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Prograde Earns FSC Certification
Prograde, a distributorship in Cincinnati, received FSC chain-of-custody certification from SCS, a third-party certifier based in Emeryville, Calif. The certification ensures that Prograde is an approved partner in buying and distributing materials from sustainably managed forests.

ASB Conference Connects Generations
More than 600 sales associates and vendors attended American Solutions for Business’ winter sales conference Feb. 27 to March 2 at the Hilton Hotel in Minneapolis. The conference was based on the theme of “Connecting Generations.” It included 20 training sessions and vendor workshops, and a day-long vendor showcase. The event also included panel discussions on how buyers choose suppliers and products, how end users utilize promotional products, how generational differences affect purchasing, and more.

Data Source Buys Restex Inc.
Data Source Inc., Kansas City, Mo., bought Dallas-based automotive forms management company Restex Inc. for an undisclosed amount, according to a story in the Kansas City Business Journal. Restex had 11 employees, all of whom transferred to Data Source. Restex now uses the Data Source business name. Data Source has 123 employees, including 116 in the Kansas City area. Restex created, sourced and managed printed and promotional products for more than 1,000 car dealerships and service providers. Data Source plans to expand that business.

MeadWestvaco Revamps Corporate Identity
MeadWestvaco Corp., Glen Allen, Va., unveiled its new corporate identity: “MWV: How brands take shape.” The new brand is designed to articulate in a unified voice MeadWestvaco’s global packaging capabilities, supply chain efficiencies, sustainability promises and efforts to increase customers’ marketplace competitiveness, the company said.

USPS to Improve Address Quality
In 2004, more than 9.7 billion pieces of mail were sent to undeliverable addresses of which more than 600 million pieces were sent to “vacant” addresses—a house, apartment, office, or building not occupied for at least 90 days. To reduce that unwanted mail, the U.S. Postal Service has developed a new data table that’s used with address matching software to help mailers determine vacant addresses. The new “no-stat” and “vacant” tables are available through Coding Accuracy Support System address matching software (CASS Certified) as part of the Delivery Point Validation (DPV) product. The tables are simple to use and can help mailers save on production and postage costs by reducing undeliverable-as-addressed (UAA) mail. If an address is flagged as vacant, the recommended course of action is to remove that address from the mailing until it becomes occupied again.

Staples Plans Hostile Bid for Corporate Express
Staples Inc. left the price of its offer for Corporate Express NV unchanged and said it plans to launch a hostile bid, according to a Reuters story. Netherlands-based Corporate Express, in turn, again rejected the unsolicited $3.7 billion offer, saying the price “significantly undervalued” the company. The proposal is not in the best interests of its shareholders and other stakeholders, Corporate Express said. Staples said it was disappointed that Corporate Express would not negotiate, adding it planned to submit a request for approval of its planned offer to the appropriate Netherlands authority before May 13.

SCMA Chooses Standard Register
The South Carolina Medical Association (SCMA), Columbia, S.C., selected Standard Register to provide its members with tamper-resistant prescription pads that will meet both federal and state security prescription requirements. SCMA members will receive a discount on its prescription pads and paper from the Dayton, Ohio-based firm. Also, Standard Register added a warehouse and distribution facility at its Modesto, Calif., location. The facility specializes in small order and less-than-carton quantities of such things as labels and technical literature. The Modesto facility will complement the company’s Columbus, Ohio, manufacturing distribution center as well as its manufacturing and service center in Monterrey, Mexico, which provides quick-turn label production, limited variable imaging, warehousing and kitting capabilities.

IP to Purchase Weyerhaeuser Business
International Paper, Memphis, Tenn., signed an agreement with Weyerhaeuser, Federal Way, Wash., to purchase its containerboard, packaging and recycling (CBPR) business for $6 billion in cash, subject to post-closing adjustments. International Paper expects to close the deal in the third quarter of 2008.

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