Pittsburgh Business Times articles from January 2001

Pittsburgh Business Times archives from January 2001

Tech 14.
January 26, 2001... Tech 14 Pittsburgh's top publicly traded technology companies Previous Cons Zacks EPS estimate...

Earnings.
January 26, 2001... Earnings Quarterly earnings reports from local tech companies BeFree Inc. (BFRE) QTR:3, 9/30 2000 1999 Sales...

Venture Capital.
January 26, 2001... Venture Capital 2000 Review and 2001 Forecast for Pittsburgh Survey respondent What were the chief highlights, issues and concerns for venture capital investing ...

Venture Capital.
January 26, 2001... Third-quarter 2000 venture capital investments in Pittsburgh companies COMANAGE CORP. Wexford; PA 75090 www.comanage.net Description: Management software for Internet access providers. $ Received: $36,000,000 ...

Marketing e-myopia?
January 26, 2001... Retailers could get railroaded by online forces unless steps are taken to avoid complacency Why did the pre-eminent railroad business of the early 1900s go into a downward spiral later in the 20th century? It is easy to surmise now...

Making the Web work.
January 26, 2001... New-economy success means putting "I" before "E." Infrastructure before e-business Companies are working and spending hard to promote their relatively newfound capabilities on the Web. With or be eaten" rapidly becoming both the common...

A Web of advantages.
January 26, 2001... But who will capitalize on future e-business opportunities? Companies are going to spend the rest of this decade figuring out how to take advantage of the Internet and the Web. At times the advantage will seem to lie with the...

American Eagle Outfitters Inc.
January 26, 2001... David Thompson, director, sold 11,250 shares of common stock at $40 each on Dec. 7, and now directly and indirectly holds 18,816 shares of common. George Kolber, director, sold 21,872 shares of common stock at $39.97 each on Dec. 11, and now...

Turner Construction Co.
January 26, 2001... Turner Construction Co., Downtown, was selected as the construction manager for the $26.3 million renovation at Canon-McMillan High School in Canonsburg. Turner also was selected to handle the pre-construction services for the Pennsylvania....

EARNINGS.
January 26, 2001... EARNINGS Black Box Corp. (BBOX) QTR: 3, 12/31 2000 1999 Sales (000) $218,511 $127,128 Income (000) $16,774 $12,305 Per Share $0.88 $0.68 YTD Sales...

University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health.
January 26, 2001... The University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health, Oakland, received a $1.85 million federal grant to study differences in health and self- care among chronically ill elderly blacks and whites in Western Pennsylvania and the...

Center for Excellence in Minority Health Research.
January 26, 2001... The University of Pittsburgh received a $1.27 million federal grant that established the school as a Center for Excellence in Minority Health Research. The grant is one of nine awarded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services'...

The Lawrenceville Corp.
January 26, 2001... The Lawrenceville Corp. has designated the area between the 16th Street Bridge in the Strip District and the 62nd Street Bridge in Lawrenceville as the 16:62 Design Zone, which is more than 75 businesses that provide products, services and...

Trammell Crow Co.
January 26, 2001... Trammell Crow Co., a Cranberry Township-based commercial real estate brokerage and development company, said it has taken over the leasing of Centre Commons, a 80000-square-foot building on Centre Avenue in Oakland.

Virtual roundtable.
January 26, 2001... Jeff Pepper's company, Eldervision, just suspended operations. What advice would you offer him as he faces this difficult crossroads? Dennis Ciccone Managing director Terra Lycos Ventures L.P. Downtown "Jeff's a bright guy and he'll...

STAT SPEAK.
January 26, 2001... STAT SPEAK Annual salaries for women in the Internet economy are three-quarters of mens' salaries. Women $60,500 Men $80,000 Source: The Standard

Downloads.
January 26, 2001... Insights on the local tech scene from the Business Times technology reporter Who's fleeing now? FreeMarkets Inc., Downtown Pittsburgh's hottest technology firm, has a new nickname being bandied about on the Yahoo! finance message...

MOVEMENT & MEANING.
January 26, 2001... Artists apply a wide range of technological skills at CMU's Studio for Creative Inquiry While he was a graduate student in film and video, Jim Duesing went shopping for an electric typewriter and came home with an Apple computer instead....

MAIN STREET COULD BE JUST A CLICK AWAY.
January 26, 2001... Internet concept could help revitalize sales for Downtown merchants The Fifth and Forbes retail district, Downtown, may have seen foot traffic -- the lifeblood of retail -- I dwindle over the years. But the Golden Triangle Community...

