the months ahead.”

PVFshare.com’s inventory search

is free for its member distributors.

Members wishing to list inventory

can post their excess inventory with-

out restriction to quantity or product

brand for a nominal fee. Interested

distributors are invited to tour the site

and to contact Banville at 860/983-

3979 or Perrotti, of Perrotti sales

associates, at 908/806-8899.


Webstone ready for new lead-free lawsWorcester, Mass. — Webstone is

now offering select eXP tankless

Water Heater service Valves kits that

are compliant with california and

Vermont’s new lead-free require-

ments. as of January 1, the patented

eXP e2 became available in

Webstone’s signature “cleanBrass”™

construction, and is cUPc certified

for compliance with aB 1953 and

NsF/aNsI 61-8 annex G. call

800/225-9529 for details.


14 • •THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010INDUSTRY NEWSShelton Winnelsonstarts WinAcademySHELTON, CONN. — Shelton Win -

nelson Co., a wholesale distributor of

plumbing and heating supplies, rolled

out its new training program, called

WinAcademy.

WinAcademy is a series of nine

free classes offered to Shelton Win-

nelson customers. Training is pro-

vided by Shelton Winnelson sales

and training manager Gary Maturo

and participating vendors.

“WinAcademy was created in re-

sponse to our customers’ feedback,”

said Maturo. “We surveyed cus -

tomers and the response overall

showed that they were very interested

in participating in training sessions to

gain more product knowledge.”

Maturo joined Shelton Winnelson in

August. He has worked in the plumb-

ing industry for 23 years. Maturo has

also worked as a trainer for radiant

heat, PEX plumbing systems and cir-

culator pumps. He has conducted train-

ing classes on solar installs, boiler

piping and pump dewatering.

Shelton Win nel s on customers can

sign up for classes by stopping in or

calling. Classes are held weekly. Spe-

cial arrangements can be made if cus-

tomers are interested in hosting the

training at their location. Customers

are allowed to take as many classes as

they want. Classes offering certifica-

tion are Uponor and Wardflex. Cus-

tomers who attend more than one class

will automatically be entered into a

drawing for a prize that will be

awarded at the end of each semester.

Vendors participating in Win -

Academy include Burham, Buderus,

Grundfos, Munchkin, Navien, Oven-

trop, Rinnai, Taco, Tekmar, Triangle

Tube, Uponor, Viesmann, Wardflex

and Wilo.

Shelton Winnelson is located at

740 River Rd. here. For information

call 203/929-6344.

See contact information on page 90• Be sure to visit www.thewholesaler.com for web exclusive articles and videos! •

Eternal Hybrid turns upheat with calendarDALLAS — Grand Hall, manufacturer

of the Eternal hybrid water heating

system, released its 2010 “Eternally

Hot” monthly calendar. In October,

numerous women from the Dallas-

Fort Worth area entered a contest to

be featured and the final contestants

were chosen by popular online vote.

The printed calendars will be dis-

tributed at industry trade shows and

are available to registered Eternal

dealers and distributors on the Con-

tractor Dashboard System. This Sys-

tem improves dealers’ businesses by

streamlining lead generation and con-

tractors’ visibility to end users.

Visit www.eternalwaterheater.com or

call 866/946-1096.

STONE MOUNTAIN, GA. — Val-Fit cel-

ebrated its 30-year anniversary by

having a company-wide seminar in-

volving best practices and future

goals. The conference was followed

by an anniversary dinner that was at-

tended by more than 90% of com-

pany employees.

“Many of our employees had never

met face to face, so watching people

put a face to a name or a voice they

had, for so many years, heard on the

phone, was amazing,” said president

Gyl Grinberg. “The seminar was a great

tool for interaction and ex change of

ideas between branches.”

Dinner concluded with a 30-year

anniversary cake appropriately deco-

rated with fittings and flanges.

Val-Fit is a master distributor of

carbon steel buttweld fittings, flanges

and forged steel that services the en-

tire U.S., Canada, Mexico and South

America from its two locations in

California and Georgia. For 30 years,

Val-Fit has forged a reputation for

quality products, straight-forward

dealings and friendly service.

Visit www.valfit.com.

Val-Fit celebrates30 years’ business

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Activant to host Summit in MarchYarDLeY, pa. — More than 1,400 distributors areexpected to converge in Washington, D.C.,March 10-13 for a summit on how to transformoperational excellence into growth. Summit isthe annual conference for distribution customersof activant Solutions Inc.

“Most distributors are concerned with twothings right now: achieving operational excel-lence in order to reduce costs, and growing theirmarket share in a recovering economy,” saidkevin roach, executive vice president and gen-eral manager of activant. “Summit will focus onboth. a major topic will be applying lean prac-tices to distributors.”

Speakers for the three-day event include: Dr.Barry Lawrence, industrial distribution programdirector at Texas a&M University; David Baud-ers, president of Strategic pricing associatesInc.; Bill McCleave, president of W.r. McCleave& associates; Jon Schreibfeder, president of ef-fective Inventory Management Inc.; and Bill

Muehlbauer, founder and principal consultant forDistribution Strategies.

They will be joined by activant technologyand distribution experts who will share theirknowledge with attendees. Some educationalsessions will include hands-on workshops whereparticipants can experiment with what they learndirectly on a pC.

This annual event has always been an importantnetworking opportunity for distributors. Unlike in-dustry trade shows, Summit gathers distributorsfrom across the wholesale spectrum and enablesthem to share insights and gain useful tips.

“Often, Summit attendees will tell us that thenetworking opportunities are as valuable as theeducational sessions,” said roach. “They get alot out of interacting with each other and acti-vant employees in a less formal setting. Somereal friendships have grown out of Summit.”

Visit http://distribution.activant.com/sum-mit2010/.


See contact information on page 90 • Be sure to visit www.thewholesaler.com for web exclusive articles and videos! •

LeBaNON, pa. — according to Scott Weaver,president of apr Supply Inc., the company was

nominated as a finalist for the prestigious The

Central Penn Business Journal Business of TheYear award for the 4th consecutive year.

“We would sure like to be nominated to winthis recognition every year,” said Weaver. “It re-ally reflects the time, dedication and great workof apr Supply’s employees.”

The Central Penn Business Journal Businessof the Year awards honor companies and individ-uals for their outstanding accomplishments in

helping the Central pennsylvania business com-munity grow and prosper. apr Supply was nom-inated as a finalist by an independent panel ofjudges in the category: Business of the Year 101+employees. all finalists and winners will be pro-filed in a special supplement to the Journal.

apr Supply was also awarded a Central Penn

Business Journal’s Best places to Work rankingin 2007 and 2008.

Founded in 1922, apr Supply is a leadingwholesale distributor of HVaC, air conditioning,plumbing, heating products and supplies. Servingcentral and eastern pennsylvania for over 87years, apr Supply now has 22 branches.

Visit www.aprsupply.com.

APR Supply a finalist forCentral Penn Business Journal honor

DUBUqUe, IOWa – With more than 20 years of re-search and development, a.Y. McDonald has sig-nificant experience in manufacturing no-leadproducts. Its no-lead products meet all the re-quirements of the new California and Vermontlegislation that went into effect January 1.

available products include the following:• No-lead brass ball valves in sizes 1/2 to 2

inches. Valves are soldered and threaded; fullport; and with a blowout-proof stem

• 125-pound no-lead red brass pipe nipples.Over 150 SkUs are ready for next-day shipment.Nipples conform to aSTM B687, aNSI B1.20.1and aSTM B43

• 125-pound no-lead bronze fittings. Over100 SkUs are ready for next-day shipment. Fit-tings conform to aNSI/aSMe B1.20.1, WW-U-516-B, aSMe B16.14 and aNSI/aSMeB16.15.

Visit www.aymcdonald.com.

A.Y. McDonald’s no-lead products comply with new legislation

SparkS, NeV. – Haws Corporation launched itsredesigned website at www.HawsCo.com. aspart of a larger rebranding effort, the new websitehas been in the works since May 2009 and offersusers a variety of advancedfeatures and resources includ-ing an innovative productsearch option, video library,product case studies, industry links, white papersas well as access to podcasts and webinars.

Streamlined site navigation makes the sitemore user-friendly while providing users withupdated product information, spec sheets, oper-

Haws’ website provides advanced user resourcesating manuals and prices. Haws marketing staffspent months updating product images andgraphics to make the site appealing to all users.

Haws Corporation manufactures drinkingfountains and emergencyequipment for a diverse set ofindustries. Focus areas includeeducational centers, recre-

ational parks and industrial complexes, as wellas petrochemical production facilities. Foundedin 1906, Haws is headquartered in Sparks, Nev.,and is represented around the globe.

Visit www.HawsCo.com.

Grind more. Hear less.™

© 2009 InSinkErator, InSinkErator® is a division ofEmerson Electric Co. All rights reserved.*The mounting collar configuration is a

trademark of Emerson Electric Co.

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reduction in noise.

For details on the breakthrough

features and technologies of the

Evolution PRO Series, talk to your

wholesaler or contact your local

InSinkErator representative. You can

also visit www.insinkerator.com or

call 1-800-558-5700.

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Watts lead-freeline complies withnew legislationNOrTH aNDOVer, MaSS. — WattsWater Technologies Inc. and its as-sociated brands are at the forefrontof the lead-free movement.

The company recently announcedthe availability of its extensive lineof lead-free* products that are incompliance with new Californiaand Vermont legislation, which

went into effect January 1.Watts Water Technologies’ www

.WeareLeadFree.net website pro-vides frequent updates on what ishappening around the country regard-ing lead-free legislation and require-ments. In addition, this websitefeatures an interactive map that illus-trates the status of lead-free initiativesnationwide, along with downloadablecatalogs and educational material.also available on the site is anoverview video designed to educateviewers on the lead-free issue.

Watts Water Technologies, withworldwide sales over $1 billion, de-signs, manufactures and sells an ex-tensive line of valves and related flowcontrol products to the plumbing andheating and water quality markets.

*The wetted surface of this product

contacted by consumable water con-

tains less than one quarter of one per-

cent (0.25%) of lead by weight.See contact information on page 90


eLkHarT, IND. — effective immedi-ately, NIBCO has extended its exclu-sive 125% pressure-rated metal valvewarranty from one to five years fromdate of service.

Unlike valve warranties that onlyreplace the product cost, NIBCO willalso pay the owner the greater of 25%of the current published price or $10for product that was determined to be

NIBCO offers extended125/5 valve warranty

Cooper-New England Saleshosts Basco training session

Cooper New England Sales recently held a one-day Basco Shower Door

product knowledge training session at their training center in Beacon Falls,

Conn. Participants from four states attended the course, which covered a

variety of topics ranging from showroom sales to proper measuring and

quoting, to installation trouble shooting. The group consisted of a mix of

wholesaler personnel as well as installing contractors.

defective due to material or work-manship.

“NIBCO pressure-rated valves aremanufactured with quality that ourcustomers have come to rely upon,”said phil Liles, senior product man-ager–valves. “The warranty exten-sion demonstrates NIBCO’s prideand confidence in the material andworkmanship that goes into the man-ufacturing process.”

NIBCO operates 11 manufacturingfacilities throughout the U.S., Mexicoand poland. products are manufac-tured under a quality ManagementSystem conforming to the current re-vision of ISO 9001 InternationalStandards.

Visit www.nibco.com.

20 • •THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010TALKIN’ RADIANT

I’m a PCa

t least I think I’m a pC. I own(and love) an iphone, so thatmight make me a Mac when

I’m making phone calls or doodlingon the internet as I travel, but thecomputer on my desk is definitely apC.

My daughter, erin, is a Mac. Shelives in Washington, D.C., and workswith me on lots of projects. I writewords and she designs pages. Wesend data back and forth throughGoogle, and everything translateswell between us. The computers getalong with each other, and so do erinand I – even though I’m a pC andshe’s a Mac. Different needs, differ-ent technologies.

I sit most evenings and smile atthose apple TV commercials wherethe pC guy tries to get over on theMac guy, but always comes up short,mainly because apple is paying forthe ads.

Microsoft has its own commercialsand I enjoy those as well. They showdozens of ordinary people (peoplejust like me) who proudly proclaim,“I’m a pC!” Microsoft does this be-cause they want me to know thatthere are plenty of others in the worldwho think like me and buy like me,and they do this to make me feel asthough I’m a part of something bigand important – a Movement.

I figure all of this must be workingfor both companies because they’resure spending big bucks on all thoseads. They seem to be on the air everyfew minutes. But I suspect that bothcompanies are really just convincingtheir existing customers that they, thecustomers, are doing the right thing.I wonder whether either ad campaignis changing anyone’s mind.

Microsoft just introduced their lat-est version of Windows, and appleresponded by featuring people whostand between the pC guy and theMac guy with cardboard boxes filledwith files. The people in the ads aretrying to make up their minds whichway to go, because now that there’snew technology available from Mi-crosoft, people have to make achange (according to the apple ad).

But my guess is that most peoplewill stick with what they have untilcircumstances force them to make achange. They’re comfortable withwhat they have, and it costs money tochange, but apple and Microsofthave products to sell, and one way todo that is to make people feel uncom-fortable with the status quo. That’swhat these ads are all about. They’reshowing and telling us about otherswho are making the change, and in a

hurry. Hey, no one wants to get leftbehind, right?

In the apple commercial, peopledecide to abandon pC and go withMac because there are supposed to befewer problems on the Mac side ofthe fence. The commercial ends thatway because it’s apple’s commercial.

I watch these commercials day inand day out and I wonder whether Ishould switch to a Mac. I call mydaughter, erin (a Mac), and talk toher about it. erin reminds me that allI do with my computer is write storieswith Word, create powerpoint pro-grams, and surf the Web. I’m notgaming or using heavy graphics pro-grams to design websites. “keep itsimple, Dad,” erin says. “That worksfor you. Why spend more money thanyou have to spend?”

So I’m a pC, and as I watch thoseads, I can’t help but think about com-

mercials that knock the competitor, asapple’s do. When you run ads likethat, you’re basically telling yourcompetitor’s customers that they arestupid. They must be or theywouldn’t be using the competitor’sstuff. right?

Seems like a dopey way to try towin someone over.

I watch those apple ads and dig inmy heels. I’m going to stick with mypC, and I’m going to root for the peo-ple in the Microsoft commercial be-cause they’re my people. They’re onmy team.

Of course, erin feels the same wayabout apple. Her heels are also dug in.We’re on different teams, but we stillget along just fine. She’s not movingover to my team and I’m not movingover to hers. We’ve made up ourminds. apple and Microsoft are work-ing hard to get their existing customersto dig in their heels. That’s all.

and how about this? We all justwrapped up another political season.When my TV wasn’t bringing meMac vs. pC, it was telling me aboutall the crooked politicians who weretrying to win my vote. One guywould come on and talk trash aboutthe other guy. and then the other guywould appear in the next commercial,telling me what a rat the first guywas. Neither guy was telling memuch about what he stood for; he justwanted to make me hate the otherguy. It was politics as usual and itdidn’t change my vote because I hadalready chosen my team long before

the ads began. These negative ads justmade me dig in my heels and defendmy guys against the other guys. Howdare those other guys insult my guys?

You probably do the same thing.It’s human nature.

Which brings me to the heatingbusiness.

I am an admirer of technology(love that iphone!), and I also under-stand that many of the american con-tractors who practice the art ofhydronics from day to day are mostlyinterested in getting the work, gettingthe work done, getting paid for thework, and getting on to the next jobas soon as possible. That’s it.

Oh, and they hate callbacks. Theylike to use stuff that’s been around fora good long time and is proven in thefield. They’re reluctant to changetheir ways or their favored productsunless there’s a price advantage (and

it better wind up in their pockets), orunless they’re having a major prob-lem with the product they’re cur-rently using. Other than that, theysettle down into a comfort zone, likebig dogs on an old rug. and they digin their heels.

So for a manufacturer to win acontractor’s business away from thecompetitor, the manufacturer has toeither come out with a cheaper pricethan the competitor is offering for avery similar product, or hope thecompetitor has product problems atsome point.

If the manufacturer has break-through technology that’s going tosave the end-user money on fuel orelectricity, the manufacturer has tofigure out how to make that productprofitable for the contractor. I thinkthat just saying their technology isbetter than the competitor’s falls ondeaf ears because the contractor does-n’t benefit from the superior technol-ogy. His customer does.

So, manufacturers, I ask you this:What’s in it for the big dog? That’sthe question. You want the big dog toget up off the old rug and learn thenew technology so his customer cansave money? You want the big dog tofollow a path of greater resistance,learning how to sell something new?and you want him to stand behindthe new technology with promisesthat he may not himself believe?What’s in it for him?

The manufacturer can advertise tothat contractor, explaining how much

electricity and how much fuel hiscustomers have been wasting for allthese years by using the products thatthe contractor has been pushing. Thismeans that the contractor has beenstupid for all these years.

The manufacturer can try to makethat contractor feel ashamed aboutwhat he’s been doing since he firstpicked up the tools, make him feeldopey and contrite about his day-to-day business, make him change hisevil ways, go and sin no more. Butyou know what? When you try to tella contractor (or anyone for that mat-ter) that he’s been wrong, that personis probably going to dig in his heelsand fight you. That’s human nature.

Unless the manufacturers that arepromoting the new technologies canshow the contractor what’s in it forhim, I think they’ll be spinning theirwheels. They’ve got to give the bigdog a reason to get up off that old rug.Trying to make him feel stupid abouthis current choice in products isn’tgoing to work.

as for me, I’d like to see the pCguy knock that Mac guy onto hiskeister. Just once. �

Dan Holohan began his love affair

with heating systems in 1970 by

going to work for a New York-based

manufacturers representative that

was deeply involved in the steam and

hot-water heating business. He stud-

ied hard, prowled many basements

and attics with seasoned old-timers,

and paid close attention to what they

had to say. Today, Holohan operates

the popular website, www.Heat-

ingHelp.com. He has written hun-

dreds of columns for a number of

trade magazines, as well as 15 books

on subjects ranging from steam and

hot water heating, to teaching tech-

nicians. His degree is in Sociology,

which Holohan believes is the perfect

preparation for a career in heating.

Holohan has taught over 200,000

people at his seminars. He is well

known for his entertaining, anecdotal

style of speaking. Holohan lives on

Long Island with his wife, The Lovely

Marianne. They have four incredible

daughters, all out in the world and

doing wonderful things.


