World Brush Expo Dates and Location Set

The American Brush Manufacturers Association (ABMA) and the European Brushware Federation (FEIBP) have announced the creation of a new show for the industry, World Brush Expo, which will take place May 22-24, 2024, in BolognaFiere, Italy.

Donna Frendt, ABMA executive director said, “We have been working on this show since it became apparent at the ABMA meeting last March that Interbrush in Freiburg was untenable. Shortly after the completion of the ABMA convention, ABMA reached out to FEIBP to see if there was interest in putting on an industry show, by and for the industry.”

Since that time, a joint task force from the two associations has been working together to determine a pathway to create and hold an industry show. Fons Ceelaert, FEIBP managing director said, “The process to come together has been very good for both associations and we look forward to partnering with ABMA to make World Brush Expo the show for the industry.”

The task force invited Daniel Strowitzki of FWTM (the owners of Interbrush) to make a presentation to continue the show in Freiburg and to submit a proposal for Salzburg, Austria. The task force and ABMA/FEIBP thanked Daniel Strowitzki, FWTM, and the Messe in Freiburg for 45 years of partnership, and for past InterBrossa/Interbrush shows. In addition to the proposals from Freiburg and Salzburg, the task force entertained proposals from Bologna, Modena, and Parma Italy. Eventually Bologna was selected as the host venue for 2024.

Greg Miller, ABMA president said, “I am very excited to see a new industry show rise from the ashes. The entire industry hasn’t been able to get together since 2016, and I think I speak for everyone when I say that this will be a great event for the industry, and I can’t wait for 2024.”

On behalf of FEIBP, Andrew McIlroy added, “The Bologna venue is world class, and Bologna is a fascinating city and will appeal to attendees from all over the world. In addition, their infrastructure is excellent for our show; attendees and exhibitors alike will enjoy the variety of hotel accommodations and the easy logistics of the Bologna site.”

The BolognaFiere Exhibition Centre (https://www. bolognafiere.it/en/venues/bologna/ ) covers 375,000 square meters of indoor and external areas. Its exhibition services area covers 36,000 square meters. The venue has 20 halls which are fully wired, airconditioned and equipped with state-of-the-art IT systems. Multiple events can be held simultaneously thanks to five separate entrances. Flexibility and mobility are ensured by a network of walkways and by a system of carparks for a total of 14,500 covered parking spaces. Vehicle owners can reserve space in advance. BolognaFiere is the first exhibition center with its own motorway toll booth, that provides direct entrance to the venue. A “BolognaFiere” railway station handles special trains for exhibitions with a large number of visitors. A heliport is located on the roof of halls 16-18.

Bologna, Italy, is one of Italy’s great and historic cities. It has a major airport (BLQ) and supports over 13,000 hotel rooms in the city. The exhibition center is near the city center making for convenient logistics.

Bologna is home to the oldest university in Europe, and has many nearby attractions for attendees and visitors alike.

ABMA said exhibitor registration information will coming soon, interested parties are encouraged to visit the website for more information as it develops: https://worldbrushexpo.com/.

About ABMA:

The American Brush Manufacturers Association (ABMA) was founded in 1917 to assist North American Brush Manufacturers and their suppliers by enhancing industry knowledge, providing a variety of networking opportunities, and promoting sustainability for its members.

About FEIBP:

The European Brushware Federation (FEIBP) is the representative EU trade federation in the field of the brushware industry, a traditional, but innovative sub-sector, providing an impressive variety of brush products, both for professional and consumer markets.

Stainless Steel Products Adds New Brush Wire Processing Facility

At the start of 2023, Stainless Steel Products moved all of its brush wire crimping, straightening, and bunching operations to a new and larger facility in Mohnton, PA.

The move to Mohnton was instigated by customer demands to expand production capacity, especially for SSP’s crimping and bunching lines, and to reduce lead times.

According to SSP President Ralph Rosenbaum, historically, the company has prided itself on short lead times using kan ban systems, blanket orders, and other similar methods. However, as demand for the company’s productive capabilities has expanded greatly in the past couple of years, lead times have gotten rather lengthy. As a result, in 2022, the company undertook a sizeable expansion of inventory including more quantities of brush wires in stainless steel oil tempered steel, and copper based brush wires such as brass, phosphor bronze, and nickel silver.

