April 29, 2008

Weyerhaeuser to Appeal Monopoly Decision

Building Materials/Construction, Free, Legal Issues in Wholesale Distribution, News, Operations, Subscriber Only, Top Distributor Sectors / MDM Staff

Weyerhaeuser Company, Federal Way, WA, said it will appeal a jury decision rendered in a class action lawsuit claiming that Weyerhaeuser unlawfully monopolized an alleged market for finished alder lumber.

A jury in Portland, OR, awarded the plaintiffs $27.98 million, which will be trebled under antitrust laws.

We are very disappointed with the verdict,”said Sandy D. McDade, Weyerhaeuser senior vice president and general counsel. “We are confident it will be reversed on appeal because last year the U.S. Supreme Court decided in our favor a case presenting virtually identical issues. We fully expect that the Court of Appeals will apply that precedent. Our business conduct has been and remains within the spirit and letter of the law, and we will continue to …

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Canadian Resource Industries Offset Durable Goods in 2007

Economic Trends, Free, News, Research & Analytics, Subscriber Only / MDM Staff

Soaring industrial product prices and robust demand for resource-based goods offset declines in some of Canada’s key durable goods industries in 2007, according to a Statistics Canada report. Overall, there was little change in both the volume and value of manufacturing sales.

Manufacturers posted a modest 0.4% increase in sales to $613.4 billion, according to a year-end review, published in the Analysis in Brief series. In constant dollars, factory sales were essentially flat, following a lacklustre 2006 in which sales edged down.

Manufacturers had a mixed year in other respects in 2007. Employment fell by an estimated 55,300 jobs and total hours worked declined 2.9%. However, labour productivity in the sector …

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Jackson Safety Buys Chinese Manufacturer

Finance, Free, Mergers & Acquisitions, News, Safety Products, Subscriber Only, Top Distributor Sectors / MDM Staff

Jackson Products, Inc., St. Louis, MO, manufacturer and distributor of personal and traffic safety products, has agreed to buy a 70% stake in Changzhou Shine Science &Technology Co., Ltd., of China for an undisclosed amount. Based in Shanghai, Shine is a manufacturer of welding safety products.

This acquisition supports our global strategy of being the preferred supplier of safety products. Shine’s innovative products, broadens our welding product offering and strengthens our position as the number one manufacturer of auto-darkening filters,” said President and CEO Tom Burns. “The acquisition of Shine will also provide us a manufacturing base in Asia and adds Shine’s excellent engineering talent that will complement our own expertise in auto-darkening …

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Lawson Products Sales Fall in 1Q

Companies, Facilities Maintenance (MRO), Free, News, Subscriber Only, Top Distributor Sectors / MDM Staff

Lawson Products, Inc., Des Plaines, IL, a distributor of services, systems and products to the maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) and original equipment manufacturer (OEM) marketplaces, reported sales for the first quarter 2008 were $125.0 million, a decrease of 3.6% from the prior-year quarter.

Profit for the quarter was $4.4 million, compared to net income of $4.6 million in the first quarter of 2007. …

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Managing the Loss of Sales in a Down Economy

Free, Management, Sales & Marketing, Strategy, Subscriber Only / MDM Staff

In a recent interview with MDM, Profit Planning Group’s Al Bates says that distributors must manage their loss of sales volume in a down economy.

If sales are down 20%, you’ve got to make dramatic changes. In that scenario, too often distributors do what I think is absolutely the wrong thing in an attempt to free up cash,” he says. “They try to lower accounts receivable and reduce inventory to make up for selling less. Inevitably that leads to sales declines getting even worse. Back orders go up. Customer service goes down and what might be a 10% sales decline becomes a 15% sales decline.” While cutting inventory and accounts receivable is a normal reaction, Bates tells MDM that the moves are compounded by the fact distributors don’t have much cash.

The …

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