Finance and Commerce Daily Newspaper, MN articles from February 2004

Finance and Commerce Daily Newspaper, MN archives from February 2004

St. Paul-based 3M completes acquisition of HighJump Software.
February 3, 2004... St. Paul-based 3M said that it has acquired HighJump Software, a provider of supply chain software based in Eden Prairie. HighJump is now a subsidiary of 3M operating under the name HighJump Software. It will report to 3M's industrial...

Demographics leads Builders Assn. of the Twin Cities to consider new senior housing group.
February 3, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson America's population is getting grayer, and local home builders are taking note. The Builders Association of the Twin Cities, which represents residential home builders and remodelers, is exploring the idea of...

Advertising industry specialist Bob Geiger joins F&C.
February 3, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Greetings. My name is Bob Geiger, and I'm known as an advertising industry expert of sorts. If my name sounds familiar, you probably have read the Star Tribune's business section on Mondays or Saturdays since...

AGC-Minnesota names 2004-2005 board of directors.
February 4, 2004... Byline: staff The Associated General Contractors of Minnesota has named Todd Goderstad of Burnsville-based Ames Construction as chairman of the construction trade association's 2004-2005 board of directors. Don Rachel of Rogers-based...

Two advertising firm startups making local debuts.
February 4, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Five senior account and creative advertising executives have left their Minneapolis employers and started their own firms, hoping to capitalize on their experiences with high-profile national clients. New to the...

St. Paul Winter Carnival Ice Palace was an engineering achievement.
February 5, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson It's not every day that an engineer gets to work on a bona fide palace. And when the palace is made of frozen chunks of city lake water instead of bricks and mortar, the project is even more unusual. Troy Such, an...

Rogers-based Palmer West Construction Co. honored for quality, professionalism.
February 5, 2004... Byline: staff Palmer West Construction Co., a Rogers-based roofing contractor, is one of 21 roofers nationwide to be honored by the Johns Manville Roofing Systems Group for quality installation and performance. The Johns Manville...

Eden Prairie-based Ontrack Data Recovery opening new office in Spain.
February 5, 2004... Byline: staff Eden Prairie-based Ontrack Data Recovery, has opened an office in Madrid, Spain. The expansion is a result of growing demand for data recovery and retrieval solutions in the European market. Nicholas Green will lead...

Pinehurst Bank startup entering Twin Cities' Highland neighborhood.
February 5, 2004... Byline: Mark Anderson The newest of the Twin Cities' new banks has its neighbors in St. Paul's Highland Park thinking about deja vu all over again. Pinehurst Bank is aiming for a late March opening in the former Investors' Savings...

Eagan-based TELS Corp. buys Hampton and Hampton and Pathway Advisors.
February 6, 2004... Eagan-based TELS Corp. has acquired Hampton and Hampton and Pathway Advisors Inc. The acquisition allows TELS to expand Strategic Futures and Options Inc., a subsidiary of TELS, into five branch offices in Kansas. The company said this...

New Hope-based Vicom MultiBand acquiring Satellite Broadcast properties.
February 6, 2004... Vicom Inc. said that it will purchase the Florida and Minnesota-based subscribers of private cable operator Satellite Broadcast Corp. The transaction is expected to close this month, and Vicom's MultiBand division should begin servicing...

Experts see U.S. economy heading for 'sweet spot'.
February 6, 2004... Byline: David Knutson On a day when the U.S. economy was giving mixed readings, two economists told members of the Senate Finance Committee that the recovery should soon translate into more jobs. Paul Anton, president and chief...

Fallon's Tokyo office lands Volkswagen Golf account.
February 6, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Fallon Tokyo, the Tokyo office of Minneapolis-based ad agency Fallon Worldwide, has landed the advertising assignment for Volkswagen Group Japan's Golf model line. No estimated annual budget for Volkswagen's Golf...

Construction services to remain exempt from reverse auction bidding system.
February 6, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson Minnesota's Department of Administration doesn't plan to seek permission from the Legislature to use reverse auction bidding for obtaining construction services, according to Kent Allin, director of the Department of...

Bank startups, branches enter market in Minnesota region.
February 7, 2004... Byline: Mark Anderson Analysts are anticipating a renewed round of bank consolidations after last month's announced mega-merger of J.P. Morgan Chase and Bank One. But there is no sign that Twin Cities banking options will shrink if...

Minneapolis advertising firms in competition for food accounts.
February 7, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Minneapolis ad agency Carmichael Lynch is competing for No. 1 coffee retailer Starbucks' $20 million consumer ad account for the international chain of 7,569 coffee shops. Carmichael Lynch, the fourth-largest ad...

