How to find building products … online

Prosales, Oct, 2002 by John Butterfield

The Buyer's Guide you're holding right now is an invaluable reference for who makes what in the world of building products. Hungry for more? If you visit the Web sites of PROSALES' parent company, Hanley-Wood, LLC, you'll find this same information in a sortable, searchable format--plus much more.

Integrated Product Specifications

We've redesigned the products coverage on our Web sites to take advantage of the growing depth of ebuild, Hanley-Wood's online guide to detailed product specifications. In addition to its own site at www.ebuild.com, ebuild's specifications on more than 110,000 building products (with more added every day) have been integrated into BUILDER Online (www.builderonline.com), REMODELING Online (www.remodelingmagazine.com), and THE JOURNAL OF LIGHT CONSTRUCTION Online (www.jlconline.com).

In addition to the specs, installation instructions, and the side-by-side comparisons of products available through ebuild's database, you'll find product coverage from Hanley-Wood's print publications, daily briefs on new products, and an electronic version of the print guide that you're reading right now. You'll also find the complete 2002 BUILDER magazine Brand Use Study in a downloadable PDF format, as well as the 2001 version of this study.

To reach this wealth of product information, just click on the "Building Products" tab at the top of BUILDER Online's home page. Drilling deeper into BUILDER Online:

To reach recent articles about building products: Click on the "Building Products and Data" section of the dropdown menu.

To reach ebuild product information: Click on the "Building Products and Data" section of the dropdown menu, then click on the "Find Products" tab on the following page.

To reach a searchable version of this guide to building product manufacturers: Click on the "Building Products and Data" section of the dropdown menu, then click on the "Find Manufacturers" tab on the next page. From there you can browse through an A-to-Z list of all the manufacturers. You also can choose a product category, which will display' only the manufacturers that make that particular category of building product. Choose a specific manufacturer and you'll display contact information, including address, phone number, and a live link to the manufacturer's Web site.

To see the BUILDER Brand Use Study: Click on the "BUILDER Brand Study" section of the dropdown menu.

To see new Products of the Day: Click on the "Building Products and Data" section of the dropdown menu.

Other Hanley-Wood Product Sites

ebuild: You can make informed buying decisions by comparing product specs side by side, read news and reviews of products drawn from Hanley-Wood publications, and find contact and buying information at www.ebuild.com.

Click on any of the site's 24 categories, and you'll find detailed specifications on specific products, complete with dimensions, photographs, installation instructions, manufacturers' sales material, and more. You'll find detailed information on more than 110,000 products, representing more than 1 million SKUs. It's the most complete listing of building product specifications available on the Web today--period.

TOOLS OF THE TRADE Tool Guide: One of the main features of TOOLS OF THE TRADE Online (www.toolsof thetrade.net), this guide is built tough for the hardcore tool hound, bringing together industrial-strength specifications for heavy-duty tools. Pick a category from the dropdown list (air compressors, hand tools, power saws, etc.). It's the one-stop information source for finding the tools to help you do your job.

Online house plans: At www.eplans.com, our searchable collection of house plans, visitors can search through more than 6,000 plans, using criteria such as number of bedrooms, type of home, amenities, square footage, or designer. Floor plans and elevations show you what to expect--and secure online ordering will bring you the detailed blueprints and support documents you need.

--John Butterfield is editorial director for Hanley-Wood Interactive.