Ike's Aftermath -- Bad But Could've Been Worse

That seems to be the general assessment of folks we've made contact with in the Houston area following the ravages of back-to-back Hurricanes Gustav and Ike in early September. Houston-based oilfield PVF distributor Wilson  announced on its website just a few days after the storm that hurricane recovery supplies were available from any of its branches in Southeast Texas or Louisiana. Wilson's Beaumont, Jasper and Freeport, TX branches all suffered some damage, but were being serviced by other facilities. Wilson's La Porte, TX Distribution Center remained open throughout, and Houston hq was back in business this week after being shut down about a week. McJunkin Red Man's website also touted emergency hurricane supplies.

Regional plumbing/HVAC wholesaler Coburn Supply issued a detailed status report shortly after the storm reporting that all Louisiana locations were fully open, and that many Texas locations were open for business but many were operating without power, phones or Internet and with limited access. Coburn's Galveston and Beaumont branches were closed and slated to reopen this week.

Although many Gulf Coast drilling platforms were knocked out of service, there was less damage to oil and natural gas facilities than feared. More than storm damage, power outages caused shortages of fuel both in Texas and along major pipeline networks. Flooding in the Midwest from the remnants of the storm also caused disruptions of transport for some materials.

"The combined damage from Ike and Gustav appears to be far less than from Katrina and Rita in 2005; even those hurricanes disrupted supplies of PVC and certain other materials for months but did not trigger any lasting surges in demand or labor shortages in other regions as some had predicted," reported AGC Chief Economist Ken Simonson.

Industrial Info Resources reported on Sept. 19 that more than 30% of industrial plants in the path of Hurricane Ike remained offline. Most of these plants suffered from extended power outages, lack of raw materials, supplies or fuel, and/or wind and water damage from the storm. Given the breadth of the storm -- extending more than 500 miles wide -- it's rather remarkable that so many plants in the region were able to stay open for business in the immediate aftermath.

McJunkin Red Man Names Halliburton Exec As CEO
Former Halliburton COO Andrew Lane has been hired as CEO of McJunkin Red Man (MRM), effective immediately. Former co-CEO Craig Ketchum becomes chairman of McJunkin Red Man Holding Corp., while the other co-CEO H. B. "Bernie" Wehrle III will continue as chairman of PVF Holdings LLC. Read the full story of the MRM management transition here.

Anvil Announces Five Appointments
Anvil® International  has promoted former Director of Sales John Smayda(left) to vice president, marketing. Smayda is a 38-year industry veteran with managerial experience in the industrial, mechanical and fire protection markets. Also, Shaun Dunn (right) of Concord, NH has joined the company as national engineering manager. He worked previously for McWane, Inc. as a territory sales manager and for Agilent Technologies as a technical sales engineer. Also, Anvil named 35-year industry veteran Bill Gilliam as manager of the company's Energy Div. Wendell Hayes has transferred from Anvil's Mechanical Team to the Energy Division, where he will be responsible for sales to the oil and gas industry across the Gulf Coast region. Finally, John Dannaker has joined Anvil as a mechanical specialist, working closely with PVF contractor on Anvil's Gruvlok and hanger product lines. He has 25 years of industrial and mechanical sales experience.

Deacon Industrial Hires Rob Laird
Deacon Industrial Supply Co. (King of Prussia, PA) has hired Rob Laird as actuation & controls manager. He has 30 years of experience in the Delaware Valley, and comes to Deacon from Chalmers and Kubeck where he was responsible for the sales of Limitorque actuators. Laird will be working from Deacon's New Castle, PA branch.

Fantasy Politics

Last edition in this space we drew attention to an article about the leading edge of baby boomers beginning to collect Social Security, and what that portends for future indebtedness. But Social Security is only part of the problem. As usual, none of our politicians wants to face the stark reality of what lay ahead for our fiscal stability.

Robert Samuelson, as usual, tackles the issue in a non-partisan manner.

  Intro to Pipe, Valves & Fittings

This course provides employees new to the PVF/plumbing  industry with an overview of piping products, fittings and valves. It includes definitions of common industry terms, descriptions of basic types of plumbing systems and explanations of specifications for pipe, valves and fittings. $134.00  CLICK HERE to order.

Visit AECstore.com   to view all of our Plumbing resources or all Stephanie at 248-244-1275 with any questions.

Tech Tips by Gregg Marshall
To help you make the most of the Digital Age.

How many conference calls have you been on where the discussion is so off topic the most productive use of your time is playing solitaire?

Having done conference calls for 20 years and webinars the last 4 or 5, I can say that the visual prompting of the webinar improves attention.

The last couple of years we've done a number of conference calls using Netspoke, which allowed the call leader to share his desktop with everyone via the web (still using standard conference calling for audio). The difference is amazing. Just putting the agenda on the screen, and taking notes into the agenda Word document, makes those conference calls twice as effective.

My problem with Netspoke is it is relatively pricey. Especially if you only want to use it occasionally.

An alternative is Vyew (http://www.vyew.com). It's free (with a small ad in the upper right corner) or very inexpensive.

It is a bit more complex for attendees to log in (you have to make sure you have flash and java installed in your web browser). It appears to be more stable for Mac users.

Did I mention it's free?

Pay attention!

 Gregg Marshall, CPMR, CSP, is president of Rep Connection Inc. He can be reached by e-mail at gmarshall@repconnection.com, or visit his LinkedIn profile at http://www.linkedin.com/in/greggmarshall.

For the latest in ISH North America and Network '08 news, events and highlights, visit the new micro-site www.PMmag.com/digitaldailies

Introduction to Steel, Stainless Steel, Iron Pipe and Fittings

This course reviews the types, classifications and uses of steel, stainless steel, iron pipe and fittings. $134.00 CLICK HERE to order.

Visit AECstore.com   to view all of our Plumbing resources or all Stephanie at 248-244-1275 with any questions.

Tubular Backwash Filter System
Eaton's new AFR Series Tubular Backwash Filter System is designed for continuous, high flow filtration (single system flow rates up to 2000 gpm and 454 m3/hr) with flexibility to meet current and future system capacity requirements. The system is designed to replace a much larger 8 station tubular multiplex system in a compact, one square meter footprint. A single, rotating flow diverter replaces multiple valves, actuators, linkages, and seals required by other systems - minimizing the number of moving parts for low cost operation and long service life. The AFR uses cleanable media in a wide selection of filter media materials and retention rates to eliminate labor and disposal costs as well as lost productivity associated with replaceable bags and cartridges.