BY DAN HOLOHAN

Wet head

You want the big dog to get up off the old rug and learnthe new technology so his customer can save money?

You want the big dog to follow a path of greater resistance,learning how to sell something new? And you want him

to stand behind the new technology with promisesthat he may not himself believe? What’s in it for him?

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24 • •THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 20102010Forecast—Plumbing

Partly sunny,cautiously optimistic!

Iam hoping that you read my No-vember 2009 monthly column,“How are you doing in the current

economy?” and my December 2009column “Turning problems into op-portunities.” I received a lot of e-mailwishes of sincere thanks and appreci-ation. I dug deep into my thoughts togive you tools to help navigate thecurrent economy and to be more suc-cessful! Please pass these articles toeveryone in your company; you willthank yourself. All you have to do isgo on www. thewholesaler.com web-site and go into their “archives” sec-tion. You can click on “send to” ande-mail these articles as PDF attach-ment. Be the leader that you are!

This is a challenging time for eco-nomic forecasting. In the beginningof 2008, I remember many econo-mists predicting only a mild slow-down. The wide-scale effect of therecession took many people by sur-prise. It seemed that whenever theworst was over during 2009, moreunexpected bad news came along.

Given the dismal expectations atthe start of the year, things haveturned out better than the worst fore-casts. This does not mean the econ-omy is doing well. It just means thatit could have been a lot worse. Agood example is the optimistic newsthat the U.S. unemployment levelonly rose 0.5% in October 2009.Economists expected that unem-ployment would be a lot worse.Forecasting for 2010 is difficultgiven the mixed signals still comingfrom the economy.

The economy is being propped upby unprecedented government andmonetary policy intervention. Thelarge budget deficit (tax cuts are due toexpire; zero interest rates; quantitativeeasing; bailout of banks; and the weakdollar and currencies) has resulted inlittle room for financial expansion dur-ing 2010. Factually, the governmentmay face the tricky task of reducingborrowing during this fragile economy.Some economists fear that if interestrates are increased too quickly, theeconomy could be plunged back intorecession. Some “positive signs” arealso potentially misleading.

One promising signal is that thehouse prices appear to be stabilizing– admittedly on extremely thin levelsof mortgage approvals. But stabilityin house prices is an important con-sideration for American consumersnervous about spending. However,

pricing stability could still prove tobe short lived.

At the NAHB Fall ConstructionForecast Conference in Washington,D.C., last October, most people feltthat it was safe to assume that theU.S. economy is now on the road torecovery. But the end of the reces-sion, they said, doesn’t necessarilymean that the troubles in the housingmarket are over. Housing experts feelthat single family home sales andproduction activity has stabilized andis heading for higher ground. Theyalso indicated that the multi-familysector is trailing behind. The severityof the downturn from which the na-tion is now emerging has made itmore difficult to know exactly whatto expect in the period ahead.

As a result, housing could improvefaster than generally expected, or itcould hobble along without reachinghealthy levels until far into 2011.What happens to housing pricing iscrucial in determining the strength ofindustry performance, the analystshave said. While prices have shownsigns of stabilizing in recent months,they could suffer a relapse in the faceof rising unemployment, which inturn increases the number of home-owners who can no longer afford tomake their mortgage payments.

As I said in the two previous arti-cles, there are so many low-cost tono-cost things that you can do to findsolutions in new niche areas and bystaying very focused. I have heard inthe last 90 days from industry leadersat various industry segments. Theseexperts have indicated that it is agood time to go “Back to Basics” infundamental business practices.

What are your written goals for2010?

January is a great time to checkyour showroom and personal goals.You can’t hit the target if you can’t see

(Turn to Schor, page 28.)See contact information on page 90• Be sure to visit www.thewholesaler.com for web exclusive articles and videos! •

BY PETER SCHOR

Showroom specialist

THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010• •252010�Forecast�—�PVF

While the general economyis taking its initial stepsinto the unknown factors

comprising the post-recovery 2010year, what is primarily worrying allfacets of business, as well as con-sumers, is the ultimate direction ofU.S. Government action.

Business is worried primarily thattaxes will increase significantly. Ofmajor concern is that both businessand consumer sectors will be calledon to carry the burden of a runawaydeficit gap caused by a multi-trillion-dollar annual shortfall. The resultantballooning debt will crowd out in-vestment funds needed for future ex-pansion in high and bio-technology,a multitude of research sectors, andother traditional sectors of govern-ment responsibility.

Billions previously committed toresearch for the National AeronauticSpace Agencies, as well as moniesneeded for coming to grips withmajor diseases, will no longer beavailable. There is still hope thatmost, if not all, Obama initiatives willcease becoming law under presenteconomic circumstances.

In spite of the increasing burden ofgovernment bureaucracy, business ingeneral believes that 2010 will fea-ture a positive rebound in the grossdomestic product of goods and serv-ices. The vast majority of those heardfrom believe exports, residential andindustrial construction, and energydevelopment will be positive factors.Even solar power is looked on withfavor, due to the substantial investortax credit and the mandate, forcingutilities to use up to 20% solar poweras a resource for electrical power de-velopment by 2020.

However, oil and natural gasdrilling activity will be limited to ex-isting sites, with drilling rigs beingreinstalled after being pulled earlierin the year.

To put the major factors of 2010into context, the following six cate-gories sum up what can be expectedfrom 2010’s recovery year:

• The year 2010 is headed for amodest recovery, but one that willnot have a demand dynamic empow-ering it, as did the previous come-backs in an inflationary environment.Both consumer and producer will be

extremely conservative in expendingthe funds needed to generate busi-ness growth.

• Double digit unemployment willcontinue to stick around for most ofnext year. Unlike previous recoveryperiods, few companies will hireextra personnel, relying instead on

upgrading, mechanization and au-tomation to get more bang for theirbuck. With close to 20 million lostjobs, part-time workers and addi-tional applicants available, it’s doubt-ful that much of a dent in job losseswill be felt in the foreseeable future.

Also, the core of personnel-heavy

industrial sectors like steel, automotive,metalworking and machinery manu-facturing is continuing to shrink.

• Although consumers will begin tobe somewhat more aggressive by mid-2010, there will be no return to the go-go days of the past decade when

(Turn to PVF sector... page 26.)

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BY MORRIS R. BESCHLOSS

PVF and economic analyst emeritus

Overall economy, PVF sector anticipatecautious recovery, gov’t intervention


PVF sector: brighter days in 2010unrestrained borrowing allowed tensof millions of Americans to live alifestyle well beyond their means.

• Although the lethal creditsqueeze of 2008-09 has largelyabated, financial institutions areleery of lending to less-than-credit-worthy applicants. Since both busi-ness and consumer sectors areengendering less credit demand, thepressure on overall liquidity haslargely been unfrozen.

• The dollar will continue toweaken as the yawning chasm of a$2-trillion budget deficit for fiscal2010 (ending Sept. 30) beckons. Thiswill continue to increase prices forsuch global commodities as oil, gold,copper, rare industrial metals andagricultural products.

However, partially offsetting thisincrease in the trade deficit, greatlyreduced in 2009, will be a new surgeof exports, abetted by the cheaper

U.S. currency. Also benefiting willbe the thousands of U.S. companiesthat do a large share of their busi-ness overseas.

• The overriding imponderablewill be the increasingly quixoticmachinations of the U.S. Govern-ment. Piling huge new defi cits on analready-bloated $12-trillion debt,which costs $500 million a day toservice, means that taxes are sure togo up. This already unsustainabledebt, plus planned universal health-care, cap-and-trade, renewable en-ergy experiments, and card check arehanging over a deficit-unconsciousCongress like a black cloud.

The deferment, or cancellation, ofthese ill-timed expenditures would goa long way to stabilize the negative ef-fect these legislative initiatives wouldhave on the U.S. recovery.

Although the Federal Reserve Boardhas promised to keep interest rates atrock bottom for now, the Fed cannot

keep pumping cheap money into thiseconomic bottomless pit forever. Suchlimitless action would be sure to usherin a period of monetary hyperinflationfrom which the economy would bedragged down interminably.

For the PVF sector, the direction of2010’s business opportunities is bestexemplified by Charles Dickens’ The

Tale of Two Cities’ opening para-graph, “It was the best of times, itwas the worst of times.” Not in manyyears have PVF manufacturers facedsuch divergent paths.

Looking good for 2010 are powergeneration development, natural gasavailability through fracking (ex -tracting that energy from shale), re-newable energy expansion, such assolar energy subsidized by federal taxcredits and utility discounts; and do-mestic oil production in the Bakkenbelt as the price of oil again ap-proaches the $80 range.

As exports are expected to recoversignificantly in 2010, PVF productswill comprise a substantial portion ofthe billions of dollars of industrial

and mill supplies, construction ma-chinery and transportation equipmentthat will make up a major portion ofthis worldwide activity.

Penetration into areas as diverse asthe Middle East and the Alberta/ Cana-dian oil sands projects are already uti-lizing the excellent domestic PVFproducts made by some of the best-known PVF companies in the U.S.

According to reports from the PVFsectors, manufacturers, distributors,mechanical contractors and end usersare expecting business levels ap-proaching those that were reached in2005 and 2006.

The biggest downside questionmarks are upscale commercial activity,such as multi-story apartment build-ings, shopping centers, large officebuildings and hotels. Although occu-pancy has lately improved, there is fearthat the major banks, which made largeloans available to developers, will callin the indebtedness that individual de-velopers will not be able to meet.

Although government-supported(Turn to Looking up? page 28.)

(Continued from page 25.)



2010�Forecast�—�PVF

AIV, L.P.– Houston7140 W. Sam Houston Pkwy North . #100Houston, Texas 77040 Phone: 713.462.4181 · Fax: 713.462.41871.800.447.4230 · 24 Hr. On Callwww.aivinc.com · E-mail: [email protected]

AIV, L.P.– Chicago2928 Malmo Dr., Arlington Heights, IL 60005Phone: 847-290-1020 · Fax: 847-290-1024

AIV, L.P.– Pennsylvania3344 Market St. Aston, PA 19014Phone: 610.546.4585Fax: 610.497.2183

Do you need your valve shipped on the fi rst jet out? No problem! As always, AIV’s utmost concern is you. And, as always, AIV delivers the very best service around. Whether it’s fl ying stateside or headed to destinations overseas, if getting a valve to you is important, you can trust that AIV is on it. By the way, did you know that AIV is now a certifi ed stocking distributor of Nordstrom plug valves? Well, indeed we are! We have both iron and carbon steel plug valves waiting on our shelves to head your way! Just say the word and we’ll strap her in.

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Looking up?(Continued from page 26.)

solutions are now being discussed,equitable resolution is still up in theair. If this problem is not resolved bymid-year, the commercial construc-tion market will be in jeopardy.

Only health care construction andassisted living development are onthe upswing, but will not be sufficientto keep the large commercial con-struction segment out of crisis mode.Also,maintenance work will continue ac-tively, but that is not enough to keepthis PVF-heavy component fromshrinking drastically.

Also worrisome is the Environ -mental Protection Agency crack downon coal use by electric utilities. Coalcomprises 50% of all natural power-ing elements used by electric powergenerating stations. This has put alarge part of this market in aquandary and halted badly neededpower generating development.

Even with this mixed picture, do-

mestic manufacturers and their dis-tributors are expected to experience amuch-improved result over the 18months trough developed betweenSeptember 2008 and the end of 2009.

Although no nuclear power sta-tions or oil refineries are expected tostart up in 2010, increased capacity inplace will help the industry muddlethrough and provide substantial busi-ness for the PVF sector. As al ways,maintenance will continue to play arole in PVF-related activities.

To stay up to date with my twice-daily blogging, be sure to log on tomy hyperlink at www.theworl-dreport.org and then click on “Mor-rie’s page,” announced in the middleof the World Report website. Yourrecommendation for my blog, as wellas the individual columns will bemuch appreciated. �

Morris R. Beschloss, a 54-year

veteran of the pipe, valve and fitting

industry, is PVF and industry analyst

emeritus for THe WHoLeSALeR.



2010�Forecast�—�PVF

it! Goals must be definite, achievable,believable, measurable, time limited,and short and long term. Sit down andwrite your goals for your showroomand then write down the “resources”for each goal. Scientifically and spiri-tually, once the goals are in writing,you will attract and “manifest” thethings you need to do. It is called the“Law of Attraction”, and by writingit and storing it in your brain (con-sciousness), it will appear. I strenu-ously advocate having your goals for2010 in “writing.”

After you write out your goals for2010, you check in each day and sayto yourself, “What am I doing todayto support my goals?” This way youcan stay focused on achieving greatthings in 2010.

One last thing: I’d love to conducta series of low-cost/high-value, 45-minute weekly or monthly, customtailored showroom seminars for your

employees. This can be accomplishedin a simple “Teleclass Format” viatelephone (my 800 line can bridge upto 1000 people), power point and ahand-out. I can take care of account-ability testing, too. For those whohave internet capabilities, I can alsoproduce a “webinar.” �

Peter Schor, president of Dynamic

Results Inc, is a bath/plumbing industry

speaker, educator, author, columnist

and consultant in the many segments of

our industry. For the past 20 years, he

conducted seminars and speaks at nu-

merous conventions. Schor has great

expertise in the field of showrooms and

hotel bathrooms and has won many in-

dustry awards. He also consults manu-

facturers in taking their products to

market in the areas of sales, marketing

and public relations. Schor can be

reached at 1302 Longhorn Lane, Lin-

coln, CA. 95648, phone 916/408-5346,

fax: 916/408-5899, e-mail pschor@dy-

namicresultsinc.com or visit his website

www.dynamicresultsonline.com.

Schor(Continued from page 24.)

BY TALBOT H. GEE

Special to The WholeSaler

Iwrote a piece for another publica-tion last year urging HARDI mem-bers and their contractor customers

to learn fast what it means to be part ofa subsidized industry. Much like heavyequipment distributors whose successebbs and flows annually with federaland state infrastructure spending, sotoo might that of HVACR businesseswith public spending on energy effi-ciency incentives.

Let’s put aside the debate of howmuch the government may have con-


Strangled credit marketsare widely regarded as the

key factor in 2009’s declines,so any improvement in the

2010 credit market willsurely deliver some growth.

tributed to the current economic down-turn, and turn the focus to the impactthe federal stimulus bill has had — andwill continue to have — on theHVACR industry. The rate and amountof federal, state, local and utility spend-ing on residential and commercial en-ergy efficiency improvements,com bined with our ability to quicklyand efficiently take advantage of suchfunding, will most likely determinehow successful 2010 will be forHVACR distributors and contractors.

First, let’s put any discussion of2010 into proper perspective by takinga quick look at the recent past. A recentanalysis of distributor performance in2008 versus 2007 prepared by Al Batesat the Profit Planning Group compar-ing HARDI distributor data with thatof other industry’s distributors showedless than 1% sales growth, which stillvastly outperformed the average ofother types of construction-related dis-tributors. Gross margin performancefollowed the same pattern, however

average HARDI expenses exceededthose of all other distributor categoriespulling down return on investment.The 2009 Annual Profit Report (basedon 2008 data) revealed a decline in av-erage net profit margins for HARDIdistributors for the first time in fouryears, providing more reason to be-lieve 2009 would be a struggle.

In 2009 according to the HARDI

Monthly Sales Trends collected andcompiled by the Institute for TrendsResearch, no HARDI region experi-enced any month with positive salesgrowth — and the national averagedecline was 13% as of October’s data.The Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, South-east and, most significantly, the Westhad declines in excess of the averageas did the non-geographic segments ofdistributors with less than $5 millionand $15 million to $25 million in an-nual sales volume. The Great Lakes,Central, Southwest and Canadian re-gions and distributors with averagesales of $5 million to $10 million, $10

million to $15 million, $25 million to$50 million, and $50 million andabove all outperformed the HARDIaverage — although continued to re-port negative sales growth. It is impor-tant to note that 2009’s negativenumbers included a robust federal taxcredit for residential HVAC equip-ment upgrades, coupled with unprece-dented state and utility efficiencyfunding across the nation. This mightsuggest that 2009 could have been farworse, but more likely indicates thatgovernment and utility incentive fund-ing has limitations to its market-dri-ving potential.

Nowhere to go but up?

Perhaps the most relevant questionfor 2010 is whether 2009 has signaleda bottoming out in which there’snowhere to go but up. The federal taxcredits will remain in effect through2010, providing a full year with com-plete product lines of qualifyingequipment, a better-educated contrac-tor community and public aboutthose credits, and 2010 utility effi-ciency funding that is certain to dwarfany previous year. ITR’s most recentquarterly HARDI Targeted and Re-

gional Economic News for Distribu-

tor Strategies (TRENDS) forecastreleased in September included aconservative, but generally opti-mistic, forecast for 2010. “The risingtrends of M1 and M2 [measures ofmoney supply] make us optimisticabout credit flows going into 2010and about the probability of a 2010rising trend in retail sales.

It is true that the money supplytrends will likely lead to a new infla-tion trend in 2011, but a trade-off isbeing made between liquidity todayand inflation tomorrow.” Strangledcredit markets are widely regarded asthe key factor in 2009’s declines, soany improvement in the 2010 creditmarket will surely deliver somegrowth. ITR’s forecast concludes with“Fortu nately, there are positive signalscoming from the leading indicators.The U.S. Leading Indicator, the Pur-chasing Managers Index, corporatebond prices, the M2 money supply,and the stock prices 1/12 (S&P 500)confirm our outlook that the economyis exiting the grips of the recession inthe final quarter of 2009. A general, al-beit mild, recovery is projected for2010. 2011 looks even better.”

HARDI developed a partnership in2009 with JP Morgan’s ElectricalEquipment & Multi-Industry EquityResearch in an effort to increase thevalue of analyses of the HVACR indus-try. In their HVAC 2009 Review and

(Turn to Choppy... page 34.)See contact information on page 90• Be sure to visit www.thewholesaler.com for web exclusive articles and videos! •

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Choppy recovery forecast for HVACR Outlook Annual Report, JP Morgan an-alyst Steve Tusa believes that after anunprecedented four down years, thestage is set for a multi-year period ofgrowth in residential HVAC starting in2010. The key, he cites, is pent up de-mand from some ~7 mm older systemsthat have either been fixed over recentyears or sitting idle, as consumers optfor cheaper alternatives to replacingbroken units, which had become thenorm over the past several decades.

