In its October issue, Sanitary Maintenance magazine reported that the International Sanitary Supply Association (ISSA) had begun an “informational partnership” with the Association of Higher Education Facilities (APPA). Recently, ISSA announced a similar partnership, this time with the International Facility Managers Association (IFMA).

An association for facility managers and an association for distributors have natural inroads to cooperate, says Dianna Bisswurm, director of industry outreach
for ISSA.

“Facility managers want to partner with a good distributor; distributors want to partner with good facility mangers,” says Bisswurm. “We just got back from IFMA’s trade show, and many people asked for our distributor member guide.”

ISSA exhibited at the IFMA trade show, and IFMA is an exhibitor at ISSA/INTERCLEAN®.

COMPANY NOTES

Byrne Named President of Misco Products Corp.
Misco Products Corp., Reading, Pa., a manufacturer of cleaning and maintenance chemicals, recently announced that Tony Byrne was named president of the company. The announcement came as no surprise.

“The intention of the company was for me to eventually be president when I was brought in to Misco seven years ago — so that was part of the overall plan,” he says. “The existing ownership will continue with the Gable family. They’ve owned the company for 40-some years, and they know what they’re doing.” Misco was founded by Richard and Madeline Gable in 1964.

Because Misco has been successful, especially in creating chemicals that distributors can private label for a variety of markets, Byrne is loath to make any immediate changes.

“My vision is for the company to continue to grow its brand and to continue to provide excellent service to private brand customers,” he says. “We’re trying to build an organization that’s responsive to customer needs, and that is also open and involved from an employee standpoint.”

Misco started as a regional private-label manufacturer, and now has the technology and capabilities to produce high-quality products that can be sold well beyond the company’s region, says Byrne. “In the past four years, we’ve made significant progress extending out past the Northeast.”

Originally, Byrne was hired by Misco as vice president of finance. Before that, he was a partner at a financial services firm.


Ecolab, St. Paul, Minn., recently announced that it has come to an agreement with JFB Hart Coatings, a producer of high-performance urethane coatings for a variety of industries and applications, to market and sell the JFB family of floor coatings.

Wood Wyant, Vancouver, British Columbia, a multi-regional distributor of paper and jan/san supplies, recently announced that it has joined National Independent Sanitary Supply Companies (NISSCO), Dulles, Va., a jan/san buying group with 250 member distributors.

UNICCO Services Co., one of North America’s largest integrated facilities services outsourcing companies, announced that it is launching a comprehensive green services initiative, beginning with its GreenClean program, which will bring environmentally sensitive practices to the marketplace. The program was unveiled at the IFMA World Workplace Conference and Exposition in Salt Lake City.

Tennant Commercial Co., Minneapolis, recently reported net earnings of $1 million, or 11 cents per diluted share, on net sales of more than $120 million for its third quarter, which ended September 30, 2004.

Cintas Corp., Cincinnati, a national manufacturer of cleaning supplies and uniforms, recently announced that it has been named to Forbes magazine’s annual “A-List” of top performing companies, recognized as one of the world’s 400 “most attractive big public companies for investors.”

Georgia-Pacific, Atlanta, a manufacturer of paper for the jan/san industry, recently announced that it is investing $61.8 million in its Green Bay operations. Specifically, G-P is investing $61.8 million: $60 million in equipment and $1.8 in training.

Tornado Industries, Chicago, recently donated cleaning equipment to the Victory Junction Camp, based in Randleman, N.C. The camp allows children suffering from chronic or life-threatening illnesses to experience summer camp fun. Victory Junction, started by actor Paul Newman and race car driver Kyle Petty, lets children make friends without worrying about being different or sick, says Mike Schaffer, president of Tornado Industries.

Distributor Partners of America (DPA), Naples, Fla., a member-owned marketing and procurement organization, recently announced the addition of 17 new partner members. Also, DPA will be expanding its label in 2005, as well as DPA procurement programs.

PLAYERS

Clark National Inc., Elk Grove Village, Ill., a distributor of foodservice and jan/san supplies, recently announced that Chris Healy has been hired as corporate director of purchasing non-foods. Healy comes to Clark from Edward Don, where he was a senior category manager for paper and disposables.

The International Custodial Advisors Network Inc., Boise, Idaho, recently announced that Perry Shimanoff has been appointed treasurer and vice president. Shimanoff has worked with educational facilities as a maintenance and operations consultant since 1979. His company, Management & Communication Consultants (MC2), San Carlos, Calif., performs cleaning audits, custom training and route design for cleaning professionals.

Kaivac Inc., Hamilton, Ohio, has hired Mike Perazzo to be its corporate account executive. Perazzo will handle national accounts as well as corporate and end-user training. He will also oversee local sales in and around Kaivac’s headquarters, run the Kaivac Boot Camp training program, and assist at national trade shows.

In addition, Kaivac has re-hired Vince Marchetti of Cherokee Equipment Inc., West New York, N.J., to be a manufacturer’s rep for the company. Marchetti has 20 years experience in the jan/san industry.

Betco Corp., Toledo, Ohio, a manufacturer of cleaning chemicals, recently announced that Mark A. Travers is the newest addition to the company’s sales force. Travers was hired as a regional manager, and he will serve the Northeastern Ohio sales territory.

Tornado Industries, Chicago, a manufacturer of floor-care equipment, recently made two personnel announcements: Charles Digisco has joined the company as its third general manager, and Jennifer Schaffer has been promoted to marketing coordinator.

Kahnco Sales, Burlingame, Calif., a jan/san distributor, recently announced that Ron Balakian has joined the company as a full partner, bringing more than 25 years of industry experience to Kahnco. Balakian has covered markets in California, Nevada and Hawaii for a number of manufacturers, including Advance, Kent, Pioneer Eclipse and Unger Enterprises.

Amsterdam RAI has appointed Rob den Hertog to be senior product manager for the professional cleaning category, which involves the organization of ISSA/INTERCLEAN® exhibitions. Hertog succeeds Jos van den Berg, who will retire next year.




POSTED ON: 11/1/2004