Eric Smith

Curbell Plastics Inc., Orchard Park, New York, announced the promotion of three employees to new leadership positions. Bill Rummell and AJ Lacey have been promoted to regional sales managers, and Sherrie Bloom has been promoted to associate director of marketing. “A key component of our success at Curbell is the ability to attract and grow […]

Electrical distributor Turtle & Hughes, Linden, New Jersey, this week announced that Wendy Buchholz has joined the company as vice president of sales. She will be responsible for growth in Upstate New York with an emphasis on sustainable solutions. “Wendy has spent her entire career providing customers with solutions that increase energy efficiency and reliability,” […]

Construction spending during January was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,521.5 billion, 5.8% above the January 2020 estimate of $1,437.7 billion and 1.7% above the revised December estimate of $1,496.5 billion, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Spending on private construction was at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,160.0 billion, 1.7% […]

The U.S. Census Bureau this week released advance indicators showing that the international trade deficit and wholesale inventories increased in January. The international trade deficit was $83.7 billion in January, up $0.5 billion from $83.2 billion in December. Exports of goods for January were $135.2 billion, $1.9 billion more than December exports. Imports of goods […]

Economic activity in the manufacturing sector improved in February, and the overall economy grew for the ninth consecutive month — after it had dipped significantly in the early stages of the coronavirus — according to the nation’s supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM Report on Business. The February Manufacturing PMI registered 60.8%, an increase […]

Heating, Air-conditioning & Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI), Columbus, Ohio, this week released its monthly TRENDS report, showing the average sales performance by HARDI distributors was an increase of 6.9% during January. The average annual sales growth for the 12 months through January 2021 is 4.8%. “2021 is getting off to a great start,” said HARDI […]

Building materials distributor Huttig Building Products Inc. (Nasdaq: HBP), St. Louis, Missouri, reported sales for 2020 of $792.3 million, down 2.4% compared to 2019. The company reported a loss of $0.9 million, up from a loss of $21.3 million a year ago. “The momentum we generated through the third quarter of 2020 continued and contributed to our […]

The brisk M&A activity of the last few months slowed in February, yet the month still registered nearly 20 deals with momentum expected to continue throughout 2021. Highlights from last month include WESCO International Inc. (NYSE: WCC), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, divesting a pair of Canadian business units as part of its compliance with Canadian law related […]

Bunzl PLC on Monday announced that it has completed three recent acquisitions. In January the company acquired Deliver Net, a health care distributor to care home groups in the UK, with 2020 revenue of £20 million (US$27.8 million). In February, the company completed the acquisition of Disposable Discounter, an online distributor of foodservice disposable products, […]

NOW Inc. (NYSE: DNOW), Houston, Texas, on Monday announced that it has agreed to acquire Flex Flow, Midland, Texas, from GR Energy Services Holdings LP, a portfolio company of the private equity firm Pine Brook Partners. Financial terms of the all-cash deal weren’t disclosed. “We are excited about the opportunity to add the Flex Flow business […]

F.W. Webb Co., Bedford, Massachusetts, on Monday announced it has acquired Danbury Plumbing and HVAC Supply Co. of Western Connecticut. Effective March 1, the Danbury location will begin operating as F.W. Webb and, as part of the transaction, the company’s Creative Bath will open as a Frank Webb Home retail showroom. “This acquisition increases our […]

Core & Main LP, St. Louis, Missouri, announced Monday it has closed on its previously announced agreement to acquire Triple T Pipe & Supply LLC of Lubbock, Texas. Financial terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. “Triple T has an amazing team of dedicated people who consistently put their customers first,” said Jack Schaller, president of […]

Building materials distributor Builders FirstSource Inc. (Nasdaq: BLDR), Dallas, reported 2020 sales of $8.6 billion, a 17.6% increase compared to 2019. Acquisitions and core organic growth contributed 2.5% and 5.6% of the increase, respectively. “Record fourth quarter results reflect an exceptional finish to a year of remarkable performance, despite the challenges in 2020,” said Chad […]

Building materials distributor SRS Distribution Inc., McKinney, Texas, announced it has acquired Louis T. Ollesheimer & Son Inc., a distributor of commercial and residential roofing and other related products. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Headquartered in Madison Heights, Michigan, and founded in 1916, LTO is currently run by Jamie Ollesheimer. The company […]

New orders for manufactured durable goods in January increased $8.5 billion, or 3.4%, to $256.6 billion, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. This increase, up nine consecutive months, followed a 1.2% December increase. Excluding transportation, new orders increased 1.4%. Excluding defense, new orders increased 2.3%. Transportation, up eight of the last nine months, drove the […]

Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 4.1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2020, according to the “second” estimate released Thursday by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the third quarter, real GDP increased 33.4 percent. The second GDP estimate is based on more complete source data than were available […]

Lawson Products Inc. (Nasdaq: LAWS), Chicago, reported sales for 2020 of $351.6 million, down 5.2% from 2019. Profit more than doubled to $15.1 million from $7.2 million. The company reported fourth quarter sales of $98.1 million, up 10.8% compared to the year-ago quarter. Net income of $0.2 million was up from a loss of $3 […]

Systemax Inc. (NYSE: SYX), the Port Washington, New York-based parent of Global Industrial, reported 2020 sales of $1 billion, up 8.7% from 2019. Profit grew 28.2% to $64.1 million. “We ended 2020 with an impressive fourth quarter financial performance and for the full-year exceeded $1 billion in revenue, a significant milestone,” said Barry Litwin, CEO. […]

Lowe’s Cos. Inc. (NYSE: LOW), Mooresville, North Carolina, on Wednesday reported sales for the fiscal year ended Jan. 29 of $89.6 billion, up 24.2% from 2019. The company reported profit of $5.8 billion, up 36.3% from $1 billion in 2019. For the fiscal fourth quarter, the company reported revenue of $20.3 billion, up 26.7% from the year-ago quarter. Profit […]

Indian River Consulting Group’s (IRCG) weekly Pandemic Revenue Index for the work week of Feb. 15 to Feb. 19 decreased 7.2%, the first decline in weeks likely due to inclement weather nationwide but especially in Texas. “Only four respondents reported increases ranging from mid-single digits to 21% while nine companies saw declines ranging from 1% […]