For 2010, they see growth, drivenby a combination of growth in hous-ing off of a low base, with the moreimportant lever the degree of recov-ery in consumer sentiment, which isa key to rates of replacement of theaged installed base; a bigger factor at90% of market volumes. Add it allup, and JP Morgan forecasts marketgrowth of 15% in 2010, with a worstcase of 5%.

ITR’s Alan Beaulieu, who serves as

HARDI’s chief economist, shares JPMorgan’s generally positive outlook.He cited a Federal Housing FinanceAgency report of a 0.2% higher Q3Housing Price Index compared to Q2and an improving National Associa-tion of Realtors house affordabilityindex. But he also had a clear messageof caution: “Having just said that, let’snot get too excited. The banking in-

dustry is still reeling, unemploymentis high and consumer cash will not beflowing into the housing industry atanything close to the boom levels of2006 and 2007. Plan on stabilizationthrough the near term followed bymild rise later in 2010.” Beaulieu con-cluded, “Undoubtedly, low interestrates and tax credits have been a boonto the real estate businesses in an oth-

erwise dour market but be prepared foradditional setbacks in the recovery, re-sulting in a flat 2010 with the potentialfor fairly mild upside activity later inthe year.”

Impediments to recovery

Significant headwinds are restrain-ing a robust recovery in 2010. TheAmerican Institute of Architects proj-ects a 16% decline in nonresidentialconstruction in 2009, and an addi-

tional drop of almost 12% in 2010.Masonry Construction agrees andprojects a 17% decline in 2010 in ex-cess of 2009’s 14% fall. Commodityprices have widely fluctuated, wreak-ing havoc on distributor inventoryvalues, and have suffered from thesluggish new construction market.John Packard, publisher of the Steel

Market Update, a HARDI Service

Vendor Member, said, “For those in-volved in the galvanized sheet andcoil business, besides having to dealwith a sluggish residential construc-tion market, 2008 and 2009 bothwere years when steel prices rose rap-idly, fell dramatically and, as weenter the first quarter 2010, the do-mestic mills are pushing steel priceshigher again.

“2010 will very likely be anotheryear of turmoil. Steel Market Update

expects prices to rise – and the risecould be much higher and faster thanmany anticipate – during the firstquarter of 2010. The reasons for theincrease will be the price of steel in-puts – scrap in particular – and forthose buying galvanized, the price ofzinc has essentially doubled in pricesince the beginning of January 2009when it traded around $.50 per poundcompared to the $1.00 per pound wefind it at today. The domestic steelmills have already announced newcoating extras on galvanized steel to

(Turn to Mild growth, page 36.)




“...consumer cash will not be flowing into the housing industry atanything close to the boom levels of 2006 and 2007. Plan on

stabilization through the near term followed by mild rise later in 2010.”


Mild growth(Continued from page 34.)

go into effect during the early days ofthe first quarter 2010. Many of themills have also announced price in-crease on the base metal. Combined,light gauge galvanized used for duct-work could increase by $85 per ton($4.25/cwt) on 26 gauge G90 galva-nized or around 9% from the Decem-ber mill selling prices.”

Robust incentives for public andprivate building efficiency improve-ments have the potential to help theindustry overcome these significantbarriers. The previously mentionedhomebuyer tax credits and residentialefficiency tax credits, coupled withcurrent and proposed additional com-mercial tax credits, provide no lack offederal measures intended to offsetthe significant cost of HVACR up-grades. As published by the Consor-tium for Energy Efficiency, utilitybudgets for U.S. and Cana dian en-ergy efficiency programs increasedfrom $3.7 billion in 2007 to $4.5 bil-lion in 2008, and 2009 exceeded $6

billion — $5.3 billion in the U.S.alone. Given those incredible positiverates of change, 2010 efficiency fund-ing could be literally off the charts.

Coupling these incentives for ge-othermal and high-efficiency HVACsystems (and increasingly for refrig-eration systems) with JP Morgan’sprojection that several years of in-creased repair rates is creating a de-mand bubble soon to pop, wouldindicate that there are significant mar-gin opportunities for unitary equip-ment distributors in 2010. While thiscould signal a decline for the partsand supplies wholesalers that havefared best during this period of higherrepair rates. Even a modest increasein residential construction shouldmaintain some demand for ancillaryproducts, including ductwork andother air-handling products.

As I complete this article, the U.S.Environmental Protection Agency fi-nally finalized the two rules for the2010-2014 step in the phaseout ofHCFCs, primarily R-22, reducing do-mestic supplies by 75%. HARDI’sinitial analysis of the HCFC Alloca-

tion Rule and the Ban on Pre-

Charged Appliances Rule indicates asfavorable an outcome as could havebeen expected, thanks largely to ayear’s worth of close work with theEPA to amend and clarify the two

rules proposed in late 2008 that werewrought with significant problemsfor HARDI distributors. The finalrules make clear that replacementcomponents such as condensingunits, compressors, line sets, etc., cancontinue to be sold beyond January 1,2010, and used for the repair andservicing of existing R-22 HVAC andrefrigeration systems. However, theinstallation of new R-22 systems innew construction or system expan-sions will be prohibited.

This would indicate another incen-tive for legacy system replacementssince R-22 prices figure to increaseas supplies tighten; however 2009still saw some equipment lines inwhich R-410A equipment was moreexpensive than the R-22 equipment.This will hopefully be a limited phe-nomenon intended to deplete factoryinventories since manufacturers willno longer be able to produce R-22pre-charged equipment after January1, 2010. Distributors that are mostsuccessful growing a motivated con-tractor base that is supportive of R-410A equipment will certainly be ata competitive advantage this comingcooling season.

Flat 2010 for HVACR

2010’s refrigerant transition affectsthe commercial refrigeration marketas well. Manufacturers can still pro-duce and sell refrigeration condens-ing units with nitrogen holdingcharges after January 1, 2010 forservicing purposes, but concerns overthe long-term availability of afford-able R-22 could help contractors en-courage system replacements usingalternative refrigerants. Energy effi-ciency interest and leak reductionmandates and strategies are providingincentives for distributed systems andupgrades to more efficient and tightercomponents.

In all, just about every indicatorpoints to at least a flat 2010 for theHVACR industry with opportunitiesfor modest growth. This is especiallytrue for the residential markets; how-ever commercial business seems sureto struggle for most of the year. Ofcourse, improvements in the creditmarkets could save the 2010 com-mercial market, but access to creditisn’t guaranteed to equal an increasein consumer or commercial demand.Much like last year, the only consis-tent construction growth is seen in thegovernment and institutional projectsthat now most often demand somelevel of high-performance/sustain-ability/green expertise. Debates areunderway on a potential second stim-ulus and/or a massive jobs bill, bothof which would include significantinfrastructure and energy efficiencyspending. As always in wholesaling,buy low and sell high, but in 2010 beespecially careful with your com-modity items and be prepared to pro-vide far more technical, sales,incentive administration and incen-tive education support than you everhave before. �

Talbott H. Gee is vice president of

the Heating, Airconditioning and Re-

frigeration Distributors Inter national

(HARDI). Call 888/253-2128 or visit

www.hardinet.org to learn more.See contact information on page 90• Be sure to visit www.thewholesaler.com for web exclusive articles and videos! •


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BY MARY JO MARTIN

Editorial director

This industry is defined by thecharacter of its people — thedepth of their honesty and in-

tegrity, the loyalty and spirit of serv-ice they exhibit within their own


“During my 41 years with Webb, I can honestlysay that I don’t know of one management

employee who ever left to work for a competitor.”

organizations and with their tradingpartners, and their strong work ethic.One person who embodies all ofthese characteristics is Jack Hester,41-year F.W. Webb veteran and itslongtime president. After being hiredas office manager in 1969, Hesterwas named treasurer in 1972, andthen president from 1982 until 2002when Jeff Pope assumed the presi-dency and Hester moved to chairman.

Hester retired effective January 1,2010, and will truly be missed by somany in this industry — this editorincluded. As a way to honor Hesterfor his lengthy service not only toF.W. Webb, but also to the industry asa whole, editorial director Mary JoMartin asked him to share his story

with readers of The Wholesaler.

MJM: How did you get your start

at F.W. Webb and can you share some

of your background prior to joining

the company?

Hester: I graduated from BostonCollege in 1961 with a BSBA in Ac-counting. I went to work in the Fi-nance Department at the GeneralMotors Assembly Division in Fram-ingham, Mass., until I started withF.W. Webb on January 5, 1969.

My landing at F.W. Webb is actu-ally an interesting story. I grew up inWellesley, Mass., across the streetfrom Vic Polimeno, a salesman forWebb for years, and his family.When I got married in 1966 we builta house right next to where I grew

up. Well, Vic adored my wife andwould come over almost every Sun-day morning to have coffee and chat.On one of those occasions in late1968, he asked if I had ever thoughtof leaving GM, because F.W. Webbwas looking for an office manager.

(Turn to Longtime.. page 42.)

Jack Hester, longtime

president of F.W. Webb.



Tribute to an industry stalwart

F.W. Webb’s Jack Hesterretires after 41 years of service

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Longtime F.W. Webb executive Hester retiresNot too long after, I accepted the joboffer and later I learned that theyhadn’t even interviewed anyone elsefor the job. I asked Vic why he hadrecommended me so highly. He saidhe had never forgotten the time heand his wife Mary had gone to theirson’s graduation at Fort Dix, N.J.,back in 1958 and came home in asnowstorm. When they pulled intotheir driveway that night, I was justfinishing shoveling it — to their sur-prise. Vic told me that while he knewmy background and that I hadworked my way through college,what had im pressed him the mostwas that as an 18-year-old kid, I wentout of my way to do something Iwasn’t asked to do.

Well, here I am almost 41 yearslater to the date I was hired and get-ting ready to retire. My life wouldhave been very different if I hadn’ttaken the initiative back in 1958 to go

across the street and shovel Vic andMary’s driveway. I share this storywith many young folks — includingmy own son and daughter — andhope they absorb the meaning of it.

MJM: What are some of the fa-

vorite memories you’ve collected

over the years?

Hester: I have so many wonderfulmemories. One of my favorites has tobe in 1978 when Webb acquired ourlargest competitor in Vermont. Irounded up a dozen managers tospend the weekend counting inven-tory. We were supposed to start at 2p.m. on a Friday and I was waiting attheir headquarters with their chief ac-countant and outside auditor for theowner to show up so we could start.All five of their locations were onhold waiting for the word to start. By2:30 I was getting mad (my Irish tem-per) because the owner still wasn’tthere. At 3:00 we started trying tochase him down and at 3:30 we found

out he was at a bar in St Johnsbury,Vt., with his local manager and theywere pretty well along the way tobeing drunk.

Once the auditor found that out, westarted the count in all locations. We

worked very late on Friday and Satur-day nights and finished the count Sun-day morning. When I reported back toJohn Pope afterwards, he asked whatI thought we should do for all the man-agers who volunteered. I said they ex-pected nothing. But he insisted that Itake them and their wives to Bermudafor a long weekend.

Between 1972 and 2007, Webb ac-quired over 25 companies and mostof them come with great memories aswe worked like heck counting inven-tory during the day and made up for

the hard work by partying at night.Working like this brought us togetheras a management group.

But my favorite memory has to bethe day back in 1982 when John Popeinvited me out to lunch. As the treas-urer, going out to lunch with theowner was a rarity and I had no clue

what was about to happen. Duringlunch, he said he would like me totake over his role as president of thecompany and he would become thechairman. I was 43 years old at thetime and had been with F.W. Webb foronly 13 years as a “bean counter.” Be-coming president was the last thing Ithought would happen to me at thispoint in time and I could hardly be-lieve it. Fortunately for me the econ-omy in our area was booming, and wehad a great management team. (Turn to Hester recalls... page 44.)



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Hester recalls memories from long career MJM: Who are some of the people

who have played a major role in your

career?

Hester: First and foremost hasbeen John Pope. Back around 1971,he developed the vision that if F.W.Webb was going to survive long-term the company needed to expand,both geographically and productwise. At that time, we had seven lo-

cations — we now have 76 and arewell diversified. To do this we had tohave a strong financial statement andgood people who weren’t afraid ofworking and who had the vision aswell. John did a great job in pullingour team together.

Another person who really helped

me was a manager named CharlieSlattery Sr. (his son Charlie Jr startedabout the same time I did and is ourVP-corporate purchasing). When Istarted as office manager I had noclue how the Webb branch systemworked. Charlie Sr. was manager ofour Salem, Mass., branch. I used tovisit him and pick his brain aboutwhat was good and bad about our ITsystem. The system was a failure and

with Charlie’s help I was able to un-derstand what we really needed andconvince John Pope that we neededto do something else. After a failedexperience with another computersystem, its provider ended up givingus their source programming files sowe could use their basic system and

design our own. We now have a greatlegacy system that our talented IT de-partment developed over the years.

One other person I’d like to men-tion is John Lynch, who worked forBay Banks. John helped me through-out the years in getting financing forour many acquisitions. He was like afather and never said no. He surewould ask a lot of questions, how-ever, before he went to bat for us withthe loan committee.

MJM: You’ve always been a

strong association supporter. Why is

that important to you?

Hester: I have always felt that astrong local association is importantfor the industry. Back in the 90s wehad that in NEWA, the New EnglandWholesalers Association. Moe Des -marais, who was dynamic and ran aprofitable operation, was the execu-tive director. I served as presidentaround 1995, and enjoyed manyyears in the association working with

Dave Corcoran of the RB CorcoranCo. and Kevin Condran of the Gran-ite Group. Unfortunately, timeschanged and Moe left to work inChicago. To be honest, the organiza-tion was never the same after that andthe old NEWA eventually disap-peared. There is an organization thatis now called WANE, WholesalersAssociation of the Northeast, but it isno longer just a local group; it hascombined the old NEWA, New York(upstate region and a city region) andthe Mid-Atlantic regions of ASA.

I went through the chairs at ASAand became president in 2002. I wasfortunate to have worked with KarlNeupert of Consolidated Supply,who has since passed away. He hada vision that for ASA to survive, theyneeded to establish an EducationFoundation. He convinced the boardof directors to start a foundation anda few years ago they reached the goalof raising $10 million. I believe verystrongly that the Education Founda-

(Turn to Hester retires, page 48.)



Industry Leaders


“Back around 1971, [John Pope] developed the vision that if F.W. Webb was going to survive long-term, the company needed to expand, both geographically and product wise. At the time,

we had seven locations — we now have 76 and are well diversified.”

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Hester retires(Continued from page 44.)

tion has to be the strength of ASA ifit is going to survive down the road.They are doing some great thingsand have many product and manage-ment training modules available on-line 24/7.

I also believe ASA’s governmentaction committee is heading in theright direction, especially with things likeunion card check revision, LIFO elimi-nation, estate taxes etc.

MJM: You’ve been in this industry

a long time. In what ways have the

business issues you face as a whole-

saler today changed, and are there

things that have remained a constant?

Hester: Things really have notchanged a lot. Most of the competi-tors have been around a long time andwe pretty much know how everyoneoperates in the marketplace. Themajor factor right now is the pressureon pricing due to the poor economy.It seems that no matter what price

you put on something, someone al-ways has a better price if given lastlook. I don’t see it changing muchuntil the last quarter of next year.

What we hear most from major con-tractors is that banks are simply notlending money the way they did twoyears ago and so many projects havebeen put on hold. They also tell us thereis going to be a major problem downthe road when the money starts comingas many of the projects will come at thesame time and they will have laborproblems trying to get enough experi-enced people to do the work.

MJM: Based on all you have wit-

nessed, are there any words of wisdom

you’d like to share with others who

might benefit from your experience?

Hester: Surround yourself withgreat people. I was so fortunate tohave some great general managersand corporate people that simplymade me look good. We all workedtogether towards the objective ofmaking the F.W. Webb Company thelargest, most diversified company in

New England and upstate New York,while providing the best service toour customers.

MJM: F.W. Webb continues to be

extremely successful and grow its

business. Besides the vision of John

Pope that you mentioned earlier,

what is it about the company that has

set it on this course?

Hester: In addition to hiring thebest people around to run ourbranches and corporate office, Johnbacked this up with management in-centives and a 401k and profit shar-ing plan. During my 41 years withWebb I can honestly say that I don’tknow of one management employeewho ever left to work for a competi-tor. That in itself says a lot about howJohn Pope, and now Jeff Pope, runF.W. Webb.

MJM: What is in store for you

during this next chapter in your life?

Hester: I really don’t know andam a little concerned. I have alwaysworked — starting out as a 12-year-old working for my aunt as a bus boy

in a nursing home. My dad, who wasa milkman, handed down his workethic to me. I love to play golf, butyou can only do so much of that. I ac-tually took up piano lessons a fewyears ago. It’s sort of a guilt trip forme as I was a complete failure at itwhen I was in third grade and thenuns convinced my parents that mypiano lessons were a waste of theirmoney. It’s actually a lot of fun nowand very relaxing.

I don’t know how I am going tohandle not having a place to go towork a few days a week as I havebeen doing this past year. It sure willbe a challenge for my wife Dianne.We have been married 43 years butvery rarely have been together 7 daysa week 24 hours a day. �

For anyone wishing to stay in

touch with Hester, the following is his

contact information: 4 Donizetti

Street, Wellesley, MA 02482; e-mail

will remain [email protected]; and

cell is 617/538-0863.



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A. O. Smith hosts repcontest winners formemorable golf eventBY MARY JO MARTIN

Editorial director

During the past 18 months, A. O. Smith has unveiled anew logo, color scheme and

branding campaign designed to sup-port their ramped-up efforts to bringthe most energy efficient and envi-ronmentally friendly products to themarket.

As a result, A. O. Smith replacedthe traditional blue that had identifiedthe company in its logo and other mar-keting materials since 1977 with greento signify the company’s commitmentto develop high-efficiency products.They also aligned with noted environ-mental activist and actor Ed BegleyJr., who serves as a spokes man for theVertex product line.

With a number of new productshaving been introduced in 2009 —and a slate of even more innovativemodels set to be launched this year —it is critical that A. O. Smith educateits customers on their benefits, bothfor the end users and the environ-ment. To do this, A. O. Smith reliesheavily on its network of independentmanufacturers’ representatives tospread the message and conducttraining classes for wholesalers, con-tractors, engineers and others.