ROBOTS FOR REAL PEOPLE.
January 26, 2001... Henry Thorne sees a role for robots at home and at the office Like thousands of Americans, Henry Thorne went home for Thanksgiving; in his case, to his father's house in New York City. But he planned a different slant to tradition....

@ Work.
January 26, 2001... Sue Pastroff Senior vice president, Acclamation Systems Inc. Company description: Is a 60-person privately owned company producing the LuminX health care claims management systems. Age: 59 Family status: Husband, Howard,...

Battling B-school dropouts.
January 26, 2001... Universities are adapting to keep ambitious students on campus rather than joining the start-up craze Just a few short years ago, it seemed like just about anyone with a good technology idea could start a company, attract investors and...

ADDRESSING THE RECRUITMENT CRUNCH.
January 26, 2001... e-guidance aims to create 'farm system' of job candidates Right now, Jim Wallisch and Jeff Curry consider themselves "just two guys with an idea." Their hope, however, is that a relatively simple idea will soon be the answer to...

FOCUS on ABILITY.
January 26, 2001... Disabled workers are ready and willing to prove themselves. Just ask them. Could you do your job if you were blind? Deaf? In a wheelchair with limited use of your arms? Could you do the job as well? Every day, John Good Rico Brusco,...

Wanted: A few good entrepreneurs. Really.
January 26, 2001... Recruiter James Gutierrez says students have a more discerning business palate when it comes to jobs The uncertainty of the dot-com industry has given potential entrepreneurs reason for pause. James Gutierrez, founder of the...

Out-of-town law firms are making presence known in Pittsburgh.
January 26, 2001... Hometown firms also making inroads in other cities Twenty percent of the firms on this year's Business Times list of the 25 Largest Pittsburgh-Area Law Firms (see list, page 39) are from other cities, up from less than 10 percent only a...

25 LARGEST PITTSBURGH-AREA LAW FIRMS.
January 26, 2001... 25 LARGEST PITTSBURGH-AREA LAW FIRMS (Ranked by number of lawyers in Pittsburgh area) Lawyers in Name ...

PEOPLE.
January 26, 2001... ACCOUNTING Malin, Landis & Co. Inc., Ross Township, hired Albert Payne III as supervisor accountant. Resources Connection, a financial and accounting services company, Downtown, promoted Martin Dorfner Jr. to client services manager....

ECONOWATCH.
January 26, 2001... The Pittsburgh Business Times tracks 10 economic indicators, five of which appear each week. Work force (number of employees) Butler County Nov. 2000: 83,800 Nov. 1999: 84,200 Beaver County Nov. 2000: 81,600...

BEST-SELLING BUSINESS BOOKS.
January 26, 2001... 1. Who Moved My Cheese? Spencer Johnson, $21.95. Lessons for handling life changes 2. The Long Doom; Peter Schwartz, $17. A vision for the coming age of prosperity 3. Against the Gods; Peter Bernstein, $16.95. Risk management and...

NEW & NOTEWORTHY BUSINESS BOOKS.
January 26, 2001... Multiple Streams of Income by Robert Allen, $24.95. The author gives advice on controlling spending and increasing savings, as well as on the stock market and real estate investing. Best-Selling Business Books source: Barnes & Noble...

Jan Steingart.
January 26, 2001... The Western chapter of the Pennsylvania Restaurant Association named Jan Steingart of the Allegheny County Health Department the recipient of its 2000 Panache Award. Ms. Steingart is a food safety educator and was recognized for devoting her...

Alan Lincoln.
January 26, 2001... Alan Lincoln, vice president and general manager of WAMO, WUFO and the Sheridan Broadcasting Corp., Downtown, was nominated as General Manager of the Year by Radio Ink, a national radio trade magazine. Ron Atkins, program director for Jamz...

Alcoa Inc.
January 26, 2001... Barbara Jeremiah, vice president, exercised an option for 10,351 shares of common stock between $31.36 and $31.47 each on Dec. 26 and sold 15,000 shares at $29.88 each on Dec. 8. Ms. Jeremiah turned in 9,871 shares and now directly and...

US LEC Corp.
January 26, 2001... US LEC Corp., a provider of integrated telecommunications services, opened its sales office and switching center in Green Tree, and is now offering bundled local, long distance, data, high speed Internet and enhanced services to the...

