Grainger Commissions 7-Foot Tall Fastener Sculpture

John Wolz

To mark the addition of more than 30,000 fasteners to its product line, W.W. Grainger Inc. commissioned a seven-foot tall, 500-pound fastener sculpture by Chicago sculptor Erik Blome. The sculpture is comprised of thousands of fasteners and related products and is on display this week at Grainger’s booth at the National Plant Engineering & Maintenance Show in Rosemont, IL.
Blome’s other works include sculptures of Rosa Parks, Wayne Gretzky and the Chicago Blackhawk’s 75th Anniversary sculpture located outside the United Center.

Grainger is adding 39,000 products for a total 115,000 products in the 2006 catalog being released April 2. In addition to more fasteners there are new electrical, cleaning, material handling, plumbing and ventilation products.

“Our customers count on us to be a one-stop shop for a broad selection of maintenance repair and operating supplies, enabling them to efficiently manage their facilities,” said Michael Pulick, Grainger’s vice president of product management. “We had a clear opportunity to bolster our offering, especially in fasteners.”

Product selection tools on grainger.com will assist customers in narrowing their selection to the right product based on factors such as grade, size and material. Advanced cross-referencing tools, a new dedicated fastener catalog and employee product training will also help customers save time in sourcing the right product for their applications.
Grainger has 1.7 million customers from the manufacturing, commercial, government, transportation and contractor markets. Web: Grainger.com
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