As added motivation for conductingthese training courses, A. O. Smith re-cently wrapped up its second annual“Play With A Pro” contest and golftournament. The three-month contestwas designed to incentivize reps toschedule and conduct training courseswith customers. Winners were those

agencies that tallied the highest num-ber of trained contractors, engineersand wholesalers during that time pe-riod. This year, one sales team fromeach of A. O. Smith’s eight regionsacross the country was able to sendfour representatives to a dream golfouting near Charleston, S.C.

The eight teams were treated to anall-expenses-paid trip with accom-modations at a hotel in Charleston’shistorical district, dinner at the ac-claimed Magnolia’s Restaurant and a

round of golf with a celebrity or proat the prestigious Bulls Bay GolfClub, a private club that was closedto all except the A. O. Smith groupthat day.

Many manufacturers host specialevents like this for their customers,but brand manager David Chisolmexplained why A. O. Smith felt it wasso important to provide its reps suchan opportunity: “Our focus has beenon bringing new products to market.

(Turn to Reps enjoy... page 53.)


Special Event

Woolf-Harris’ Drew Dawson (left)

and Roger Shepard flank Darius

Rucker, lead vocalist of Hootie and

the Blowfish.

Overall promo winners from Harry Warren Inc. were (l-r) Jimmy Goodale,

Stacey Phillips, Al Listrom, Richard Helms, Bill Orris, Robert Maynor, Mike

McLeod and Bob Mycoff.

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THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010• •53


Reps enjoy unique reward from A. O. SmithThe challenge is to get our message through thechannel. We rely on our reps to deliver that mes-sage — they are an integral link in the chain.Over the next 18 months we expect to roll out alarge number of new products and we want to en-sure that our reps will be motivated to promote

A. O. Smith to their customers.”A golf event seemed to be a natural fit for

A. O. Smith, as they have been sponsoring for-mer McBee, S.C., plant employee Tommy “TwoGloves” Gainey on the professional tour for thelast two years. Gainey had been working secondshift wrapping insulation around water heatersbefore being selected to appear on The GolfChannel show The Big Break — which conse-quently led to him joining the PGA Tour.

“We worked very closely on this event withthe agency that represents Tommy,” notedChisolm. “Iron ically, our primary contact used tobe the road manager for Hootie and the Blowfish.They also had a connection with this course,which helped us arrange for a private outing, andhad the connection with all of the pros andcelebrities. We really relied on them to helphand-pick the guys we would use. Our goal wasto select low-key people who would interact wellwith each other and our reps, and make it a com-fortable and enjoyable time for everyone.”

Kicking it off

Charlie Rymer, a PGA tour player and GolfChannel analyst, set the mood with a laughter-inducing welcome speech following dinner atMagnolia’s and played in the golf tournament thefollowing day.

“Charlie really broke the ice for everyone thatfirst night,” said Bob Mycoff of Harry WarrenInc. in Orlando. “He did a tongue-in-cheek roastof the PGA players who were there, talked aboutlife on the road as a touring pro and shared oldstories about some of the players. He madeeverybody comfortable, which was the perfectkick-off for the event.”

In addition to Rymer and Gainey, other celebri-ties who participated included Darius Rucker,Mark Bryan and Dean Felber of Hootie and theBlowfish; golf pros John Daly, Josh Broadaway,Chad Ginn, Lee Rinker and David Robinson; for-mer Green Bay Packer great Sterling Sharpe; for-mer Major League baseball player MickeyTettleton; and NASCAR’s Kyle Petty.

The light-hearted mood continued the nextmorning. As they hit the driving range to warmup, there was an old blue van parked nearby withmusic playing loudly from its speakers. Chisolm

laughed as he related the story. “We were all kindof thinking, ‘Geez, couldn’t the club have figuredout a little better way to pipe in some music forus?’ This van was pretty beat up and just didn’tfit the exclusive nature of this club. As it turnedout, this was the original van that Hootie and theBlowfish used back when they were just a groupof college guys out driving themselves and theirequipment from gig to gig.”

The jovial nature of the celebrities and proshelped the teams relax and enjoy the day. Therewas a lot of good-natured jokes and poking funon the range, which continued on the course andafterwards.

An ideal day

At a pairings breakfast prior to tee-off, eachteam was able to select the celebrity or pro theywanted to play with, based on how they finishedin the contest. The first one chosen was DariusRucker. They played in a five-man, best-ball for-mat — except for a special twist that was thrownin for the 10th hole. PGA tour member John Daly— well-known for his booming drives — actu-ally spent time with each team and hit a tee shotfor each of them on No. 10, which proved to bea big hit with everyone.

“I was so impressed that they just wanted it tobe a fun experience for all of us and actually dis-couraged business talk over these two days,” said

Bob Soderholm of Soderholm & Associates inRamsey, Minn. “In addition to myself, represent-ing our agency were Peter Bibby, Brian Paulsenand Dale Blanchette. We played with JoshBroadaway. We are salespeople from Minnesotaand Wisconsin who don’t play a lot of golf. Butwe won the tournament — with a score of -14 —because of Josh. When we got on the first tee, thefour of us told him that we were out here to havea good time — no pressure. And that’s the waywe all played, even Josh.

“Our agency loves to have fun. When ourgroup is together, we’re always laughing. One ofthe ways I often judge the success or failure ofan event is how enjoyable it is for those involved.The celebrities and pros they selected were fan-tastic to hang around with. They could not havepicked a better group to participate. They werehumble and very approachable with just wonder-ful personalities.”

Throughout the day, director of sales John Altepeter and program manager RobinMcLaugh lin drove carts around the course, stop-ping to visit with each of the teams. There werealso two lunch tents set up on the course serving

Special Event


(Turn to A big... page 54.)

The tournament’s winning team (l-r): Brian Paulsen,

Dale Blanchette, Bob Soderholm and Peter Bibby of

Soderholm & Associates, and pro Josh Broadaway.

PGA pro Tommy Gainey (center) with Curtis

Wilkinson, Darrin Kupper, Mark Hendricks and

Kevin Winslow, of Hugh M. Cunningham Inc.


burgers, brats and all the trimmings.And the scenery was postcard per-fect, in the deltas of South Carolinawith a view of the ocean from thehilltop where the clubhouse sits. Theweather, too, was ideal, with temper-atures pleasantly in the low 70s and aHarvest Moon that made an appear-ance as the tournament wrapped up.

Bob Mycoff headed a group fromhis agency that included Al Listrom,Robert Maynor, Jimmy Goodale,Mike McLeod, Richard Helms,Stacey Phillips and Bill Orris. My-coff’s foursome selected Rymer astheir pro and actually tied for firstwith Soderholm’s team but lost in aplayoff determined by their scores ona pre-selected hole.

“There was great camaraderie byeveryone involved,” Mycoff noted.“Nobody got a free ride or went un-scathed during this event. So even ifthe pros goofed up, we all teased them

and gave them a hard time. And anevent like this brings out everyone’scompetitive juices, so of course ourguys were trying to outshine the pros.

“Through this event, A. O. Smithgave agency principals the chance toinvolve our sales and specifying em-ployees who do a lot of the hardwork every day but who don’t al-ways get to experience the rewards.This contest was actually centeredaround the guys who do the trainingand make A. O. Smith important tothe distributors and contractors. Itwas a big thank you from A. O.Smith and me to our field guys forthe job they do every day. I can’tthank the people at A. O. Smithenough for making it so special forthem and honoring the hard workthat goes into selling their productevery day.”

Chisolm said he was surprised andpleased that the celebrities and prosthey selected made time to participate

in the whole event from start to fin-ish. Most attended the welcome din-ner the night before and then,following the golf outing, stayed fordinner, cocktails, card games and animpromptu jam session as John Dalyand Mark Bryan (Hootie’s guitarist)took turns playing guitar.

“We couldn’t have been morepleased with the way the contest andevent turned out,” said Chisolm. “Wewere honored to host the winningagencies to a one-of-a-kind event to

say thank you for a job well done.And we have been blown away bythe personal notes and thank yousthat we have gotten from them in re-turn. Their sentiments have beenvery heartfelt.

“At the end of the day, this entireevent was all about educating cus-tomers on new products that are in-novative and energy efficient,because the more you can elevate theawareness, the more successful it willmake everyone in the chain.” �



A big A. O. Smith ‘thank you’Special Event


Paul Graham, John Daly, John Altepeter, Ken Fagan, George Simas, Dave

Ziemba, Bob Pink (all with Emerson Swan)

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56 • •THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010Tankless TechnologyNo more ‘cold water sandwiches’

Navien turns up the heat in TexasBY MARY JO MARTIN

Editorial director

Consumers are more involved

than ever in the selection of

products and appliances for

their homes. With a seemingly end-

less amount of information at their

fingertips thanks to the internet, con-

sumers have become extremely well

versed on product capabilities and

benefits. As a result, while contrac-

tors formerly were the ones who

drove sales of appliances and plumb-

ing products for a home, consumers

have now tipped the scales — and are

often in the driver’s seat for such de-

cisions.

While certainly still holding an im-

portant role in this scenario, it leaves

wholesalers such as Ferguson to bal-

ance product offerings to satisfy the

interests of both contractors and con-

sumer trends. Houston area sales

manager Chris Couvillion noted that

Ferguson is always looking at prod-

ucts to set their contractors apart in

the market, and that add value for

both the customer and the end user.

“We feel like Navien tankless

water heaters offers those attributes,”

said Couvillion, a 15-year Ferguson

veteran. “Consumers are really fo-

cused on going green, as well as get-

ting a good return on their

investment. These heaters fill the

niche for those who are really con-

scious about energy efficiency, water

conservation — and getting the most

bang for their buck. Meanwhile, con-

tractors are looking for a good quality

product that is reliable and will gen-

erate positive discussion in the mar-

ket. It’s our role as the wholesaler to

have the right product on the shelf, in

the right place and at the right time.

Ty Tipton, principal/owner of man-

ufacturers’ rep firm Tipton Company

in Houston, is energized by the de-

mand he is witnessing for Navien.

“I was hesitant to take on a line of

tankless water heaters,” he said. “But

when Navien entered North America

and I did some research, I saw they

had engineered the product to elimi-

nate some of the common problems

associated with tankless models. In

all my years in the rep business, I

have never had a new product line

take off like Navien has in

the Texas market.”

And Navien president Ted

Kwak is convinced that de-

mand will continue to grow

— not just in Houston, but

throughout the U.S. “The

tankless industry as a whole

will be down from 2008, but

2010 will better than 2009,”

he said. “Navien it self in-

creased 2.5 times between

2008 and 2009, and we ex-

pect to increase sales 100%

in 2010. With the current

stimulus package in place,

Navien will continue to see

conversion from tank to tan-

kless in 2010. We believe

Navien will continue to gain

loyalty and expand our cus-

tomer base.”

Array of benefits

According to Tipton, the

rule of thumb he uses when

promoting Navien tankless

water heaters is 50% energy

savings. That number can

vary slightly based on the number of

people in the home, how many fix-

tures are involved or how many gal-

lons of water are used. The larger the

job, the more savings will be realized.

Tipton went on to describe some of

the key benefits he attributes to the

Navien design. “They have a tank

and a recirculation pump built in on

the heater,” he said. “This eliminates

a minimum flow rate to activate the

heater. The standard tankless heaters

take .6 gpm to activate them to pro-

duce hot water. Because Navien uses

a small buffer tank to preheat the

water, they always have it ready on

demand.

“Additionally, on a standard tank-

less water heater there is a delay of

around 15 seconds from the time you

ask for hot water when you turn on a

fixture and when the burner turns on,

water heats up and starts coming

down the line. This delay causes a

cold water sandwich. It happens

when you turn it on and turn it off and

then turn it on again, as in the case of

two family members taking back-to-

back showers. The second per son ini-

tially gets the hot water that’s still in

the line, but then has to wait for the

process to start again so he or she gets

stuck with 15 or so seconds of cold

water. The Navien unit stores a half

gallon of water at 120°, which elimi-

nates this problem.”

Kwak said Navien worked very

hard to engineer a product that would

deliver what wholesalers, contractors,

homeowners and other end users

wanted. “Our units offer the ability to

vent in PVC, cascading and common

venting,” he said. “We have a 3-inch

Schedule 40 PVC venting system up

to 100 feet with maximum of six el-

bows, 2-inch venting with 12 feet of

Schedule 40 solid PVC with two el-

bows. We also provide one of the in-

dustry’s best warranties and built-in

leak detection.”

Contractor Kevin Nunez, who

owns Retro Plumbing in Houston, got

his start as a helper on jobsites when

he was just 11. He’s extremely well

versed in tankless technology, having

attended many training sessions and

schools sponsored by manufacturers

and wholesalers such as Ferguson,

and being named a preferred dealer

by both Navien and Rinnai.

“What really sold me on the

Navien heaters was that no service is

needed on the units,” Nunez ex-

plained. “It’s just an easy sell to the

consumer. Navien has a superior de-

sign, with a downdraft burner assem-

bly and PVC vent pipe rather than

more costly vent pipe required by

some manufacturers.

“These units also reduce the liabil-

ity of housing large tanks of water in

the attic and even have an alarm on

the system so it automatically shuts

down if there is a leak. With Navien’s

re-circulation system, the hot water is

at your finger tips. That fast and lim-

itless supply of hot water is a major

selling feature.”

Another great benefit with these

(Turn to Navien... page 58.)


With a Navien tankless water heater uniquely mounted on his truck, contractor

Kevin Nunez generates a lot of attention on the roads around Houston.

A Ferguson showroom installation displays

several Navien tankless water heaters and helps

educate consumers on their benefits.

North America has been one of the last

markets to embrace the use of tankless

water heaters, but that is changing as

manufacturers and their reps educate

distributors and contractors on the

benefits of tankless technology.

“I was hesitant to take on a line of

tankless water heaters...[but] In all my years in the rep business, I have never had a

new product line take off like Navien has

in the Texas market.”— Ty Tipton

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Navien units generating increased interestunits is that they don’t have to be de-

scaled. While some water heaters

have a tendency to accumulate sedi-

ment deposits that can hamper their

performance, the Navien units are de-

signed with a stainless steel heat ex-

changer and pre-mixing burner

system that doesn’t lend itself to min-

eral deposit buildup.

Changing old habits

It has sometimes been thought that

contractors are creatures of habit and

aren’t always the most accepting of

new products or installation require-

ments. But Couvillion said that is

rapidly changing — especially with

innovative products like Navien

water heaters.

“We offer specialized training pro-

grams that go beyond the typical

training that many wholesalers offer,”

said Couvillion. “But with new lines

like Navien, we encourage contrac-

tors to attend multiple sessions. Our

manufacturers’ rep does a great job of

training. But field experience and

various scenarios always come into

these classes, and it helps when con-

tractors can hear real experiences

from their peers in the field. We also

encourage our associates to attend

these classes so they can better advise

our customers.”

Nunez agreed, emphasizing that

installing tankless units involves

some trial and error in the beginning.

“You’ve got to get out in the field and

get your feet wet,” he said. “These

Navien units are very service friendly

when it comes to installation. Be-

cause of their size, contractors have

more flexibility and space to work in

when installation these tankless units.

They’re also very lightweight, so

they’re easier to unload and put into

place. Venting options are also better,

because you can use up to 100 feet of

PVC pipe including up to six 90 de-

gree elbows for the vent and you

don’t have to worry about it touching

a wall or combustibles.”

As Tipton — who as a rep serves as

the liaison between the manufacturer,

wholesaler, contractor and sometimes

the end user — noted, it is his job to

be the eyes and ears for the manufac-

turer in the field. As such, he compiles

competitive information and other

data from all levels within the industry

and shares that with his manufacturers

so they can be responsive.

“Navien tankless water heaters

are a perfect example of a product

that wholesalers and contractors

wanted,” Tipton explained. “Navien

listened and produced that product.

And while contractors have been

used to putting in tank-type heaters

for many years, they are starting to

really come around and embrace the

benefits of tankless units. The tide

has definitely turned.”

Consumer appeal

Tankless water heaters are gaining

broad appeal and recognition among

consumers for a number of reasons —

not the least of which is the tax credit

currently being offered. In addition,

because of Navien’s recirculating ca-

pacity that saves water — upwards of

7,000 gallons per year for the average

home, says Tipton — some municipal-

ities in drought-affected areas are of-

fering separate tax credits as a

low-consumption appliance.

“North America is one of the last

markets to adapt to tankless technol-

ogy,” Tipton said. “It has been a 10-

to 15-year process to convert con-

sumers. But the tax credits are caus-

ing a lot of people who had been

concerned about the cost to take a

second look. And the fact that people

are becoming more concerned about

energy efficiency is a key aspect to

these units’ popularity.”

And, despite the need for some

repiping, Couvillion noted that tank-

less units are in high demand for

retrofit applications.

“People are staying in their homes

longer these days and they’re willing

(Turn to Broad range ... page 60.)



Tankless Technology

The Navien unit stores a half gallon of

water at 120°, which eliminates the

problem of, as Tipton describes it, ‘a

cold water sandwich.’

Chris Couvillion, Houston-area sales manager for Ferguson, and Ty Tipton,

principal and owner of Tipton Company, examine a Navien tankless unit on

Ferguson’s loading dock before shipping it to a customer.

“Whether it be a remodel or renovation, this is a product thatmakes sense. It’s 98% efficient and will save the homeowner

money in the long run. These units are built to last 20+ years.” — Chris Couvillion

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Broad range of applicationsto make this type of investment in

their home,” he explained. “Whether

it be a remodel or renovation, this is

a product that makes sense. It’s 98%

efficient and will save the home-

owner money in the long run. These

units are built to last 20+ years. We

actually see more sales for remodel

ap plications than new construction,

as builders are trying to cut costs so

they aren’t as willing to put in some-

thing that has a higher upfront cost.

It’s the homeowners who are going to

realize the down-the-road savings.”

Applications abound

Navien tankless water heaters

come in nearly 30 different models

and are powered with either natural

or LP/propane gas. With a range from

150,000 to 199,000 Btu and with flow

rates ranging from 8.5 to 11.2 gpm,

they are designed for residential and

commercial use. The temp erature can

be adjusted from 80° to 140° for res-

idential dwellings and up to 180° for

commercial properties.

