Edison, N.J.-based Starborn Industries, a manufacturer and distributor of fastening products, introduced Deckfast Metal for the fast-growing market of steel joist deck framing systems.

The company said more architects and deck builders are using metal joist substructures when creating decks. Deckfast Metal is a fastener that can be used to attach every type of decking -- PVC, composite, capstock and hardwood -- to steel and aluminum substructures.

The National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) Remodeling Market Index (RMI) decreased one point to 47 from the upwardly revised 48 in the previous quarter.

In the first quarter, the RMI component measuring current market conditions dropped one point to 49, while the component measuring future indicators of remodeling business fell two points to 44.

New Jersey pro dealer Madison Township Lumber & Supply Co. passed the half-century mark this year. 

Serving the entire Garen State, the single-unit location in Matawan, N.J., was founded in 1962 by Anthony J. Martorana Sr., who remains as CEO of the family business. His wife, Louise Ann, is CFO and son Anthony Jr. serves as VP sales and operations.

The dealer distributes BlueLinx I Joist and Billet Beams, hardware, lumber, millwork, Silver Line Windows and Benjamin Moore Paint. 

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a Chinese trade group have signed a major exhibition agreement that will bring a large number of additional manufacturers and products to the annual NAHB International Builders' Show in Las Vegas in January 2013.

A formal signing ceremony was held April 19 in Foshan, China, between officials from the China Building Ceramics & Sanitaryware Association and NAHB's immediate past chairman Bob Nielsen, a home builder and developer in Reno, Nev., and Mark Pursell, NAHB senior VP for exhibitions, marketing and sales.

Builder confidence in the market for newly built, single-family homes declined for the first time in seven months this April, sliding three notches to 25 on the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index. The decline brings the index back to where it was in January, which was the highest level since 2007.

High-performing bathroom faucets American Standard are now available nationwide at The Home Depot in the Marquette, Espana and Alejandra collections.

The products’ water-saving fixtures include washerless ceramic disc valves and the exclusive no-tools Speed Connect system.

A group of plaintiffs seeking class action status have filed a lawsuit against decking manufacturer Fiberon over its Portico wood composite line. The lawsuit, filed March 14 in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania by Hagens Berman, a Seattle-based firm, claims that the decking has a defect that results in the growth of mold, mildew and other fungal growth. Furthermore, the complaint claims that Fiberon refused to repair the decks under its 20-year warranty.

Weyerhaeuser will soon produce oriented strand board (OSB) for export to Japan, the company has announced. The OSB panels are used in both residential and commercial construction in Japan, as wall and roof sheathing and as structural flooring panels. 

Judy Dinelle, an 84 Lumber contractor sales representative in Asheville, N.C., has been named the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Professional Women in Building (PWB) Council “National Member of the Year.”

AZEK Building Products has announced a distribution partnership with Gaiennie Lumber Co. based in Opelousas, La. 

Gaiennie Lumber will now offer the full line of AZEK's  exterior products to its dealer network in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi and 10 counties in Tennessee.

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) has announced a comprehensive reform plan for the housing finance system that would transition Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to a new mortgage securitization system for single-family and multi-family conventional mortgages.

The Asphalt Roofing Manufacturer's Association (ARMA) announced the top three asphalt roofing projects for 2011 -- two homes and one commercial project.

The gold medal the ARMA's Quality Asphalt Roofing Case-Study (QARC) Awards program went to a residence in Deerfield, Ill., in a project by Precise Roofing. Silver went to a residence in Seagoeville, Texas, a project by Legends Roofing. And the Bronze medal was awarded to the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta - Miami Branch, a project by Advanced Roofing.