Merger Creates Large Furniture Manufacturing Consulting Firm:

Furniture World Magazine

Rosenthal & George, Inc., announced the signing of a definitive merger agreement with Ross Associates of Asheville, North Carolina. The merger brings together the highest concentration of furniture consultants in the United States, with a focus on maximizing the performance of furniture and wood products companies. The engineering services of both firms will be consolidated into a Manufacturing group, to be based in Asheville, North Carolina. Vince Ross will serve as Senior Partner in the Manufacturing practice, reporting to Robert L. George, Managing Partner of Rosenthal & George. In making the announcement, Bob George stated, "both of the firms involved in this merger have decades of experience working with wood products companies to create more competitive, productive, and profitable manufacturing operations. Through this merger, we can provide senior managers with an even greater level of support than in the past. Such support will be particularly important in the next decade, as pressures build for manufacturing operations to become more market-driven and flexible. Fundamental changes will be required in how these operations are engineered and run, and our combined Manufacturing group will support senior managers through both analysis and implementation of these important changes." Gordon L. Rosenthal, senior partner, who has concentrated on implementing new manufacturing processes during the last two years, added, "Any new computer system or manufacturing process requires a solid foundation of standards, routing, and plant layout. The expertise provided by Ross Associates in these areas complements the strengths of Rosenthal & George. Customers will benefit not only from our ability to identify strategic opportunities to apply new manufacturing processes and equipment, but also from the basic industrial engineering capabilities needed to implement these systems most effectively." Vince Ross elaborated on the benefits of the merger: "The combined Manufacturing group will provide a breadth and depth of capabilities that cannot be found in any other firm in the country. Rosenthal & George is known for taking a comprehensive, systems approach to strategy formulation, taking into account the dynamics of the marketplace and the competitive opportunities presented by new technologies. Our combined Manufacturing group will provide expert engineering across all the functional areas key to implementing strategic changes, including product engineering, facilities planning and design, and performance standards and measurement. Rosenthal & George, Inc., is the only full-service management firm that specializes in the furnishings industry, concentrating on the total industry channel from the raw material supplier through manufacturing, the distribution channel, and ultimately to the end user. The firm serves both the residential and contract markets. Its aim is to create high-performance companies by assisting management in defining an overall corporate strategy and integrated functional strategies. With this direction established, Rosenthal & George will implement the new direction by assisting the client company at the level deemed necessary by the stockholders. This involvement ranges from total turnaround management to quarterly review. Rosenthal & George is the corporate entity consisting of Impact Consulting and Janco Services, and has offices in Atlanta, Georgia, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Ross Associates has provided engineering services to the furniture and wood products industries since 1962. Ross Associates uses a total cost approach to evaluate manufacturing processes, from the sawmill through shipping, identifying the most promising opportunities for improving bottom-line results. The company develops methodologies for improving all cost factors: labor, raw materials, and overhead.