Business North Carolina articles from November 2006

Business North Carolina archives from November 2006

Better late than never.(UP FRONT)(Interview)
November 1, 2006... We've been trying to do this month's cover story for more than five years, and it had been assigned for more than five months. But Ed Martin didn't get to talk to the subject until after he had finished writing it. "We've been trying to...

Trend.(Statistical table)
November 1, 2006... [GRAPHIC OMITTED] [GRAPHIC OMITTED] [GRAPHIC OMITTED] [GRAPHIC OMITTED] Latest Previous Previous % change from month month year last year ...

Stock watch.(Statistical table)
November 1, 2006... SPOTLIGHT US LEC soared after its proposed merger with PAETEC Communications cleared a regulatory hurdle in September. [GRAPHIC OMITTED] [GRAPHIC OMITTED] Highest price/earnings ratios P/E...

State should press the sales tax into services.(ECONOMIC OUTLOOK)
November 1, 2006... The state tax system hasn't changed much since the 1930s, and some say it needs an overhaul. It worked well enough for the manufacturing economy of the 20th century, but services dominate the state's economy now. The Institute for Emerging...

Drug researcher prescribes expansion.(EASTERN)
November 1, 2006... Metrics, a Greenville-based drug-research company, will spend $17.5 million to expand operations there by June. It plans to add nearly 80 workers, for a total of 250. The expansion will include about 17,000 square feet of manufacturing space...

DuPont.(EASTERN)
November 1, 2006... FAYETTEVILLE -- Industrial giant DuPont, which employs about 500 here, will spend $50 million to add a factory to its complex just over the Bladen County line. Work will be completed in 2007. The new plant will employ 15 producing a polymer...

aaiPharma.(EASTERN)
November 1, 2006... WILMINGTON -- Drug researcher aaiPharma agreed to buy Cvitkovic & Associes Consultants, a Paris-based research company that specializes in cancer-drug development and medical consulting. Terms weren't disclosed. The deal will add 100 employees,...

Cape Fear Bank.(EASTERN)
November 1, 2006... WILMINGTON -- Bank of Wilmington changed its name to Cape Fear Bank to reflect its growth in the region. The eight-year-old bank has five branches in New Hanover, Brunswick and Pender counties.

CSS Neuse State Historic Site.(EASTERN)
November 1, 2006... KINSTON -- The N.C. Historic Sites Commission allocated about $250,000 to renovate the 12,000-square-foot visitor center at the CSS Neuse State Historic Site. The site hopes to get $3 million next year to build a 7,500-square-foot enclosure for...

Working capital.(REGIONAL REPORT)
November 1, 2006... Source: Employment Security Commission, July. Figures are not seasonally adjusted. The index is the number of jobs as a percentage of the overage in 2000. [GRAPHIC OMITTED]

Plants' closing puts new one on a roll.(TRIANGLE)
November 1, 2006... Roxboro lost more than 500 jobs when Collins & Aikman, a Troy, Mich.-based maker of automotive fabrics, closed three plants in August. It might be small consolation, but P & A Industrial Fabrications, formed in July by two former Collins &...

Cree.(TRIANGLE)
November 1, 2006... DURHAM -- Semiconductor maker Cree hired John T. Kurtzweil, 50, as chief financial officer. He had been CFO at Cirrus Logic, an Austin, Texas-based developer of integrated circuits. He replaces Cynthia Merrill, who left for another job in May.

Xerium Technologies.(TRIANGLE)
November 1, 2006... YOUNGSVILLE -- Xerium Technologies, a maker of clothing and products used in paper production, sold a British business that makes equipment for removing water from the manufacturing process. Terms weren't disclosed. The move will allow Xerium...

INC Research.(TRIANGLE)
November 1, 2006... RALEIGH -- Drug researcher INC Research bought Philadelphia-based Pharmaceutical Resource, which focuses on late-stage adult and pediatric clinical trials. Terms weren't disclosed. INC Research expects demand for late-stage clinical testing to...

