It has been a busy autumn for ISSA and its members, with two trade shows, national media exposure, and awards for the extraordinary work of specific companies.

The first ISSA/INTERCLEAN® China was held September 20-22 in Shanghai, China. With 2,445 attendees, most exhibitors considered it a successful show: 80 percent of exhibitors were very satisfied with the show according to those surveyed; 87 percent said the show was very important to their company’s strategy; and 84 percent have already decided to return to exhibit in 2007.

“There was great attendee traffic with a valuable cross section of north, south and central Chinese visitors as well as from other Asian countries that have growing cleaning markets,” said William Mason, vice president of international sales for DEMA Engineering Co., St. Louis. “We will definitely be back next year.”

Following the trade show in China, the industry geared up for ISSA/INTERCLEAN® USA, held October 4-7 in Chicago. There were several highlights during the show, one of the most notable being the visit by former New York mayor Rudolph Giuliani. More than 4,200 people were treated to his speech on leadership, and a Q&A session on topics ranging from healthcare and education to politics.

ISSA/INTERCLEAN also made national news during the show — “First Business Morning News,” a half-hour syndicated program that airs in several U.S. television markets and internationally — attended the show.

The news program interviewed industry professionals on topics such as green cleaning, innovative new products and safety.

While making the news is noteworthy, so too were the networking and education opportunities, as well as the services that hundreds of exhibitors provided.

Show attendees — distributors, building service contractors, and in-house service providers who attended ISSA/INTERCLEAN — cast their ballots for the Best Customer Service Award. This award is given to three companies with booths 300 square feet or less and three companies with booths greater than 300 square feet.

The six winners are: Cyclone Environmental Technologies LLC; Royce Rolls Ringer Co.; Rubbermaid Commercial Products Inc.; Sanitor Mfg., Co.; Spartan Chemical Co., Inc.; and Tennant Co.

Of the 24 entrants who vied for the coveted Innovation Award, there were five winners: Dial Corp., Dial Renuzit® Super Odor Neutralizer (chemicals); Georgia-Pacific N.A., for its Safe-T-Gard door tissue dispenser and trash receptacle (paper and plastics); Windsor Industries,Windsor iRenew Mini (power equipment); Rubbermaid Commercial Product’s microfiber janitor cart (supplies and accessories); and Easy Dump Products Inc.’s Easy Dump Slimline trash receptacle (other products, services and technology.)

ISSA/INTERCLEAN 2007 will be held October 23-26 in Orlando, but will change its name to ISSA/INTERCLEAN® North America to better represent the show’s regional scope.


MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS

Bunzl plc, London, is expanding further in the United States with its acquisition of Cole Harford Holding Co., Overland Park, Kan., a supplier of food service and jan/san disposable products.

The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Mesirow Financial, Chicago, served as financial advisor to Cole Harford. “The combination with Bunzl will provide the management and employees of Cole Harford with a robust platform to continue its growth and effectively serve its long-standing customers,” said Bill Hornell, managing director of Mesirow Financial.

Bunzl has also acquired United American Sales Inc., Wilmington, Ohio, a redistributor of personal protection equipment, and Morgan Scott, Toronto, a distributor of jan/san and food service supplies.

Southeastern Paper Group Inc., Spartanburg, S.C., has acquired Atlantic Brokerage Co., Charleston, S.C., a distributor of supermarket supplies and machinery.

The acquisition will result in a company that will be competitive in the grocery packaging industry. Atlantic Brokerage Co. will operate as a subsidiary of Southeastern Paper Group.

Dri-Eaz Products Inc., Burlington, Wash., has been sold to two undisclosed private equity firms. The sale of the company — a manufacturer of dehumidifiers, air movers, structural drying systems and airscrubbers — will help the company in deciding which markets may be most lucrative for future growth.

NEWS MAKERS

JohnsonDiversey is GREEN GUARD Certified.
JohnsonDiversey, Sturtevant, Wis., announced that its Healthy High Performance Cleaning System — which includes several of the company’s Green Seal-certified products and two microfiber products — is the first cleaning system to achieve GREENGUARD™ certification.

GREENGUARD is a program that focuses on improving indoor air quality (IAQ) to protect human health and has typically focused on the effects of paints, office equipment and other office components.

The GREENGUARD Environmental Institute, which oversees the certification program, reviews the products’ manufacturing process and tests each of the finished products. Johnson Diversey’s cleaning system was tested from beginning to end in a sealed environment. Reviews are done annually.

Scott Paper To Rebrand, Change Name
Effective June 2007, the Scott Paper division of Kruger Inc., Montreal, will be renamed Kruger Products, following a three-year rebranding initiative that encompasses the company’s in-home and away-from-home paper products.

Scott Paper was purchased by Kruger from Kimberly-Clark in 1997, carrying a 10-year licensing and trademark agreement for the Scott, Cottonelle and ScotTowels names.

Compensation Tool Released By NAW
The National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors has released a new tool intended to help employers attract and retain top employees. The organization’s 2006 Employee Compensation Report — which includes data from 2,080 wholesale distributors, allows employers to see how a company’s compensation program compares to others.





POSTED ON: 11/1/2006