Edina-based Northco Real Estate Services joins Grubb & Ellis affiliates.
February 7, 2004... Byline: staff Grubb & Ellis Co. said that it has started an affiliation with Edina-based Northco Real Estate Services. Established in 1975, Northco provides real estate services, including asset management, brokerage, leasing,...

Group says industrial taxes run too high in Minnesota.
February 7, 2004... Byline: staff Despite state tax reforms, Minnesota manufacturers continue to be taxed at a higher rate than similar businesses elsewhere around the country, according to a Twin Cities group. The Minnesota chapter of the National...

MDU Resources buys Fred Carlson Co., Roverud Construction.
February 7, 2004... Byline: staff MDU Resources Group Inc. said that it has purchased Fred Carlson Co. Inc. and Roverud Construction Inc. The companies have been merged into Knife River Corp., the construction materials and mining subsidiary of MDU Resources....

Genmar to make VEC Technology stand-alone company.
February 11, 2004... Byline: staff Genmar Holdings Inc. has made its spin-off business, VEC Technology, into a new stand-alone entity. Interplastic Corp., a St. Paul-based manufacturer and distributor of resins became the initial investor with Genmar in...

UnitedHealth buying Mid Atlantic Medical Services.
February 11, 2004... Byline: staff UnitedHealth Group said that its UnitedHealthcare division will merge with Mid Atlantic Medical Services. On Tuesday Mid Atlantic Medical Services stockholders voted in favor of the transaction. Under the merger...

TELS subsidiary opening new office in Kansas City.
February 11, 2004... Byline: staff Eagan-based TELS Corp. said that its Hampton and Hampton subsidiary plans to open a new office in Kansas City, Kan. by March. "This new branch is part of our overall plan to expand our business. We intend on opening an...

Chairman of ATS Medical to step down from board.
February 11, 2004... Byline: staff Manny Villafana chairman of the board and company founder of ATS Medical said that he will not seek re-election to the board of directors when his term expires May 31. Golden Valley-based ATS Medical produces heart...

Minnesota researchers look for way to make crack-resistant asphalt roads that will last.
February 11, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson As any driver can attest to, Minnesota winters are not kind to our highways. Hoping to find ways to make asphalt roads stand up longer to freeze-thaw cycles, the University of Minnesota and Minnesota Department...

Bloomington-based eEmpACT Software acquires DataForce Systems.
February 12, 2004... Byline: staff Bloomington-based eEmpACT Software has acquired DataForce Systems. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The acquisition, the company's second in a year, will double its customer base, making it the largest staffing...

Golden Valley-based ATS Medical revenue increases 39 percent in 2003.
February 12, 2004... Byline: staff Golden Valley-based ATS Medical Inc., a heart valve producer, said that revenue for the fourth quarter of 2003 increased more than 50 percent to a record $5.6 million, as compared with sales of $3.7 million for the fourth...

Minnetonka-based Norstan names Robert J. Vold as chief financial officer.
February 12, 2004... Byline: staff Minnetonka-based Norstan Inc., a provider of telecommunications technology, said that the company's board of directors named Robert J. Vold senior vice president and chief financial officer. Vold, 44, joined Norstan in...

Economist for American Institute of Architects sees comeback for nonresidential construction.
February 12, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson After four consecutive years of declining activity, the U.S. nonresidential construction industry is poised for a comeback in 2004, according to Kermit Baker, the chief economist for the American Institute of...

U.S. Small Business Administration plan may hurt startups and minority-owned businesses.
February 12, 2004... Byline: Mark Anderson The U.S. Small Business Administration may have found a way out of the budget impasse that has jeopardized its main lending program through the first five months of fiscal 2004. But along with an attractive $3...

CSM Executive Lodging to franchise with Marriott.
February 13, 2004... Byline: staff CSM Executive Lodging, an affiliate of CSM Corp., said be a franchise of ExecuStay by Marriott. ExecuStay is the corporate housing division of Marriott International. ExecuStay adds to the existing Marriott Courtyard,...

Edina-based GMAC-RFC sees financing opportunity in manufactured housing sector.
February 13, 2004... Byline: Mark Anderson It has been a stormy few years in the manufactured housing industry. Bad loans, overzealous marketing and sales, and outright fraud resulted in bankruptcies, tight capital - and a promising new opportunity for...

Minneapolis Marketing Briefs: February 14, 2004.
February 14, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Former Colle + McVoy CEO Jim Bergeson is returning to active advertising business duty as president of the Twin Cities office of NKH&W Inc. - a business-to-business and consumer ad agency that hired Bergeson to run its...

