Business North Carolina articles from March 2009

Business North Carolina archives from March 2009

Got his number.(UPFRONT)(Column)
March 1, 2009... Not that I'm tight, but while some executives fret over whether they can muddle along on $500,000 a year, I fail to understand spendthrifts who throw away dental floss they've used only once. So it seems that somebody is forever trying to...

NCtrend.(Statistical table)
March 1, 2009... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] EMPLOYMENT Latest Previous Previous % change from month month year last year Employed (000s) 4,206.4 4,265.0 4,318.7 (2.6) Civilian labor...

Stockwatch.(Statistical table)(Company rankings)
March 1, 2009... HIGHEST PRICE/EARNINGS RATIOS Company P/E 1/30/09 52-week ration (3) price range Hatteras Financial 164.8 $24.72 ...

Economicoutlook.
March 1, 2009... Mark-to-market accounting forces companies to value securities at their current market price, but some bankers want the rule changed, arguing that is undervalues assets and needlessly depletes capital. It even has been blamed for accelerating...

The state of biotechnology: industry boosters say efforts to establish the sector across North Carolina won't dilute its impact.(BIOTECHNOLOGY ROUND TABLE)
March 1, 2009... The Triangle forged North Carolina's reputation as a biotechnology power, and other regions capitalize on it. That's not only desirable, it's necessary, according to the North Carolina Biotechnology Center, a nonprofit that promotes the sector...

Like deja vu all over again.(FINEPRINT)
March 1, 2009... Old reality: Bank of America Corp. neither needed nor particularly wanted billions of dollars the federal government thrust into its hands a few months ago as bureaucrats sought to stanch the hemorrhaging of the economy. New reality: BofA not...

The upside of downloads.(CAPITALGOODS)
March 1, 2009... "If you take a walk, I'll tax your feet..." So far, Tar Heels have avoided the fate predicted by The Beatles in their 1966 hit "Taxman." But North Carolina might indeed tax your index finger when it clicks a button to get a song off iTunes...

What a difference a year makes.(Statewide)(Report)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... "Work is life, you know," John Lennon once said. "And without it, there's nothing but fear and insecurity." In December, nearly 400,000 North Carolinians were without work and looking for it. That's 8.7% of the labor force, nearly double what...

Two sides mix it up over a cement plant.(Eastern)
March 1, 2009... Ten months after a Greek company announced it would build one of the nation's biggest cement plants just north of Wilmington, not a shovel has turned but a lot has been churned up. The last election saw a county commissioner who supported the...

Orders for French flies is keeping Spirit high.(Eastern)
March 1, 2009... Vive la France has extra meaning in Kinston nowadays. The $ 600 million Spirit AesorSystems Holdings Inc. plant at the Global TransPark will make fuselages for French aircraft maker Airbus, which has a steady stream of orders despite...

Working capital.(Eastern)
March 1, 2009... EASTERN REGION Jobs: 1,021,933 YTD change: (34,962 Index: 107.0 Source: Employment Security Commission, December. Figures are not seasonally adjusted. The index is the number of jobs as a percentage of the average in 200. ...

New bern.(Eastern)
March 1, 2009... NEW BERN -- Brunswick cut about 330 of the 630 jobs at its Hatteras Yachts plant. The Lake Forest, I11,-based boat maker says the reduction will allow the plant to continue operating.

Kinston.(Eastern)
March 1, 2009... KINSTON -- MasterBrand Cabinets laid off 170 of about 400 employees at its factory here. The Jasper, Ind.-based company blamed the slow housing market.

Kinston.(Eastern)
March 1, 2009... KINSTON -- Dopaco plans to add nearly 125 jobs to its 200 here by the end of the year. It's based in Exton, Pa., and makes paper cups, lids and cartons for fast-food restaurants such as McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's.

Kinston.(Eastern)
March 1, 2009... KINSTON -- Electrolux idled 100 of the 850 workers at its appliance factory. The Swedish manufacturer called the layoffs temporary but didn't say when it would rehire the employees.

Wilmington.(Eastern)
March 1, 2009... WILMINGTON -- Donley's, a Cleveland-based builder, purchased Blair Concrete Services for an undisclosed amount. It plans to keep Blair's 100 employees--10 at its administrative offices here and 90 in Raleigh.

