Groups warn Cuomo about gas extraction plan

About 40 groups, ranging from Neighbors of the Onondaga Nation to Trout Unlimited, wrote to Gov. Andrew Cuomo Tuesday advising him to put the brakes on allowing hydraulic fracturing that they said would pose risks as currently planned. Companies are eager to drill into the deep shale deposits below New York's surface to extract natural gas.

"We are writing to you on an issue of urgent importance to all New Yorkers – assuring that New York State does not rush to allow risky new drilling techniques in the Marcellus and Utica Shale formations unless the protection of the State's drinking water supplies and other irreplaceable resources can be demonstrated," the groups, including Common Cause and the Natural Resources Defense Council, wrote.

"Specifically, we ask that you clearly confirm that the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) will be allowed both adequate time and resources to fully and properly evaluate the full range of potential risks associated with new natural gas development utilizing hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking," before issuing a revised draft Supplemental Generic Environmental Impacts (DSGEIS) pursuant to Executive Order 41 (EO 41). Simply put, the arbitrary June 1, 2011 target date established by former Governor David Paterson in EO 41 is wholly inadequate to allow for the development of an appropriately comprehensive or legally sufficient revised DSGEIS."

The letter was copied to Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner Joe Martens.

VAI Increases Productivity for Leading Industrial Distributor

VAI (Vormittag Associates, Inc.), an award-winning ERP solution provider, announced that

Washington-based Spokane House of Hose, a leading provider of hydraulic and industrial hose

and fittings in the Pacific Northwest, has integrated VAI's S2K Distribution Software. VAI's

S2K software will streamline disparate siloed systems into one integrated solution to better

manage supply chain performance against aggressive fiscal business goals. Spokane House of

Hose chose VAI for its track record of delivering powerful enterprise resource planning (ERP)

solutions for the distribution, manufacturing, retail and service industries on time and on

budget.

Spokane House of Hose stocks the largest hydraulic and industrial hose inventory west of the

Mississippi in an 80,000 square foot facility. The company has remained committed to its

roots as a locally owned business, founded in 1973. With expected continued opportunity and

new customer growth, Spokane House of Hose needed to tie together the various parts of its

organization into one centrally managed and scalable ERP system. VAI's S2K Distribution

Software gives Spokane House of Hose and its product partner, Air Electric Equipment and

Tools, the ability to analyze trends in inventory and shipment orders to streamline warehouse

management operations and eliminate unnecessary and time-consuming manual processes.

According to Rob Jones, project manager, VAI, "We implemented a robust and customized

software solution for Spokane in record time, and the system has delivered value from day

one. Our goal was to fully integrate both Spokane House of Hose and Air Electric Equipment

and Tools, with complete visibility into all business operations, to better manage and

analyze the Company's inventory and financial performance. Both sides of the business are now

working harmoniously for greater efficiencies in overall operations performance."

Mark Swenson, general manager, Spokane House of Hose, added, "It was not just VAI's in-depth

understanding of the intricacies of our distribution business, but their spirit of

partnership and committed staff that convinced us this project was not only achievable but

critical for the growth and development of our company. With VAI's S2K Distribution Software,

we can focus on what we do best -- offer fair pricing, quality products, expert advice and

excellent customer service -- only now we're doing this so much easier, faster and with

better business intelligence."

VAI's S2K Distribution Software offers customers numerous solutions to help manage supply

chains, enterprise resources and customer relationships efficiently and effectively.

About VAI (Vormittag Associates, Inc.)

VAI is an award-winning software developer and an IBM Premier Business Partner. Designed for

the mid-range market, S2K Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Software Suite is used by a wide

variety of mid-sized companies worldwide, with a number of clients in the manufacturing,

distribution, retail, food and related service industries.