Their most recent product launch is

the Condensing Combi Water Heater,

which Tipton describes as “one of the

most innovative inventions I’ve seen

in the plumbing industry.” A domestic

water heater with space-heating appli-

cations, it has a Btu input of up to

200,000. The Combi is engineered to

perform three tasks:

• Handling all the domestic hot

water needs for a dwelling

• In-floor radiant heating

• Space heating.

“Navien units are ideal for virtu-

ally all applications — in homes and

restaurants of all sizes, motels/ hotels,

hunting camps, hospitals and assisted

living centers and more,” Tipton

shared. “One of the growing ap -

plications is school districts. We’ve put

Navien into something as small as a

school’s concession stand, to a large

fieldhouse or boiler room that runs

the hot water for the entire school.

School districts are looking for ways

to save energy and speaking on aver-

age, we can cut a school’s existing

energy consumption in half — at a

minimum. This saves the taxpayers

dollars and allows funds to be di-

rected to other line items that will

benefit the students.”

Couvillion concurred: “These are

on-demand units, so they are great for

facilities such as this that don’t have

constant use. With the in creased pres-

sure on budget cutting and growing

awareness of the benefits of tankless

water heating, it’s definitely an op-

portunity to grow sales. But you must

get all the cogs in the loop — the

school boards, the principals and/or

superintendents, maintenance staff

and contractors. There are some in-

herent traditions to overcome, and

larger upfront costs. But if you can

show them the rewards and the ROI,

it’s not a difficult sell.”

According to Nunez, he regularly

fields calls from people with ques-

tions about tankless units, and offers

a good deal of information about tan-

kless technology on his website. He

firmly believes interest in them will

continue to grow — and as a result,

so will sales.

“Tankless products are a great op-

portunity,” agreed Couvillion. “In an

economy like this, you’re always

looking for a growing segment. Tan-

kless is offering us that growth and

the contractors are getting on board.

We owe a huge thanks to our rep Tip-

ton Company, and to Navien for all

their support and education. If we’re

all working together to sell the prod-

uct, we’ll all benefit.” �

To learn more, visit any of these web-

sites: www.navienamerica.com, www

.ferguson .com, www.tiptoncompany

.com or www.hotwatermaster .com.See contact information on page 90• Be sure to visit www.thewholesaler.com for web exclusive articles and videos! •

This hotel installation shows how Navien tankless water heaters save space and

provide easy access. Contractor Kevin Nunez describes the units as lightweight

for easy maneuvering and says they are very service friendly.


Tankless Technology

“One of the growing applicationsis school districts. ... [they] are looking for ways to save

energy and, speaking on average, we can cut a school’s existing energy consumption in half — at a minimum.”

— Ty Tipton

62 • •THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010MARTIN’S CORNER

It’s a New Year. Are you ready?D

rum roll, please! Yes indeed, we

all made it to January 1, 2010!

Hello everybody. Welcome back

to “Martin’s Corner.” The holidays are

over and 2009 is in our rearview mirror!

The Christmas trees and holiday lights

are, or are about to be, put away once

again, making way for another uncertain

year in the U.S. and world economy.

Write this down or simply remember I

said it, and if it is true or even mostly true,

I’ll acknowledge at year end that I indeed

made the statement. And if it is totally

wrong, then it was one of my good com-

petitive friends that made it, okay? “The

new year of 2010 is not going to be a mir-

ror of 2009, BUT it is my belief that this

industry of ours (plumbing, HVAC, me-

chanical, industrial PVF, commercial and

fire protection) will realize about 65.0%

on average of the expected volume for the

year to be done during the last six months

of the calendar year.”

If this is even close to being the fact,

then it is ever so important that all of us,

in every channel of the business, stay fo-

cused on the job at hand coming right out

of the chute from January 1, 2010! We all

will need to stay focused on being confi-

dent about our ability to do the job we are

paid to do, and tackle all issues we are

confronted with, be they problems or op-

portunities, with resolve in mind!

This focus will absolutely help us all

get through the first half of the year. Quite

frankly, my wish is for all of us involved

to be able to have a hand in proving this

“65.0%” statement to be wrong for all of

our respective business units by at least

15.0%! We can’t do anything about the

federal government, but vote as our heart

directs us every chance we get. We can’t

do anything about the wars and rumors of

wars in the world today except (in my

Southern faith upbringing way of think-

ing) to pray daily to The Good Lord that

our men and women fighting for us stay

safe, and our borders stay protected. So,

having said all these words of wisdom, I

hope that you don’t mind if this “Martin’s

Corner” is gonna be a little shorter and a

bit different than the past half dozen or so.

I just want to share some personal

growth insight to kick off 2010, some

things that make me think about issues

and opportunities in a different light, etc.

Some areas of my business and private

life have been profoundly affected by cer-

tain ideas and thoughts that come from

friends and family of mine from around

the country, along with my own experi-

ences — lessons that I have learned, ob-

served and/or been a part of for years as I

have traveled around the country doing

“bi-ness,” as they say in Texas — that

have meant so much to me.

As an example, I have a great friend in

the industry (many of you will know him

also) by the name of Greg Gillespie, who

is the director of sales for MIFAB. Be-

sides being one of the greatest drummers

I know in the entire plumbing/PVF indus-

try, he strikes me as a guy who speaks his

mind on most issues, always tries to find

the good in everything, and speaks well

of others.

He shared a list with me that he calls

“Lessons Learned While On The Road!”



I was amazed at how much his “Lessons

Learned” mirrored many of mine! This

caused me to want to share some of them

with you — along with a few of my own

thrown in to show you how two great

minds in this industry’s vendor com -

munity of ours run together! (Just kid-

ding.) What I really want to point out is

that I feel these “Lessons Learned” have

BY JOHN E. MARTIN

PVF industry veteran

(Turn to Lessons... page 66.)


66 • •THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010MARTIN’S CORNER


been bittersweet at times for me, but in

most all cases have helped me be a better

person, more aggressive for what I be-

lieve is good for my company, my cus-

tomer, myself and the industry, and

sensitive to peoples’ needs and friend-

ships — knowing when to back off for a

better day — and never ever burn a

bridge!

Life is just too short to have to be look-

ing over your shoulder for that person that

you “did wrong” or “stretched the truth”

in order to capture market share or to get

that order! Read up on the list of

“Lessons Learned” below and hopefully

you can reflect on a handful that you

might want to try in 2010 to change

things for the better. You see, I do confirm

that no one is perfect, including me,

and/or loved by everyone, so I’m hoping

everyone reading will enjoy and pick up

a tip or two. Here we go.

Lessons learned

• It’s not what we say, it’s how we

say it!

• First seek to understand before

you seek to be understood. (Stephen

Covey said that also.)

• Disarm the people’s negative

thoughts around you as soon as possi-

ble (If you can!).

• Teach yourself, and know instinc-

tively, your sixth, seventh and eighth

senses: eye contact, body language and

the voice inflections of the people you are

communicating and working with!

• Look successful to be successful!

• The difference between ordinary

and extraordinary is only the little

extra!

• Be humble. When someone does

something for you, thank them!

• Be consistent in everything you do!

• Be kind — we are only here for a

whisper of time!

• Hard work always pays off.

• Teach yourself to understand and

accept rejection, and more importantly,

how to handle it and learn from it!

• Remember this: Great minds talk

about ideas, average minds talk about

events and small minds talk about

people!

• Make a promise, and keep that

promise!

• Always have a plan B — always!

• When you would like something to

happen, you normally have to “make” it

happen!

• Always ask questions. You’ll be sur-

prised at what you can learn!

• Be and do everything different.

Break away from the status quo.

• Always listen for a personal growth

moment.

• Never ever miss your que!

• There is no such thing as entitle-

ment for anything — ever!

• Practice closing a sale based on

more than just price!

And last but not least:

• Remember, there comes a time

when there simply “ain’t” no more

“5’s”!

You know, in Greg’s mind, and I agree,

when it comes to the normal business

sales cycle, you can compare it to a

waiter/waitress in a restaurant as follows:

You meet the customer and you present

to the customer. You take an order from

the customer, and you make and deliver

the order to the customer. You check back

a time or two to see if the customer needs

to add anything to the order, then you pre-

pare the invoice for the customer. You re-

ceive payment from the customer and if

you did a great job, you earn a bonus

(which is the tip!)

If you really review all the “Lessons

Learned” lines above (some 20-plus

points made), most all of them can be ap-

plied to making this “customer cycle” run

very smooth, and possibly “max” that

bonus or tip for yourself or your com-

pany, know what I mean?

While they are all special to me, I re-

ally put a lot of stock into the ones I

printed in bold letters for your reading.

(I’ll admit that you most likely would not

use the last bullet point that I have given,

but as a manufacturer in today’s world, I

just had to say it, and this looked like a

great place to slide it in, okay?)

Seriously folks, if I could re-trace all

the steps today that I have taken in this

business since 1968, I’d try very hard to

subscribe to this list of “Lessons

Learned” in my daily life — both personal

and business — from day one. Some of them

seem so simple and possibly are even

taken for granted most of the time (I

know I did for a long time), but I tell you

this, practicing some or all of these steps

and thought processes will help and sup-

port anyone in their day-to-day walk in

life, no matter their profession.

In closing this short “Martin’s Corner”

for January and to start the New Year, I’ll

remind you that I care for each and every

one of you and wish you well (even the

folks reading that I don’t know simply be-

cause you are part of the industry that I

love so much!). Let me refer you back to

review the last three “Lessons Learned”

listed above in bold.

• Entitlement: No way! You must

keep your guard up at all times. Nothing

(orders or projects) just drops into your

lap without effort. You cause that cus-

tomer/contractor to want to give you that

order or project because you have earned

it and he wants you to have it!

• Closing a sale: I’ll refer you to a cou-

ple or three “Martin’s Corner” articles

back when I was reviewing “Adding

Value To The Supply Chain.” Your com-

pany does not need a big warehouse, a

large inventory, delivery trucks, and in-

side and outside salespeople to be low

bidder on every order, know what I

mean?

You’re better than that or you certainly

can be better than that! Contractors want

a better, faster way to go to their market

on commodity and special products alike.

Lessons learned in life and business

If I could re-trace all thesteps today that I have takenin this business since 1968,I’d try very hard to subscribe

to this list of “LessonsLearned” in my daily life —

both personal andbusiness — from day one.

(Turn to Martin’s... page 70.)

®

Call: 800.828.0557Fax: 603.218.2171

ORDER ONLINE! www.centraldistributionsales.com



SCENES FROM HARDI


The Heating, Airconditioning and

Refrigeration Distributors Inter-

national held their annual convention

recently in Orlando. With a theme of

“Turning the Heat Up On Recovery,”

HARDI drew a large contingent of

key executives from wholesaling

firms, manufacturers, reps and serv-

ice vendors for education, network-

ing and business meetings.

During the meetings, Chrissy

Nardini of American Metals Supply

in Fenton, Mo., took the reins as

the first female president of the as-

sociation.

One of the most highly attended

sessions during the conference was

the presentation by HARDI econo-

mist Alan Beaulieu of the Institute for

Trend Research. His highly antici-

pated and accurate forecast of the

economic future was humorous and

positive, yet realistic.

Visit www.hardinet.org.


SUNNYVALE, CALIF. — L.A. “Mike”

Richert passed away at his home on

February 23, following a long string of

illness. He had an indomitable spirit

and a great love for his family. Richert

had a tremendous business sense and

was brought up in the old school. He

had a tremendous following in the in-

dustry and was loved by many of his

colleagues.

Richert was born February 19, 1930

in Eureka, Calif., to Olga and Albert

Richert. He had a love for sports, espe-

cially baseball, which he excelled at and

was fondly referred to as “Diz” after the

great baseball player, Dizzy Dean. In

1951, he tried out for the Oakland Oaks

of the Pacific Coast League, managed by

Baseball Hall-of-Famer Mel Ott. Three

days later, his baseball career was put on

hold when he was asked to serve his

country in the Korean War. Two years

later he returned and was signed to a

Minor League contract with the Oakland

Oaks. Unfortunately, the possibility of

being traded to an East Coast team was

not his first choice and he declined and

went to play for the Wenatchee Chiefs of

the Western International League. An in-

jury cut his baseball career short, but he

never lost his love for the game.

In 1954 he followed in his father’s

footsteps in the plumbing wholesale

business and went to work for Dalziel

Supply. In 1968 Richert took the plunge

and went into the manufacturers’ rep

business, becoming a partner with Bud

Wells at Budco Sales. After Wells’

passing in 1975, Richert took the reins


OBITUARYMike Richert, manufacturers’ rep

and ran the business himself, meeting

and making many lifelong friends

along the way. His son Bob came on

board in 1995 and, with a merger with

Mersch and Associates in 2007, cur-

rently runs Mersch Budco & Associates

with his partner Marc Santo.

In 1956, Richert married the apple of

his eye, Viola Tafoya, and moved to

Monterey, Calif., before settling in Sun-

nyvale, Calif. They had five children

and eight grandchildren, all of whom

he adored and cherished. He enjoyed

spending time with his family and

friends, gambling in Reno or Tahoe,

traveling with his wife and family, gar-

dening, going to San Francisco 49er

games, and Stanford baseball. The last

year was tough, but he never gave up

and continued to exceed his doctor’s

expectations.

Memorial donations may be made in

his name to either Pathways Hospice

Foundation at 585 N. Mary Avenue,

Sunnyvale, CA 94085, or The Ameri-

can Heart Association at honor.ameri-

canheart.org/goto/MikeRichert.

is the low price, then go to the low bidder

on any given product. Certainly not a safe

path to take long term, as they will just

not be around forever. Just look around

you. Pretty clear to me. How ‘bout you?

Thanks again for reading. You folks are

the best! I’ll see ya soon in another “Mar-

tin’s Corner.” I will see many of you in

all the upcoming marketing and group

shows coming up in the first quarter time

frame of 2010 as well. Blessings to you

all for the year!

A final word for you today: When you

lie down tonight, think about something

nice or positive you said to someone today,

and your sleep will be solid and sound! �

Until next time,

— John

Martin’s Corner(Continued from page 66.)

They are looking for options to help them

get on and off jobs. They need quality

products that are proven by time. Review

“The Supply Chain” info I gave you

again, and start working to identify all

that hidden cost, and help/support your

customers at getting them out of the trans-

action costs in total.

Work with manufacturers that believe

in making money also while providing

excellence in product and service. You

don’t want a vendor partner that is mak-

ing little to no money, do ya?

• No more “5’s”: Simple, really! If all

you have or want to have for the customer

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THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010• •73INDUSTRY NEWSSt. Louis WD opens new KC facility

(Continued from Brauer, page 1.)

ment, parts, supplies and industrial goods. The Brauer sales and management team wel-

comed k.C.-area customers to the new locationat a grand opening in October that featured aNASCAR-simulated vehicle experience spon-sored by Arcoaire, along with refreshments,drawing prizes and special sales promotions.

This is the company’s twelfth location andbrings its unique brand of service to the kansasCity area for the first time. It will be a one-stopshop for hVAC contractors, thermal insulationcontractors, and for maintenance staffs of com-mercial businesses and institutions. Brauer main-tains a staff of seasoned product managers andcustomer service personnel with many years oftrade experience to assist customers.

The family ownership team of Jim Truesdell,Bill Brauer and Bob Brauer is committed to pro-viding a good representation of key brand names.These include popular products such as Arcoaireheating and air conditioning equipment, Continen-tal registers, koch air filters, Selkirk vent pipe andheating and Cooling fittings as well as insulationproducts from knauf, Certainteed, IIG, Armacell,Proto, Unifrax, kingco and others. The company

also provides fastener products such as blind riv-ets, self-drilling screws and threaded inserts bymanufacturers such as Pop, Surebonder, AVk,Parker-kalon, Atlas and others.

“We expect to be an important resource to theindustry in kansas City and surrounding areas,”said Truesdell. Bob Brauer added, “We are com-mitted to growth as the Midwest economy recov-ers. We will be there to help our customerscapitalize on opportunities.”

Brauer will be represented in the area by asales team of representatives familiar to area con-tractors. John Becker, Greg Davey and everettVaughn will be introducing Brauer products toarea customers. Al Skubic and Mike Johnson willprovide outside sales support for industrial prod-ucts. A veteran team of counter and driver per-sonnel will provide service for pick-up or on-sitedelivery.

Brauer was founded in St. louis in 1881 andtoday the Brauer family is still actively runningthe company. In addition to the St. louis head-quarters and the new kansas City facility, they havebranches in Columbia, Springfield, Joplin, Jackson, O’Fallon, Union and Festus, Mo., and Springfield andSwansea, Ill.

(Continued from AHR, page 1.)

the Show.The 2010 AhR expo Innovation Award win-

ners are presented in their specific category:Building Automation

• AIC Wireless, WBT900 Wire less DeviceCooling

• Delphi, Micro Channel evap oratorGreen Building

• Danfoss Inc., Performer VSDHeating

• Daikin AC (Americas) Inc., VRV® III – Cheat Pump System

IAQ (Indoor Air Quality)

• Samsung electronics, SPi Bac teria eradica-tion Technology

Refrigeration

• Muller Industries Australia Pty. ltd., 3CCondenser

Software

• AeC Design Group, ArtrA O&M

Tools

• lA-CO Industries Inc., Cool Gel-heat Bar-rier Spray

Ventilation

• DuraSystems Barriers Inc., DuraDuct hPBlast Duct System.

“We are extremely pleased with the wide rangeand high quality of product submissions we re-ceived for the eighth year of the award program,”said Clay Stevens, president of International ex-position Com pany, producers and managers of theAhR expo. “It is a pleasure to recognize andhonor manufacturers that have excelled in turningtechnology into useful and efficient products.”

A panel of judges, made up of AShRAe mem-bers selected for their exceptional knowledge ofthe industry and its products, reviewed and eval-uated all submissions. Product entries werejudged for innovation, application, value to userand market impact.

Visit www.ahrexpo.com.

Innovation gets its due at AHR


SAlT lAke CITy, UTAh — MIRO has reached agreat milestone of being in business for 28 years.MIRO recognizes that the root of their success isdue in part to teaming up with who they believeare the best reps in the industry and having loyalcustomers throughout the years.

To mark this anniversary, MIRO reached deepwithin their organization to recognize those whohave worked hard at specifying, promoting andpurchasing MIRO products over the years.

