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EFC International Adds Motion Control Products and Gas Springs to Vast Product Offering

EFC International is pleased to announce the addition of a new product line, Normont Motion Technology. Normont products include gas springs, dampers, and custom motion control solutions. The product line is complementary to EFC’s current motion control product offerings including components from ITW Motion such as rotary dampers, linear dampers, air dampers, hinge dampers and latches.

Normont is a leading manufacturer of industrial, automotive, and aerospace gas spring & hydraulic dampening solutions. These products can be found in numerous applications for automotive, truck, bus, heavy machinery, ATM machines, riding mowers, emergency vehicles, recreational vehicles and many other industries.  

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NAW On-Demand Webinars

NAW’s archive of past webinars provides you with the best content from distribution's leading business and supply chain experts! 

Discover these two on-demand webinars that feature first looks at NAW's brand-new study:
Innovate to Dominate: The 12th Edition in the Facing the Forces of Change® Series

Welcome to the Age of B2B Innovation


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Amicus Brief in National Labor Relations Board Case

News from NAW:

In another of our many efforts to restore sound labor policy after years of pro-labor activism, NAW has joined in another amicus brief in a case before the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).  In this case, the Board is considering whether inappropriate employee activity and conduct should forfeit the protection of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), and whether handbook rules that prohibit that behavior should be permissible.  Specifically, the Board is considering whether employee activity/behavior that is – among other things – profane, sexually explicit, racially insensitive, degrading, repugnant, bullying, uncivil, etc., should be considered protected activity.  Click here to view the brief.

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Reboot the Real World and Win by Being Human

From the NAW Blog:

Over the last many years, distributors have faced down one challenge after another including the emergence of big-box retailers, disintermediation by manufacturers, the financial crisis of 2008 and more. Distribution survived because of the strength of their customer relationships and an ongoing commitment to gain efficiencies by investing in business systems and information technology. Faced with new disruptive threats, this trend is continuing as distributors invest in e-commerce platforms and a wide range of digital tools.

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How to Create a Long-Term Success plan For Your New Hires

A new season of hiring means welcoming lots of new members to the team. Change can be challenging, so it’s important to focus on creating a long-term plan for your new hire’s success within your organization. This helps build an employee development framework for both you and the individual so they can make a smooth transition and feel empowered to take on their new role, while working toward their career goals and meeting organizational needs.

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3 Ways to Identify Quality Candidates During Seasonal Hiring

The summer and holiday months are a busy time of year for many employers. Many companies ramp up their hiring during this time to accommodate the influx of demand from consumers and travelers. As such, hiring managers receive a deluge of applications, and they need to have a strategy in place in order to get through the high volume of resumes in a timely and effective manner, while remaining thorough and without sacrificing standards. This year, for example, UPS estimates that they will bring on an additional 100,000 employees for the holiday season. The challenge becomes, how do you manage a high volume of candidates while maintaining the integrity of your hiring process? How do you think about and frame the conversation of professional development when it’s seasonal work?

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Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Releases New Hours of Service Rulemaking

An Update from NAW:

Last week the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) issued their notice of proposed rulemaking on updates to the current hours of service rules.  Based on NAW’s initial assessment it appears that FMCSA agreed with many of the points NAW made in our submitted comments on October 9, 2018 (click here to read NAW’s comments). 

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Joe Greenslade in Memoriam

We were all shocked and saddened to learn that Joe Greenslade passed away suddenly on Wednesday, October 23, at age 71.

Joe served as IFI’s Technical Director from 2007 until 2015. He was a fastener industry icon and highly respected and admired. Joe had a refreshing “can do” approach, an ability to build consensus, a knack for simple solutions, and a gentle, kind and jovial personality that endeared him to all. Joe thoroughly enjoyed working in the fastener industry and was always fully committed to completing anything he set out to accomplish.

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Fastener Fair USA Heads to Charlotte Convention Center May 18-20, 2020

NORWALK, CT - Fastener Fair USA, North America’s fastest-growing exposition for the fastener industry, will hold its third annual trade show and conference in May in Charlotte, NC, a major manufacturing hub. The event for the entire fastener supply chain runs May 18-20, 2020 at the Charlotte Convention Center.

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Joe Greenslade Memorial Service

We were shocked and saddened to learn last week that Joe Greenslade passed away suddenly on Wednesday, October 23.

Service Details

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Suzy Cravens of Advance Components competes in Food Network’s Christmas Cookie Challenge

With the arrival of Fall and the turning of leaves, it’s time for Suzy Cravens to start thinking about cookies. “Not just any kind of cookies, but highly decorated cookies,” says Suzy.

It all started back in the 1990s, when Suzy, a self-professed crafter, sewer, baker, and all-around handy gal, decided to venture into the world of cake decorating to satisfy her creative whimsy. After taking several classes she started teaching cake and cookie decorating in her spare time. She also began a home cake decorating business which eventually led to her becoming quite well known in the area as the Cake Lady.

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Sad News – Joe Greenslade

We were shocked and saddened to learn this morning that Joe Greenslade passed away suddenly last night. 

Joe served as Technical Director for the Industrial Fasteners Institute from 2007 until 2015. He was a fastener industry icon, having started his career in 1970 working for various fastener manufacturers before founding Greenslade and Company in 1978.  He sold the company in 2007 and came to work for the IFI.  In a recent conversation with IFI managing director, Joe said that working for IFI had been his dream job.  You could tell he thoroughly enjoyed working in the industry, and he put 100% of his effort into anything he set out to accomplish.

Joe retired from IFI in 2015 when Salim Brahimi took over as Technical Director.  Joe stayed on as a special consultant to IFI, maintaining the upkeep of the IFI Technology Connection software that he had developed and is relied upon by many companies today.

