This industry lends itself to a fair share of folks having the title of road warrior — it’s part of the deal, whether making sales calls, visiting existing customers or going to events.

After you get done reading the flurry of activity occurring at ASA as we head into the late summer/early fall part of the calendar, I want to direct your attention to two other ASA-related expertly written pieces in this issue that all companies in this supply chain should read.

During my ASA update at lunch, I told attendees to pay close attention to the middle portion of what I had to say regarding our Building One Future initiative, which, of course, tackles the three critical issues of the labor shortage, keeping up to speed on trends and new technologies and how prepared/well-positioned a distributor might be for future growth.

Here at the American Supply Association, numbers also are a big deal, and ASA members are encouraged to get in on the fun through a pair of reports published by our business intelligence department.

When I was in middle and high school, I always worried about the gas valves that were at my work station during science/chemistry classes. What if an explosion occurred? What if someone left the valve open? Do these things even work?

Before I get into this month’s key thoughts related to important ASA efforts, I would like to bring to further light the recent unexpected death of longtime respected industry trade journalist Bob Mader.

Who would ever have thought you would hear that Houston residents woke up one day in February to a temperature of 9° F?

A few years ago, the WIT buying group held its fall owners meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah — a neat area of the country if you have never checked it out. Part of the event involved a tour of member Standard Plumbing Supply’s impressive headquarters operation in nearby Sandy.

To state the obvious, 2020 has been a challenging year for all of us whether we’re talking personally dealing with the many ramifications of the pandemic or from a professional/business standpoint.