Westlake Internet Training.
January 26, 2001... Westlake Internet Training has opened a new office Downtown. Previously, the computer training company was doing business from its Robinson Township office. The new facility in the Frick Building has two classrooms, more courses and new...

Burns & Scab Roofing Co.
January 26, 2001... Burns & Scab Roofing Co., Bridgeville, was awarded the rooting contract for the new CVS Pharmacy in Bellevue.

CelliFlynnBrennan Inc.
January 26, 2001... CelliFlynnBrennan Inc., Downtown, completed work on the following buildings: the 132,000-square-foot, $22 million Paterno Library at Pennsylvania State University, University Park; the $6 million, 10-month design/build Brotherton Residence...

FreeMarkets Inc.
January 26, 2001... FreeMarkets Inc., a Downtown-based online business-to-business auction, received a contract from Akron, Ohio-based FirstEnergy Corp., an energy services company, to use FreeMarkets to buy fuel.

Pittsburgh Cut Flowers.
January 26, 2001... Pittsburgh Cut Flowers has contracted with Keystone Dedicated Logistics warehouse division, based Downtown, to operate at the 39,000-square-foot warehouse facility located at 25th and Smallman streets in the Strip District. Also,

Optoplast Inc.
January 26, 2001... Optoplast Inc. signed a five-year contract with KDL warehouse division to relocate to a warehouse located at 100 35th St. in the Strip District. Optoplast distributes eye wear cases to retailers.

TECHNOLOGY MARKETPLACE.
January 26, 2001... Maria Guzzo Jim Benanti Senior Internet Security Engineer, Emprise Technologies LLC, Bridgeville * Age: 40 * Job: Part of a team that designs and implements Internet security products using not only third-party but also...

The city's tax mess.
January 26, 2001... Christmas just seems to keep on coming for Pittsburgh city council president and mayoral hopeful Bob O'Connor. In many years, the collapse of incumbent Tom Murphy's Market Place redevelopment plan would have provided ample fodder for any...

PARTING SHOTS.
January 26, 2001... Happy together Since we're taking a bit of a political bent in our editorial, we'll stick with it in our shots. We found it amusing that Mayor Murphy last week appointed his predecessor Sophie Masloff to serve on the Stadium Authority...

Frito-Lay left holding the bag.
January 26, 2001... "There's always something newsworthy going on at Frito-Lay, where the fun and excitement never ends!" - quote from home page at www.frito-lay.com Frito-Lay, America thanks you. Your corporate powers-that-be know your fried and...

Still Government Busting after all these years.
January 26, 2001... Six years ago this week, my first column of "Government Busters" appeared in the Business Times. Surprising mostly myself and perhaps the editors, I have actually made every weekly deadline, including this one, my 310th consecutive...

A capital citizen: Will W. mow his new backyard?
January 26, 2001... As a new resident moves into 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, the nation's capital has a vastly different look, feel and energy than it did eight years ago, when President Clinton moved into the White House. With the departure of Bill Clinton,...

Touched by an angel.
January 26, 2001... A primer on landing financing crucial to a start-up's success Angels are symbolic of the Christmas season, and South Side start-up WorldDealerInc. was seeking them in earnest in December. WorldDealer develops technology for car...

Wealth Transfer Solutions Inc.
January 26, 2001... TOP OFFICERS: Scott Keffer, founder and president Phil Nichols, vice president Wealth Transfer Solutions Inc. is a financial planning and consulting firm. Q&A WITH SCOTT KEFFER: What are the biggest challenge(s) ahead...

Accounting for children.
January 26, 2001... Ernst & Young Saturday child-care program helps parents juggle work, family For accountants, tax season can be particularly taxing on the responsibilities of parenthood. As April 15 gets closer on the calendar, an accountant's day...

Accounting firms already feeling tax-season crunch.
January 26, 2001... CPAs expected to work nighttime, Saturday hours The avalanche of forms and files created each tax season sometimes leaves Martha Blackstone feeling a little guilty. "I feel sorry for the trees," said Ms. Blackstone, a partner in the...

What do you know? Quite a lot if you're in knowledge management.
January 26, 2001... DOWNTOWN -- Jeremy Stanforth can get his hands on everything there is to know at Burson-Marsteller, the worldwide public relations and advertising firm with an office in Downtown Pittsburgh. But Mr. Stanforth isn't a spy intent on...