As a token of their appreciation, they awarded$250 to Tom Di Pietro with Syska hennesyGroup, Ron koch with kRk Mechanical, larryBolton with Coburns, Donna Adams with RepcoSales of Georgia and Tom knight with Steve

Mechler & Associates. The winners were chosenby the MIRO staff from nominations sent in bythe company’s representatives and customers.

MIRO Industries provides solutions for sup-porting rooftop pipe, conduit, duct, mechanicalsupports, cross overs and walkway systems thatprevent damage to the roof membrane and thateffectively support a variety of loads. Their prod-uct is designed to allow a range in height adjust-ment and flexibility.

MIRO can provide everything from the initialtake-off to the final installation. The companyhas been in business since 1982 and offers a 20-year warranty.

Visit www.miroind.com.

MIRO celebrates 28 years in business

74 • •THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010PRODUCT NEWS


Hydronic unitsenvision™ NSW Series hydronicunits are available in 1.5- to 6-ton ca-pacities. efficiently provide hot water

for radiant floor heating, domestichot water, pool heating, and snow andice melt; can reduce hot water costsby as much as 60%/year. Can provid-ing chilled water for cooling applica-tions. WaterFurnace International.

www.waterfurnace.com

Dishwasher connector kitsThese new style dishwasher fitting andconnector kits were designed due to recentchanges to dishwasher inlet valves manufac-tured by Whirlpool. The new hose fitting savesinstallers time and effort with improved quality;requires less torque and no Teflon tape or putty toobtain a seal. Fitting Model A-158A is 3/8" compres-sion x 3/4" female hose thread. Available in dishwasher in-stallation kits or as a stand-alone part. Watts.

www.watts.com

Modulating furnaceThe XC95m is a fully communicat-

ing furnace that mod-ulates its heat outputbased on indoor con-ditions. As the differ-ence between set andindoor temperaturesincreases, furnace in-creases its heat outputto meet load require-

ment of the house. When load re-quirements decrease, furnace lowersits heat output to meet the set temper-ature within the home. Trane.

www.trane.com

Direct groove couplingThe Advanced Groove System cou-pling line includes rigid and flexible

couplings pipe sizesup to 60" dia. A 2-

piece housingand wedge-shaped groove

delivers pressureratings up to 350

psi; offer excep-tional assembly speed

and reliability. Style W07 and W77AGS couplings are equipped withplated bolts and nuts and a Flush-Seal® gasket in Grade “e” ePDM,Grade “T” nitrile or Grade “l” sili-cone gaskets. Victaulic.

www.victaulic.com

Condensing unitsNew condensing tankless water heaters and wall-mountedboilers recapture residual heat from flue gases and trans-fer it into the water being heated. Tankless units incorpo-rate 2 heat exchangers to achieve optimum water heatingvalue from every cubic foot of natural gas or propane. Upto 95% thermal efficient. Available in 4 models; can bebanked for even greater capacity. Boilers heat an entirehome and provide domestic hot water, while operating atup to 96.5% AFUe efficiency. The 7 models feature stain-less steel heat exchangers. Rinnai America.

www.rinnai.us

Thermal storage tankThe Marathon two-port thermal stor-age tank is lightweight, energy-effi-cient and offersinstallation flexibilityto fit a variety of appli-cations. Ideal matchfor solar, geothermalor hydronic waterheating systems. has acorrosion-resistantinner tank; energy-sav-ing insulation; andprotective outer tank.Available in 50-, 85-and 105-gal capacities. Rheem.

www.rheem.com

Backflow preventers provide low pressure dropThe new Apollo 4A in-line and Apollo 4An in up & down flow “n” patternor vertical up & up flow “z” pattern backflow preventers are introduced in21/2" – 8" sizes in 304 Stainless Steel and 10" – 12" in epoxy ductile iron invariations to satisfy all installation requirements. These backflow preventersfeature the manufacturer’s patented “Tri-Force”™ check valves. This uniquedesign provides backflow protection and extremely low, flat pressure drop.Conbraco Industries.

www.apollovalves.com

Exclusive baths, lavsThese “leisure style, art-in-form,hand-made creation” magnificentbathtubs and lavatories will be soldsemi-exclusively and exclusively toselect showrooms in the UnitedStates. The Zen ceramic tubs andbasins are hand crafted in the Shi-garaki region of Japan, near kyoto.Shigaraki dates back to the medievalperiod and is one of the 6 ancientkilns of Japan. Aquapal USA.

www.aquapalusa.com

TP relief valveThe breakthrough Safe Plug Relief(SPR) is tamper-proof, easy to in-stall, and engineered to eliminate ex-

plosions resulting from faulty drainlines and plugged T&P relief valves.Creates a safer plumbing system, re-duces liability. CSA 1-06 US hasbeen proposed for addition to IPC.DPI Corporation.

www.dulacdpi.com

HDPE piping systemThe Grinnell® Mechanical hDPe piping system is comprisedof Figure 9094 flange coupling, Figure 9095 coupling andFigure 9097 transition coupling. The 9094, in4", 6" and 8", provides an efficient transi-tion from hDPe piping to ANSI class 125or 150 flanged piping systems. The 2-12"9095 joins sections of hDPe piping; featuresa 4-bolt coupling design with machined gripping teeth to cre-ate a leak-tight joint. The 9097, in 2-12", provides efficienttransition from grooved piping systems to hDPe piping. Tyco Fire Suppression & Building Products.

www.tyco-fire.com

Condensing boilersThe Triple-Flex™ ultra-high effi-ciency condensing boiler series’ fourmodels offer inputs from 1,500 to3,000 MBh with sub-30 PPM NOxutilizing a hy-brid metalfiber burnerto deliverm i n i m u m90% oper-ating effi-ciency with160° return, 180°supply and 100% firingload. Bryan Steam LLC.

www.bryanboilers.com

A successful company is judged by the clients it keeps. Once you come aboard, you’ll stay with us.

Cast Steel Gates Cast Steel ChecksTrunnions ANSI 150 – 2500 Sizes 2” – 52”

API 5000 Trunnions Low Temperature ServiceCarbon Steel Floaters ANSI 150 – 2500

API 6D Checks Stainless Steel Floaters Exotic Alloys

713.466.16441.877.996.9911 www.candcvalve.com




Variable speed pump controllerThe pre-packaged S-Drive™ Simplexvariable speed pump controller fea-tures simple wiring, start-up and pro-

gramming. Designed for use withsubmersible well and above groundcentrifugal pumps in irrigation, agri-culture and rural water applications, aswell as for building water boosters.Pre-set for submersible or surfacemotor characteristics and pre-wired toreduce set-up time. Goulds Pumps, a

brand of ITT Corporation.www.gouldspumps.com

In-line draft inducerIPVB power venter is a patent-pend-ing line of in-line draft inducers. Canbe installed in a vertical or horizontal

stack section indoors or outdoors.Made in 316 stainless steel; designedto provide proper draft for condens-ing and non-condensing commercialboilers and water heaters. Availablein 4 sizes with capacities up to almost6,000 CFM. Exhausto.

us.exhausto.com

High efficiency water heatersFlo-eco™ high efficiency water heaters are com-pact, condensing, storage type units that deliver95% efficiency in most operational modes. Whenequipped with the Brain® digital re-circulatingvalve, deliver precise temperature control. Can bepre-piped and stacked horizontally on a small singlefootprint to save floor space, piping, venting, laborand expense. Armstrong International.www.armstronginternational.com/water-heating

Monitoring serviceThe iCOMM system is a commercialwater heater and boiler monitoringservice that gives business owners

peace of mind. Remote connectivity toa website allows users to manage,monitor and interact proactively withtheir full fleet of water heaters andboilers from anywhere in the world.Provides leak detection and fault alertsfor any unit in the fleet through e-mailor text messaging. A. O. Smith.

www.hotwater.com

Boiler deviceUSe Multi-Well patent-pending

boiler device usesjust 1 copper well,but instead of 1 sen-sor, it houses 3 so aproperty managercan simultaneouslyhave sensors for anaquastat, a ther-mometer and an en-ergy managementsystem in the samespace. The copperconducts the tem-perature of the oil or

water through to the different sensors.U.S. Energy Group.

www.use-group.com

Wireless key card readerWireless key card reader automateshotel room energy conservation bydisabling hVAC, lighting and electri-cal loads in unoc-cupied rooms.Installs in min-utes without wiresor batteries, min-imizing installa-tion, clean up anddowntime costs.Generates itsown power whena key card is inserted or removed,converting the motions into wirelesscontrol signals. EnOcean/Illumra.

www.enocean.com

Silicone grease This silicone greaseis now available in a1-fl-oz squeeze tubefor easy application.Won’t harm rubberor plastic parts; idealfor lubricating faucetstems, valves, ball-cocks, etc. Alsoavailable in 1/2-ozand 1-oz containers.Free samples avail-able. Black Swan.

www.blackswanmfg.com

Fabricated drop-in sinkThis fabricated bowl drop-in sinkmeasures 28"x16". The large-capac-ity sink bowl is available in 7", 10"and 12" deep models as well as anADA model. Made of 18 gauge 304stainless steel; feature a 3/4" cornerradius and have a standard 3-holepunch and sound deadening pads.Customs available. Advance Tabco.

www.advancetabco.com

Video packageThe new lightweight Gen-eyePOD™ and MINI-POD™ combinecamera, reel and monitor in 1 pack-age. Includes 5.6" lCD color monitorprotected by a padded case. The full

size POD™ features a self-levelingcamera and 200 ft of Gel-Rod® fortrouble-shooting 3” to 10” drainlines. MINI-POD™ carries 125 ft or175 ft of push rod; color mini-camerais small enough to trouble shoot 2" to4" lines. General Pipe Cleaners, a

division of General Wire Spring Co.

www.drainbrain.com

Heat pumpsTranquility large Vertical (TlV) se-ries is a 7- through 25-ton heat pumpline. Offers multiple cabinet configu-

rations, uses earthPure® hFC-410Arefrigerant and is eligible for addi-tional leeD points. Ideal for geo -thermal ground loop or ground waterapplications as well as water-loop,thermal energy transfer (boiler-tower)applications. ClimateMaster.

www.climatemaster.com

Flapperless toiletemploying a gravity-flush design that controls water flow with the use of

patented “tipping bucket” technology, these toiletseliminate the need for rubber flappers and

flexible seals in the tank, a leadingcause of leaks and callbacks. The eco-logic Flapperless models use only 1.28

gpf, which meets WaterSense® cri-teria and heT rebate standards.Available in round-front andelongated models, as well asmodels that meet ADA stan-dards. Feature a large 10"x20"footprint and an oversized tank.Niagara Conservation.www.niagaraconservation.com

High efficiency water heatersThe high-efficiency ARMOR® waterheater line includes 3 new models.With inputs ranging from 150,000 to800,000 Btuh; is the ideal choice forcommercial applications of any size.Features stainless steel heat ex-changer, 5:1 modulating turndownand SMART SySTeM™ operatingcontrol. Designed to be installed with aseparate storage tank. Lochinvar.

www.lochinvar.com



Energy efficient tankless modelsThe super-efficient N-0842MC con-densing unit is designed for residen-tial use. It is an extension of thecommercial N-0841MC tanklesswater heater, which offers 94% en-

ergy efficiency. Super heat ex-changer integrates 2 heat exchangerstogether; primary is comprised of k-copper and the secondary of stainlesssteel. Noritz America.

www.noritz.com

Prevent flooding worriesFlowban™ uses no electrical connec-tions or batteries; it is entirely me-chanical in operation with only 3moving parts. Prevents floods byturning off the inlet water rather thanopening the bath outlet so doesn’twaste water resources. Automaticallyresets when faucets are turned off.Can be concealed behind bath panelsand needs no service or maintenance.IAPMO approved; ideal for commer-cial hotel and high-rise condominiumprojects where water damage is mostlikely. Flowban Ltd.

www.flowban.com

Modulating control systemPremier VS vacuum system comple-mented with the SRP Accu-Rate™Modulating Control System offers

improved comfort conditions witheven heat distribution while signifi-cantly reducing energy costs. Ratesfrom 60,000 to 250,000 Btuh. Superior Radiant Products Ltd.

www.superiorradiant.com

Video inspection systemDesigned for a wide variety ofhVACR applications, the Seeker™line of Video Inspection Systems of-fers a cost-effective way to visuallyinspect inaccessible or hazardous

areas and thus diagnose difficult sys-tem problems without the necessityof complete system disassembly. Ad-vanced units allow the user to recordand transfer still images and video.General Tools & Instruments.

www.generaltools.com

Hybrid water heatersThe eternal Condensing hybrid im-proves the technological advance-ments of the original hybrid waterheater but in a smaller, more efficientand every bit as powerful unit.Patented full-flow design and stain-less steel heat exchanger with a built-in 2-gal reserve. Can be wallmounted or floor standing with waterconnections on unit’s top. Ventedwith 2" or 3" PVC up to 100 ft. Eter-

nal Hybrid Water Heaters.www.eternalwaterheater.com

Shower drainWinner of the Best Bath Product atk/BIS 2009 thanks to its construc-tion, design and functionality. Thelow-profile linear shower drain isclean and unintrusive. It is marketed

as the lowest-profile bathroom andshower linear drain. easy to cleanand has a very high flow rate. ease ofinstallation keeps this shower drain indemand by home builders and con-tractors as well as by discerninghomeowners. Quick Drain USA.

www.quickdrainusa.com

Water dispensing station Surface Mount 2000 SM, the newest

model in the hydra-tionStation™ line,is easily installedon indoor walls.May be placed se-curely in multiplelocations withouttaking up excessspace; only requires110v outlet and awater supply. Pat -ented touch-free,

hygienic water dispensingsystem and a 30-sec time-out function to prevent un-

wanted use. Haws.www.hawsco.com

Combined hydronic applianceThe Phoenix® evolution melds hy-

dronic space heating anddomestic hot waterwith complete system

control in a single, com-pact, 96% efficient pack-age. Consists of 3 majorcomponents: hot waterstorage tank in 55, 80 or119 gal; energy-savingmodulating burner as-sembly attached to theoutside bottom of thetank; space-heatingmodule attached to thetop of the tank contain-

ing a high-output heat ex-changer and a variable speed pump.Heat Transfer Products.

www.htproducts.com

Eco -friendly radiators The energy Savers line of low-h2Oradiators offer a unique heat ex-changer technology that offers good

energy savings and reduces annualCO2 emissions. Faster, more uniformheating makes it easier to keep abuilding or home at its ideal temper-ature. Compatible with any hydronicheating system and high-temperaturesystems; the exterior of the units re-mains safe to touch. Jaga.

www.jagahomeheating.co.uk

Diffuser design improvementAirMate 1300 Series lay-In Dif-fusers’ new design consists of a 2"beaded collar that allows for easierflex duct connections and a uniquelydesigned back pan to yield better per-formance and improved air distribu-tion. To differentiate new fromcurrent inventory, the manufacturer isindicating “New 2" Collar” directlyon the carton. Selkirk.

www.selkirkcorp.com

Welded boot tee These welded boot tees are designedfor use in venting Category II, III and

IV gas-fired boilers andwater heaters. Avail-able in 5-24" diametersand single or double

wall versions; maybe used for hori-

zontal and ver-tical ventsystems.Facilitateflow and

minimizeback-pres -

sure. Welding eliminatesthe need for sealants and

ensures tees remain airand water tight under pressure. Simpson Dura-Vent.

www.duravent.com

Variable speed circulatorsThe all-in-one 00 Delta-T Circulator(00-VDT) includes a snap-in PCboard, leD status panel, plug-in lowvoltage wiring terminal for the 2strap-on temperature sensors and anoptional integral flow check. Iswired-in just like any other pump.Shuts off when there is no call forheat, is fuse-protected, Ul approvedand made in the U.S. Taco.

www.taco-hvac.com


BY MORRIS R. BESCHLOSS

PVF and economic analyst emeritus

With the U.S. industrial sec-tor under assault by bothgovernment restrictions

and globalization, it’s a matter ofpride that PVF giant Weldbend standsas a distinguished example of Amer-ican ingenuity and success.

During a recent trip to Chicago, Ihad occasion to spend several hourstouring the massive 361⁄2-acre facili-ties of Weldbend, located in BedfordPark, a community right outsideChicago, and not more than 10 min-utes away from Midway Airport.

This coincidental location servesas a convenient facility from which toeffectively use Weldbend’s companyplane as a way to stay in touch withcustomers and constantly audit man-ufacturing sites and productionequipment in various parts of theworld. It also serves to bring in a con-stant retinue of leading distributorsand end users to acquaint them withthe ultra-modern, cost-effective infra-structure available to them.

Such a highly automated facilitymakes Weldbend one of the nation’slargest full-line and size manufactur-ers of butt weld carbon steel fittingsand flanges. These are effectively

produced, shipped and marketed inthe great Midwestern hub. Weldbendhas achieved a reputation as a top-quality mass producer, acquiring alegendary reputation for excellencedomestically and worldwide.

Despite the intense competition forthis extremely wide range of prod-ucts, Weldbend has achieved a supe-rior brand name reputation for itsquality and service that places themat the top of the pipe-valve-fittingsector’s list of outstanding names.

While most manufacturers and dis-tributors have pared down their in-ventories in these financiallytroubling times, Weldbend continuesto maintain a massive product re-serve. This allows for same-day ship-ments on all but the most highlyspecialized items on an immediateservice basis.

Weldbend, headed by JimmyCoulas, son of the legendary founder,James Coulas Sr., prides itself inmaintaining a highly motivated stableworkforce that provides the backboneof the company’s high productivity.Coulas is particularly proud of thecompany’s outstanding product per-formance, which has been responsi-ble for the firm’s achievement as agilt-edged brand name by distribu-tors, as well as the wide variety of in-

dustrial and commercial end-usersthat it serves.

During a September trip to Europe,Coulas was made aware of a grievousmalfunction in a French manufac-turer’s plant by a comparable com-petitive product that causedinestimable losses. This, unfortu-nately, has happened too often overthe years, Coulas explained.

“Weld bend’s highest-quality man-ufacturing equipment and its mainte-nance is at the very top of our list ofresponsibility in keeping this fromhappening,” he emphasized. “Thecritical nature of Weldbend’s prod-ucts used in production facilities re-lating to energy production,refineries, utilities, power generation,etc., make such responsibilities para-mount in saving lives as well asavoiding severe financial loss.