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Obituary: Gordon Vandermeulen

Gordon's family has shared the following information with NFDA:

Gordon, age 76, entered the presence of his Lord on October 19, 2019. He was born on July 7, 1943 to Gustave and Joan (Alkema) Vandermeulen in Grand Rapids, MI. Gordon married Elaine Brunz on June 20, 1965. He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Elaine; children Jodi and Rob Hanlon, Quinn and Sydney; Grant and Jennifer Vandermeulen, Gideon and Nathan; brother Jim and Jill Vandermeulen; sister Judy Vandermeulen; brothers-in-law Wayne (Joyce) Brunz, David (Cindy) Brunz, Roy (Sue) Brunz; nieces and nephews. 

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Attend Free NAW Institute Webinar: “Welcome to the Age of B2B Innovation”

Washington, DC (October 21, 2019) — Wholesaler-distributors are invited to join the NAW Institute for Distribution Excellence and our sponsor PROS on Thursday, November 14, from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. ET, for a live webinar: “Welcome to the Age of B2B Innovation.”

Anyone who has a calendar conflict and won’t be able to attend this live webinar, should register anyway. PROS will send registrants a link to view the webinar on demand. Register here.

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NAW Request for Anti-Trust Investigation of Amazon

NAW has just sent letters to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) requesting that their agencies open an investigation into the General Services Administration’s (GSA) proposed e-Marketplace platform (Section 846) and Amazon’s unfair and anti-competitive practices and processes.

NAW believes that GSA should be fostering maximum competition at this stage of Section 846’s implementation.  Even though GSA identified three credible e-commerce purchasing channels, GSA’s latest Request for Proposal (RFP), Commercial e-Marketplace Acquisition (October 1, 2019), confines its pilot test to only one model, that of the e-marketplace portal, the Amazon platform.  All other e-commerce models have been excluded.

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NAW at Work for You in Washington

Effectively representing your interests in Washington is an ongoing, daily process involving many varied steps and actions. It is not always easy to see the full scope of this unless you are actually here in Washington. So, we list below some of the key legislative coalitions which NAW leads or helps manage, and actions the coalitions and/or NAW specifically have taken on those key issues. We also provide a sampling of the meetings in which we participate, regularly or for specific purposes, as part of our continuing effort to fight for the wholesale distribution industry in Congress and the regulatory agencies – in this case from May through September 2019. If you would like to see additional information on the issues mentioned below, please go to: www.naw.org

TAXES:

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NAW Institute for Distribution Excellence Announces Optimizing Channel Profitability: A Playbook to Align Manufacturer– Distributor–Customer Relationships

(October 10, 2019, Washington, DC) — The NAW Institute for Distribution Excellence is pleased to announce its newest, groundbreaking research study, Optimizing Channel Profitability: A Playbook to Align Manufacturer–Distributor–Customer Relationships, based on a consortium conducted by Texas A&M University’s Global Supply Chain Laboratory. Please go to www.naw.org/ocp or call 202.872.0885 to learn more and to order copies.  Quantity discounts of 15–50% apply when ordering two or more copies.

As manufacturers face new competitive challenges, distributors alter their capabilities, and customers change their requirements, the path forward keeps shifting.

Many manufacturers have not updated their channel policies in a decade, while wholesaler distributors have undergone significant changes in terms of online disruptions by non-traditional competitors, multi-generational workforce dynamics, digital transformation challenges, evolving salesforce structure, and so forth.

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Obituary: Pleas Ronald "Ron" Manley

A memorial service for Pleas Ronald (Ron) Manley, 66, of Auburn, Alabama will be Monday, October 14, 2019 at 1:00pm, at Church of the Highlands (Auburn East Campus, 2001 East Samford Avenue, Auburn, AL). Pastor Wren Aaron will officiate the service. A reception will be held immediately following the service at Saint Michael the Archangel Catholic Church (1100 North College Street, Auburn, AL).

Mr. Manley, died Wednesday, October 10, 2019 at Bethany House in Auburn, Alabama. He was born January 16, 1953 in Gadsden, Alabama to the late Pleas Miller and Mattie Lou Manley. Ron graduated from Auburn University in 1974 with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration. He married the love of his life, Pennie Wood, on June 22, 1974.

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Würth Industry North America Acquires Fasco Fastener

INDIANAPOLIS, Oct. 7, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Würth Industry North America (WINA) announced today that it has acquired Fasco Fastener, a strong brand and 40 year distributor of stainless steel, silicon bronze, and brass fasteners to the wholesale, OEM and large retailer trade. The purchase will better serve the needs of Würth Industry's customers in the recreational marine market, as well as the solar and general manufacturing market.

The acquisition of Fasco fits into Würth Industry's strategy to provide expert supply chain solutions of industrial fasteners, safety, and MRO products and complements Würth Industry's strength in the marine market from Marine Fasteners, the premier distributor of stainless steel fasteners for marine OEMs. Fasco Fastener, together with Marine Fasteners, will provide expanded services to customers across the US, Mexico, Canada, and Brazil.

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December Fastener Training Week Comes to Los Angeles Area

SANTA CLARITA, CA (Oct. 3, 2019) – Fastener Training Week, an advanced technical training program, is scheduled Dec. 2-6 in La Miranda, CA. This LA area training is for fastener distributors and manufacturers, end users and original equipment manufacturers. The course is offered by The Fastener Training Institute, a leading non-profit organization that provides training on fastener products and standards, in partnership with the Industrial Fasteners Institute.

Instead of seven separate one-day classes, Fastener Training Week offers five intensive days of education and plant tours as part of the acclaimed FTI Certified Fastener Specialist™ (CFS) advanced technical training program. After completing this invaluable industry training in a small group environment and passing a final exam, attendees are eligible for the Certified Fastener Specialist™ (CFS) designation.

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