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At last year’s ASA Strategic Planning Retreat, volunteers discussed the idea of a “product data library” that could be the sole source of manufacturer product data to help enable distributors to compete against online-first, big-box retailers, and other nontraditional competitors.

Jacob Hicks, product manager, will drive market research and new product introductions. Pat Cholka, quality manager, will focus on ensuring superior caliber products that our customers have come to depend upon. 

The Granite Group announced the opening of its newest branch in Manchester, VT. Located in the Manchester Valley Industrial Park at 152 Manchester Valley Road, this branch will be run by long-time Granite Group team member and customer favorite Derek Potter.  

In the 1980s, homeowners, builders and designers would walk into these new-fangled decorative plumbing showrooms and be wowed by all the sparkle and style. And as pretty as it all looked, these design leaders had no idea exactly what they were looking at. Sure, they saw fancy faucets but they had no idea how to layout, buy and install a “decorative bathroom”. Prior to decorative showrooms all that was only handled by the plumber. Who was going to help them navigate this new world.

Company training leaders and trainers come from many backgrounds with varying levels of learning and development experience. While not all have degrees in L&D, they most certainly have a passion for helping others to grow.

IMARK Plumbing recognized members and suppliers who achieved results and successfully participated within IMARK marketing programs. 

For many, the term “hot work” might conjure up an image of a vast mill, where molten ore is ever present in vats, being poured into casting molds amidst a shower of sparks and extreme radiant heat. Or perhaps one imagines a metal worker operating a plasma table cutting thick sheets of steel like a hot knife through butter. While these are definitely both examples of hot work, the term covers a much wider array of activities performed in varied work environments.

Advocacy is one of the pillars of the American Supply Association. When the association was founded more than 50 years ago, the need to advocate on behalf of the industry as a whole with a unified voice was paramount and the need remains today.

My first job in this business was to be a truck driver for an AC/Refrigeration wholesaler on Long Island. I didn’t have a car at the time, so I walked a mile to the branch and loaded a box truck, which I then drove 30 miles east to the branch where I would spend my days. Once there, I unloaded the transfer stock, reloaded for the local deliveries, and then drove off to learn about life.

In 2022 more the 4 million people left their jobs each month in the U.S. This ongoing mass exodus was coined “The Great Resignation” in 2021 by Anthony Klotz, an associate professor of management at University College of London. The Great Resignation was brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and the way it changed how people think about how, when, where and why they go to work. Klotz recently told CNBC Make It that he expects quitting and company turnover to slow down in 2023 — hopefully good news for businesses nationwide struggling to staff their companies.