During the first quarter and into the second quarter of 2023, the company is undertaking an expansion of machinery, and productive capacity, now that there is more space available in Mohnton, PA, to do so. The expansion of machinery also includes next generation upgrades to the company’s existing systems with new spoolers, payoffs, and crimping machines.

Stainless Steel Products began operations in June 1995, and became a member of the ABMA in 1997. The company serves industrial manufacturers in North America with value added services including application engineering assistance, responsive customer service, and quality products.

For more information, contact sales@stainlesswires.com or call 631-243-1500.

Joseph A. Graham of Atlas Graham Industries

AGF Ltd. has announced the death of Joseph Allan Graham, former chairman of Atlas Graham Industries. He died December 30, 2022.

According to the announcement, “Joe joined his father in his broom and brush manufacturing business at Atlas Brush Ltd. in 1960, which was later renamed Atlas Graham Industries.

“Joe’s impact at Atlas Graham began in sales, where his goal was always to stay true to his father’s vision of building superior quality products and servicing the customer better than the competition, with unsurpassed honesty and integrity. It was Joe who was made aware of the first looped-end mops being developed by Seco Industries in the early 1970s, and a deal was completed to make Atlas Graham the only licensed manufacturer of the product in Canada.

“Joe will be remembered for instilling a customer-centric business philosophy, which is still our primary focus today, and why AGF has been successful for 82 years. While making his customers a top priority, he also made all his employees feel as if they were family, which was reflected in their tenure.

“It was Joe’s integrity and passion for the industry that led him to establish long lasting relationships with customers and vendors that still exist to this day. Many of these relationships evolved from business to personal and is something that he cherished.”

Donations be made to the Linda Joanne Graham Trust at the Winnipeg Foundation, 1350 – 1 Lombard Place, Winnipeg, MB, Canada. R3B 0X3.

Hillbrush Celebrates 100 Years

Throughout the year, Hillbrush directors Charles Coward and Andy Coward, Chairman Philip Coward, managers, and employees have been commemorating the company's 100th anniversary. The Rt. Hon. Dr. Andrew Murrison, MP for southwest Wiltshire, England, officially opened the new “Centenary” warehouse on Friday, November 18. The new warehouse has extra storage capacity for products and ensures a wide range of stock availability for Hillbrush customers.

Hillbrush also hosted a corporate celebration day for its distribution network, which included factory tours, discussions with various departments, and a networking event at its visitor center “Visit Hillbrush.”

Hillbrush said it is proud of its 100-year heritage, and is looking forward to the next 100. Contact sales@hillbrush.com.

Filiature Lemieux Becomes ABMA Member

ABMA has announced a new member, Filature Lemieux, Inc., 125 Rte. 108 East, St-Ephrem, Quebec, CA.

Serge Lemieux is president.

The company produces microfiber yarns, mop yarns: synthetic, rayon, cotton blend for wet and dust mops.

Those attending the upcoming ABMA convention in California will have an opportunity to meet Lemieux in person.

Shurhold Names Forrest Ferrari COO

Shurhold, a manufacturer of cleaning and maintenance products for marine, RV, automotive and aviation, has hired Forrest Ferrari as its chief operating officer (COO). Barry Berhoff, CEO, made the announcement.

According to the company, “In his new role, Ferrari designs and implements data-driven systems that further advance Shurhold operations. By armoring the company's supply chain, he ensures its products retain their high quality and availability. Ferrari fosters improved communication and coordination between office and factory staff, sales reps and vendors.”

"I'm excited to be part of this great company and look forward to working closely with Barry in delivering a premium user experience to our customers," said Ferrari.

“Ferrari comes to the marine industry with a history of leadership, business development and strategy, and quality assurance. With a strong IT background, he is accomplished in systems process improvement. Most recently, he was the COO at Construction Journal, a provider of construction project information. Ferrari holds a B.S. in biochemistry and biophysics from the University of Pittsburgh and a Ph.D. in genetics and virology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

“We're exceptionally pleased to welcome Forrest to the Shurhold senior executive team," said Berhoff. “He's a transformational leader and proven change agent with success in a wide range of industries. I am confident as we continue to expand our product offerings and explore new markets he will be a tremendous asset to Shurhold.”

For more information, visit www.shurhold.com.