Inter-Tel, headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, was founded in 1969, and has since grown to a firm with over 50 company-owned direct sales offices, plus over 350 authorized providers in North America, Europe, Japan, and South America. The company has been listed among the 100 Fastest Growing Technology Companies for the past several years, focusing on applications and value-added solutions, including converged communications systems and network services. Perhaps unique among their competition is the fact that Inter-Tel represents a number of Tier 1 regional and national telecommunications carriers, which gives them the ability to craft a complete business solution for their customers, including ATM, DSL, ISDN, Frame Relay, and T-1 services, plus audio, video and web conferencing, data storage, directory integration, hosted e-mail, Internet access, and remote management applications. Read more…

Asheridge Communications, the specialist provider of audio visual, testing and home networking solutions, has launched the new ZÕN multi-room audio range manufactured by US based Oxmoor Corporation. Now available in the UK from Asheridge, the ZÕN family provides a versatile, whole house solution for custom installers which is easy to install, offers proven reliability and performance with existing or new audio sources and can be easily expanded with additional zones, if and when required.

The ZÕN range for Asheridge comprises the ZAC-60 Audio Controller/Amplifier, the ZIM-4 Input Module and the ZR-98 Router. The products are compatible with the vast majority of audio sources and connect together on an all-digital system architecture, integrating fully and easily with standard Cat5 structured wiring to ensure quick and simple installation. The system is also iPod® ready, offering easy connection into any Input Module or Router whilst also enabling remote control of the iPod using a special module. Using either the on-board serial interface or an optional Ethernet/LAN server, the system can be rapidly set up and configured with the minimum of fuss. The ZÕN range is available ex-stock from Asheridge who will also be providing installers with full technical support and training on the system. Read more…

Come January, visitors to the World Market Center will be able to enjoy a panoramic view of the Las Vegas skyline from a VIP lounge and restaurant atop the 1.6 million-square-foot second building.
WMC Co-founders and Managing Partners Jack Kashani and Shawn Samson are giving an early look inside Building B and new details about the growing market today during a “view-from-the-top” press tour.

Among the details from the tour and in an earlier interview with Furniture|Today: WMC has secured $345 million in permanent financing for the second building; some of the features and space planned for later stages of the 12 million-square-foot, eight-building project will be moved up to earlier phases; a large parking structure is planned; and the value of the overall project has grown to $3 billion from the previous estimate of $2 billion. Read more…

Regional photography fans who may have grown unaccustomed to seeing vital, smart contemporary photography at the High will gape, marvel, perhaps even ask a nearby guard to pinch them when they see the elegant and thought-provoking show of work in New Photography.

The exhibition features a symmetrical arrangement of four: two nationally known artists, Taryn Simon and Sze Tsung Leong, and two Atlanta-based photographers, Angela West and Ruth Dusseault. Read more…

“EMERGING VERTICALITY” IS A CATCH PHRASE used to describe the recent cropping up of the first two floors at the construction site of 4545, Conrad Properties’ newest, exciting 10-story luxury condominium building on Lindell Boulevard, between Euclid and Taylor in the Central West End. Sales began in April of this year, and already seven of the 34 residences have been sold, including one of the three available penthouses. Move-in to this eagerly-anticipated condominium development is slated for spring of 2007, according to Steven Lange, sales broker. For now, interested homebuyers can visit the well-appointed, highly informative storefront sales office at No. 5 Maryland Plaza, just a block north of the building site. Read more…

Drive around any neighborhood in your hometown and chances are good you’ll see work trucks in your neighbors’ yards. With the kids home from school and life at a more casual pace, summer is one of the most popular times of year to take on a home improvement project.

According to Remodeling magazine, during the summer months, the most popular projects are those that expand and enhance living space. Looking for a project that will achieve both objectives? How about adding on a sunroom? Read more…

On the morning of the second day of this summer’s Las Vegas furniture market, developers were focusing on their next show.

The World Market Center opens a second showroom building in January with 1.6 million square feet of space. That will double the size of its young furnishings trade show, which is seen as a competitor to the long-running one hosted in the Triad.

Developers toured the nearly complete 16-story building Tuesday. It is fully leased.

The new building will feature a design center open year-round and a VIP lounge and restaurant and will be linked with a glass skywalk to the market’s main building. Read more…

Quality Leather Furniture has opened its second location, at 12875 W. Bell Road, Surprise. It is a factory outlet store for the Hacienda Furniture Co. brand based in Riverside, Calif. Store owner Don Olson talks about his expansion plans for the family-owned business.

Question: Tell me about Quality Leather Furniture’s products.

Answer: We do leather furniture. We’re really big into sectionals. At most stores you can’t pick your size and color and leather. That’s our niche. We basically sell Mercedes for the price of Nissans. We have 2,500 different leathers to choose from, a couple hundred styles to choose from. We stock 1,500 pieces at any given time. Most of our business is special order because they are particular in what they want. Read more…

Innovex Home Products expands beyond a line of sleek ready-to-assemble home office furniture to bring their distinct style of entertainment stands to RentDirect members.

Innovex Home Products is a leader in the ready-to-assemble office furniture industry, but you won’t find any oak desktops in their lineup. Instead, Innovex prides itself on a more European design sensibility, that’s perfectly in line with RTO.

“Our products are made to be pleasing on the eyes, and also made to last. Most of Innovex’s furnishings are made of glass and metal finishes and our very contemporary look really sets our items apart from the competition. Occasionally, a dealer will hesitate to bring in our merchandise because of the fear that glass won’t be strong enough to stand up to rental customers’ needs. But when they learn about our warranty and replacement program, most dealers are excited at the chance to offer this distinct look to their customers,” said Luis Quant, Sales Manager for Innovex. Read more…

The Nigerian business environment is one that poses not a small challenge for both big and small concerns. With problems of policy somersault, poor infrastructure, high lending rates, etc, it takes innovativeness, careful planning and tenacity of purpose to keep a business organisation going. With the need for self-sufficiency and to encourage local production in order to create jobs and save foreign exchange, the government a couple of years ago banned the importation of certain goods into Nigeria. For business organisations that lacked vision, the ban marked the end of the road but for some others with good thinking caps, it was a challenge to soar to greater heights, writes Max Amuchie Read more…