Fayetteville.(Eastern)
March 1, 2009... FAYETTEVILLE -- Goodyear Tire & Rubber cut overtime for about 3,000 employees. The Akron, Ohio-based tire maker wants to reduce costs. Most production workers had been logging at least 42 hours a week.

ELM city.(Eastern)
March 1, 2009... ELM CITY -- Carolina Insulation closed its headquarters in Wilson and another office in Kinston to consolidate in a 20,000-square-foot building here. It will add 20 jobs to the 80 moved from the other sites.

Plymouth.(Eastern)
March 1, 2009... PLYMOUTH -- Weyerhaeuser cut about 25 jobs at its sawmill here, leaving about 175. The lumber producer, based in Federal Way, Wash., blamed weakening demand.

Wilmington.(Eastern)(Financial report)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... WILMINGTON -- Two shipping lines will begin weekly calls at the state port this month. Business from Denmark-based Maersk Line and Virginia-based Independent Container Line is expected to increase revenue at the port by $1 million a year. ...

It gets spanked for switches.(Triangle)
March 1, 2009... Nearly 30 years ago, the predecessor of Nortel Networks Corp. opened its largest U.S. plant in the Triangle to make digital switching systems for phone networks. The company Web site still gloats that Nortel switches then were a full two years...

Distance learning.(Triangle)
March 1, 2009... With $1.1 million, N.C Central University hopes to finally lay to rest the controversy caused by its sojourn at a church outside Atlanta (Regional Report, October). In 2004, former Chancellor James Ammons created a campus at New Birth...

Working capital.(Triangle)
March 1, 2009... TRAINGLE REGION Jobs: 902,772 YTD change: (24,151) Index: 109,5 Source: Employment Security Commission, December. Figures are not seasonally adjusted. The index is the number of jobs as a percentage of the average in 2000....

Research triangle park.(Triangle)
March 1, 2009... RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK -- London-based drug maker GlaxoSmith-Kline hired Deirdre Connelly to head its U.S. headquarters in Research Triangle Park. Connelly, 48, replaced Chris Viehbacher, who left last year after being passed over for CEO....

Durham.(Triangle)
March 1, 2009... DURHAM -- AW North Carolina, which makes parts for Toyota automobile transmissions, laid off 280 of its 1,100 employees here but said it hoped to bring them back "after several weeks." The company is part of Japan-based Aisin AW.

Morrisville.(Triangle)
March 1, 2009... MORRISVILLE -- Lenovo's restructuring will cut 100 jobs here. The Chinese-owned computer maker eliminated 250 jobs but will move 150 call-center positions from Toronto by the end of the month. That will bring employment to 1,550.

Morrisville.(Triangle)
March 1, 2009... MORRISVILLE -- ChannelAdvisor, which designs software that enables retailers to sell and market goods online, cut about 60 jobs, leaving it with about 250 employees. Roughly half the cuts were made at headquarters, leaving employment at about...

Sanford.(Triangle)(W.P. Carey and Company L.L.C.)(Frontier Spinning Mills)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... SANFORD -- W.P. Carey paid $39 million for four factories and the headquarters of Frontier Spinning. The New York-based real-estate investment trust bought two factories here, one in Mayodan and one in Stoneville from Scottsdale, Ariz.-based...

Pinehurst.(Triangle)
March 1, 2009... PINEHURST -- FirstHealth of the Carolinas cut 28 full-time and 26 part-time jobs to reduce the hospital system's expenses. Nearly all of layoffs were at FirstHealth Moore Regional Hospital. The system employs about 4,000 here and at hospitals...

Raleigh.(Triangle)
March 1, 2009... RALEIGH -- MedFusion, which makes software for medical practices, will move to Gary this year and add 50 workers. That will bring employment to about 120. It raised $2.2 million in venture capital last year. For a daily roundup of business...

Camel humps past bull in size of cities.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... The rivalry between Durham and Winston-Salem is nothing new. The two cities once dominated the U.S. tobacco industry, with American Tobacco Co. in Durham squaring off against--and for a time controlling--R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. in the Twin...