Reed Smith joins California-based law alliance.
January 26, 2001... DOWNTOWN -- Reed Smith LLP has joined the Employment Law Alliance, a San Francisco-based global practice network of 50 firms created to help employers effectively deal with the complex and rapidly changing world of employment law and labor...

Hitting the big time: Law firm growth tied to new lawyers, offices.
January 26, 2001... More firms are merging into larger players DOWNTOWN -- And the big continue to get bigger. Pittsburgh's three largest law firms -- Kirkpatrick & Lockhart LLP, Reed Smith LLP and Buchanan Ingersoll PC -- pulled further away from the pack....

Technology law practices stretch beyond start-ups and dot-coms.
January 26, 2001... Local firms think tech as they look for acquisitions DOWNTOWN -- It's not the first time local law firms touted their technology law prowess. But this time around, they are quick to emphasize that tech law encompasses many basic areas of...

Ansoft purchases German company.
January 26, 2001... SOUTH SIDE -- Ansoft Corp. has purchased SIMEC GmbH & Co. KG, a German company with technology that allows automobile designers to model their engineering plans. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed. The acquisition is...

IBM Transarc Lab adds Pittsburgh to its name.
January 26, 2001... DOWNTOWN -- IBM Transarc Lab is changing its name again, this time to IBM Pittsburgh Laboratory. In July 1999, Transarc Corp. changed its name to IBM Transarc Lab to further align itself with its parent company. A software development...

MindMatters Tech raises $1 million.
January 26, 2001... CECIL TOWNSHIP -- Software firm MindMatters Technologies Inc. has raised $1 million in its first round of funding. The round was led by Bethlehem-based Mid-Atlantic Venture Funds, with Downtown-based Future Fund also providing funding....

Rapidigm opens three new offices in Midwest.
January 26, 2001... ROBINSON TOWNSHIP -- Rapidigm Inc., which offers e-business and information technology consulting services, has opened three new offices in the Midwest. Rapidigm-Chicago is based in Lisle, Ill.; Rapidigm-Detroit is based in Southfield,...

Tech director leaves his position at Pitt.
January 26, 2001... OAKLAND -- Art Boni, the University of Pittsburgh's director of technology, management, is retiring March 1. Mr. Boni established, Pitt's tech transfer office in 1996. The office is responsible for commercializing the scientific,...

Telecom provider set to do business here.
January 26, 2001... GREEN TREE -- Charlotte, N.C.-based US LEC Corp., a telecommunications provider, has installed technology allowing it to to begin offering service in the Pittsburgh market. The company offers bundled local, long distance, data, high-speed...

Summa invests in Florida firm.
January 26, 2001... DOWNTOWN -- Summa VentureWorks has invested in JumpStart Wireless Corp., a Boca-Baton, Fla.-based application service provider for firms with front-line workers using wireless products to complete tasks. Summa Technologies Inc. founded...

Blue Cross, AGH form new 'HMO'.
January 26, 2001... Blue Cross of Western Pennsylvania has formed a partnership with Allegheny General Hospital and a Philadelphia organization to create Gateway Health Plan, a product that will be offered to Medical Assistance recipients in Western...

City to call $20 million loan if Bucs sold out of town.
January 26, 2001... If current Pittsburgh Pirates owners carry out plans to market the team nationally, Mayor Tom Murphy says he'll erect a $20 million roadblock. The mayor said he will demand full and immediate payment of the $20 million loan the city made...

Front and center, like it or not.
January 26, 2001... Patty Maloney looks for answers to Downtown's problems Patty Maloney is always poised to cringe. With a sixth sense reserved for dread, Ms. Maloney is prepared to confront any pretension, dishonesty or other nonsense du jour that she...

Bankruptcy woes stop Clemente statue plans.
January 26, 2001... With the project's organizer in bankruptcy court, plans to fund a nine-foot high statue of late Pirates star Roberto Clemente appear to have struck out. Claims are now being filed in federal bankruptcy court in Pittsburgh against Heroes...

Running with the big dogs.
January 26, 2001... Exec puts faith in dominant players You might not expect someone who owns a suit of armor from the 15th century and collects Hermes ties to be a down-to-earth, do-it-yourself conservative investor who negotiates his own trades via an...

Fungus among us.
January 26, 2001... Given their ever-soaring costs, truffles are nothing to trifle with. But if your heart and taste buds aren't set for freshly dug fungi from France's Perigord region, there are ways to savor the elusive flavor without taking out a major loan....

