BNP Media, the publishers of The NEWS and the Heating, Airconditioning and Refrigeration Distributors International (HARDI) have entered into an agreement to launch a new publication. This bimonthly magazine will cover every aspect of HARDI and the HVACR distribution community and will be the official publication of HARDI.

“We are very excited to begin this venture with HARDI,” Mike Murphy, NEWS editor-in-chief, said. “We plan on bringing the same solid reporting and coverage of the HVACR industry that you find every week in The NEWS to the HVACR-Distribution market. There are a lot of great distributors out there with a ton of cutting-edge ideas, and we want to publicize them.”

The partnership combines HARDI’s HVACR wholesale distribution expertise with the support of the editorial and production team behind The NEWS to provide those in the industry with enhanced and expanded access to timely and relevant HVACR information.

To complement the new distributor-focused magazine, the editors of The NEWS will also publish a branded Distribution Section six times a year.

The new communications partnership with HARDI will encompass much more than a print publication. There will also be a digital edition of the magazine, a website, monthly email newsletters, and a mobile-based platform of the magazine on the iPad.

“I couldn’t be more impressed with the production and editorial capabilities of The NEWS team. This partnership unites their proven communications acumen with HARDI’s growing voice in the HVACR industry and will be dedicated to delivering content-rich HVACR supply-chain specific communications,” said HARDI EVP/COO Talbot Gee.

“In addition to our core audience of wholesale distributors, the communications will focus on providing content promoting a smarter, more efficient supply chain and stronger channel relationships that will benefit manufacturers, contractors, and anyone else involved in selling HVACR systems and components.”

The magazine and website are set to launch January 2012, just in time for the Air-Conditioning, Heating, Refrigerating Exposition (AHR Expo) in Chicago.

“This magazine is going to use The NEWS’ style of design and editorial content, which our research indicates is extremely popular with distributor readers.” said Kyle Gargaro, managing editor of The NEWS. “There will be news oriented stories featuring standout distributors, updates on HARDI council and committee projects, as well as editorials, analysis, and forecasts on the most important aspects of the HVACR distribution. We feel we have a successful mix of stories in The NEWS, and we want to bring that same commitment of excellence to the distribution industry.”

Publication date: 08/15/2011