With intentions of broadening its position in the voice, data and video industry, Textron Inc.’s Greenlee (www.greenlee.com) business unit has acquired telecom toolmaker Paladin Tools. Greenlee develops communications installation tools, tone generators, telephone test sets, network certification instruments, and fiber-optic test equipment.
In addition to providing Greenlee with a complementary brand portfolio and expanded product line, the Paladin acquisition “gives Greenlee access to additional distribution channels in the voice, data, and video industry that will broaden our customer base for communications wiring tools,” says Greenlee president Scott Hall.
“Paladin is a strong force in the industry and will be a welcome addition to Greenlee’s hole making and hand tools value stream,” adds Martha Kness,division vice president and general manager. “As growth within this industry is expected to continue over the next few years, driven by favorable trends in the cable, network, and communications equipment field, we look forward to a unified strategy for meeting our customers’ needs.”
Headquartered in Oilville, VA, Paladin has experienced steady growth since its founding in 1977. Its brand names include Paladin Tools, DataShark, and PowerPlay; the product line includes a variety of cutters, strippers, punchdown tools, crimpers, multi-tools, testers, kits, and other communications-related hand tools.
Short runs…
TAMPA, FL—BICSI’s (www.bicsi.org) seventh president, Irving “Jim” Alexander, passed away recently at the age of 82. He is remembered by BICSI members and telecommunications professionals as the driving force behind the establishment of the Registered Communications Distribution Designer (RCDD) program. “Very few people believed that BICSI could sustain the 1984 break-up that ended the Bell System of affiliated telephone companies,” says Dunn Harvey, RCDD, BICSI past president (1988). “Yet through Jim’s leadership, the organization held strong and maintained positive relations with those newly separated companies.”
NORCROSS, GA—Optical-fiber solutions provider OFS (www.ofsoptics.com) has introduced EZ-Bend optical cable technology to support multiple dwelling unit (MDU) and in-home wiring installations. The company says the technology addresses the need to speed and simplify installations by allowing cables to be bent and routed in ways previously not feasible with traditional optical drop cables. EZ-Bend is designed to enable in-residence fiber installation with the same practices used for copper and coaxial cables. Cables using EZ-Bend technology can be stapled in place with copper cable installation tools, and routed around sharp corners. OFS says the bend loss performance represents up to a 100x improvement over conventional singlemode fiber cables, and will enable negligible video signal loss (0.1 dB) for one turn at 5-mm radius.
CLEVELAND, OH—Lubrizol Advanced Materials Inc. (www.lubrizol.com) says it has added Metacaulk Cast-in-Place firestop devices and pipe collars to its FGG/BM/CZ System Compatible Program, which is designed to test and monitor ancillary products to ensure chemical compatibility with three different CPVC piping systems. Metacaulk Cast-In-Place firestop devices are designed for use in poured concrete floors to form a through-penetration firestop system, and provide a firestopped opening that allows for a variety of materials—plastic, metal, and insulated pipes, as well as cable and wire bundles—to pass through. Products in the FGG/BM/CZ program display the System Compatible mark on their label, assuring installers that the products are chemically compatible with CPVC products.
TOKYO—Telecommunications professional association BICSI (www.bicsi.org) has established its second affiliate agreement with the Japan district, recognizing that BICSI Japan has met qualifying criteria to be a self-supporting not-for-profit organization. Operating from Tokyo, BICSI Japan is led by manager Kazuo Kato, who serves more than 280 members. Under the affiliation agreement, BICSI Japan can make decisions that meet the needs of the local membership. “The need to localize BICSI and put its ownership and success into the members’ hands in increasingly important in the global marketplace,” says BICSI president John Bakowski, RCDD.