“Being in full control of the totalmanufacturing process at our greaterChicago-based plant, we take everyprecaution that such mishaps do notoccur, and are proud of our record inthis regard.”

Such fastidious attention to Weld-bend’s customers’ needs has been re-sponsible for the company’scontinued outstanding performanceduring the midst of a devastating re-cession. “I’m sure this has largely

contributed to maintaining our strongbusiness momentum, which hasturned out far better than we expectedduring this recessionary period,” con-cluded Coulas.

Although much of Weldbend’sflourishing revenues are generated bythe company’s massive inventory ofa wide range of butt weld carbon steelfittings and flanges, a growing por-tion of its marketing efforts is in-volved in the expanding sector ofenergy projects on the drawingboards today.

Even such fast-growing renewableenergy sources as solar power-gener-ating development are on the com-pany’s radar screen. Most recently, amajor facility under the jurisdiction ofLockheed Martin near Phoenix andthree upcoming facilities in SouthernCalifornia’s Riverside County are nowon the drawing boards.

With the government calling for25% of utility power to be providedfrom this globally surging source by2020, Weldbend is looking to suchnew opportunities for ever-expand-ing growth. �

Morris R. Beschloss, a 54-year

veteran of the pipe, valve and fitting

industry, is PVF and economic ana-

lyst emeritus for The WholeSAleR.


Weldbend continues winningtradition despite recessionary environment

Beschloss Beat

Affiliated Distributors honorsexcellence at recent meetingWAYNE PA. – Affiliated Distributorsheld its Spirit of Independence Awardsceremony for the Plumbing, PVF andHVAC Divisions on October 20.

Held annually in conjunction withA-D’s North American Meeting, theSpirit of Independence Awards iden-tify individual affiliates and supplierswho have excelled in marketing, per-formance and/or leadership.

“Each year affiliates and suppliersalike embrace the North AmericanMeeting with great enthusiasm andthis year was no different,” said RoyWeaks, senior vice president of thePHCP Division. “In spite of the econ-omy, member turn out was tremen-dous, as they met to plan for theupcoming year while also enjoyingnetworking time. The Spirit of Inde-pendence Awards give us as an or-ganization the chance to recognizeour top performers in several areas.”

The prestigious Affiliate of theYear and Supplier of the YearAwards were once again presented

to recognize excellence in perform-ance and leadership.

Marketing awards were presentedfor Best Annual Planning Process,Best Conversion to an A-D Supplierand Supplier of the Year – MarketingExcellence.

The highlight of the ceremonywas the MVP Award, presented byAffiliated Distributors’ CEO BillWeisberg. This award recognizesoutstanding effort from the peopleon the front lines who contribute tothe overall welfare of their companyand the group.

Congratulations to the 2009Plumbing, PVF and HVAC Divi-sion’s award winners:

• Affiliate of the Year, Plumbing— Central Supply Co. Inc.

• Affiliate of the Year, PVF —American Pipe & Supply Co. Inc.

• Affiliate of the Year, HVAC —N.B. Handy Company

• Supplier of the Year, Plumbing— Ward Manufacturing Inc.

• Supplier of the Year, PVF — Allied Fitting LP

• Supplier of the Year, HVAC —Johns Manville

• Best Conversion to A-D Sup-plier, Plumbing — Texas PlumbingSupply Co. Inc. & Cambridge-LeeIndustries

• Best Conversion to A-D Sup-plier, PVF — Consumers Pipe &Supply Co. Inc. & Warren AlloyValve & Fitting Company L.P.

• Best Annual Planning Process,PHCP — Columbia Pipe & SupplyCo.

• Supplier of the Year - MarketingExcellence, PHCP — Viega LLC

• A-D MVP, PHCP — JeromeCoyle - Coyle Supply, Inc.

Affiliated Distributors is com-prised of over 530 independent dis-tributor companies with over 3,000locations in the U.S. and Canada. Itsmembership commands over $27 bil-lion in sales across six industries:electrical supplies; industrial sup-plies; plumbing supplies; HVACequipment and supplies; drywall anddrywall related products; and pipe,valves and fittings.

Shown at the presentation of the A-D MVP award are (from left): Gary Jackson,

Affiliated Distributors vice president-PVF Division; along with Pat Coyle, Jerome

Coyle and Scott Bailey from Coyle Supply.

82 • •THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010OBITUARY


BY ED SCOTT

As the headline above sadly an-

nounces, industry icon and vet-

eran publisher Jack Bittner

passed away on December 14, at 86 years

of age. Jack’s passing followed a long

bout with cancer during which he

staunchly maintained his habitual and un-

flagging cheerfulness.

I first encountered Jack during an ex-

ecutive search some time in the 60s. One

of our publishers had resigned to start his

own business and we were interviewing

for a replacement. At the time, Jack Bit-

tner was a well-known sales representa-

tive for a number of publications in the

commercial-industrial PHCP market. He

was a perfect fit for our group of publica-

tions and we shook hands after just one

interview.

Jack’s attributes as an advertising sales

executive were a perfect storm of talent:

• To begin with, Jack was one heck of

a nice guy. He really could charm the

birds off the trees and what’s more, he

meant everything he said.

• He was an incredibly hard worker.

At industry meetings, which abound in

the PHCP field, Jack was everywhere to

be seen from the opening bell to the last

few minutes. He had an enormous circle

of industry friends, the fruit of constant

attention to our clients and prospects.

• Jack fit the industry’s sales/market-

ing pattern perfectly. Years ago I learned

that an amazingly high percentage of suc-

cessful salespeople in our market were a)

good athletes; b) military veterans, espe-

cially with service in World War II, and

c) a combination of (a) and (b).

Jack fit perfectly into this pattern: He

was an outstanding golfer with an envi-

able handicap and the willingness to

coach lesser-qualified players (such as

yours truly) on any point of the game. Ad-

ditionally, Jack was a strong tennis player,

a talent he often displayed when the in-

dustry meeting included a tennis venue.

On the military side, Jack served in

World War II as a naval aviator flying off

aircraft carriers under steam — not ex-

actly a cushy Navy assignment.

In addition to all this, Jack was an un-

abashed and totally committed family

man. And no account of his career would

be complete without mention of Dorothy

Bittner. This lovely lady graced any num-

ber of industry meetings and made count-

less friends among attendees and spouses.

Indeed, Jack and Dorothy Bittner will

long be fondly remembered on the PHCP

convention circuit.

Rounding out the Bittner family are

sons Bruce and Scott. For many years one

of Jack’s most cherished activities was a

fishing trip with his sons. Even when ill-

ness impaired travel, Jack was ready to

pack up and go North for a few days fish-

ing with Bruce and Scott.

This commentary could go on for

pages, but those who knew Jack Bittner

know that the life he lived was a better

obituary than any written word could

provide.

In his book The Greatest Generation,

author Tom Brokaw writes of those

American multitudes who fought and

won World War II, then returned home to

build their own families and a new and

more prosperous America. Jack Bittner

was a sterling exemplar of that greatest of

generations, and his memory will long be

honored accordingly. �

ed Scott spent virtually his entire 55-

year career as a publisher of trade maga-

zines for the plumbing-heating-cooling-

piping industries. In addition to DoMeSTIC

enGIneeRInG and The WholeSAleR, the

flagship titles of Scott Periodicals, Scott

founded and operated convention newspa-

pers for six industry organizations including

American Supply Association, Mechanical

Contrac tors of America, and the American

Society of Plumbing engineers.

he has authored a number of textbooks

on such subjects as water well pump ap-

plication, executive compensation for

wholesalers, a series of monographs cov-

ering all major product items used in the

plumbing and hVAC field titled PRoDuCT

KnoWleDGe noTeBooKS, etc.

From time to time Scott has served as

a management consultant to industry

manufacturers and distributors. his client

list extends literally from American Stan-

dard to Zoeller and from Ma & Pa whole-

sale firms to several of the industry’s

largest distributor chains.

Currently Scott is editor and publisher

of a monthly newsletter sponsored by ASA

titled MATeRIAlS MARKeT DIGeST and de-

voted to the marketing and technology of

base metals and other materials used in

the manufacture of PhCP products.

Industry mourns passing of Jack Bittner

Water hammer arrestors• Commercial• Residential• Special function

Trap primers• Electronic assemblies• Manually activated• Pressure activated

Water distribution systems

Thermostaticcompensating valves

Fittings and adaptors

www.pppinc.net

84 • •THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010LITERATURE REVIEW

Make 2010 your year for a better outlook(sometimes also called durable goods)is that it re tains value better over time.Kept clean and dry, that 1/2" copper 90that you purchased in 1990, or maybe1980, would certainly be usable, andmaybe even saleable today. Somebankers will devalue more than a six-month supply of copper fittings. I amnot suggesting that you keep thatmuch copper but, if you have it, it hasvalue. If you are talking about the foodindustry, the only food products thatmay have that kind of longevity arecanned SPAM and the Twinkie (but Iam not going to be the one to test thetheory on that.) Ongoing conversa-tions about the business and no sur-prises will give you the best chance ofa good long-term relationship withyour bank.

• Only keep your website up-

dated if you want customers to use

it. A surprising number of whole-salers are still showing “Under con-struction” on all or portions theirwebsite. Some still have those first-generation web pages that were reallycool in 2000 but “not so much” in2010. You can bet that your circa2000 site is not attracting new cus-tomers. It may be reminding currentcustomers that it is time to gethooked-up with a wholesaler who isin this millennium and not back in thelast one.

• Only provide a top-notch web

order entry system if you want cus-

tomers to use it. A growing numberof your customers are buying on theinternet or are thinking about it. If

customers must memorize your inter-nal part numbers to use your store-front or if your storefront is slow andcumbersome, it’s time for an upgrade.You can be their favorite website orsomeone else will. It is easier to earnthat position early than try to lurethem away from a site they alreadyknow and understand. For a reprinton upgrading your website or store-front, e-mail me at [email protected].

• Only create checklists and pro-

cedures for those activities that you

want people to do consistently, the

company way. Companies in our in-dustry tend not to be great at devel-oping best practices. Somecom panies have procedure manualswith vague guidance like: “Providegood customer service.” One per-son’s good is another person’s not-so-good. Detailed checklists ensure thatthe employees who care, (most docare) know how you want it done.

• Only require people to perform

their duties using the company best

practices where you want consis-

tency. While we struggle with bestpractices, I think we are even worse atgetting our teams to do their jobs usingthose procedures. In a movie Iwatched recently, someone was de-scribing the Italian interpretation ofstop lights: Green, go like heck; Yel-low, a decoration; Red, a suggestion.Properly developed procedures shouldnot be viewed by your team as sugges-tions. Letting everyone “do their ownthing” results in mediocre and incon-sistent performance.

• Only manage the pricing for

products that you intend to make

money on. Most companies managesome products. Why not manageevery product for both competitive-ness and for profitability.

• Only teach your people to deal

with pricing challenges and objec-

tions if you don’t want them to al-

ways drop the price. If the only toolthey know is to drop the price, that isthe one they will use for every situa-tion. Give them other ways to con-structively address pricing issues andyou will make more money, gathermore market data and probably havehappier customers. For a reprint ondealing with price objections e-mailme at [email protected]

I know I have given you a lot of“resolutions,” and no company canattack them all. If you pick a coupleof important items from my list orfrom your own list and get themdone, your 2010 outlook will bebrighter. And by the way, my dentistasked me to remind you to floss—butonly the teeth you want to keep. �



It keeps them at the top of theirgame. It helps the sales managerevaluate the salesperson’s skills andhis/her fit with specific customers. Asa bonus, it allows management to de-velop relationships with the cus-tomers, so the salesperson and driverare not the only people with regularcustomer contact.

• Only visit the branches that

you intend to keep. I talked to awholesaler during the boom timesand asked him how his branch in an-other city was running. His responsewas, “The numbers are pretty good.”I probed a little and he finally admit-ted that they were so busy that no onefrom headquarters had been to the lo-cation in two years. As the economyturned down, the branch’s perform-ance nosedived and no one knowswhy. In good times, you must be vis-iting, evaluating and coaching everylocation. In tough times, you need tobe doing it even more. Take myhandy-dandy branch checklist withyou and conduct an inspection. For acopy of the checklist, e-mail me [email protected].

• Only communicate with the

banker, if you want him or her to

continue financing your business.

Generally speaking, most bankersdon’t understand hard-goods distribu-tion. Your first clue is that they seldomvalue hard-goods inventory more fa-vorably than soft-goods inventory.You must help your banker understandthat the definition of hard-goods

Rich Schmitt is president of SchmittConsulting Group Inc., a manage-ment consulting firm focused on im-proving the profitability ofdistribution and manufacturingclients.www.go-scg.com

Rich is also the co-owner of SchmittProfitTools Inc. (SPI), a business pro-ducing print, CD-ROM, web andpalm-based catalogs as well as pric-ing management and analysis soft-ware for wholesalers.www.go-spi.com

Lead free products catalog in time for CA AB 1953New Catalog Provides Complete Information on Lead FreeValves, Fittings, Faucets & Plumbing Specialty Offerings

In preparation for the implementation of new lead free legislation for plumbingproducts and fixtures in both California and Vermont, effective January 1, 2010,Matco-Norca has issued adedicated lead Free Prod-

ucts catalog that providescomplete information includ-ing products, parts numbersand sizes for all lead freeproducts now available fromthe supplier. The 20-pagecatalog showcases the com-plete lead free (less than.25% weighted average leadcontent on wetted surfaces)line of valves, fittings,faucets and plumbing spe-cialties this supplier offers.Designed for ease of use, thecatalog contains a lead freecertification statement, an al-phabetical index, a quickfind reference guide, and 14pages of product information.

www.matco-norca.com/lead-free

Handy plumbing itemsWhat does Precision Plumbing Products’ 2010 product line have for you?

P lease allow us to introduce our remarkable teenager, Chad.

He has a rare type of mitochodnrial disease.

Chad has faced challenges that no child should have to endure. He has had feeding tubes, skin and muscle biopsies, MRI’s, MRS’s, blood work and countless other tests. He has had many hospital stays and emergency room visits, which continue today.

Because of this disease, Chad is intellectually delayed, speech and language impaired, and suffers from seizures and debilitating migraines. In spite of all his setbacks, Chad is a happy kid who can give you the brightest smile and the biggest hug.

Mitochondria produce more than 90 percent of the body’s energy. When these tiny parts of the cell can’t do their job, the body doesn’t get the energy it needs, resulting in a wide range of debilitating and sometimes fatal symptoms. Every thirty minutes, a child is born who will develop a mitochondrial disease by age 10. Most of these affected children will not survive beyond their teenage years.

In honor of Chad and his fight against this disease, the Cooper family has established “Champions For Chad” Research Fund through the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation. The money donated to the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation goes to mitochondrial research in Chad’s name.

Mitochondrial dysfunction is at the core of many other diseases such as Alzheimers, Dementia, Parkinson’s Disease, Diabetes, Autism and more.

We need your help. Please, consider Champions for Chad as your personal or corporate Charity for 2010. No child should have to suffer the fate of this devastating disease. Let’s give them hope for the future, by building a pipeline towards a cure. Thank you.

Sincerely toward a cure,Bob and Linda Cooper

www.umdf.org/championsforchad8085 201

15239



(Continued from Johnstone, page 1.)

cool weather year and continuedstruggles for the industry at large, theJohnstone cooperative was excited toannounce continuing growth for thecooperative, multiple new locations,and sales growth that for yet anotherconsecutive year was twice the indus-try average.

This year’s theme, “Branding theFuture,” reflected Johnstone’s com-mitment to growing its marketplacereputation (brand) as a knowledge-able, service-oriented HVACR dis-tributor. More than 1,000 attendeesparticipated in the week’s busy slateof events including the popular ven-dor trade show featuring nearly 150key vendors, the Johnstone awardsbanquet, and instructive seminars formembers focusing on new products,marketing and operations.

Presentations at the meeting in-cluded a range of member, store and

vendor awards. Honorees served asreminders that Johnstone remainsstrongly positioned and is weather-ing the economic downturn well.Owner Paul Chawla (Waukesha,Wis.) was awarded Branch of theYear after posting a phenomenal40% sales growth over the past year.One of the cooperative’s most es-teemed honors, the John M. ShankAward, was presented dually tobrothers Mark and Paul Marozzi ofAlbany, N.Y. The award is given toa recent (under five years) coopera-tive member who best demonstratesthe entrepreneurial spirit of John-stone founder John Shank.

The 2009 Vendor awards paid trib-ute to the manufacturing partners whoplay such a vital role in Johnstone’ssuccess. The annual awards honor ex-cellence in various areas such as theSupply Chain Award (Honeywell),Vendor Training Award (Fujitsu) and

Excellence in Sales & Marketing(Crown Boiler). Johnstone’s mostprestigious vendor honor, Supplier ofthe Year, was awarded to Emerson Cli-mate Technologies. The Supplier of theYear award recognizes the highestlevel of partnership and excellence inlogistics, product development, mar-keting programs and store support. Re-flecting that same commitment, theCorporate Liaison of the Year Awardwas awarded to an Emerson represen-tative Brad Jacka.

Johnstone Board president FrankAlexander noted that despite a year ofunusually cool weather in many partsof the country and rough economictimes for the nation, Johnstone stillmaintained sales growth that greatlyoutpaced HVACR distribution indus-try competition. The cooperativemarked its 8th consecutive year withat least double the sales growth of theindustry overall. Johnstone also con-tinues to expand its national store net-work, with the addition of four newstores opening since January 2009, fora total of 341 to date.

Visit www.JohnstoneSupply.com.

HVAC distributor looks to futuredespite weak business climate

An uplifting message

Peter Schor, showroom columnist for

The WholeSAleR, recently shared this

photo with us, along with the following

description: “Samantha (my wife) and I

traveled down from northern California

to los Angeles visiting our families on

the way to hawaii for a little R & R.

When we left traveling south, we stayed

in Paso Robles, Calif., where Sam’s best

friend, Jan and her husband Glenn, and

their wonderful family reside. While in

Paso Robles, which will be the next

Sonoma wine country, I saw this sign in

all the major retail store windows. This

sign is where I STAnD on the current

economy. I am noT in denial of the cur-

rent economic conditions or lack of em-

pathy. I am just electing to look at “the

glass half full rather than half empty”

and refuse to take the “low road” of

being a victim and dwelling on the neg-

ative. There is no intrinsic value in tak-

ing the low road and there is nothing to

gain from it. And yes, we will all have to

work harder and smarter in 2010 to get

better results.”