R.H. Donnelley.(TRIANGLE)
November 1, 2006... CARY -- Phone-book publisher R.H. Donnelley bought Chicago-based LocalLaunch, a developer of Internet search products. Terms weren't disclosed. The deal added about 40 employees. Donnelley anticipates that it will expand its online business....

Applied Control Technology.(TRIANGLE)
November 1, 2006... RALEIGH -- Dallas-based TAC, which integrates building-control systems such as air conditioning, lighting and security monitoring, bought Applied Control Technology, which installs and sells control systems, to strengthen its presence in North...

Vescom America.(TRIANGLE)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Vescom America, an Orangeburg, N.Y.-based maker of vinyl wall coverings and upholstery, is spending $9 million to move operations to Henderson and create 75 jobs during the next three years. The average weekly wage will be $630, compared with...

TriPath Imaging.(TRIAD)
November 1, 2006... BURLINGTON -- Franklin Lakes, N.J.-based medical-equipment maker Becton, Dickinson and Co. agreed to buy TriPath Imaging, which develops clinical tests for cancer, for about $350 million. The deal is expected to close in early 2007. Becton...

TransTech Pharma.(TRIAD)
November 1, 2006... HIGH POINT -- Drug developer TransTech Pharma signed a $155 million licensing agreement under which New York-based drug maker Pfizer will develop and commercialize a TransTech compound that could be used to treat Alzheimer's disease. TransTech...

Global Textile Alliance.(TRIAD)
November 1, 2006... REIDSVILLE -- Global Textile Alliance, which markets products from 15 small textile mills under a single brand, will spend $12.3 million to open a mattress-ticking factory here this month. It will employ 48. The company, based in Colfax,...

Hanesbrands.(TRIAD)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... Winston-Salem gained its third Fortune 500 company in September when Chicago-based food maker Sara Lee spun off its Hanes-brands apparel unit. In its first day of trading, Hanesbrands closed at $21.11 a share, up 6.6% from its opening price. A...

Burlington bags Virginia textile jobs.(TRIAD)
November 1, 2006... Greensboro-based International Textile Group will move more than 100 jobs to Burlington from a plant it is closing next year in Hurt, Va. The company, created in 2004 by the merger of Burlington Industries and Cone Mills, will spend about $4.5...

Lexington Home Brands.(TRIAD)
November 1, 2006... THOMASVILLE -- Furniture maker Lexington Home Brands hired Phillip Haney, 51, as CEO. He replaced Bob Stec, also 51. Stec retired in June, saying he wanted to spend more time with his family. Haney had been executive vice president for...

U.S. Xpress Enterprises.(TRIAD)
November 1, 2006... LEXINGTON -- U.S. Xpress Enterprises, a Chattanooga, Tenn.-based trucking company, opened a division here in September. It will spend $4.5 million on renovations and expects to hire more than 300 people--most of them drivers--within three...

Deluxe Financial Services.(TRIAD)
November 1, 2006... GREENSBORO -- Deluxe Financial Services, which prints checks and other financial forms, is adding 100 jobs at its call center here, bringing the total to more than 300. Deluxe Financial Services is part of St. Paul, Minn.-based Deluxe, which...

Thomasville Furniture Industries.(TRIAD)
November 1, 2006... THOMASVILLE -- Thomasville Furniture Industries will break ranks with its industry in January by publishing its prices online. Thomasville wants to avoid discounting and move toward other types of customer incentives, including gift cards and...

Hospital chains want links in Mint Hill.(CHARLOTTE)
November 1, 2006... Charlotte-based Carolinas HealthCare System wants to build a hospital in the suburb of Mint Hill. So does rival Presbyterian Healthcare, part of Winston-Salem-based Novant Health. Carolinas asked the state for permission to build a $70 million,...

American City Business Journals.(CHARLOTTE)
November 1, 2006... CHARLOTTE -- American City Business Journals bought the Sporting News print, online and radio businesses from Seattle-based Vulcan, the holding company of Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. Terms were not disclosed. American City, which is part...