Write on the mark.
January 26, 2001... Holidays are something special at stationer Doubtless many neighborhoods boast stationery stores that seem to strike a special chord. There's Margie Allen on Walnut Street in Shadyside, and J.R. Weldin Co. on Wood Street, Downtown, etc....

The Hunt for Red Adventures.
January 26, 2001... From the pages of the San Diego-based Sovietski Collection and the fertile imagination at Sarasota, Fla.-based Incredible Adventures, come two opportunities to play hide-and-seek, Cold War style. For $14,750, the two companies offer...

Add life to party.
January 26, 2001... Want to add a little levity to your next dinner party? Try the Guy Buffet Party Helpers that are available through winejazz.com The helpers are replicas of the jovial French waiters made famous by Parisian artist Guy Buffet. The pieces,...

American Eagle initiates stock split.
January 26, 2001... WARRENDALE -- For the fourth year in a row, American Eagle Outfitters Inc. of Pittsburgh has implemented a three-for-two stock split of its common stock. The company plans to distribute the additional shares to stockholders on Feb. 23....

Bishoff purchases Klein parking lot.
January 26, 2001... DOWNTOWN -- The E.V Bishoff Co., which owns the Pittsburgh Technology Center on Fourth Avenue, Downtown as well as several other office buildings, said it has bought the Klein parking lot on Fourth Avenue. The purchase price was not...

Swedish conglomerate adds local packaging maker Tuscarora to portfolio.
January 26, 2001... No closings, job cuts expected as result of $284 million deal NEW BRIGHTON -- Tuscarora Inc. and SCA Packaging International B.V. signed a definitive merger agreement on Monday for SCA to acquire all of Tuscarora's outstanding shares and...

PBT Q&A.
January 26, 2001... Suzanne Elliott An inside look at interesting and influential people in Western Pennsylvania Sean Bufano Course Developer, Carnegie Technology Education, Carnegie Mellon University * Organization: Carnegie...

Laid-off coal miners receive training aid.
January 26, 2001... The U.S. Department of Labor is providing up to $6 million in additional funding to Pennsylvania to provide laid-off coal mine workers with employment training and other services. The funding, which is allocated through the Workforce...

Asset planning operation becomes Yanni & Co.
January 26, 2001... DOWNTOWN -- Yanni-Bilkey Asset Planning Inc. president and co-founder James Yanni has decided to share ownership with three principals and change the firm's name to Yanni & Co. -- Investment Advisors. John Cummings Jr., Joseph Salpietro...

County's decision not to relocate morgue put end to Fed North deal.
January 26, 2001... Sides couldn't agree on price for first floor, basement NORTH SIDE -- Blame a failed deal between a local developer and Allegheny county for the $40 million Federal North project remaining vacant. David Malone, chief financial...

CORRECTIONS & AMPLIFICATIONS.
January 26, 2001... A Page 1 story in the Jan. 19 issue about Moon Township-based Atlas Pipeline Partners LP should have specified that Atlas America Inc., a Moon Township-based partner company, actually drills and operates gas wells for the partnership. Atlas...

E-business firms lay off workers.
January 26, 2001... Two e-business consulting firms laid off employees this week. South Side-based Open Webs Corp. CEO Wes Lucas said his company, which creates online exchanges and makretplaces for firms in a variety of industries, let go eight people...

Fast-food shops, bars of Oakland face new, bigger competition.
January 26, 2001... New Italian-themed diner Joe Mamas will seat 190 OAKLAND -- Eyeing the corner location at Oakland and Forbes avenues, Mike Hanley saw a retro solution for an aging building. "A lot of national chains took a look at this building and...

Trade group forms, calls city home.
January 26, 2001... Computer Chip is focus of MEMS SOUTH SIDE -- A new trade association devoted to advancing innovations in products such. as airbag sensors, home theater systems, pacemakers and wireless phones has made its home in Pittsburgh. The MEMS...

ONE YEAR AGO IN THE BUSINESS TIMES.
January 26, 2001... New role? The, landmark South Side Market House, currently home to city-funded activities for youths and senior citizens, may return to its origins as a year-round forum for local produce growers and bakers.

Information technology outsourcing company, EDS, debuts local office.
January 26, 2001... Company started by Perot, and was once unit of GM MOON TOWNSHIP -- Plano, Texas-based Electronic Data Systems Corp. has set up a 31-person office to serve the Pittsburgh area. The information technology firm has had customers in the...