WARREN, MICH. — In response to thenew laws passed by the states of Cal-ifornia and Vermont, the JomarGroup now stocks three new, leadfree valve lines: the popular T-100C,S-100C and tankless water heater in-stallation kits. Using the latest leadfree alloy, these products are nowmanufactured without introducingother potential harmful elements suchas silicon or bismuth.

Each line complies with both Cal-ifornia AB1953 and Vermont SB0152 laws and is NSF 61-8 Annex Gcertified. These products are clearlymarked and packaged to reflect theircompliance and certification to thelead free standards.

“We will continue to develop prod-ucts that meet the growing trend to-wards safer products used in theconsumption of drinking water,” saidPaul Craig, Jomar Group president.

Visit www.jomar.com.

Jomar Group now stocks lead free products

Choose FlexSure® solar tubing for a stellarconnection between solar thermal panelsand your hot water storage tank.

FlexSure® – Flexible Stainless Steel Tubing SystemsTiteflex Corporation

603 Hendee Street • Springfield, MA 01104Ph: 1-888-353-9471 • www.flexsure.net

BENEFITS OF FLEXSURE SOLAR TUBING• Continuous runs allow for bending around corners and obstacles• Minimum energy loss through tubing because of high R-value insulation• Closed cell elastomeric EPDM insulation• Tough cover stands up to installation conditions• 316L corrugated stainless steel tubing• Self-flaring, reusable fitting: No special tools required• Pre-insulated tubing saves time and money• Made in the USA

Call 1-888-353-9471 or visit www.flexsure.net

Visit us at the AHR Expo booth #2910 and at the International Builders Show booth #C4684


CLASSIFIED ADS88 • •THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010

WANT TO BUY

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES

WANTED TO BUYContractors! Wholesalers! Sell us your surplus or over-stock plumbing materials.Black, Galv., PVC, Groove,No-Hub, Copper, Brass,Weld Flg's & Fittings, Valves,SS316 & 304, etc.Excess Plumbing, Inc.GSchneider@Excess-

Plumbing.comPh. 602-252-1280 •Fax. 602-252-1668

POWER ON DEMANDINVENTORY LIQUIDATORS

Get more BANGfor your

advertising buckwith a display

advertisement inThe

Wholesaler!See opposite foryour nearest

advertising salesrepresentative.

SALES REPRESENTATIVESAND MANAGERS

Interested in an opportunity that providesthe benefits of ownership while minimizingrisk and maximizing your chances for suc-cess? WinWholesale, a leading wholesaledistributor, is seeking experienced Man-agers and Sales Representatives inter-ested in potential equity partnershipopportunities.

WinWholesale was founded on the idea thatownership should be shared. The WinWhole-sale “Spirit of Opportunity” epitomizes thisphilosophy and symbolizes the entrepreneur-ial opportunity you can have to build wealththrough ownership and equity growth. Theownership of each of our locations is eitherfully held by WinWholesale or partially ownedby local team members who are compen-sated based on their performance.

Through our innovative business model, Win-Wholesale’s Presidents can reap the benefitsof ownership while enjoying the many advan-tages of being part of a larger organization,receiving the assistance in many back officefunctions as well as the buying power of amulti-billion dollar organization.

If you have the desire to work hard, buildyour personal expertise and create satisfy-ing, long-term customer relationships, thenWinWholesale is right for you.

To learn more about the WinWholesaleSpirit of Opportunity, submit your currentresumé and a brief cover letter that in-cludes a statement of your location prefer-ences or restrictions at:

www.spiritofopportunity.com.

WinWholesale and its Affiliate Companiesare Equal Opportunity Employers

www.winwholesale.com

NATIONAL SALES MANAGERMAC Faucets, home to the only line ofdecorative hands-free automaticfaucets, is one of the fastest growingmanufacturing companies in our nicheindustry. We're innovative both in tech-nology and marketing, and are finan-cially sound, with a solid balance sheet.We are currently seeking national salesmanager with minimum 15 years expe-rience in commercial sales of faucetsand bathroom fixtures. Position requiresextensive travel, extensive knowledge inmanaging independent reps and distrib-utors. Key objectives are to grow sales,specifically on the east coast, assist indrafting marketing plans, and help buildthe MAC brand. 100K year plus gener-ous bonus.

[email protected]

ITEMS WANTEDWANTED: Alan Silver KardexCabinets, Kardex pockets,sales & receipt slips.Look in your basement. Iknow it’s there.

Please contact:North Shore PS, 188-07Northern Blvd. Flushing,

NY11358718-463-4000

[email protected] T.

APPLICATION ENGINEERSQuietside Corporation

A leading manufacturer of residential/light commercial Duct Less Mini-Split AirConditioners, Unitary Air Conditioning,Dual Purpose Water Heater, Tank LessWater Heater and Variable refrigerantflow (VRF) products is seeking Applica-tion Engineers for its operations in NorthAmerica.

Those individuals that wish to be a partof a dynamic organization renowned forexcellence should consider this an ex-ceptional opportunity.

Application Engineer:Ideally Requires Mechanical Engin -eering Degree, however relevant expe-rience will also be accepted. Responsibilities include support for VRFand other product lines, including appli-cation support, preparation of submittalsand project layoutsLocation: Fort Worth TX

The candidate must have a minimum of3 years technical experience; possessstrong steadfast commitment to work aspart of a team. Good analytical skills,personal and professional ethics, withan overwhelming desire to exceed theexpectations of customers and repre-sentatives are prerequisites.

Skill set must include: excellent interper-sonal ability, communication, follow-upand proficiency with MS computer appli-cations

Please send resumé with salary historyto:

Quietside Corporation8750 Pioneer Blvd.,

Santa Fe Springs, CA 90670Attn: Helen Jang

TECHNICAL SUPPORTQuietside Corporation

Quietside is looking for Technical Sup-port personnel to join our expanding or-ganization in Fort Worth TX

Quietside is the master distributor forSamsung Mini Splits, Samsung DVMSystem, Quietside Tankless waterheaters and other HVAC products

We need Technical Support personnelto assist in the installation, operationand maintenance of Samsung DVM sys-tem products to distributors, reps andcontractors in s fast paced, friendly andfun environment.

HVAC knowledge and analytical skillsrequired, computer skills a bonus.Some travel will be required

Please send resumé with salary historyto:

Quietside Corporation8750 Pioneer Blvd.,

Santa Fe Springs, CA 90670Attn: Helen Jang

THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010• •89CLASSIFIED ADS

The Wholesaler® (publication number USPS 351-650 ISSN 0032-1680) is a trademark of TMB Publications, Inc. TheWholesaler® is published monthly by TMB Publications, Inc., 1838 Techny Ct. Northbrook, IL 60062; tel. 847/564-1127; fax 847/564-1264. Copyright 2010 by TMB Publications, Inc. All rights reserved under the United States, Inter-national and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored ortransmitted in any form or by any means, mechanical, photocopying, electronic recording or otherwise, without theprior written permission of TMB Publications, Inc. The Wholesaler® is delivered free of charge to qualified subscribersin the U.S. and Canada. Others: U.S., U.S. Poss. and Canada, $100/yr.; two-year annual subscription rate U.S. andCanada, $155; other countries, $200/yr. or $300 for two year (U.S. funds) plus $20 surface postage. Single copies,$15.Second class postage paid at Northbrook, IL and additional mailing offices.• POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Wholesaler, Creative Data Services, 519 E. Briarcliff Road,Bolingbrook, IL 60440. [email protected]• Publications mail agreement No. 41499518: Return undeliverable Canadian adresses to PO Box 503, RPO

PublisherTom M. Brown Jr.Administrative AssistantSadie Bechtold

Editorial DirectorMary Jo MartinProduction ManagerCate C. Brown

Managing Editor

James Schaible

Associate Editor

John Mesenbrink

PVF, Industry and

Economic Analyst Emeritus

Morris R. Beschloss

Midwest, Southeast, E. Canada

David Schulte1838 Techny CourtNorthbrook, IL 60062847/564-1127Fax: 847/[email protected]

Sales Offices

West, Texas

Diane SpanglerP.O. Box 9802Fountain Valley, CA 92728714/839-6700Fax:714/[email protected]

East (Indiana; W. Mich.)

Brad Burnside1838 Techny CourtNorthbrook, IL 60062847/564-1127Fax: 847/[email protected]

Editorial Offices: 1838 Techny Court, Northbrook, IL 60062Phone: 847/564-1127, Fax: 847/564-1264, e-mail: [email protected]

Direct subscription inquiries to: Cynthia Lewis, Creative Data Services; 519 E. Briarcliff Road, Bolingbrook, IL 60440; [email protected];

Phone: 630-739-0900 ext 203, Fax: 630-739-7648

www.thewholesaler.com

TMB Publications, Inc.Tom M. Brown Jr., President

Classified ad salesSadie Bechtold: 847-564-1127

REPS WANTEDSUPPLIERS

Classified advertisement rates begin at $140 per column inchfor a single insertion. Call Sadie Bechtold

at 847-564-1127 to place your classified today!

REPS WANTEDManufacturer is seeking professionalrepresentation in several US territories.Products include solar storage tanks,indirect water heaters, hot water stor-age tanks, and other hydronic, solar,and water heating products. Please faxresumé and line card to 508-422-9881or email:

[email protected]

WESTERN PLUMBING PARTS

Manufacturers of the Marq-TwoTest Plug and Test Cap

30 N. Raymond Ave., Suite 313Pasadena, CA 91103

(626) 792-1382Fax (626) 792-0956

SALES REPRESENTATIVESWANTED

Experienced representatives / agencieswanted to call on plumbing wholesalers,re-packagers, and distributors. Our com-pany is a prime manufacture and distrib-utor of specialties; repair parts, andoffers a full line of faucets. Many territo-ries are open for an agency that knowsthe territory and wholesalers within it.Some territories will warrant a full time“factory” sales position to the right can-didate. All applicants must have a mini-mum of 2 years recent experience incalling on business owners, buyers, andcounter personnel. All agencies applyingmust have less than 10 lines.

Please contact:TMB Publishing 01-01

1838 Techny Ct.Northbrook, IL 60062

SEEKING REPSAlliance Metals Group, a manufacturerof specialty stainless steel fittings and amaster distributor of standard stainlesssteel fittings is in the process of settingup a network of industrial reps to coverthe country. Please contact John Wiech-mann at 715-892-7331 or

[email protected].

90 • •THE WHOLESALER® — JANUARY 2010VIEWPOINT

A.Y. McDonald ...................................92www.aymcdonald.com

AIV......................................................27www.aivinc.com

Activant Solutions ...............................50distribution.activant.com

American Hometec..............................14www.americanhometec.com

Amtrol .................................................61www.amtrol.com

Anderson Metals ...................................6www.andersonmetals.com

Apollo Valves ................................30, 31www.apollovalves.com

Bradford White....................................33www.bradfordwhite.com

Briggs ..................................................77www.theconserver.com

C & C Valve ........................................75www.candcvalve.com

Canterbury Enterprises /Blue Flame Products .......................12www.blueflamestore.com

CD Sales..............................................67www.centraldistributionsales.com

Century Brass ......................................24www.centurysalesmfg.com

Core Pipe .............................................19www.corepipe.com

DDI Systems .......................................25www.ddisys.com

Delany Products ..................................63www.delanyproducts.com

DuraTrac..............................................71www.duratracinc.com

Eternal Hybrid Water Heater ...............37www.eternalcondensed.com

Forgings, Flanges and Fittings ............65www.onestoppvf.com

Fujitsu....................................................4www.fujitsugeneral.com

Gastite..................................................87www.flexsure.net

General Pipe Cleaners, a div.of General Wire Spring..............11, 66www.drainbrain.com

Global Stainless Supply ......................64www.onestoppvf.com

HeatingHelp.com.................................82www.heatinghelp.com

Holyoke Fittings..................................62www.holyokefittings.com

Insinkerator....................................16, 17www.insinkerator.com

JMF .....................................................10www.jmfcompany.com

John Guest ...........................................41www.johnguest.com

Kinka Kikai .........................................59www.kinkavalves.com

Legend Valve...............................2, 3, 57www.legendvalve.com

Liberty Pumps .....................................44www.libertypumps.com

Marathon International........................48www.wallhungboilers.com

Matco-Norca..........................................9www.matco-norca.com

MIRO ..................................................36www.miroind.com

NDL.....................................................60www.ndlinc.com

Navien America.............................45, 79www.navienamerica.com

Neuco ..................................................29www.neucoinc.com

New Age Casting.................................85www.newagecasting.com

Niagara ..........................................46, 47www.niagaraconservation.com

Noritz...................................................83www.noritz.com

North American Safety Valve..............35www.nasvi.com

Pipe Prop .............................................32www.pipeprop.com

Precision Hydronics ............................58www.phpinc.us

QC Valve .............................................40www.qcvalve.com

Saniflo .................................................34www.saniflo.com

Schier Products....................................18www.schierproducts.com

Service Metal Products........................43www.servicemetal.net

Sharpe Valves ........................................5www.sharpevalves.com

Shur Tape.............................................51www.shurtape.com

Smith, A.O.....................................22, 23www.hotwater.com

Stiebel Eltron.......................................42www.stiebel-eltron-usa.com

Stockham Valve...................................49www.craneenergy.com

Ta Chen ...............................................91www.tachen.com

Taco .....................................................55www.taco-hvac.com

Takagi ..................................................68www.takagi.com

Tapco .................................52, 53, 72, 73www.tapcogenuinepartscenter.com

United Pipe & Steel.............................13www.united-pipe.com

Val-Fit, Inc...........................................26www.valfit.com

Wal-Rich..............................................28www.wal-rich.com

Walworth .............................................54www.twcousa.com

Ward Mfg. ...........................................15www.wardmfg.com

Warren Alloy .........................................7www.warrenalloy.com

Webstone Valve ...................................21www.webstonevalves.com

Weldbend.......................................38, 39www.weldbend.com

WOI.....................................................81www.woihouston.com

Worthington Cylinders ........................69www.worthingtoncylinders.com

Advertisers Index

Big team, little meBY MARY JO MARTIN

Editorial director

Traditionally, the beginning of the new year is

a time for resolutions. Unfortunately for many

of us, those resolutions tend to go by the way-

side as we slowly succumb to our old habits again

over the course of weeks or months — or sometimes

just days!

While this might not be considered a resolution in

the traditional sense, the promise I make to you as

we begin 2010 is to use all the communication medi-

ums available through TMB Publishing to provide you with the most timely

and information-packed editorial material possible — and to do it with hon-

esty, integrity, and a genuine interest in helping your firms succeed and in

keeping this industry strong.

I put my heart and soul into this publication every day, and I can vouch that

the same goes for every member of the TMB team. Under the direction of our

owner/publisher Tom M. Brown Jr., TMB Publishing has always operated

with a lean, hands-on approach. There are no layers to navigate through, no

“second string” to delegate to. Each team member plays a critical role and

holds significant responsibility in contributing to the final product, and we all

take great pride in performing those duties to the best of our ability. But even

further than that is the satisfaction we gain from truly working hand-in-hand

as one cohesive unit to ensure we are offering the utmost in value to our read-

ers and advertisers.

Years ago, when I worked in the sports information office at the University

of Georgia, they had t-shirts printed up for the football team that had TEAM

in 6-inch-tall letters emblazed across the front. Below that in 2-inch letters

was ME. The guys referred to it as their “Big Team, Little Me” shirt, and even

the star running back wore it regularly with pride. Without a doubt, winning

seasons don’t come down to a single player; it’s the performance of the team

that can make an individual shine. Look at virtually any of this year’s Heisman

Trophy finalists. There is a reason that each of them gave a great deal of credit

to their teammates, their coaches and their families. Because one person can-

not do it alone. If it weren’t for that support system around them, they

wouldn’t be standing on that stage.

Not surprisingly, this same philosophy translates quite easily to the business

environment. Even as recognized a name and brand as Oprah Winfrey, for ex-

ample, couldn’t do what she does so well without a huge team behind her.

This concept is mirrored at most of the great companies I have covered over

the years. While I won’t name any names here, some of the most successful

executives I’ve met are those who have a true, honest relationship with their

employees and customers (and who really listen to their thoughts and ideas,

even if they are in disagreement), have a centrally located office, and actually

enjoy rolling their sleeves up and digging into whatever task needs to be done.

They are also the ones who, despite their great success, remain humble, gen-

uine and true to their roots.

In contrast, look at what happens when individuals decide that they are

above the rules, so to speak, and surround themselves with “yes men” who,

instead of talking honestly, must just go along with whatever the boss says.

The list of the fallen are endless. Consider Tiger Woods. If any of his trusted

confidantes had had the courage to stand up and tell him he was making pro-

foundly bad decisions that could come back to haunt him, perhaps he would

have opened his eyes and realized what a dangerous web he was weaving.

Unfortunately, too often, those in the “inner circle” are too afraid of being

fired or ostracized to speak up. Ironically, it seems that Woods still hasn’t fig-

ured that out, as he embarked on a multi-week holiday cruise surrounded by

the very people who have helped him virtually “sink his ship.” Hopefully,

Woods’ crisis will serve as a wake-up call to anyone who might be on that

slippery slope of believing that they are too big, too powerful or too successful

to play by the rules or be accountable for their actions.

Does your organization’s environment reflect a “Big Team, Little Me” men-

tality — or the opposite? I can tell you that while we at The Wholesaler take

very seriously our role as a news organization covering the distribution chan-

nel, we know without a doubt that we are but a small piece of this industry as

a whole. We surround ourselves with a group of folks that we believe are the

best columnists and industry analysts in the business today. We build relation-

ships with readers and advertisers, support industry associations, and in gen-

eral function as an observer and a provider of valuable information designed

to assist you in your day-to-day operations.

I close this column much as I led it off. I am committed to The Wholesaler, this

industry, and you. Your success is our success, and together we can build a bright

and solid future for this industry. On behalf of the entire team at TMB Publishing,

I wish all of you a happy, peaceful, healthy and prosperous 2010! �

Mary Jo Martin is editorial director of The Wholesaler. she can be

reached at 972-867-0724 or [email protected].

don't mess with texas - phcp pros

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