HANOVER, MA -- The Eldred Wheeler furniture company is in the news, as its former owner has returned to take the reins in an attempt to resurrect and grow the company that specializes in the manufacture of 18th century-style furniture.

WASHINGTON -- Bob Jones, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a home builder from Bloomfield Hills, MI, called on the Senate to move immediately to pass legislation approved by the House that would allow construction loans to be eligible for the new small business lending fund signed into law earlier this week.

HOLLYWOOD, FL -- Manufacturers of store fixtures, point-of-purchase displays and other retail merchandising products participating in the Association of Retail Environments Industry Revenue Trends Survey reported median growth of 9.5% in 2010.

CHARLOTTE, NC -- Bill Fotsch, Head Coach for The Great Game of Business Inc. of Cincinnati, OH, will deliver the opening keynote speech at the 7th Annual Closets & Home Organization Conference & Expo, Feb. 23-25, 2011 at the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, NC.

HELSINKI -- Four thousand members of the Wood and Allied Workers' Union reportedly began a strike Friday, October 1, after rejecting a mediation proposal mainly over pay and seniority bonuses.

WASHINGTON -- Forty-one U.S. senators sent a letter to Lisa Jackson, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, protesting the EPA's proposed Boiler MACT rule.

ALMHULT, SWEDEN -- IKEA, the world's largest residential furniture retailer, publicly disclosed its financial performace for the first time.

HIGH POINT, NC -- U.S. furniture shipments in July from manufacturers and distributors were up 15% over July 2009, according to Smith Leonard, an accounting/consulting firm specializing in the residential furniture industry.

ROSEBURG, OR -- Roseburg Forest Products reportedly halted operations indefinitely at its particleboard plant in Vienna, GA.

Tom Julia, president of the Composite Panel Assn., discusses the challenges and opportunities facing the industry in 2010 and beyond.