Washington Business Journal articles from February 1991

Washington Business Journal archives from February 1991

Area vital signs signal economy headed back up. (Washington, D.C.)
February 25, 1991... Area vital signs signal economy headed back up American Management Systems Inc. plans to hire about 500 workers this year, and the Arlington company's almost doubling of earnings in 1990 flies in the face of the local recession. ...

DreamCar Holdings stalls, along with auto market: new publicly held company finds classics draw few buyers.
February 25, 1991... DreamCar Holdings stalls, along with auto market A little more than a year after trying to carve out a new niche for itself in the American automobile marketplace, DreamCar Holdings Inc. of Bethesda has been slammed into reverse by a...

Getting back to Alex. G. Bell: in Silver Spring, Bell Atlantic nurtures its budding inventors. (intrapreneurship program)
February 25, 1991... Getting back to Alex. G. Bell Out of offices in Silver Spring, Bell Atlantic Corp. employees who have left the mother ship to more entrepreneurial satellites have in recent weeks started sending back some of the firm's most innovative...

Rockville firm scores with Gretkzy game: computer hockey game so realistic coaches say they get tips from it. (Wayne Gretzky, Bethesda Softworks)
February 25, 1991... Rockville firm scores with Gretzky game In the world of hockey, L.A. Kings' Wayne Gretzky is No. 1; in the world of computer game software, Bethesda Softworks' Wayne Gretzky Hockey is No. 1. The PC-based sports simulation game first...

Chapter 11 marks latest round in Bowie feud. (Belair 301-50 SW Quadrant Commercial Properties Inc., City of Capitals Inc.)
February 25, 1991... Chapter 11 marks latest round in Bowie feud Soon now, the feud between the Gaeglers and the Cohens will become as legendary as the Hatfields and McCoys. In the latest chapter of what is surely one of the longest-running battles in...

District probes off-shore companies for fraud: U.S. agencies also look into shell banking firms in District. (Washington, D.C.; Dominion of Melchizedek case)
February 25, 1991... District probes off-shore companies for fraud The D.C. Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs said last week it is investigating allegations of fraud by the organizers of Banco de Asia Ltd., Express Bank Ltd. and International...

Crestar selling off Cafritz building. (Crestar Bank; Conrad Cafritz; Parkside Towers)
February 25, 1991... Crestar sells off Cafritz building Crestar Bank has sold Parkside Towers, a 104-unit apartment building in Silver Spring, in a foreclosure sale to GHA Investments Inc. for $4.3 million. Conrad Cafritz was a general partner in the...

Trustbank's mortgage arm closed by feds. (Trustbank Federal Savings Bank)
February 25, 1991... Trustbank's mortgage arm closed by feds Trustbank Federal Savings Bank, which is being run by the government after a federal takeover a month ago, has shut down its celebrated mortgage origination arm -- one of its key money-making...

Inslaw charges pirated software was sold to Israel and Canada: Infotechnology chief calls accusation 'a tissue of lies.'
February 25, 1991... Inslaw charges pirated software was sold to Israel and Canada Officials of Inslaw Inc. believe the Canadian and Israeli governments are using pirated copies of proprietary case management software the firm initially develope for and then...

IRS seeks builder for headquarters. (Internal Revenue Service)
February 25, 1991... IRS seeks builder for headquarters The General Services Administration has started looking for developers who could build new headquarters for the Internal Revenue Service, a project which has been on the books for nearly two years and one...

Refinancing buttresses area toy store chain. (Juvenile Sales Co.) (company profile)
February 25, 1991... Refinancing buttresses area toy store chain It may be a bright spot, albeit small, in an otherwise dim area retailing landscape. Juvenile Sales Co., a Beltsville-based 10-unit toy store chain that has always pretty much kept to itself,...

D.C. pressures HMOs to provide more services.
February 25, 1991... D.C. pressures HMOs to provide more services D.C. hospitals, struggling to survive under a crushing array of financial problems, now find themselves caught in two controversies being waged by two branches of the city government that have...

