Breaking News
   Company Size
   Death Tax Repeal
   Flexibility Act Pulled

BREAKING NEWS

Survey of Company Size Yields Insights
In tough times, 5% of companies thrive, 70% survive, and 25% fail. What kinds of companies thrive in tough times? In this time of merger and acquisition, 34 Distributors openly discussed the pros and cons of their company's size.                                                   

House Approves Death Tax Repeal
On June 18, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 8, the Death Tax Repeal Permanency Act of 2003, by a margin of 264 to 163. The proposed law would permanently eliminate the estate tax by removing the sunset language implemented in President Bush's Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001.                                         

Sponsors Pull Family Flexibility Act
On June 5, sponsors of the Family Time Flexibility Act (H.R. 1119) pulled the measure from the floor of the House of Representatives. The Act would have allowed hourly workers, through a voluntary agreement with their employers, to choose paid time off as compensation for working overtime hours, permitting them to bank up to 160 hours of comp time in a single year.                                                                                                         

MAKING THE SALE

Praxair-Rochester Proves Point in Good Time
Gun trial. It sounds like something out of a courtroom drama, but it was a gun trial that proved to be crucial when Praxair Distribution, Inc.'s Rochester, MN branch and Tregaskiss Ltd. won the MIG welding business of Crenlo Incorporated, a local metal fabrication company that produces modular electronic enclosures.                                                       

WELCOME NEW MEMBERS

GAWDA welcomes new Associate Members Bucar Group of Trafford, PA and Singer Safety Company of Chicago, IL.

INDUSTRY BEAT
(what people are talking about)

Valley Announces Organization Changes (Washington, PA) • William A. Indelicato was named CEO of Valley National Gases, replacing Michael L. Tyler, who resigned. James P. Hart was named president and Gerald W. Zehala vice president and COO.

Mahany Draws Crowds (Rochester, NY) • Mahany Welding Supply held its Third Annual Open House and Saturday Car Show on June 13 and 14. Over 500 people attended the event. Says Mahany President Michael Krupnicki, "Overall, it was a great show with lots of 'arcs and sparks,' good food and camaraderie."                                                     

Airgas Implements Computerized Filling System (Radnor, PA) • Airgas unveiled its AcuGrav computerized high-tolerance specialty gas filling system to reduce variability in manual filling, providing greater accuracy and consistency in multi-component blends.
                                                                                                                 

Matheson Tri-Gas Expands (Parsippany, NJ) • Matheson Tri-Gas completed the expansion and modernization of its Stafford, TX air separation facility, including increased capacity of 150 TPD of liquid products and modernization of the computer control system.      

Lefeld Named Sales Rep (Coldwater, OH) • Mitch Lefeld joined Lefeld Welding & Steel Supplies. He will be working as an inside sales representative.

Air Liquide Contracts With NASA (Houston, TX) • Air Liquide America will provide NASA with gaseous nitrogen and operations and related services to high-pressure nitrogen and helium pipeline systems supplying government and commercial aerospace activities.
                                                                                                                 

Webb Joins Messer (Malvern, PA) • Jim Webb was named vice president/general manager of Messer Gas Technology & Services Group. Webb previously served as president of Gaspro in Honolulu, HI.

Praxair Forms Subsidiary (Danbury, CT) • Praxair formed a wholly owned subsidiary called Praxair Solutions, Inc. This consolidation follows the acquisition of Tracer Research Corp. and its subsidiary Corrocon by Praxair's UCISCO business in 4Q 2002.                 

Matthews Named Sales Coordinator (Loganville, GA) • Joe Matthews joined Tomco Equipment Company's industrial sales team as technical sales coordinator. Matthews will assist with equipment sales and technical support to the sales team.

Air Products Issues Safety Alert (Allentown, PA) • In two recent incidents, cylinders were shipped back to Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. facilities in close to an overfilled condition. The overfilling could have caused the cylinders to rupture, causing serious injury and damage. To help prevent similar problems, Air Products notes the conditions that may cause uneven temperatures resulting in product migration:                            

GAWDA NEWS

Cylinder Ownership • What should you do if someone is filling your cylinders without permission, or if a customer presents a cylinder for filling but you do not think it belongs to him? GAWDA General Counsel and Government Affairs Consultant Rick Schweitzer provides insight on these two issues in his article "Cylinder Ownership Questions Present Legal Issues for Distributors." To get your copy:

GAWDA's 2003 Profit Report Now Available • GAWDA's 2003 report shows striking differences between the results of the typical distributor and the high-profit distributor. For more information and to obtain a copy of the report:

    WORKSHOPS AND SEMINARS

Webinar
Business Intelligence Software for the Small, Medium and
Large GAWDA Member!
June 26 at 11:00 EDT
Learn how Business Intelligence (BI) takes the volume of data your organization collects and stores, and turns it into meaningful information to monitor, analyze and report on business performance, which translates into better and timelier business decisions.
For more information: