• The 16th Annual Construction Safety Conference and Expo will be held April 4 - 6 at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Ill. It is the largest construction-specific safety conference held in the United States with 70 sessions offered over three days. OSHA's Russell Swanson will be the keynote speaker. The conference costs $345 for two days or $445 for three. For more information visit www.buildsafe.org.
• The Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors Association of the Greater Los Angeles Area is celebrating its 100th anniversary. On Jan. 22, 1906, it was founded as the Merchant Plumbers Association in Los Angeles. On Feb. 3, the Los Angeles City Council congratulated the organization for 100 years of service to residents of the city.
• Service Roundtable has announced the immediate availability of business-focused elearning for its contractor members. The Service Roundtable training library consists of more than 250 online courses, in addition to courses delivered via CDs, VHS tapes and books. The courses cover a variety of topics including business management, finance, sales, human resources, legal, personal development, basic PC skills, QuickBooks and Microsoft Office.
• The Oilheat Visions Conference will be held Aug. 22 and 23 at the Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence. Key items on the agenda are coping with high-cost product, risk management using financial and weather-related tools, consumer attitudes, storage tanks and the insurance factor, credit and collections, and computing the value of an oil-heat business in today's operating climate. Attendee registration will be available online at www.nefi.com
• The Mechanical Contracting Education and Research Foundation will unveil its new Website March 19 at the annual convention of the Mechanical Contractors Association of America in Maui. The Website will be a resource for contractors, service personnel, manufacturers, suppliers, educators and students who want or need to learn more about our industry. The Website, www.mcerf.org is made possible by QuickPen's in-kind contributions of staff expertise and time. For more information, contact Dennis Langley at [email protected].
• Taco announced price increases effective Feb. 1 for its commercial products line. Increases range from 2.5% to 5% and are in response to volatility in global prices for commodities such as copper, steel and energy. Taco manufactures pumps, valves, tanks, accessories and electronic controls for use in hydronic systems worldwide.