Legacy Fund purchases minority interest in firm. (WashingtonInc.) (Capital Region News)
February 25, 1991... Legacy Fund purchases minority interest in firm WashingtonInc., a D.C.-based special events and destination management company, received a large financial commitment from the Legacy Fund, a Washington-based venture capital fund. The...

Satellite firm closing in on $500 million in financing. (Orion Network Systems) (Capital Region News)
February 25, 1991... Satellite firm closing in on $500 million in financing Orion Network Systems in Rockville has received commitments for $90 million in equity from partners in the international satellite project. In addition, the firm is in the process of...

Goldsmith dies in plane crash on return to Aspen. (Harold N. Goldsmith, Merry-Go-Round Enterprises Inc.) (Capital Region News) (obituary)
February 25, 1991... Goldsmith dies in plane crash on return to Aspen Baltimore-born businessman Harold N. Goldsmith, co-founder and chairman of Joppa-based Merry-Go-Round Enterprises Inc., died Feb. 13 in a plane crash near his second home in Aspen, Colo. ...

Air Force awards contract for night vision devices. (Martin Marietta Corp.) (Capital Region News)
February 25, 1991... Air Force awards contract for night vision devices Martin Marietta Corp. of Bethesda received a $125.9 million contract from the U.S. Air Force to continue making night targeting systems for aircraft. The company makes the Lantirn...

Taiwan tofu maker to process soy-related foods in Columbia. (Wen's Food Inc.) (Capital Region News)
February 25, 1991... Taiwan tofu maker to process soy-related foods in Columbia It seems only natural that Columbia, home of roads named after Walt Whitman poetry, shoud be chosen for the first tofu processing plant in Maryland. Wen's Food Inc., a...

Biotech firm completes private stock placement. (Igene Biotechnology Inc.) (Capital Region News)
February 25, 1991... Biotech firm completes private stock placement Igene Biotechnology Inc. successfully completed a private offering of common stock to unidentified investors and members of its board and also elected three new board members. The company...

Laventhol & Horwath fall spurs rise of new consulting firm. (Phoenix Technology) (Capital Region News)
February 25, 1991... Laventhol & Horwath fall spurs rise of new consulting firm Two former principals of Laventhol & Horwath have formed Phoenix Technology Ltd., a technology-based management consulting firm. Phoenix founders Gary Glickman, president, and...

Probe of Unisys apparently finds nill in Air Force contract award.
February 25, 1991... Probe of Unisys apparently finds nill in Air Force contract award A year-long investigation into allegations of improprieties during the award of a $700 million Air Force computer contract to Unisys Corp. is winding down with no apparent...

Vienna firm signs deal with Visa for radio credit check. (Digital Radio Networks)
February 25, 1991... Vienna firm signs deal with Visa for radio credit check A local Vienna telecommunications company signed an agreement with Visa USA to provide radio service for authorization of credit card purchases, a deal that could open credit card use...

C3 wins appeal of defense contract.
February 25, 1991... C3 wins appeal of defense contract The Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals has ruled in favor of C3 Inc. overturning a default termination and could be worth millions to the Herndon systems integrator. C3 was determined to be in...

2 printers cutback as advertising dip takes toll. (Heritage Press, Printers II)
February 25, 1991... 2 printers cutback as advertising dip takes toll As an integral part of the advertising food chain, printing companies are struggling along with agencies to weather the downturn. But the recent cutbacks of two major printers signals the...

Cassidy and Associates. (merger with Jefferson Group cancelled)
February 25, 1991... Cassidy and Associates Although there have been hints of a planned merger of the formidable Cassidy and Associates and the 3-and-a-half-year-old Jefferson Group, last week, the two public affairs firms suddenly took a pass on teaming up....

Postage rise gives new impetus to Group 1's mailing software. (company profile)
February 25, 1991... Postage rise gives new impetus to Group 1's mailing software While the military suppliers have grabbed the headlines lately causing their stocks to rise, a local developer of mailing software has stealthily pushed up its earnings and...

Penril DataComm Networks Inc. (People on the Move - High Technology)
February 25, 1991... Penril DataComm Networks Inc. Penril DataComm Networks Inc. appointed John D. Familetti president of Technipower Inc. in Danbury, Conn. Familetti returns to Penril after serving as senior vice president and general manager,...

Court grants class action status in suit against CRI.
February 25, 1991... Court grants class action status in suit against CRI A lawsuit filed last year to challenge Rockville's CRI Inc.'s merger of several real estate investment trusts has been granted class action status by a Montgomery County judge. ...

Lusk buys MetroSource. (Rufus S. Lusk and Son Inc.)
February 25, 1991... Lusk Buys MetroSource Rufus S. Lusk & Son Inc., a Silver Spring-based real estate information service, recently acquired the hardcopy and microfiche services of MetroSource Inc. San Antonio-based MetroSource publishes real estate...

Martin Marietta Corp. (Contracts)
February 25, 1991... Martin Marietta Corp. Martin Marietta Corp. in Bethesda won a $43.8 million contract from the General Electric Co. to begin production of sophisticated electronic test equipment for the Navy. Marietta also won a $125.9 million Air Force...

Complete Building Services. (Contracts)
February 25, 1991... Complete Building Services Complete Building Services in Washington won a mechanical service contract at Brighton Condominium in D.C.

TRW Environmental Safety Systems Inc. (Contracts)
February 25, 1991... TRW Environmental Safety Systems Inc. TRW Environmental Safety Systems Inc. in Fairfax won a $16 million Department of Energy Contract for systems engineering, development and management of the Nuclear Waste Management System.

Unisys Corp. (Contracts)
February 25, 1991... Unisys Corp. Unisys Corp. in McLean won a $48.4 million Navy contract to provide technical assistance, field engineering, logistics support and navigation test vehicle management for the navigation subsystems used on board the...

DCS Corp. (Contracts)
February 25, 1991... DCS Corp. DCS Corp. in Alexandria won a $5.7 million Navy contract for technical and engineering support in electro-optical systems.

Questech Inc. (Contracts)
February 25, 1991... Questech Inc. Questech Inc. in Falls Church won a 36-month, $2.3 million contract from the Army to perform engineering analysis and services. Questech also won a $1.4 million Army contract to perform analysis and systems integration for...

Zimmerman Associates Inc. (Contracts)
February 25, 1991... Zimmerman Associates Inc. Zimmerman Associates Inc. in Crystal City won a $5.3 million Air Force contract for professional support services to the Foreign Science Library.

C3 Inc. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 25, 1991... C3 Inc. C3 Inc., Herndon, reported earning $96,000 on revenue of $31.4 million for the fourth quarter. This compares with losing $8.7 million on revenue of $20.3 million for the fourth quarter of 1989.

UNC Inc. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 25, 1991... UNC Inc. UNC Inc., Annapolis, reported earning $5.1 million, or 30 cents a share, on revenue of $356 million for 1990. This compares with earning $11,000 on revenue of $305 million for 1989.

Lafarge Corp. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 25, 1991... Lafarge Corp. Lafarge Corp., Reston, will pay a dividend of 10 cents a share on March 4 to shareholders of record on Feb. 22.

Systems Center Inc. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 25, 1991... Systems Center Inc. Systems Center Inc., Reston, reported losing $27.9 million, or $2.79 a share, on revenue of $105 million for 1990. This compares with earning $11.7 million, or $1.15 a share, on revenue of $78.2 million for 1989.

Potomac Electric Power Co. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 25, 1991... Potomoc Electric Power Co. Potomoc Electric Power Co., Washington, will sell 4.5 million new shares for $21.38 each.

Insituform East Inc. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 25, 1991... Insituform East Inc. Insituform East Inc., Landover, reported earning $535,000, or 12 cents a share, on sales of $5.4 million for the quarter ended in December. This compares with earning $533,000, or 11 cents a share, on sales of $5...

Versar Inc. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 25, 1991... Versar Inc. Versar Inc., Springfield, reported losing $97,000, or 2 cents a share, on revenue of $16.5 million for the quarter ended in December. This compares with losing $321,000, or 8 cents a share, on revenue of $14.1 million for the...

Star Technologies Inc. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 25, 1991... Star Technologies Inc. Star Technogies Inc., reported earning $85,000 on revenue of $8 million for the quarter ended in December. This compares with losing $2.2 million, or 13 cents a share, on revenue of $6.9 million for the same period...

American Management Systems Inc. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 25, 1991... American Management System Inc. American Management System Inc., Arlington, reported earning $10.4 million, or $1.04 a share, on revenue of $262 million for 1990. This compares with earning $5.8 million, or 56 cents a share on revenue of...

Comnet Corp. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 25, 1991... Comnet Corp. Comnet Corp., Greenbelt, reported earning $361,000, or 13 cents a share, on revenue of $7.5 million for the quarter ended in December. This compares with earning $231,000, or 9 cents a share, on revenue of $4.8 million for the...

Verdix Corp. (Earnings and Dividends)
February 25, 1991... Verdix Corp. Verdix Corp., Chantilly, reported earning $274,000, or 2 cents a share, on revenue of $3.5 million for the quarter ended in December. This compares with earning $669,000, or 6 cents a share, on revenue of $3 million for the...

James Madison year-end report awaited.
February 25, 1991... James Madison year-end report awaited James Madison Ltd. this week is expected to release its long-awaited fourth quarter and year-end results for 1990, news which every local banker expects to be bad. James Madison, the $900 million...

Non-bid awards show sharp rise since gulf war: critics say agencies use war to sidestep contract rules. (Department of Defense)
February 18, 1991... Non-bid awards show sharp rise since gulf war More than half the contract money spent by the military since the beginning of Operation Desert Shield was awarded without competition, sparking complaints and at least one local lawsuit...

D.C. home to shadowy banking web. (Dominion of Melchizedek; includes related article)
February 18, 1991... D.C. home to shadowy banking web An unorthodox Lake Tahoe businessman has evaded regulators to construct a shadow financial empire in D.C. that is validating virtually worthless securities which in turn are being pledged as collateral on...

Home sales off $1.4 billion in Fairfax County. (Virginia)
February 18, 1991... Home sales off $1.4 billion in Fairfax County Reeling from 1990 home sales that were, in Fairfax County alone, $1.4 billion behind total sales from the year before, more big players in the Washington-area home building arena have been...

Top defections rock Bethesda law practice: Lerch Early & Roseman lose Frankle and then Roseman. (Roger Frankel, Robert Roseman)
February 18, 1991... Top defections rock Bethesda law practice The recent loss of name partner Robert Roseman has left Bethesda-based Lerch Early & Roseman with an attorney count half of what it was less than a year ago, and a reduced client list that...

Dossier falls victim to advertising crunch. (Dossier magazine)
February 18, 1991... Dossier falls victim to advertising crunch Dossier magazine, the 16-year-old society magazine founded by Warren and Sonia Adler, will cease publication with its March issue. The glossy magazine, which the Adlers sold for between $3...

Big Maryland banks report profit declines.
February 18, 1991... Big Maryland banks report profit declines Defaults were up across the board at Maryland's largest banks as bad loans continued to eat into profits of commercial banks in the state, according to financial reports released last week. ...

Economy Watch shows recession waning in area. (Washington, D.C. area)
February 18, 1991... Economy Watch shows recession waning in area With much of the area caught off guard by the sudden downturn in the local economy, the Greater Washington Research Center designed a leading economic indicator called Economy Watch to forecast...

Bethesda inventor wins on patent but loser takes case up on appeal: power-saving light device said to have huge potential. (Don Widmayer, Conservolite Inc.)
February 18, 1991... Bethesda inventor wins on patent but loser takes case up on appeal Five months after the U.S. Patent and Trademark office ruled in his favor, a Bethesda businessman is going back to court to again defend his rights to an invention with a...

Orbital launches rocket in test for Star Wars.
February 18, 1991... Orbital launches rocket in test for Star Wars Orbital Sciences Corp. just launched a new type suborbital rocket off Wallops Island for testing of a Strategic Defense Initiative project. The launch also tested the interaction of the...

Fairchild bid comes from old business associate. (Nelson Peltz bids for Fairchild Corp.)
February 18, 1991... Fairchild bid comes from old business associate The takeover offer made for Fairchild Corp. of Chantilly probably won't turn hostile unless a couple of old acquaintances turn enemies. Nelson Peltz, who heads the British real estate...

Riggs claims Washington Corp. in default on bonds, files suit. (Riggs National Bank)
February 18, 1991... Riggs claims Washington Corp. in default on bonds, files suit Riggs National Bank, in its role as trustee for a group of unidentified bondholders, has sued Chevy Chase-based developer Washington Corp. over $10 million in notes it says have...

Coldwell Banker to spend millions on name change. (change to CB Commercial)
February 18, 1991... Coldwell Banker to spend millions on name change Long before reaching the three-year deadline it was given in April 1989 to change its name, the commercial division of Coldwell Banker, one of the nation's largest real estate firms, has...

Shippers face opportunity, peril in push to supply forces in gulf.
February 18, 1991... Shippers face opportunity, peril in push to supply forces in gulf Operation Desert Storm is shifting tides within the shipping industry. Local charter brokers are scrambling to pair commercial cargo carriers with the Navy's Military Sealift...

Moon keeps 'World & I' fat despite continuing red ink. (Sun Myung Moon)
February 18, 1991... Moon keeps `World & I' fat, despite the continuing red ink While most newspaper and magazine publishers are scaling back production and cutting staff and budgets, media mogul, Unification Church founder and self-proclaimed Messiah Sun Myung...

Potomac files for bankruptcy in Baltimore. (Potomac Advertising Ltd.)
February 18, 1991... Potomac files for bankruptcy in Baltimore Potomac Advertising Ltd., the advertising agency launched early last year by the partners of Barrow, Dunn & Borcz - once one of D.C.'s largest ad agencies - has filed for Chapter 7 liquidation in...

Akridge, Barnes Morris to join forces to do workouts. (John Akridge Co.; Barnes, Morris and Pardoe Co.)
February 18, 1991... Akridge, Barnes Morris join forces to do workouts Adding to their already longstanding working relationship, the John Akridge Co. and Barnes, Morris & Pardoe Inc. are forming a new joint venture to get into the real estate workout business....

Kaempfer may link with Hines to build project. (Gerald D. Hines Interests)
February 18, 1991... Kaempfer may link with Hines to build project Caught like many other Washington developers in the real estate financing crunch, the Kaempfer Co. is looking for new ways and partners to finance its properties, including one of the most...

Cafritz property takes Chapter 11 after Perpetual suit. (Conrad Cafritz, Perpetual Savings Bank)
February 18, 1991... Cafritz property takes Chapter 11 after Perpetual suit Just four days after Perpetual Savings Bank sued Conrad Cafritz and one of his partnerships for delinquent payment on a promissory note and failure to remove hazardous waste from...

Agreement signed to sell Gammaflux subsidiary. (Versar Inc.) (Capital Region News)
February 18, 1991... Agreement signed to sell Gammaflux subsidiary Gammaflux Inc., an 81 percent owned subsidiary of Versar Inc. in Springfield, signed a letter of intent to be sold. The buyer was not identified by name but described as a financial group with...

Software firm reorganizes as business expands. (Landmark Systems Corp.) (Capital Region News)
February 18, 1991... Software firm reorganizes as business expands Landmark Systems Corp., a Vienna-based developer of software supporting IBM systems, has restructured itself into four divisions, setting itself up for anticipated growth in the next three...

GE awards contract totaling $43.8 million. (General Electric Co., Martin Marietta Corp.) (Capital Region News)
February 18, 1991... GE awards contract totaling $43.8 million Martin Marietta Corp. of Bethesda received a $43.8 million contract from General Electric Co. to begin production of electronic test equipment for the Navy. The consolidated automated support...

General Electric grants five-year OEM extension. (Star Technologies Inc.) (Capital Region News)
February 18, 1991... General Electric grants five-year OEM extension Star Technologies Inc. of Sterling signed an agreement with General Electric Co.'s Medical Systems Group to extend the terms of its sole source OEM product agreement for another five years....

James Rouse firm teams up on building cruise ship port. (Enterprise International Development Co.) (Capital Region News)
February 18, 1991... James Rouse firm teams up on building cruise ship port James W. Rouse's Columbia-based Enterprise International Development Co. has signed an agreement with developers from Norway and the Bahamas to create a cruise ship port and resort town...

Restructuring leads to 3,585 staff cuts. (USAir) (Capital Region News)
February 18, 1991... Restructuring leads to 3,585 staff cuts Arlington-based USAir will furlough some 3,585 employees, including its entire 305-person Reston office, as part of a companywide restructuring. The Reston facility will be phased out of USAir's...

D.C. unit of Comarco wins transportation management job. (International Business Services Inc.) (Capital Region News)
February 18, 1991... D.C. unit of Comarco wins transportation management job International Business Services Inc., a Washington-based subsidiary of Comarco Inc. in Anaheim, Calif., received a multi-year contract to manage the taxicab dispatch system at...

Federal agency spends $649 million on research. (National Institutes of Health) (Capital Region News)
February 18, 1991... Federal agency spends $649 million on research It's not clear if being next-door neighbors helped, but business and institutions in the Baltimore/Washington area won nearly half of the research and development contracts awarded in fiscal...

Earle Palmer Brown wins Domino's regional account. (Domino's Pizza advertising account)
February 18, 1991... Earle Palmer Brown wins Domino's regional account Bethesda-based Earle Palmer Brown advertising agency is back in the fast food arena with the $7 million Domino's Pizza Northeast Regional account it was awarded last week. The agency,...

Julie Anna Cirillo. (People on the Move - Engineering)
February 18, 1991... Julie Anna Cirillo Julie Anna Cirillo was appointed executive vice president and chief financial officer of The Scientex Corp. of Washington. Circillo joined Scientex in 1988 as director of finance and administration after 24 years at...

Robert E. Long. (People on the Move - Finance)
February 18, 1991... Robert E. Long Robert E. Long was named president and chief operating officer of Potomac Asset Management Inc., Washington. Long was senior vice president.

Dart Group Corp. (People on the Move - Retail)
February 18, 1991... The Dart Group Corp. The Dart Group Corp. named Charles M. Farkas to the board of directors. The appointment of Farkas, a vice president and partner at Bain & Co., Boston-based international management consulting firm, increases the Dart...

Gabe Battista. (People on the Move - Telecommunications)
February 18, 1991... Gabe Battista Gabe Battista was appointed chief operating officer of Cable Wireless Communications Inc. in Vienna. He was on a three-person executive committee which managed the day-to-day operations of Telesphere Telecommunications...

IMS Services Inc. (Contracts)
February 18, 1991... IMS Services Inc. IMS Services Inc. in Rockville won a contract worth a potential $24.7 million from the Naval Regional Contracting Center to provide software support services to the Naval Telecommunications Automation Support Center.

US Sprint Communications Co. (Contracts)
February 18, 1991... US Sprint Communications Co. US Sprint Communications Co. won the five-year contract to provide long-distance telephone service to the 640 telephones on the property of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority.

Martin Marietta Corp. (Contracts)
February 18, 1991... Martin Marietta Corp. Martin Marietta Corp. in Bethesda won a $9.6 million contract from the Canadian government for 14 towed array receivers for that nation's patrol frigates. Martin Marietta, under a $7 million subcontract with Atlantic...

Comsat Laboratories. (Contracts)
February 18, 1991... Comsat Laboratories Comsat Laboratories in Clarksburg won a $2 million contract from the American Mobile Satellite Corp. and Telesat Mobile Inc. to produce the design for each company's full-service ground segment.

Geier Brown Renfrow Architects. (Contracts)
February 18, 1991... Geier Brown Renfrow Architects Geier Brown Renfrow Architects in Washington will design and build Gallaudet University's new building for the College of Arts Sciences and its Graduate Studies and Research division.

Systems Center Inc. (Contracts)
February 18, 1991... Systems Center Inc. Systems Center Inc. in Reston signed an agreement with Blue Cross/Blue Shield for multiple copies of System Center's DataMover-MVS product.