Technology

Leviton has announced its membership in Zhaga, an industry co-op of lighting manufacturers aimed at the development of standards and specifications for the interfaces of LED light engines. Zhaga standards enable interchangeability between products made by diverse manufacturers. The consortium was established for the benefit of consumers and professional buyers of light engines and luminaires.

Behr Paint and Home Depot will attempt to reach further into the pro market with the launch of the Kilz Pro-X line made by MasterChem Industries. Both Behr and Kilz are part of Masco Corp. The announcement was made at the International Builders’ Show on Jan. 12.

Initially the Kilz Pro-X line will offer 1,300 colors. Designed as part of Behr’s “Direct to Pros” program, the company hopes to begin with a February rollout and finish in May or June of 2011, when all 2,000 Home Depots will have the program.

It’s been nearly two months since Chicago-based True Value launched its new e-commerce site, and in that time the hardware co-op has seen traffic to TrueValue.com triple.


The new site already features more than 22,000 SKUs of its core assortments in accordance with its Destination True Value format. 


Russell Kennedy retired as president and CEO of ENAP, the New Windsor, N.Y.-based lumber and building material co-operative.

On an interim basis, CFO Steve Sallah will be acting chief operating officer.

Kennedy led the co-op -- the name is an acronym for "Everybody Needs a Profit" -- for the past five years. In a prepared statement, he pointed to his appreciation to and confidence in the current ENAP team.

Abbeville, Ala.-based Great Southern Wood Preserving formed an alliance with specialty building materials distributor U.S. Lumber Group.

Under the new alliance, an affiliate of Great Southern will become a minority investor in U.S. Lumber and customers of both companies will leverage the benefits of increased volume purchasing and sharing of "best practices." No jobs will be adversely affected, nor are management changes anticipated, the companies announced. 

As part of a series of technology upgrades, Orangeburg, S.C.-based Cox Industries unveiled a new customer portal to log in and view, download, and upload account specific information. 

Today, when customers access the Cox website, their recent account activity and order literature will be displayed. Customers also get the benefit of direct access to the entire Cox team who are available to assist with orders, literature requests and questions, according to the company.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued updated “remediation protocol” on March 18 to consumers and contractors dealing with problem drywall. 

Jeff Schulein of Crown Ace Hardware has accomplished what few dealers can lay claim to: 17 stores, a solid succession plan and, since the economic downturn, no store closures or major employee layoffs. In fact, Schulein and his son, Mark, are in negotiations to open an 18th store, this one in San Diego. 


“I’m an entrepreneur who does things by the seat of his pants,” Jeff said. “Mark is a good manager. He’s highly organized. So together we make a good team.”