Airport just has to wait for its special delivery.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... As a rule, Federal Express doesn't keeps its customers waiting--certainly not more than 10 years. But that's how long the Triad already has waited for the Memphis, Tenn-based delivery service to open a $350 million hub at Piedmont Triad...

Working capital.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... TRIAD REGION Jobs: 743,362 YTD change: (21,595) Index: 97.3 [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Greensboro.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... GREENSBORO -- Computer-chip maker RF Micro Devices laid off 150, leaving it with about 1,600 employees in its hometown. It cited low demand for its chips, used in cell phones.

Greensboro.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... GREENSBORO -- Honda Aircraft plans to add 100 jobs at its factory at Piedmont Triad International Airport by the end of 2010. That will bring employment to about 500, up from its original estimate of 350.

Kernersville.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... KERNERSVILLE -- YRC Worldwide, the parent of Yellow Transportation and Roadway Express, moved its distribution operations to Charlotte, resulting in the loss of more than 200 trucking and other jobs in the Triad. The company will still employ...

Greensboro.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... GREENSBORO -- Steven Tanger, 59, succeeded his father, Stanley, as CEO of Tanger Factory Outlet Centers. Stanley Tanger, 85, will remain chairman of the chain of outlet shopping centers he started in 1981.

Winston-salem.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... WINSTON-SALEM -- Kelly King, CEO of Winston-Salem-based BB&T, was appointed to the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. He will serve a three-year term on the nine-member board.

Winston-Salem.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... WINSTON-SALEM -- San Francisco-based Wells Fargo named Stanhope Kelly, the highest-profile executive left from Wachovia in Winston-Salem, as president of its community bank for the Carolinas. He will have offices in Winston-Salem and Charlotte....

Whitsett.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... WHITSETT -- Pass & Seymour will close its plant by the end of the year, idling 143. The factory makes electrical-wiring devices for homes. The Syracuse, N.Y.-based company blamed the housing slump.

Thomasville.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... THOMASVILLE -- Citing the slump in the automobile industry, Automotive Motors of Thomasville closed, eliminating 104 jobs. The company is part of ASMO North Carolina, based in Statesville. Nineteen employees transferred there, bringing...

Thomasville.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... THOMASVILLE -- Commercial Carving closed after 75 years of supplying wood to furniture makers, idling about 90. The company might resume operations if the industry recovers.

High point.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... HIGH POINT -- High Point Regional Health System will close its restorative-care unit this month and cut 51 employees to reduce costs. That will leave the hospital with more than 2,300 employees.

High point.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... HIGH POINT -- SunGard Public Sector, which develops software used by police and fire dispatchers, will add 50 employees by the end of the year, giving it about 185. The company is part of Wayne, Pa.-based SunGard.

Winston-Salem.(Triad)(Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center )(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... WINSTON-SALEM -- Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center asked the state for permission to scale back a $218 million expansion it announced more than two years ago. It now wants to spend $152 million on a five-story expansion of its...

Winston-Salem.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... WINSTON-SALEM -- Old Salem Museums & Gardens cut its full-time staff from 120 to 95 and part-timers from 103 to 79. The historical site reduced its budget by about $900,000 to $5.3 million for the fiscal year that begins March 1.

Winston-Salem.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... WINSTON-SALEM -- Novant Health accepted state restrictions for a $96 million, 50-bed hospital it wants to build in Clemmons. It won't include a gastrointestinal-endoscopy room or buy a CT scanner, though it might bring in one it already owns.

Greensboro.(Triad)
March 1, 2009... GREENSBORO -- Textile maker Unifi sold a vacant plant in Yadkin-ville for $7 million to Nonni's Food of Westchester, 111. Nonni's, which makes biscotti, bagel chips, pita chips and similar products under several labels, hasn't said what it...

Greensboro.(Triad)(Stephen D. Bell and Co. changed its name to Bell Partners)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... GREENSBORO -- Stephen D. Bell & Co. changed its name to Bell Partners. The company says the new name reflects a change in focus. It will no longer buy and manage retail and office properties, though it will hold the ones it owns, but will...

