CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA -- Eric Abetz, federal forestry minister, said the Australian government will resist an attempt by the Forest Stewardship Council to strip Australian timber of its “A” rating among some European customers. According to ABC Rural, Abetz said reclassifying would hurt exports. He suggested that he might call for an inquiry to investigate the disparity between classification systems used to grade old-growth logging in Indonesia, PNG and Australia.

LINCOLNSHIRE, IL -- Entries for the inaugural Top Shelf Design Awards competition, sponsored by CLOSETS magazine, are due Dec. 15. The awards program is open to professional closet and garage designers who are employed full time by a company that manufactures, deals or distributes closet or garage systems. Entries will be judged in nine categories based on a combination of the size of the installation space and the types of materials used in it, including solid wood, melamine and wire products.

NEW YORK – The Business and Institutional Furniture Manufacturers Assn. said United States furniture orders rose 7%, to $950 million, in October compared to October 2005, according to Reuters

  CORVALLIS, OR -- Wood science researchers in the College of Forestry at Oregon State University have developed new wood-plastic composites that they say are stronger and less expensive than any similar products now available.

  DALLAS -- Louis and Company has thrown its support behind the 7th Annual Texas Woodworking Show & Cabinet Conference. The Brea, CA-based distributor of hardware, decorative laminates and other products, is the major sponsor of the three-day event scheduled for March 7-9, 2007, at Market Hall of the Dallas Market Center and the adjacent Renaissance Hotel.

  WASHINGTON, DC -- The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced that Gund Inc. of Edison, NJ, has issued a voluntary recall of 18,900 Woodle Activity Toys because the wooden rings on the stuffed toy can break and pose a choking hazard to young children. Gund has received four reports from consumers about the wooden rings on the toys breaking, including one report of a child mouthing small pieces. No injuries were reported.

WASHINGTON – A bill before the U.S. Senate this week could give the office furniture industry more access to the federal government, a billion-dollar market, according to Reuters. In 1934, the U.S.

LINCOLNSHIRE, IL -- The Interiors Media Network of Vance Publishing Corp. announces the launch of OasisForDesigners.com, the online destination for a new home furnishings brand called OASIS: Defining Kitchens & Baths.

WASHINGTON, DC -- The U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission, in cooperation with DeWalt Industrial Tool Co. of Towson, MD, announced the recall of about 97,000 framing saws and 37,000 circular saws because the lower blade guard can fail to close, leaving the blade exposed and presenting a laceration hazard to customers.