Content about Canada

May 15, 2013
Market Recap: RISI Crow's Construction Materials Cost Index

SPF lumber trading was sluggish, leading to lower prices. Lumber futures continued to push lower, and word of a significant overseas sale could not prod buyers off the sidelines.

April 26, 2013
Currey & Company recalls chandeliers

Citing an electric shock hazard due to defective wiring, chandeliers made in China are being recalled.

April 9, 2013
Canadians see slight gains in starts

In March, Canada's seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts increased slightly to 184,028.

April 1, 2013
PPG acquires AkzoNobel North American architectural coatings business

With this acquisition, PPG has expanded its reach in all three major North American distribution channels, including home centers, independent paint dealers and company-owned paint stores.

January 24, 2013
A. O. Smith reports record 2012 sales and earnings

Sales from continuing operations for 2012 totaled $1.94 billion, up 13% from $1.71 billion recorded in 2011.

January 22, 2013
Walmart plans expansion in Canada

Walmart on Tuesday updated its plans for its Canadian division, saying that it plans to complete at least 37 supercenter projects in the country during the company’s next fiscal year.

January 16, 2013
CertainTeed, Bailey Metal Products to form grid joint venture

Valley Forge, Pa.-based CertainTeed will form a joint venture with Bailey Metal Products (BMP) of Concord, Ont., to manufacture suspended ceiling grid in Canada and the United States.   

January 16, 2013
Dickies brings workwear program to Canada

Work clothes maker Dickies will expand its occupational wear division’s product offerings, as well as its geographical availability. 

December 13, 2012
CertainTeed inks deal with Canadian steel company

Building materials manufacturer CertainTeed has announced its intention to form a joint venture with Bailey Metal Products of Concord, Ontario, to manufacture suspended ceiling grid in Canada and the United States. Bailey Metal Products is Canada's largest lightweight steel framing manufacturer and a leading provider of drywall trims and accessories.

December 13, 2012
Nilfisk Industrial Vacuum hires sales director

Nilfisk Industrial Vacuum Division announced that Jamie O’Neill has joined the company as director of sales. O’Neill is responsible for driving sales efforts in North America. He oversees the 16-member direct sales force located throughout the United States and Canada.

November 9, 2012
Patio Living announces new reps

Linn, Mo.-based Patio Living Concepts named four new independent representatives with a combined 100 years of sales experience to its sales team. 

Three representatives were announced for U.S. territories and one for the Ontario, Canada, region. 

September 25, 2012
Talks may reopen on softwood lumber agreement

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) is urging federal officials not to use the U.S.-Canadian lumber agreement as a bargaining chip during the Trans-Pacific Partnership Trade Agreement (TPP) negotiations.

The United States is currently in talks with Canada regarding its participation in a TPP trade pact with several other nations. The softwood lumber accord between the United States and Canada, which expires in 2015, should not be renegotiated as part of these discussions, according to the NAHB.

August 29, 2012
Readers Respond

Crime and punishment, redux The following is a letter in response to “Illinois contractor gets 10-year sentence for asbestos violation.”

August 7, 2012
In Canada, Teamsters oppose Lowe’s bid for RONA

While Lowe’s offer sheet said it would protect Canadian jobs – or even expand them – if it were to acquire Quebec-based RONA, the Canadian Teamsters aren’t so sure.

The Teamsters Union in Canada has come out against a Lowe’s takeover play for RONA, which the Teamsters describe as “a Québec jewel in the hardware and renovation industry.”

August 3, 2012
RONA and Lowe’s: battle of the microsites

Canadian retailer and distributor RONA has launched a “microsite” to combat what it considers  a hostile takeover attempt by U.S.-based Lowe’s, which currently operates 31 stores in Canada. On the microsite page, Rona gives the background of the $1.85 billion unsolicited bid from Lowe’s on July 8, and the reasons its board has decided against the proposal.

July 31, 2012
RONA turns down $1.9 billion takeover bid by Lowe’s

Lowe’s made an offer, but RONA refused.

The two North American home improvement giants will continue to operate as competitors in Canada, where Lowe’s has been growing organically for the past several years amid rumors that just such an acquisition play was in the cards.

June 28, 2012
Lowe’s enters Microsoft’s cloud

Lowe’s has signed an agreement with Microsoft Corp. to implement Microsoft Office 365 across more than 1,745 stores, 200,000 employees and its corporate offices in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Office 365 will help the home improvement retailer improve customer service by providing collaboration tools to increase communication among its stores and employees. The technology will be available for Lowe's employees soon and will help customers tap into the collective expertise of Lowe’s work force.

April 13, 2012
Ken Langone receives Horatio Alger award

Ken Langone, one of the co-founders of Home Depot, will be awarded the 2012 Horatio Alger Award on April 13 in a ceremony in Washington, D.C. Langone will be one of 12 recipients, along with former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and Robert Miller, CEO of Albertson's supermarkets, to receive the prestigious medallion.

March 30, 2012
Facing ‘new realities,’ opening smaller stores

Canadian retailer Rona believes it will have better success with smaller stores and a larger digital offering.

The Quebec-based retailer and distributor, Canada’s largest, will close 10 of its warehouse-sized stores by the end of the year, shifting its focus to the opening of 25 smaller-format units.

March 1, 2012
Rona shifting away from big-box stores

Canadian retailer Rona will close 10 of its warehouse-sized stores by the end of the year, shifting its focus to the opening of 25 smaller-format units, the company announced on Feb. 24.

The new focus comes on the heels of a C$151 million loss posted for the company’s fourth quarter, which ended Dec. 25, 2011. This compares with a profit of C$20 million in the same period a year ago.

Net sales for the fourth quarter increased 2.6% to C$1.17 billion. Same-store sales were down 2.3% in the quarter.

February 15, 2012
Slowdown seen in sales of B.C. lumber to China

According to an article in The Globe and Mail, sales of British Columbia lumber to China have declined dramatically -- a major reversal from the strong sales of 2011. 

Analysts continue to expect more growth in 2012, but Statistics Canada estimated a mere $67 million in B.C.-to-China lumber sales in December, down 36% from the same month in the previous year.

January 30, 2012
Great Southern acquires Rocky Top

Abbeville, Ala.-based Great Southern Wood Preserving, Incorporated, the nation’s leading producer of pressure treated pine lumber, acquired the assets of the Rocky Top Building Products companies. 

With the asset acquisition of Rocky Top and other wholly owned subsidiaries of Rocky Mount, Va.-based The Franklin Group, Inc., Great Southern Wood Preserving’s distribution coverage now stretches from the Florida Keys to Texas to Canada including all or parts of 27 states and the District of Columbia.

January 26, 2012
Rona announces two executive hires

Rona, the largest chain of home improvement retailers and distributors in Canada, has appointed Dave Carr to the position of VP retail, Western Canada, and François Hardy to the position of VP dealer-owner network development.

January 25, 2012
U.S., Canada extend softwood lumber pact

Trade officials from the United States and Canada have extended their Softwood Lumber Agreement for two more years. The 2006 agreement was signed with no changes on Jan. 24 by U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk and Canadian Minister for International Trade Ed Fast. The extension will be in effect through Oct. 15, 2015.

January 11, 2012
SieMatic appoints new leader for U.S., Canada

SieMatic USA, a maker of high-end kitchen cabinetry, has appointed Hans Henkes as its new general manager. Henkes will oversee operations in North America, serving as liaison to SieMatic’s corporate and independent partner showrooms, as well as leading the company’s commercial division.

Henkes, who has been with the company for four years, has a background in international management. He will be responsible for managing SieMatic USA operations and market development throughout the United States and Canada.

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