New judge doesn't care for rule of law.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... During a weeklong seminar for newly elected judges in December, Bill Belk posed a delicate question: Can judges In North Carolina sit on corporate boards? Having been a director of Charlotte-based car dealer Sonic Automotive Inc. for 10 years,...

Good intentions win incentives for startup.(Charlotte)(Covation LLC)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Just after Christmas, investors in Atlanta-based Covation LLC got some holiday cheer from North Carolina officials: a $600,000 grant--as long as the company spends $5.5 million to open a call center in Hickory and creates 913 jobs in two years....

Working capital.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... CHARLOTTE REGION Jobs: 1,001,003 YTD change: (45,860) Index: 104.1 Source: Employment Security Commission, December. Figures are not seasonally adjusted. The index is the number of jobs as a percentage of the average in 2000....

Cleveland.(Charlotte)(Daimler Trucks North America L.L.C. cuts jobs)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... CLEVELAND -- With demand for trucks and cars plummeting, Daimler Trucks North America will cut more than 2,100 jobs at three North Carolina Freightliner factories this month, including more than 1,300 here. The Portland, Ore.-based company also...

Cleveland.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... CLEVELAND -- Joplin, Mo.-based Auto Truck Transport plans to lay off 150 of 275 employees by the end of the month. It blamed production cuts at Freightliner.

Hickory.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... HICKORY -- CommScope will cut 230 workers from plants in Catawba and Statesville by midyear. It blamed flagging global demand for its telecommunications equipment. It still will employ more than 600 in Catawba, about 130 in Statesville and...

Hickory.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... HICKORY -- Corning Cable Systems will close one of its plants by the end of the year, idling an undisclosed number of workers. Some will transfer to a larger plant nearby. The company, part of New York-based Corning, employs about 1,400 here...

Belmont.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... BELMONT -- R.L. Stowe closed its four plants. The 108-year-old textile company employed about 200 at two mills in its hometown and 300 more in Tennessee.

Gastonia.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... GASTONIA -- Parkdale Mills plans to close a plant here by the end of the month, idling about 75. It still has 25 mills and about 2,300 employees in the U.S., Central America and South America. Twelve of the plants and about 1,240 of the workers...

Charlotte.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... CHARLOTTE -- Ruddick is slowing expansion of its Harris Teeter grocery chain. Last summer, it planned to open 19 stores and remodel eight in 2009. It recently revised that to 16 openings and three remodelings. The company also owns Mount...

Charlotte.(Charlotte)(United Way of Central Carolinas)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... CHARLOTTE -- United Way of Central Carolinas cut 30% of its full-time staff, leaving it "with around 70 employees. The nonprofit also will use about $5 million from its reserve fund to make up for a 43.6% drop in contributions after complaints...

Maiden.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... MAIDEN -- Getrag laid off 141 of its 500 employees here. The company, part of Germany-based Getrag Corporate Group, makes axles for automakers, including struggling General Motors and Chrysler.

Concord.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... CONCORD -- Philip Morris USA laid off 140 employees as part of a factory closing scheduled for the end of next year. The Richmond, Va.-based cigarette maker still employs 1,385 here.

Newton.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... NEWTON -- GoldToeMoretz laid off 56 employees, leaving it with about 500. The sock manufacturer was formed in 2006 when Moretz acquired Burlington-based Gold Toe Brands.

Charlotte.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... CHARLOTTE -- US Airways asked the U.S. Department of Transportation for permission to begin daily flights to Rio de Janeiro this fall. The Tempe, Ariz.-based carrier would use a 204-passenger Boeing 767. It would be the first daily nonstop...

Huntersville.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... HUNTERSVILLE -- Dick Johnson, 61, will retire next month as CEO but remain chairman of American Tire Distributors Holdings. President William Berry, 54, will add the CEO job.

Monroe.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... MONROE -- Union County laid off about 40 employees, leaving it with more than 1,000. Officials hope to save $13 million from the layoffs and other spending cuts. They will use $2 million from the county's reserves to make up the rest of a...

Morganton.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... MORGANTON -- Shadowline closed its plant here, idling 85. The lingerie maker blamed foreign competition.