Wachovia.(CHARLOTTE)
November 1, 2006... CHARLOTTE -- Wachovia plans to move about 50 jobs here by February from sales and support operations in North Brunswick, N.J. The bank employs about 29,000 across North Carolina.

Euromarket Designs.(CHARLOTTE)
November 1, 2006... LINCOLNTON -- Northbrook, Ill.-based Euromarket Designs, which operates Crate & Barrel stores, plans to nearly double the size of its warehouse here to 400,000 square feet by June. It will add at least 10 jobs, bringing the total to about 40.

Nucor.(CHARLOTTE)
November 1, 2006... CHARLOTTE -- Steel maker Nucor agreed to buy Verco Manufacturing, a Phoenix-based maker of steel flooring and roof decking, for $180 million. The purchase strengthens the presence of Nucor, already the largest U.S. steel maker, in the Western...

Family Dollar Stores.(CHARLOTTE)
November 1, 2006... MATTHEWS -- Family Dollar Stores promoted R. James Kelly, 59, to president and chief operating officer. Kelly has been chief financial and administrative officer since 1997 and will continue to serve as CFO until that position is filled. The...

Progress Energy.(CHARLOTTE)
November 1, 2006... SALISBURY -- Raleigh-based Progress Energy sold a 925-megawatt power plant here to Atlanta-based Southern Power. Progress paid down debt with about $405 million from this sale and one of a plant in Florida earlier this year.

BNP Residential Properties.(CHARLOTTE)
November 1, 2006... Sydney, Australia-based Babcock & Brown Real Estate Investments agreed to buy BNP Residential Properties, a Charlotte-based real-estate investment trust, for $766 million. BNP owns and operates 32 apartment complexes with 8,180 units in North...

Lenoir gets to the meat of the matter.(WESTERN)
November 1, 2006... Vantage Foods, a Calgary, Alberta-based meat processor, will spend $21 million to open a factory in Lenoir next year and create 183 jobs. They will pay an average of $11.86 an hour, less than the Caldwell County average of $13.59. The plant...

Ethan Allen Interiors.(WESTERN)
November 1, 2006... SPRUCE PINE -- Ethan Allen Interiors, a Danbury, Conn.-based furniture maker, will close its 300-employee factory here this month and shift work to other plants. Low-cost imports have forced the company to find less-expensive means of...

Spruce Pine Community Hospital.(WESTERN)
November 1, 2006... SPRUCE PINE -- Spruce Pine Community Hospital broke ground on an $18.6 million expansion that is expected to be completed next fall. The project will increase square footage 65% to 132,000 and will include operating rooms and a larger radiology...

Blue Ridge Parkway Association.(WESTERN)(Brief article)
November 1, 2006... ASHEVILLE -- The Blue Ridge Parkway Association received a $438,000 federal grant to promote the scenic 469-mile road. The association will use the money to erect landmark signs, develop a Web site and pay for other marketing efforts. The...

North Carolina Mountain State Fair.(WESTERN)
November 1, 2006... FLETCHER -- The North Carolina Mountain State Fair attracted 176,323 people this year during its 10-day run, an increase of about 2% from 2005. The gain is small but comes at a time when competition from theme parks and other forms of...

Prof can't make students pay more than attention.(TAR HEEL TATTLER)
November 1, 2006... Back in the day, a college student who skipped class but cared about what he had missed borrowed a classmate's notes. A few beers or bucks might change hands, and everybody was happy. Not so this fall when N.C. State University professor Robert...

Owners fear being tithed to the tracks.(TAR HEEL TATTLER)
November 1, 2006... Dene Rich has a message for The North Carolina Railroad Co.: "I am not stupid." Certainly not stupid enough to pay the railroad rent for property she says she, her husband and uncle own--site of a Sprinkle Gas station--within 100 feet of the...

Cities will be up the river without a ladle.
November 1, 2006... Parting the water may have been easy for Moses, but parting with it can be hard for anyone else. A preacher testifying at a hearing in Valdese on a proposal to divert 22 million gallons a day from the Catawba River to Concord and Kannapolis...

