Saturday, May 18, 2013

Twin-Star International Receives Seven Prestigious ADEX Design Awards for 2013


 

Delray Beach, FL., May 17, 2013 - Twin-Star International is once again acknowledged as an award-winning home furnishings manufacturer of fine quality furniture. This year they received seven highly esteemed ADEX Awards. Receiving top Platinum honors is the Astoria electric fireplace. Gold honors goes to the Baldwin Desk and the Lakeland home entertainment fireplace. The Millennium home entertainment console, Beverage Cooler, Dakota Desk Pier and Axel bathroom vanity all received Silver honors for 2013.

“It is a great privilege to be recognized with one ADEX Award, let alone seven,” stated Brian Brigham, Twin-Star director of marketing and public relations. “Our talented in-house designers and engineers combine their vast knowledge of furniture designs with the latest in consumer trends so we can continually offer an array of innovative and diversified home furnishings.”

ADEX, the Award for Design Excellence, is the largest and most prestigious award program for home, office, hospitality furnishings and building materials marketed to the design trade. ADEX entries are judged on usefulness of the application, originality and innovation, technical merit, their effect on the global environment, feasibility of the design, efficient use of energy, innovative use of components, cost optimization and clarity of supporting documentation. The top designs are given Platinum, Gold or Silver awards and are featured in the April issue of the international Design Journal.

Twin-Star is a seasoned veteran when it comes to receiving ADEX Awards with their first two, a Platinum and a Gold for electric fireplaces, received in 2006. They have earned a total of 26 ADEX Awards including nine Platinum, nine Gold and eight Silver Awards for not only electric fireplaces but also for bathroom vanities, home entertainment consoles, wine coolers and a kitchen island.


The Twin-Star ADEX Award winners for 2013 are:

Astoria  Platinum Award The Astoria wall mantel combines luxurious, old world charm with expert craftsmanship. It has a solid dark emperador marble top with an Empire Cherry finish. Applied molding with decorative corbel center, carved column capitals, half round corners and the marble surround with decorative metal fire grate crown the Astoria with its unique, unforgettable character.

Baldwin Desk  Gold Award - The mahogany finish Baldwin Desk has a retractable table resting on furniture grade casters that rotate 180 degrees to create a flexible and expanded work space. The right side of the desk has two cabinet doors that open to reveal adjustable shelves for storage while the left side has two smaller drawers and a large file cabinet.

Lakeland – Gold Award - The traditional style Lakeland home entertainment fireplace console combines TV,  component and media storage with a 28" ClassicFlame Electric Fireplace Insert surrounded by engineered slate and a kick out hearth base. The hearth sits above a beveled molding base. Lakeland is available in a Roasted Cherry Finish.

Millenium  Silver Award - The Millenium brings in a new era of entertainment centers with is integrated audio and video capabilities. The integrated sound bar includes four speakers, two tweeters and rear facing passive bass ports to provide a rich audio experience. Built-in iPod dock allows for audio and video streaming from iPods and iPhones, and wireless Bluetooth technology allows audio streaming from a wide variety of mobile devices. Open center shelves, side storage cubbies, and wide center drawer provide abundant storage capacity. Millenium is available in a Caramel Birch finish.

Beverage Cooler  Silver Award - Made from the finest hardwoods, the beautiful cabinet features a built-in beverage cooler that is perfect for keeping drinks cold at bed side, home office or simply next to the sofa.  Its thermoelectric technology makes it quiet and vibration free and it’s environmentally friendly since it contains no toxic refrigerants or ozone depleting chemicals. The Beverage Cooler is available in three finish options: Premium Oak, White and Drifted Oak.

Dakota Desk  Silver Award - The Dakota Desk Pier is designed in the Arts and Crafts style and is highlighted by its distinct hammered metal door and drawer pulls. Other features include drop down work area with non-slip surface and a top storage area with windowpane glass front doors. The lift door storage area under the worktable is perfect for printer storage while the bottom drawer is set up for file storage. The Dakota has a stand for use with any tablet and a built-in charging station with a power strip and USB outlets.

Axel – Silver Award - The Axel vanity has a solid Carrara Marble countertop with integrated basin that is carved from a single block of marble. Shown in faux-alligator upholstery with chrome nail head trim, Axel adds drama to any bathroom. The self-closing drawer is perfect for storing toiletries. Complete the look with the available matching mirror.


