Distributor News

Acklands-Grainger, Toronto, Ontario, pleaded guilty, in the Provincial Court of Alberta, for contravening the Ozone-Depleting Substances Regulations, 1998, made pursuant to the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999, according to Environment and Climate Change Canada. The company was fined $500,000, an amount that will be directed to the Environmental Damages Fund. More

Grainger, Chicago, IL, reported daily sales for November were down 3 percent compared to the same period a year ago. Results for the month included a 1 percentage point decrease in volume, a 1 percent decline in price and a 1 percentage point decline from lower sales of seasonal products. More

Praxair Inc., Danbury, CT, and Linde AG have agreed to merge. The deal will create the largest gases supplier in the world with more than $30 billion in annual revenue. More

Praxair Inc. will increase prices for bulk gas and medical gas customers in North America, effective Jan. 1, 2017, or as contracts permit. More

Linde Korea, a member of Linde AG, has acquired Air Liquide Korea’s industrial merchant and electronics onsite and liquid bulk air gases business in South Korea. More

Fastenal Co., Winona, MN, reported sales for November of $316.8 million, a 6.3 percent increase year-over-year. Daily sales increased 1.2 percent to an average of $15.1 million. More

European distributor Wolseley plc reported sales for the fiscal first quarter ended Oct. 31 of £4.4 billion (US$5.6 billion), up 22.9 percent over the same period a year ago. Trading profit grew 21.2 percent to £303million (US$385.4 million). Ferguson, Wolseley’s U.S. business, reported first-quarter sales of £2.9 billion (US$3.8 billion), up 8.9 percent over a year ago (based on a constant-currency comparison). More

Ferguson Enterprises Inc., Newport News, VA, has acquired Matera Paper Co. Inc., San Antonio, TX. More

HD Supply Holdings Inc., Atlanta, GA, reported sales for the fiscal third quarter ended Oct. 30 of $2 billion, an increase of 3.4 percent compared to the same period a year ago. Profit decreased 76 percent to $60 million. For the first nine months, sales for HD Supply were $5.8 billion, up 4.8 percent year-over-year. Profit decreased 76 percent to $144 million. More

Staples Inc., Framingham, MA, has agreed to sell controlling interest of its European operations to an affiliate of private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management LP. More

Beacon Roofing Supply Inc., Herndon, VA, has acquired roofing distributor BJ Supply, Bristol, PA. More

Curbell Plastics Inc., Orchard Park, NY, has acquired San Diego, CA-based Plastics & Metals Enterprises, dba Cal Plastics and Metals Inc., a provider of plastic and metal sheets, rods and tubes. More

SRS Distribution, McKinney, TX, a roofing distribution holding company, has acquired Metro Roofing Supplies, Stamford, CT. More

O-ring and seals distributor Rocket Seals Corp., Denver, CO, has been acquired by private equity firm Lynwood Capital Partners. More

Tencarva Machinery Company LLC, Greensboro, NC, has opened a branch office in El Dorado, AR. More

Motion & Flow Control Products Inc., Littleton, CO, a distributor of hydraulic components and accessories, opened a new location in Williston, ND. More

Technology distributor Avnet Inc., Phoenix, AZ, has promoted Graham McBeth to president of Premier Farnell Plc. More

Chemical distributor Univar Inc., Downers Grove, IL, has named Nick Powell as president, EMEA & APAC. More

McCoy’s Building Supply, San Marcos, TX, has appointed Meagan McCoy Jones as executive vice president and COO. More

Economic News

October U.S. manufacturing technology orders totaled $335.5 million, according to AMT – The Association for Manufacturing Technology. This total, as reported by companies participating in the USMTO program, was up 0.2 percent from October 2015, but down 32.9 percent from September. Year-to-date, total orders were $3,244.1 million, down 5.6 percent compared to the same point in 2015. More

