Wolseley plc, Reading, England, said it has acquired 15 distribution businesses in Europe and North America since the beginning of its fiscal year Aug. 1. Newport News, Va.-based Ferguson, part of Wolseley's North American Plumbing and Heating Distribution operation, acquired LAB Distributing from Lynne and Rick Clawson in November. LAB, an independent dealer of General Electric appliances in the Raleigh-Durham, N.C. market, had sales of $2.5 million (U.S.) for the year ended Aug. 31. Stock Building Supply, in Wolseley's U.S. Building Materials Distribution operation, acquired Canyon Drive Lumber, a distributor of building materials in Amarillo, Texas, from members of the Barnett family. Canyon had sales of $32.3 million (U.S.) for the year ended Dec. 31, 2004. Its customer base includes local and regional builders that focus on custom homes.

Also, in November, Stock Building Supply acquired the assets of Seigle's Inc., a distributor of building materials and contractor services. Seigle's has 11 locations across Chicago and northern Illinois through which it sells lumber, building materials, framing services and value-added products such as components, millwork, windows and cabinetry, many of which are installed. This acquisition complements Stock's existing operations in Illinois and is the first entry into the Chicago area, one of the premier housing markets in the United States. Seigle's had sales of $257.8 million (U.S.) for the year ended Dec. 31, 2004.