Content about Disaster

LEED v4, the proposed update to the nation’s most prevalent green building program, has been under intense pressure to change its current wood certification rating system, which only recognizes one set of standards, those of the Forest Stewardship Council. But the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), which oversees the LEED program and its current revision process, is now under fire for another part of the LEED update that has nothing to do with wood.

San Carlos, Calif.-based Kelly-Moore Paints has introduced its new zero-VOC colorants, which “will maintain excellent interior air quality during application without sacrificing performance,” according to the company.

Kelly-Moore is transitioning from conventional universal colorants to the new zero-VOC colorants; this has been completed in all of the company’s California and Nevada locations. The rest of its stores will be completed by this summer.

A report by the Sloan Center on Aging & Work at Boston College points to wide-ranging flexible workplace options that can retain older workers, tap into the experience of retired workers and help employers fill skills and knowledge gaps. Success is dependent, though, on matching flexibility initiatives with the needs of employers and their older employees.

It’s an old saying, but it’s true: Businesses begin and end with their people. This is especially applicable to the relationship-driven home improvement industry. 

Orlando, Fla. -- The stage of the 2012 City of Hope “Spirit of Life” event featured one brand new honoree, several more industry icons and 30 years of memories for the hardware/homebuilding group.

Convening for the good of the California-based cancer treatment and research center, executives and supporters filled a banquet room at the Rosen Plaza Hotel here on the eve of the International Builders' Show to honor the man of the hour: Ace Hardware's Ray Griffith. The president and CEO of the Oak Brook, Ill.-based hardware co-op accepted the 2012 Spirit of Life award.

W.W. Grainger reported record sales and earnings for the year ended Dec. 31, the Chicago-based industrial supply company announced Wednesday morning.

The full year 2011 sales of $8.1 billion were up 12% compared to $7.2 billion in 2010. Net earnings of $658 million increased 29% over the prior year.

True Value CEO Lyle Heidemann offered some friendly advice to a reporter recently. “Bring your camera to Philadelphia this year,” he said. 


Philadelphia is the site of the Chicago-based co-op’s Fall Market, Sept. 23 to 25. Here, True Value will be displaying its Destination True Value store design and format for smaller stores. In the Philadelphia and nearby East Coast markets, the co-op is expecting strong attendance from dealers with smaller-than-average footprints. 


Livermore, Calif.-based Epicor Software Corp., which recently combined with Activant Solutions, has announced the availability of the Epicor Training on Demand system. 

This eLearning tool offers Epicor Eagle retail customers access to a complete curriculum of job-specific online video training courses. 

One of the largest Florida suppliers of tainted drywall has reached a preliminary settlement with a group of plaintiffs, counsels for the parties announced June 15. 

The insurers of Banner Supply Co. and its various subsidiaries have agreed to pay $55 million to homeowners in Florida who claim their homes were built with contaminated Chinese drywall.  

A Lowe’s employee was killed in a storage facility in Charlotte, N.C., right across the parking lot from one of the retailer’s stores, according to an article in the Charlotte Observer. The 35-year-old man was standing under a garage door when it suddenly fell and hit him on the head at 11 a.m. on June 4.  

After reports of numerous burn injuries, Duluth, Ga.-based Napa Home and Garden issued a "precautionary hold" on sales of its gel burners and gel fuels. 

According to the company, the decorative firepots made by Napa and other suppliers are sold in most major mass market retailers and thousands of independent stores.

The Home Depot Foundation, the philanthropic arm of The Home Depot, has announced it will donate $1 million to the immediate relief, recovery and long-term rebuilding efforts in Joplin, Mo.