victoria.kickham@reedbusiness.com

In the aftermath of Hurricane Frances, retailers, such as The Home Depot and Lowe's, were faced with a shortage of generators in the Sunshine State and were rationing them to customers most in need, according to a September Associated Press report. Home Depot was reportedly pulling generators from stores as far away as California and New York to fill demand in Florida. Meeting demand for generators and other supplies to help residents repair damage from the storm was made more difficult by existing efforts to recover from Hurricane Charley, which swept through Florida less than a month before Frances hit.

Distributors faced the same problems. W.W. Grainger was supporting customers from its 22 branches in Florida with everything from batteries to chain saws—and generators were by far the toughest things to keep on the shelves, said Parris Devine, Grainger's regional branch services vice president covering the southeast portion of the country.

"Generators were tough, but they were tough for everyone," Devine said in a Sept. 10 interview, as cleanup from Charley and Frances was well underway, and residents were bracing for Hurricane Ivan. "Our manufacturers kicked into gear immediately, and have done a good job of keeping us supplied as needed…But there are just not enough generators in the market for everyone who needs them. That's just the way it is."

The hurricanes left millions of Florida residents and businesses without power. Utility companies were making steady progress getting homes and businesses up and running in the days following Frances before the threat of Ivan slowed things down, said Devine.

"They're putting up lines that could be knocked down in a couple of days," he said. "That's got to be frustrating."

Distributor alliance IBC announced several additions to its IndustrialSupplyPlus division: Distributor McAuliffe's Industrial joined IBC as a member, and manufacturers Goff's Enterprises, Inc., Ferro Industries, Inc., and Wright Tool Co. were named preferred suppliers…Transmission & Fluid Equipment, Inc. joined the Independent Distributors Cooperative-USA…Manufacturer Bosch Rexroth Corp. updated its Web site to include a comprehensive look at its course offerings, schedules and locations. Visitors can browse the course catalog to find appropriate courses, along with course descriptions, locations and dates. For more information, visit the automation training section at www.boschrexroth-us.com...

Airgas Inc. acquired Welding Supply House, Inc. of Lafayette, La…Kaman Industrial Technologies purchased Brivisa de Mexico, Monterey, Mexico. The business will be organized as part of KIT's Delamac de Mexico, S.A. de C.V. subsidiary…Ferguson Enterprises acquired Cline Contract Sales, a wholesale-distributor of custom home appliances based in Richmond, Va., and reached an agreement to acquire the Clark Group, a fire protection equipment distributor based in St. Louis. The Clark Group acquisition is expected to be completed in December…The Timken Co. signed an agreement to sell the x and its affiliate, Kilian Canada, ULC, to an affiliate of Genstar Capital, L.P., a private investment firm, and members of Kilian's management team.

Carborundum Abrasives chose the John Day Co. of Omaha, Neb., for its Distributor of the Year award. Each year, Carborundum selects one distributor from among more than 3,000 North American distributors to receive the award… Manufacturer Bostik-Findley was awarded the 2004 Ohio Governor's Excellence in Workers Compensation Award in recognition of the company's efforts to reduce workplace accidents, and for its support and implementation of return-to-work programs…

Industrial distributor IBT celebrated its 55th year in business with a two-day customer appreciation event at Kansas Speedway in September. The celebration included food, entertainment, 50 vendor displays, and 13 training seminars.

Adhesives and coating manufacturer ITW Devcon celebrated its 50th anniversary in August with a luncheon, facility tours and presentations by corporate officers. Employees and their family members, as well as distributors, suppliers and community leaders, attended the event.