January 10, 2006

trying to figure out who is next,” he said. He said that Home Depot already has a strong position in the construction market, so it may try to further push into the industrial MRO market.Hughes Supply stock was up about 18% at the end of trading the day the acquisition was announced.The Home Depot said […]

href=”/pub/1_1/breaking-news/2952-1.html”>More … >MSC Industrial Direct Co., Melville, NY, a distributor of MRO supplies to industrial customers in the U.S., reported its earnings were up 12.4% in the first quarter of its fiscal year 2006. Profit was up 22.9%. For the first quarter of fiscal 2006, net sales rose to $295.9 million from net sales of

YOUR PRESENTER: Bruce Merrifield, Merrifield Consulting GroupHow can you turn the art of innovation into a systematic science to generate new streams of profit? To avoid repeating the past, what experiments will you try in 2006 to stimulate more effective innovation management? For those in independent wholesale distribution channels, the days of making lots of

1.3%The capital equipment index advanced 1.3 percent in 2005, after climbing 2.4 percent in 2004. In December, the capital equipment index advanced 0.1 percent after a similar decline in November. The indexes for metal-cutting machine tools and for mining machinery and equipment turned down in December. Prices for agricultural machinery and equipment, as well as

The development and adoption of business transaction standards are about best practice business processes. The implementation of standards, on the other hand, is boring and confusing. That’s been part of the problem in getting standards off the ground in industrial channels, where there is a high degree of fragmentation. A summit meeting on standards this

Forecasts for 2006 show overall construction will slow with an increase of 3 percent compared with the 8 percent increase seen last year. Top growth markets for the coming year include institutional, commercial and manufacturing construction.McGraw-Hill Construction/Dodge, an economic engine that generates monthly construction starts data for the industry, predicts an overall increase of 3

channels because of increased visibility. While this blockbuster deal shifts the competitive landscape dramatically for a few product channels immediately, and longer term potential threats elsewhere in other product sectors, it may offer some potential benefits in the near-term for those in search of an exit strategy.Rising CostsHealth insurance costs continue to be a headache