Associations

New York City -- Commercial and high-rise residential buildings, along with federal buildings, must now meet requirements in the ASHRAE/IES 2007 energy standard after rulings issued by the Department of Energy.

Prior to the new rules, federal and commercial buildings had to meet requirements in the 2004 standard.

By Tommy Thompson, [email protected]

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) estimates 16,360 structure fires occurred annually in stores and other mercantile properties from 2004 to 2008 resulting in $648 million in direct property damage.

Fires affect thousands of retailers each year resulting in injury, lost customer trust and building damage. Establishing a fire prevention and preparedness program is critical to the safety of retail employees and customers.”

Washington, D.C. -- Retailers and their customers will save billions of dollars when new Federal Reserve regulations cutting debit-card swipe fees roughly in half take effect this weekend, the National Retail Federation said.

Wan Ling Martello may not have been a household name outside of Walmart, but that doesn’t diminish the significance of her departure from a company eager to achieve a higher degree of diversity among the ranks of its senior executives.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Grocery Manufacturers Association and the Food Marketing Institute have launched a new consumer education campaign around the front-of-pack nutrition labeling system launched in January by the food and beverage industry.

The Facts Up Front consumer education campaign will launch in early 2012, as consumers will see the new icons on a majority of products in the marketplace, the associations announced. The campaign will also be supported by a new website, www.factsupfront.org.

CINCINNATI — Kroger announced that it has become a member of the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Million Dollar Club.

According to Kroger, membership into the USHCC Million Dollar Club, is awarded to corporations who have spent between $25 million to over $500 million with Hispanic suppliers, in the previous year.

This is Kroger's second consecutive year of qualifying for membership. The company was inducted in the $250 to $500 million annual expenditure category.

Arlington, Va. -- The Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) thanked California Governor Jerry Brown for signing legislation that would help level the playing field between online-only retailer Amazon.com and brick-and-mortar stores across California.

WASHINGTON — The National Retail Federation said it welcomed legislation that would require the State Department to speed up the visa application process for citizens from three key countries, saying the move would make it easier for tourists and business travelers to spend money in U.S. stores.

Washington, D.C. -- The National Retail Federation said Thursday it welcomed legislation that would require the State Department to speed up the visa application process for citizens from three key countries, saying the move would make it easier for tourists and business travelers to spend money in U.S. stores.

Former Walmart chief information officer and current HP executive Linda Dillman was among a group of 10 executives honored earlier this week as the inaugural class diversity difference-makers was inducted into the Network of Executive Women CPG Retail Diversity Hall of Fame. The inductees received the William J. Grize Award named after the late president and CEO of Ahold USA whose early support of NEW is credited with jumpstarting the organization, which now includes nearly 5,000 members and 400 companies. Grize died in January 2010 at the age of 63 after a short illness.