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The Industrial Supply Assn. will be managed by Fernley & Fernley, of Philadelphia, beginning July 1, when its contract with Cleveland-based Thomas Associates ends.

ISA's executive director John Buckley and director of membership Mary Ritchie will work with Fernley & Fernley to manage ISA, said association president Tim Tevens.

"We are excited about welcoming Fernley & Fernley to the ISA team," Tevens said in a prepared statement.

Fernley & Fernley was founded in 1886, and provides management services to 25 trade associations, including wholesale distribution groups such as the Assn. for High Technology Distribution, the Gases and Welding Distributors Assn., and the Security Hardware Distributors Assn. The company also managed the National Industrial Distributors Assn., a predecessor group to ISA, for more than 80 years.

"We are excited about the special capabilities that Fernley brings to ISA in the areas of convention marketing and execution, membership development, database management and technology," said ISA vice president Steve Short. "These are skill sets we need to better develop, and Fernley will help us make significant progress in those areas."

Well-Known Distributor Scott Parrish announced in early January that he'd be leaving the industry at the end of the month. Parrish accepted a position as vice president of advancement at Battleground Academy in Franklin, Tenn., a prep school founded in 1889. Parrish and his oldest son graduated from Battleground Academy, and his younger son is a senior at the school.

Parrish was president of Parrish-Keith-Simmons, a Nashville-based, family-owned distributorship that was purchased by Turner Supply Co. six years ago. He joined Turner Supply as vice president—Nashville region following the acquisition. He also was president of the Industrial Distribution Assn. from 2001–2002 (I.D.A. became the Industrial Supply Assn. in 2004), and was an active I.D.A. volunteer for 15 years. Parrish was named distributor of the year by Industrial Distribution magazine in 1999, an award that honored outstanding individuals in industrial distribution.

Wilmington, Mass.—based Stafford Manufacturing Corp. celebrated its 30th anniversary in December... Conveyor manufacturer QC Industries celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. The company is based in Cincinnati... Electrical distributor Mayer Electric Supply Co. ranked No. 5 on DiversityBusiness.com's list of the 500 top women-owned businesses in the United States...Master distributor UASI opened a distribution center in Wilmington, Ohio, and announced record sales growth in 2005. The company sells personal protection equipment to customers in the United States and Canada... Connecticut-based distribution consulting group MCA Associates opened a southern region office in Boca Raton, Fla...Manufacturer Cooper Lighting played a part in the January 8th edition of ABC's Extreme Makeover: Home Edition by donating lighting fixtures that were used in the 3,800-square-foot home they built just south of Rose Hill, Kan....

The Home Depot announced plans to purchase Hughes Supply in a deal worth nearly $3.5 billion. Hughes Supply will become part of the company's Home Depot Supply division (see story, p. 15)... Hagemeyer North America sold six of its electrical distribution sites to The Hite Co., an electrical distributorship headquartered in Altoona, Pa. The locations are in Pittsburgh, Cranberry Township, Castle Shannon, Canonsburg, and Washington, Pa., and Morgantown, W. Va...The Stanley Works completed its acquisition of Facom Tools for approximately $485.5 million... Kennametal, Inc. acquired VMBDiva-Tec and VMB Entgrattechnik, suppliers of Electro Chemical Machining technologies and solutions. The acquisition will combine with Kennametal's ExtrudeHone ECM group...Distributor Airgas, Inc. acquired Oxygen Service Co., Inc., headquartered in Macon. Ga., with four other locations in Georgia. In a separate transaction, the company acquired Alabama Cylinder Gas, which has one location, in Enterprise, Ala... MRO distributor Fairmont Supply purchased Calumet Distribution Group, a mill supplies distributor based in Burns Harbor, Ind....Cutting tool maker Walter USA, Inc. announced a merger with Titex and Prototyp. The companies will combine their operations in North America, merging back-office functions and keeping sales forces and distributor networks separate. Walter, Titex and Prototyp will continue to exist as separate brands within the organization, the company said, but the new organization will be known as Walter USA.