Kandiyohi County pushing for new ethanol plant.
February 14, 2004... Byline: news The push is on for local officials trying to lure a new ethanol plant to Kandiyohi County. Steve Renquist, director of the Kandiyohi County and city of Willmar Economic Development Commission, said he intends to spend "a...

E&V moving to downtown Minneapolis, changing name.
February 14, 2004... Byline: staff Houston-based 3D/I is moving E&V, its Minnesota office, to downtown Minneapolis. E&V, which joined 3D/I in December, will complete a name change to 3D/I as part of this move. The new office is located in the Dain Rauscher...

Wash.-based Potlatch Corp.'s Grand Rapids plant to shut down for routine maintenance.
February 14, 2004... Byline: staff Spokane, Wash.-based Potlatch Corp.'s Grand Rapids plant will conduct annual maintenance during the last week of March, said Ron Salisbury, Potlatch OSB general manager. Production will stop between March 22 and March 26....

Minneapolis-based Allina Hospitals & Clinics moving to new location.
February 14, 2004... Byline: staff The Allina Hospitals & Clinics board of directors will announce on Wednesday the new location for the Allina corporate headquarters, making a decision between sites located in Minneapolis, St. Paul and Roseville. This...

Eagon-based Buffets Holdings to cancel offering of senior discount notes.
February 14, 2004... Byline: staff Eagan-based Buffets Holdings Inc. said that in light of market conditions, it has withdrawn its proposed offering of senior discount notes. Buffets, a wholly owned subsidiary of Buffets Holdings, still intends to enter...

Natick, Mass.-based Boston Scientific planning Minnesota expansion.
February 18, 2004... Byline: staff Boston Scientific Corp. of Natick, Mass., announced plans on Tuesday to add 600 jobs and build a 120,000-square-foot building at its operations in Maple Grove. The company, which plans to phase in the jobs over the next...

Minneapolis-based TestQuest secures $3.7M in venture capital financing.
February 18, 2004... Byline: staff Minneapolis-based TestQuest Inc. said that it has secured $3.7 million of funding from Norwest Venture Partners and RRE Ventures. Since 1999, $18 million has been invested in Test Quest. The funding will be used to...

Minneapolis-based startup, FMSystems Inc., offers an entire facilities management process.
February 18, 2004... Byline: Todd Messelt For public schools and other large educational institutions, keeping up with the unpredictable demands of buildings and grounds maintenance can become a day-to-day exercise in crisis management, not to mention a drain...

Minneapolis advertising exec, Pat Forciea, enters Dairy Queen business.
February 18, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Minneapolis advertising executive Pat Forciea is trying a soft-serve approach to business, buying franchise rights from Edina-based International Dairy Queen (IDQ) for southwestern Florida. Forciea, who is partnering...

Minneapolis and St. Paul see a surge in multifamily housing projects.
February 19, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson Question: Which metro area city authorized construction for the most new homes in the first three quarters of 2003? Blaine? Shakopee? Woodbury? Farmington? Answer: None of the above. According to the Met...

Minneapolis' Uptown City construction project highlights apartment growth spurt.
February 19, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson If the characters from the television show "Seinfeld" had relocated from New York to Minneapolis, chances are they would have moved into a place like the Uptown City Apartments. The apartments, under construction...

Minneapolis-based Vicom to purchase Minnesota Digital Universe.
February 20, 2004... Byline: staff Minneapolis-based Vicom Inc. said that it will purchase Minnesota Digital Universe Inc. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Minnesota Digital has 40,000 video subscribers through a network of private cable...

Edina-based Alliant Techsystems sells $280 million in notes.
February 20, 2004... Byline: staff Edina-based Alliant Techsystems said that it has completed the sale of a previously announced offering of 2.75 percent convertible senior subordinated notes. The company issued $280 million aggregate principal amount of...

Minnesota House bill addresses funding for school mold prevention.
February 20, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson A bill that would free up additional funding for mold prevention in schools has been introduced in the Minnesota Legislature. The measure, sponsored by Rep. Kathy Tingelstad (R-Andover) and others, would allow...

Members of Builders Assn. of the Twin Cities hear marketing pep talk on branding.
February 20, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Members of the Builders Association of the Twin Cities (BATC) received a marketing pep talk on Thursday from a Minneapolis ad agency executive, less than a week after the Valentine's Day launch of the 2004 Parade of...