October U.S. cutting tool consumption totaled $169 million, according to the U.S. Cutting Tool Institute and AMT – the Association for Manufacturing Technology. This total, as reported by companies participating in the Cutting Tool Market Report collaboration, was down 4.7 percent compared with October 2015 and down 1.6 percent from September. With a year-to-date total of $1.698 billion, 2016 is down 6.9 percent compared to 2015. More

Industrial production in the U.S. declined 0.4 percent in November after edging up 0.1 percent in October, according to the Federal Reserve. More

The Producer Price Index for final demand increased 0.4 percent in November, seasonally adjusted, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. On an unadjusted basis, the final demand index increased 1.3 percent for the 12 months ended in November. More

Privately owned housing starts in November were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,090,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This is 18.7 percent below the revised October estimate of 1,340,000 and 6.9 percent below the November 2015 rate of 1,171,000. More

New orders for manufactured goods in October, up four consecutive months, increased $12.5 billion or 2.7 percent to $469.4 billion, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. This followed a 0.6 percent September increase. More

The Conference Board Employment Trends Index increased in November to 130, up from 129 in October. This represents a 2.7 percent gain in the ETI compared to a year ago. More

Total October exports were $186.4 billion and imports were $229 billion, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, through the Department of Commerce. This resulted in a goods and services deficit of $42.6 billion, up $6.4 billion from September. October exports were down $3.4 billion from September, and October imports were up $3 billion. More

Municipalities issued C$7.6 billion (US$5.7 billion) worth of Canadian building permits in October, up 8.7 percent from September, according to Statistics Canada. Higher construction intentions for commercial structures and residential dwellings in Alberta were responsible for much of the gain, as builders filed permits in advance of the changes in the provincial Building Code. More

Production capacity of Canadian industries operated at 81.9 percent in the third quarter, up from 79.7 percent in the previous quarter, according to Statistics Canada. More

Canadian investment in new housing construction increased 4.9 percent to C$5 billion (US$3.7 billion) in October compared with the same month in 2015, according to Statistics Canada. More

Manufacturing sales in Canada declined 0.8 percent to C$51 billion (US$38.1 billion) in October, with the largest decreases in the primary metal, petroleum and coal product, and machinery industries, according to Statistics Canada. More

Compared with September, October European seasonally adjusted production in the construction sector was up 0.8 percent in the euro area (EA19) and 0.4 percent in the EU28, according to first estimates from Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. In September 2016, production in construction fell by 0.1 percent in the euro area and fell by 0.1 in the EU28. In October 2016 compared with October 2015, production in construction rose by 2.2 percent in the euro area and by 1.1 percent in the EU28. More

European seasonally adjusted industrial production fell by 0.1 percent in October in the euro area (EA19) and by 0.3 percent in the EU28, according to estimates from Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. In September, industrial production fell by 0.9 percent in the euro area and by 0.7 percent in the EU28. In October 2016 compared with October 2015, industrial production increased by 0.6 percent in the euro area and by 0.5 percent in the EU28. More

Manufacturer News

Diversified manufacturer 3M, St. Paul, MN, has agreed to sell the identity management business within its traffic safety and security division to Gemalto for $850 million. More

Atlas Copco, Stockholm, Sweden, has agreed to acquire the business of hb Kompressoren Druckluft- und Industrietechnik GmbH, a German distributor and service provider of industrial air compressors and related systems. More

Material handling products manufacturer Columbus McKinnon Corp., Amherst, NY, has agreed to acquire STAHL CraneSystems, a business of Konecranes Plc. More

Newell Brands Inc., Hoboken, NJ, has agreed to acquire two companies – New Zealand-based Sistema Plastics for NZ$660 million (US$470 million) and Smith Mountain Industries for $100 million. More

Protective Industrial Products Inc., Albany, NY, has acquired Century Glove Inc.  More

Wire and cable manufacturer Southwire Company LLC, Carrollton, GA, has acquired Sumner Manufacturing, Houston, TX, a manufacturer of material lifts, jack stands, welding tools, material carts and other tools and equipment for the construction market. More