Daily News Archive
Brought to you by Home Furnishings Business
October 25,
2007 by in UnCategorized 
By Home Furnishings Business in Case Goods on October 2007
Case goods manufacturer Vaughan-Bassett, Galax, Va., is celebrating more than 1 million injury-free man hours of operation at its plants. Vaughan-Bassett has been working with Key Risk, a Greensboro, N.C.-based workers compensation insurance and loss prevention service for employers.
Working with Key Risk loss control specialists, Vaughan-Bassett has seen a 21 percent reduction in accident frequency in its year-over-year comparison between 2006 and 2005. The company also saw a nearly 70 percent reduction in lost time claims during the same period, with zero claims in the 2007 policy year to date. The company has experienced an 81.5 percent reduction in gross incurred value (2006 versus 2005) with a 95.4 percent improvement in safety and claims when comparing 2007 to 2005.
“Several of our initiatives have contributed greatly to our improvements on the safety front,” said Doug Brannock, Vaughan-Bassett vice president and corporate controller. “First, we worked with Key Risk to develop plans for each plant that are specific to their needs. Second, we developed a communications process that insures accurate statistical data is shared across all management levels to ensure compliance based on priority and supervision. And, third, we provided appropriate training to all employees and formulated a process as well as incentive structure for demonstrating safe behavior – this got everyone involved.”
October 25,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Furniture Retailing on October 2007
Raymour & Flanigan, Liverpool, N.Y., will divert 15.2 million pounds of cardboard, Styrofoam and plastic from landfills this year as part of a recycling initiative in which what were once waste materials are transformed into consumer products ranging from egg cartons and lunch trays to picture frames and counter tops.
Much of the recyclable material is sent to a recently upgraded 41,000-square-foot recycling center at the 72-store retailer’s main campus. This year, Raymour & Flanigan is on track to recycle 13.2 million pounds of cardboard, 1.3 million pounds of plastic and 700,000 pounds of Styrofoam.
With Styrofoam, the recycling center uses a heat extrusion process to reduce the material to one-tenth its original size, producing 50-pound “ingots” manufacturers can use to produce new products.
“Our technicians can produce approximately 100 ingots per day—the equivalent of seven full trailers of Styrofoam—that would have otherwise gone into a landfill,” said Jeff Lannier, senior vice president of distribution. “The company anticipates processing 700,000 pounds of Styrofoam this year, or the equivalent of approximately 1,000 trailer loads.”
Executive Vice President Steve Goldberg said, “As our packaging volume increased with our company growth, we made the decision (in 2002) to create a permanent Reycling Center on our main campus to process all this waste material. We added three new positions (in the center) since February for a total of nine associates.”
The company recently launched a “mixed office paper” initiative in which all showrooms and other facilities will send recyclable paper to Liverpool for processing.
October 25,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Upholstery on October 2007
Denver-based Furniture Row announced that shoppers at its Sofa Mart and Furniture Row Outlet brands have helped raise more than $218,000 for an organization that provides help to some of the estimated 2 million street children in Mexico City.
As part of the event called “Hope is Always in Style,” the companies pledged $20 from every sofa sold during a promotional period to World Vision, a Christian relief and development organization dedicated to helping children around the globe. The campaign, which was developed in 2000, helps street children in Mexico become more self-sufficient and move into more stable environments through World Vision’s “Ninos de las Calle” program.
“On behalf of the children of Mexico City being blessed by this gift, I’d like to extend my gratitude to Sofa Mart and Furniture Row Outlet,” said Rowin Floth, World Vision’s advancement area director.
Furniture Row operates more than 330 stores in 31 states.
October 24,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in Youth, Juvenile Furniture on October 2007
Hooker Furniture Corp., Martinsville, Va., announced Wednesday that it has signed a letter of intent to purchase the assets of New York-based Opus Designs Furniture LLC, a specialist in moderately priced youth bedroom furniture. The transaction is expected to close some time in the fourth quarter of the 2007 calendar year, subject to, among other things, completion of due diligence and negotiation of a definitive acquisition agreement.