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About Twin-Star
Founded in 1996, Twin-Star International, Inc. of Delray Beach, Fl., is changing the way people entertain. Twin-Star, an award-winning home furnishings manufacturer of quality furniture, combines the latest trends with function and style to create unique pieces that enhance the lives of their customers. They use the finest hardwoods, wood veneers and finishes available, chosen specifically to match the character and need of each individual piece. Known for their ClassicFlame® Fireplaces, the finest furniture in the electric fireplace industry, their line-up also includes Duraflame®, Chimney-free® and Pro Electric Fireplaces, Tresanti® Media Consoles; Tresanti® Refrigerated Wine Cabinets; Tresanti® Kitchen Islands and Beverage Curios; Black & Decker and Luxe™ Bathroom furniture. Find out more at www.twinstarhome.com.
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Friday, May 17, 2013

Twin-Star International’s Copyright Infringement Complaint Upheld by ITC



Twin-Star International’s Copyright Infringement Complaint Upheld by ITC
Prohibits importation of electric fireplaces, related components from accused Chinese companies

DELRAY BEACH, FL – May 15, 2013 – Twin-Star International today announced that the U.S. International Trade Commission has issued a limited exclusion order barring the importation of all infringing products of Shenzhen Reliap Industrial Co. and Yue Qiu Sheng, both of Shenzhen, China.  This comes after an investigation of copyright infringement.
The ITC’s initial investigation began January 19, 2012 based on a complaint filed by Twin-Star against California-based Whalen Furniture Manufacturing, Inc., which was then consolidated with a prior ITC investigation based on an earlier complaint filed by Twin-Star against Reliap and Yue. The complaints charge a violation of the Tariff Act of 1930 regarding the importation and sale in the U.S. of certain electric fireplaces and their components as well as processes of manufacturing by reason of infringement of U.S. Copyrights and misappropriation of trade secrets, breach of contract, and tortious interference with contract. These copyrights cover the unique designs of Twin-Star’s electric fireplace inserts as well as content contained within their user manuals.
In July of last year, the Administrative Law Judge issued a consent order directing Whalen to cease importation and sale of the implicated Reliap fireplace products and any other related products that infringe on Twin-Star’s asserted copyrights or contain Twin-Star’s misappropriated trade secrets.
Earlier this month, the Commission issued a limited exclusion order prohibiting the importation of electric fireplaces and all related components, manuals, and products manufactured abroad and/or imported by or for Yue or Reliap, or any of their affiliates that use Twin-Star’s misappropriated trade secrets and/or that infringe upon one or more of Twin-Star’s asserted copyrights relating to the designs of their fireplaces and contents of their manuals. 
The Commission’s findings have been well received by Twin-Star. “We are very happy with the Commission’s exclusion order, which underscores the value of our company’s innovative products and the work we have put into developing them,” said Robert Cohen, president and CEO of Twin-Star. “We reaffirm our commitment to using the avenues available through the ITC and the courts to enforce Twin-Star’s intellectual property and prevent the sale, importation or marketing of knockoffs.” Cohen added, “We will continue to protect our business and more importantly our customers businesses from having to compete against lower end, imitations of our product and the companies that illegally produce or sell them. The Twin-Star International family of brands has always told the story of design, quality and service and its reflected in every product we manufacture.”

About Twin-Star International, Inc.
Founded in 1996, Twin-Star International, Inc. of Delray Beach, Fl., is changing the way people entertain. Twin-Star, an award-winning home furnishings manufacturer of quality furniture, combines the latest trends with function and style to create unique pieces that enhance the lives of their customers. They use the finest hardwoods, wood veneers and finishes available, chosen specifically to match the character and need of each individual piece. Known for their ClassicFlame® Fireplaces, the finest furniture in the electric fireplace industry, their line-up also includes Duraflame®, Chimney-free® and Pro Electric Fireplaces, Tresanti® Media Consoles; Tresanti® Refrigerated Wine Cabinets; Tresanti® Kitchen Islands and Beverage Curios; Tresanti® Home Office Furniture; Black & Decker® and Luxe™ Bathroom furniture. Find out more at www.twinstarhome.com.

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