Plumbing Franchises Rank Among Magazine’s Top 500

Rooter-Man, Mr. Rooter and Benjamin Franklin Plumbing have been named to Entrepreneur magazine’s Franchise 500 ranking for 2011. Rooter-Man ranks 92, Mr. Rooter 122 and Benjamin Franklin Plumbing 130. A complete listing can be seen at www.entrepreneur.com/franchise500.

Abresist Corp. Changes Name to Abresist Kalenborn Corp.

Abresist Corp. has changed its name to Abresist Kalenborn Corp. In business since 1977, Abresist Kalenborn Corp., Urbana, Ind., manufactures and installs mineral- and ceramic-based abrasion-resistant protective linings. It is part of Kalenborn International GmbH & Co. KG, parent company to 12 subsidiaries with facilities in Asia, Europe, North America and South America.

IPR Names Vellano VP Sales, Marketing

Mike Vellano has been named vice president of sales and marketing at IPR, provider of underground rehabilitation services. Vellano had served as general manager at RePipe, a division of IPR.

TST Sweden Names QualJet Safety Products Distributor

TST Sweden has named QualJet as its distributor for waterjet safety products in the United States, Canada and Southeast Asia.

Haaker, Son of Company Founder, Passes Away

John William “Bill” Haaker, 59, son of Haaker Equipment Co. founder John Haacker, passed away Dec. 17. Haaker joined the company in 1972, helping start and build the business. He also was a founding member of the Southern California Collection System Committee (SSCSC). Haacker is survived by his wife, Cindy, son, Jake, and daughter, Robin. Memorial services were held Jan. 3.

Consortium Seeks U.S. Businesses for Global Projects Database

The Consortium for Global Development, through its Global Contractors Library database, seeks to match U.S. companies with projects in the $130 billion global development market. The consortium is especially seeking small, medium and SBA 8(a) businesses. For more information on available projects and the free database listing, go to www.cfglobaldevelopment.com or www.global-contractors.com.