Opus President of Design and Engineering James Millner, who oversees design and product development, would remain with the business.
Millner’s experience prior to Opus includes working with youth bedroom major Lea Inds., and with Magnussen Home Furnishings.
“The acquisition would provide a solid foundation for Hooker to build a strong youth bedroom program at more moderate price points, with a more comprehensive product line and with superior sourcing arrangements compared to the company’s current SmartKids youth furniture line,” said Paul B. Toms Jr., chairman, chief executive and president of Hooker. “We’re committed to youth bedroom, having entered the category around the same time Opus began in 2005, but we have struggled to become an important resource. As part of our commitment to become more competitive in the category, we looked for an established company with a solid sourcing structure and a broad product line. We believe we have found that, at slightly lower price points, in Opus.”
Opus is expected to have between $5 million and $6 million in sales in 2007, and offers around 10 groups in key youth bedroom styles, including cottage, pine, Victorian and transitional. Multiple finishes are offered on some groups.
Because of the more competitive price points at Opus, Toms believes the product line offers “a tool to help us and our retailers reach a younger customer and a broader demographic income spectrum than our current consumer base.”
By the same token, Hooker offers resources to help the Opus lines grow.
“Opus is an entrepreneurial company that has been successful, but we offer the financial backing to go to the next level and support the business with enhanced systems; better forecasting, inventory management and quality assurance; and a broad range of other resources,” Toms said. “In addition, we believe our organization is well positioned to improve service to their customers and expand sales of their product at retail.”
October 24,
2007 by in UnCategorized
By Home Furnishings Business in on October 2007
High-end manufacturer Century Furniture, Hickory, N.C., has received the state of North Carolina’s Governor’s Award for Excellence in Workforce Development. The honor goes to two North Carolina companies each year in recognition of workforce development through training and community service. Century is the first furniture maker to win the award.
Century President and CEO Bob Maricich accepted the award on behalf of the company at a ceremony last Thursday in Greensboro, N.C.
“In 2007 we’re celebrating 60 years of excellence, community service and making products of impeccable quality and exceptional value,” he said. “We have one standard, the best—the best products, the best people, and a workplace where people can do their best work. Our business is strong and profitable at a time when others in our industry are closing factories. We are still actively recruiting and hiring. And that’s the real proof that being a socially responsible company pays off.”
After some experimentation with sourced collections, Century made a strategic decision to keep the bulk of its manufacturing in the United States. While the company does use overseas sourcing, some 70 percent of its furniture is still made domestically.
Century currently employs more than 1,100 people, all of whom are shareholders in the company. Average length of service is 18 years, with several employees having worked for Century for more than 30 years.
Century’s nomination for the award included the following initiatives:
• Implementation of an on-the-job training program to recruit and train referrals from the Catawba County (N.C.) JobLink and to offer current employees the opportunity for advancement.
• Internships for college students, and tuition and textbook support for employees who continue their education, offering workplace literacy, supervisory training and ongoing training in lean manufacturing principles.
• A comprehensive medical, dental and vision plan, and other benefits that include a 401K, life insurance, disability coverage, on-site nurse practitioner, flexible spending accounts, paid vacation and holidays, credit union, Employee Stock Ownership Plan, opportunities for advancement and training, on-site mammograms, wellness seminars and discount furniture purchases.
• The hiring of a homeless man, augmented with assistance through clothing donations, finding shelter, obtaining help from Cooperative Christian Ministries, and transportation to and from work.
• The service of Century executives on the boards of the Catawba County Chamber of Commerce, Frye Regional Hospital, United Way, Juvenile Diabetes, YMCA of Catawba Valley, Piedmont Council, Boy Scouts of America, NCSU Industrial Extension Advisory Board, and the American Red Cross; and company support of those and other community organizations.