Charlotte.(Charlotte)
March 1, 2009... CHARLOTTE -- Titan Technology Partners acquired Reading, England-based Intalec Partnership to broaden its base of international clients. Terms were not disclosed. Both are information-technology consultants. Titan employs about 75 at its...

Some jobs fold at Harrah's.(Western)(Harrah's Cherokee Casino)
March 1, 2009... Fortune finally has frowned on Harrah's Cherokee Casino. Eleven years after opening, the casino has dealt its first layoffs, dropping employment from 1,800 to 1,700 after revenue slipped 8.5% last year. "When the customers aren't here, we don't...

Project is out of Ginn.(Western)(Ginn Resorts Co.)(Linger Longer Communities LLC )(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Unable to chip away its mountain of debt, Ginn Resorts Co. sold Laurelmor, a 6,600-acre golf-course community astride the Watauga-Wilkes county line, to Linger Longer Communities LLC of Greensboro, Ga., for $32 million. The sale was part of a...

Working capital.(Western)
March 1, 2009... WESTERN REGION JOBS: 479,906 YTD change: (20,784) Index: 98.8 Source: Employment Security Commission, December, Figures are not seasonally adjusted. The index is the number of jobs as a percentage of the average in 2000. ...

Asheville.(Western)
March 1, 2009... ASHEVILLE -- The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. reprimanded Blue Ridge Savings Bank for policies that jeopardized the safety of deposits. The FDIC says the bank had inadequate capital or reserves, a large volume of poor-quality loans and...

Asheville.(Western)
March 1, 2009... ASHEVILLE -- U.S. District Court Judge Lacy Thornburg ordered the Tennessee Valley Authority to install controls on four power plants--three in Tennessee, one in Alabama--to reduce pollutants that cause respiratory problems and cover the North...

Forest city.(Western)
March 1, 2009... FOREST CITY -- Cleveland-based Eaton laid off nearly 45 employees at its hydraulic-hose factory here, cutting the total to 155. It eliminated 5,200 jobs companywide, including more than 30 in Raleigh, where it employs about 700.

East flat rock.(Western)
March 1, 2009... EAST FLAT ROCK -- Fairfield, Conn.-based General Electric cut 47 jobs at its GE Lighting Systems plant here, leaving it with about 435 employees who make light fixtures.

Lenoir.(Western)
March 1, 2009... LENOIR -- California-based Google paid $3.1 million to boost its acreage from 220 to 280. The Internet search engine operates a $600 million data center here.

North wilkesboro.(Western)
March 1, 2009... NORTH WILKESBORO -- Wilkes Regional Medical Center laid off about 45 employees, leaving it with 775. Hospital officials say the move will save about $2 million a year. For a daily roundup of business news in the Western region, go to www....

How a hospital had to heal itself: though rated one of the state's best, a rural medical center goes on life support after a fatal mishap chokes off funding.(FEATURE)
March 1, 2009... It's early, but the hospital parking lot in tiny Clyde is full. People stroll in. While another waits in line behind it, a nursing-home van stops under the portico and the driver opens its side door. A nurse parks a wheelchair next to it and...

Standing in the shadow: Rick Hendrick is a winner, a czar of car sales and tycoon of race teams. But behind both is a man haunted by loss.(COVER STORY)
March 1, 2009... As evening comes to the hollow at the bottom of Stowe Lane, a crowd gathers. Under red canopies, tables bulge with burgers, chicken, corn on the cob, boiled new potatoes, desserts. A master of ceremonies hops on a low stage painted in a...

Return of the red man: taking a pass on mass production, a brit brings back a classic Yankee bike that's being built by hand in Cleveland county.(PICTURE THIS)
March 1, 2009... Bolt by polished bolt, they're resurrecting the Indian in a former warehouse in Kings Mountain. It's the native American motorcycle--dating back to 1901, the first made in this country--and was legend long before movies learned to talk....

Bricks & mortar.
March 1, 2009... Eugene C. Sawyer was Asheville's pioneer automobile dealer, selling his first vehicle in 1903. Early customers included Rutherford P. Hayes, son of the former president, and George Vanderbilt, owner of Biltmore House. In the middle of the...