ABC Supply completes acquisition from US LBM | UNFI installs solar array on roof of N.J. DC | Applied Industrial acquires N.Y. automation tech producer
L&W Supply, an operating unit of ABC Supply, has finalized its acquisition of Feldman Lumber, Richardson Gypsum, Rosen Materials, Wallboard Supply Company and Coastal Roofing Supply from US LBM. Coastal Roofing Supply will operate under ABC Supply, and the rest of the newly acquired businesses will operate under L&W Supply.
United Natural Foods worked with energy company PowerFlex to install a 7,171-panel, 3.2-megawatt solar array at its Howell, N.J., distribution center. The system, which is the grocery distributor's largest such installation, is expected to generate 3.8 million kilowatt hours of electricity and prevent about 2,700 metric tons of emissions each year.
Ohio-based Applied Industrial Technologies has acquired New York-based automation products maker Advanced Motion Systems, further expanding the distributor's automation-focused portfolio of companies. "AMS aligns well with our solutions-centric strategy, acting as a key technical consultant to their customers' emerging automation needs with strong solutions capabilities in machine vision, motion control, and related services," said Applied President and CEO Neil Schrimsher, adding that the acquisition helps strengthen "relationships with leading suppliers tied to our growth strategy."
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A 75% failure rate in enterprise resource planning systems for inventory management, often due to continued silos, breeds distrust and revenue loss, writes University of North Texas doctoral candidate Kiran Patil. The blockchain alternative can be accessed by multiple stakeholders and allows faster updates, superior transparency and inherent synchronization, and Patil illustrates how it works to better control supply and demand.
Social Commerce 101: Evolve with consumers Join industry experts from Square and SmartBrief as they discuss how to take advantage of consumers' shifting shopping habits and tap into social media -- especially as Generation Alpha, which views social media as a way of life, increases its influence in retail. Watch now.
Simon Collister, director of the Human Understanding Lab, describes how business-to-business marketers can use neuroscience to create bold creative and help their brand stand out. Collister explains how facial coding can help test the emotional impact of content and how reaction time testing offers insights into how powerful messaging resonates with audiences.
Hiring multilingual employees can boost employee retention, diversity and a company's ability to be innovative and solve problems, writes Dan Berges, the managing director of Berges Institute LLC. "Research shows that people fluent in multiple languages tend to make more rational and impartial decisions, highlighting their objective decision-making approach, which can be a tremendous asset in a professional setting," Berges writes.
Instead of checking out of a job you don't love anymore, use your time to step up your reputation by identifying what you want to be known for -- whether it's a good problem-solver or communicator -- and begin to intentionally show up in new ways that can either rekindle your passion, or build toward your next career move, writes career coach and author Octavia Goredema. "If you want to shift your approach to how you engage at work, this is an optimal time to determine your career commitments, amplify what you do best, and refocus your reputation," Goredema writes.
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