The Ultimate Question: Driving Good Profits and True Growth.(WHAT THEY'RE READING)
November 1, 2006... Daryl Brewster, CEO, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts The Ultimate Question: Driving Good Profits and True Growth by Fred Reichheld The author focuses on the importance of passionate consumers in turning around a business. He features a simple...

Levi's Will.(WHAT THEY'RE READING)
November 1, 2006... William Long, CEO, Yadkin Valley Financial Levi's Will by W. Dale Cramer This is a great book concerning relationships. Cramer is a great writer, and his novel tells a lot about how we grow up to be who we are. [ILLUSTRATION...

Season of Life.
November 1, 2006... Chip Olsen, Carolinas area director, Trammell Crow Season of Life by Jeffrey Marx A former captain of the Baltimore Colts who's now an ordained minister teaches young men a new meaning of masculinity. I've always planned to go back and...

CEO seeks fans to flame hotter image for his bank.(PEOPLE)
November 1, 2006... Scott Custer likes sports. But that's not why Raleigh-based RBC Centura Banks Inc. and its parent, Toronto-based Royal Bank of Canada, pour money into sports sponsorships. It's a way to try to stand out when you stand in the shadows of two...

He wants products to show some class.(PEOPLE)
November 1, 2006... Phelps Sprinkle knows some parents might cringe at what his Charlotte-based business does: It helps customers get their messages into classrooms. But these aren't advertising messages. Topics Education Group LLC helps companies such as New...

Consultant has auto motive for this plan.(PEOPLE)
November 1, 2006... Though he's 60, Dick Dell never got over hot cars, particularly his first new one, a glacier-blue '63 Falcon Sprint with four on the floor and a high-revving V-8 under the hood. Now he's the driving force behind the Advanced Vehicle Research...

State can still play to its strengths: economic-development experts say exploiting North Carolina's advantages will help it stay at the forefront.(Discussion)
November 1, 2006... North Carolina's economy is on a roll and can stay that way. That's the opinion of a panel of economic-development experts brought together by Winston-Salem-based law firm Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC: Ronnie Bryant, president and CEO...

Cashing the first stone: hard rock, once the bane of Jamie Hill's existence, turns out to be a real gem for the Hiddenite emerald hunter.(FEATURE)
November 1, 2006... Even with summer slipping away, greenery envelops Hiddenite, sheathing the hills sliding down from the Brushy Mountains and the pastures flanking the two-lane highway leading into the Alexander County hamlet, about 15 miles northwest of...

More banks for the buck: our Financial 100 ranking shows fresh competition keeps flooding the field even as the economy softens.(FEATURE)
November 1, 2006... Greg Gibson admits his obsession with growing his bank borders on the extreme. "We jokingly say, 'We're not building a bank--we're building a cult.'" To a casual observer, it's probably not a very scary one. Its sacred text is Good to Great, a...

Cash over flash: as bank of America's CEO, Ken Lewis thinks performance trumps personality. And he has the numbers to prove it.
November 1, 2006... Fifty-eight floors below the conference room where the man who runs the world's most profitable company rattles off numbers--most profitable, he corrects himself, except for Big Oil--what once was called the Crossroads of the Carolinas crackles...

Sliver me timbers: sell the high trees, come a board, walk the plank--it's all life on the cutting edge at a lumber yard.(PICTURE THIS)
November 1, 2006... Each day that it's not raining, about 20 tractor-trailers loaded with freshly cut logs make the turn off Falling Oak Road into McDowell Lumber Co., a sawmill about five miles southwest of Asheboro. The best become top-grade lumber, good for...

Bricks & mortar.
November 1, 2006... It was a dark and stormy night. When that's true, calls flood Duke Energy's Customer Service Center in Charlotte. The record was in 2002 when an ice storm left 1.4 million users in the dark. Built in 1991, the rotunda and its wings cover more...