by Nancy Gardiner
Northern News Services

NNSL (Oct 29/97) - Emco Ltd. of London, Ont., has purchased two Yellowknife companies -- Frontier Mining and Industrial Supplies, and YK Plumbing and Heating Supplies.

Emco is a distributor and manufacturer of building materials for the home improvement and construction markets. Masco Corp. of Taylor, Michigan owns 43 per cent of Emco, which has 3,600 employees and is a public company traded on the Toronto and Montreal stock exchanges.

The deal was confirmed by Ken O'Hagan, director of corporate development with Emco.

Frontier Mining's former president, Glenn Zelinski, now becomes branch manager of Western Weslund Frontier Mining in Yellowknife.

Assets and trademarks of both companies were purchased, he said. Although no price was disclosed, the combined annual revenues of both businesses are $3.5 to $4 million, confirms Zelinski.

Fred Leonardis owned YK Plumbing and Heating since January 1988 under the name Lower Arctic Holding Ltd., with three of his four brothers. The purchase closed Oct. 20, Leonardis confirmed. It will now be managed by Frontier, he added.

Leonardis still maintains two companies, JSL Maintenance and Service Ltd. and JSL Mechanical Installations Ltd.

Leonardis says Emco Ltd. was YK Plumbing's biggest supplier, and Emco had plans to move North for quite some time.

"The supplier would have been our competitor," he said of their plans. Emco approached Leonardis on the deal.

The sale is good news for customers, said Leonardis.

"I feel customers will get a better price because they (Emco) can buy competitively and afford to have more inventory," Leonardis said.

His key staff members moved over with the shift, he added.

"It's quite positive. One of the largest plumbing wholesalers in North America has confidence in the economy of the NWT," he noted. "Despite the negative mood in Yellowknife, people from outside see more than negative. With BHP and Diavik, soon there will be a lot of activity locally."

Zelinski said a grand opening is planned for November. "Canada is well-known for its expertise in the mining industry. We've been approached by a Saudi company for industrial pipe and fittings."

Emco Distribution has four distribution centres and 130 outlets across Canada. Its building products manufacturing facilities are located in Edmonton, Midland, Ont., La Salle, Que., Pont-Rouge, Que., and Grandview, Mo. Primary markets are Canada and the northeastern United States.