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Builder Confidence Continues
Improving in December WASHINGTON, D.C.
Builder confidence in the market for newly-built, single-family homes rose for an eighth consecutive month in December to a level of 47 on the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI), released today. This marked a two-point gain from a slightly revised November reading, and the highest level the index has attained since April of 2006.
"Builders across the country are reporting some of the best sales conditions they've seen in more than five years, with more serious buyers coming forward and a shrinking number of vacant and foreclosed properties on the market," said NAHB chairman Barry Rutenberg, a home builder from Gainesville, Florida. "However, one thing that is still holding back potential home sales is the difficulty that many families are encountering in getting qualified for a mortgage due to today's overly stringent lending standards."
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The Atlantic: General Electric Moving Manufacturing Back to U.S.
WASHINGTON, D.C.
The Atlantic magazine has a terrific article on General Electric and the fact that it's moving much of its manufacturing back to the U.S. from China.
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 Phifer's New
Canvas Collection
BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA
Phifer's new Designed Fabrics Canvas Collection is a no fuss, laid-back outdoor furniture fabric compilation that's all about casual living. Inspired by the beauty of grain sacks, burlap and linen, this cushion fabric collection gives a nod to vintage style. Nothing fancy here - no frills, just effortless style.
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Glen Raven Sponsors
Marine Design Challenge
GLEN RAVEN, NORTH CAROLINA
While boating may appear to be a male dominated sport, research studies show that it's women who often drive buying decisions for watercraft purchases and upgrades. With this bit of consumer research in hand, Glen Raven recently sponsored a Marine Design Challenge, asking fashion design students at North Carolina State University to create boating designs with the female consumer in mind.
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The winners of the Glen Raven Marine Design Challenge were, left to right, N.C. State students Morgan Green and Lauren Michelakis, and far right Caroline Cox. Paige Mullis, Glen Raven concept development director, third from left, and Nancy Webster, N.C. State University practicum professor, directed the program.
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"We selected fashion design students for two reasons - they are in close contact with the latest trends in fashion and they are, for the most part, new to boating so they started with a blank slate," said Paige Mullis, director of the Concept Gallery at Glen Raven.
"The students were given full access to all of the products available through Glen Raven and challenged to develop new ways of using these products to make the boating experience more appealing to women."
Students were briefed by Bill McDaniel, marine market manager for Glen Raven's Sunbrella fabrics, and Vince Hankins, industrial business manager for Sunbrella, who provided background on the boating industry. Students also visited Glen Raven's Concept Gallery at corporate headquarters in Burlington, North Carolina, to sample a vast array of products available through Glen Raven, and they met with members of the Sunbrella design team, which is headed by Gina Wicker, design and creative director.
"We were attracted to this project because it gave our fashion design students an entirely new type of experience working in an entirely different environment," said Nancy Webster, practicum professor at North Carolina State. "These types of experiences are essential to our students in providing opportunities to work in real world business environments."
The fashion design students stepped up to the challenge by detailing a broad array of innovative ideas for boating, including movie screens above and below deck, trampolines for diving off a boat into the water, modular deck seating, changeable wall panels, collapsible storage boxes and many more. Each of the teams focused on features that would appeal to female consumers and their families in enhancing their enjoyment of the boating lifestyle.
"I saw many ideas that I will incorporate into my design work in boating," said Faith Roberts, owner of Banner Canvas and one of four industry judges who selected the final winners. "My customers will benefit from the designs coming out of the Marine Challenge, which are applicable for my boating market."
Joining Roberts on the judges' panel were John Greviskis, executive producer of Ship Shape TV; Mike Erickson, CEO/Owner at Canvas Designers; and Steve Callahan, vice president of materials for Chris-Craft Corporation.
The winning team included North Carolina State students Morgan Green, Lauren Michelakis and Caroline Cox.
Glen Raven is producing a video documentary of the Marine Design Challenge and will make the work of the students broadly available to the industry through upcoming trade shows. Similar partnerships are anticipated with other colleges and universities.
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