Certegy to acquire Minneapolis-based Game Financial.
February 21, 2004... Byline: staff Alpharetta, Ga-based Certegy Inc. said that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Game Financial Corp. for $43 million. Founded in 1990, Minneapolis-based Game Financial provides debit and credit card cash advances,...

Milwaukee-based M&I Bank completes its entry into Twin Cities banking mix.
February 21, 2004... Byline: Mark Anderson When Twin Cities residents think "bank," the first name that comes to mind isn't likely to be M&I Bank. The $34 billion Milwaukee-based bank is still a long way from establishing the dominant brand that local...

Minneapolis Marketing Briefs: February 21, 2004.
February 21, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger TMP Worldwide's Eden Prairie office has reduced its staff by 23 after its yellow pages order and billings operations were shifted to TMP's larger Milwaukee office. All 23 employees affected by TMP's move were offered...

Minnetonka-based Identix acquires Sylvan Identix Fingerprint Centers.
February 24, 2004... Byline: staff Minnetonka-based Identix Inc., a biometrics technology company, said that it paid $875,000 to acquire Sylvan Identix Fingerprint Centers. Sylvan Identix, which makes biometric data and transmissions for FBI applicant...

Lawsuit filed over ad that Minneapolis adman Bill Hillsman created for Nader's last campaign.
February 24, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Ralph Nader officially announced his independent candidacy for president of the United States on Monday. What remains unknown is whether Minneapolis adman Bill Hillsman will again work for Nader's campaign. ...

Timberland drops its ad agency, Fallon New York.
February 25, 2004... Byline: staff The New York office of Minneapolis-based Fallon Worldwide on Tuesday parted ways with outdoor footwear manufacturer Timberland Co. after the Stratham, N.H., company decided to work with ad agencies on a project-by-project...

Minneapolis-based BUCA announces $18 million private placement.
February 25, 2004... Byline: staff BUCA Inc. said that it has entered into a definitive securities purchase agreement for the private placement of 3.3 million shares of newly issued stock to institutional investors. The purchase price is $5.50 per share and...

Business leaders decry Maryland's high-tax climate.
February 25, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson Minnesota needs to reduce the cost of doing business in the state if it wants to be more competitive with its neighbors, according to business leaders who spoke Tuesday at a National Association of Industrial Office...

Hutchinson hearth manufacturer successfully enters European market.
February 25, 2004... Byline: Lee Ann Owens After 31 years of selling stoves in the United States, American Energy Systems is seeing business heat up globally this winter. Mike Haefner, founder and president of the Hutchinson-based hearth manufacturer, said...

Minneapolis-based Paper Warehouse files plan in Chapter 11 case.
February 26, 2004... Byline: staff Paper Warehouse Inc. said that it has filed a joint plan of liquidation in its Chapter 11 bankruptcy case. Under the plan, if confirmed by the bankruptcy court, the remaining assets of the company will be sold and the...

Twin Cities' community banks post stellar year.
February 26, 2004... Byline: Mark Anderson Although the Twin Cities' overall economic performance was generally lackluster last year, many of its top community banks found niches where business continued to boom and lenders stayed busy. A year-end review...

Minneapolis riverfront evolving from wasteland to downtown mecca.
February 26, 2004... Byline: Brian Johnson Development on the downtown Minneapolis riverfront, like the Mississippi River itself, just keeps rollin' along. The riverfront was home to the milling industry that made Minneapolis the flour capital of the world...

Minnetonka-based Identix letting go of 6 percent of its employees.
February 27, 2004... Byline: staff Minnetonka-based Identix Inc. said it has laid off 6 percent of its staff, the equivalent of about 30 full-time positions. Identix said the company expects to save $3.5 million starting in its fiscal 2005 year, which...

Industry veteran Eric Block quits Minneapolis-based Fallon Worldwide.
February 27, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Eric Block, who helped build Minneapolis-based Fallon Worldwide into a powerhouse in the advertising industry, has quit the firm after 17 years. Block, 46, did not say why he left Fallon and what he planned to do...

Minneapolis Marketing Briefs February 28, 2004.
February 28, 2004... Byline: Bob Geiger Tina Wilcox, president and chief creative officer of Minneapolis retail branding firm Fame, is resigning from the 14-year-old firm March 31 after a "mutual agreement" to end her relationship with the 50-employee shop....

Historic Armstrong-Quinlan House almost ready for new condo buyers.
February 28, 2004... Byline: Brina Johnson The Armstrong-Quinlan House - the historic mansion that had to be moved from its original site in downtown St. Paul to make room for a bus facility - is heading into the final stages of renovation and soon will be...