Business First of Buffalo articles from February 1998

Business First of Buffalo archives from February 1998

Luxury auto sales accelerate. (automobile dealers report higher percentage of sales gains from luxury cars)
February 2, 1998... Foreign luxury cars and sports cars were the hot-selling kings of the road in Western New York Past year. In an area known for its lack of pretensions and loyalty to domestic brands, pricey Porsche, BMW and Mercedes-Benz - imports with sticker...

Airfare legislation could boost service. (favors competition with smaller facilities)
February 2, 1998... Spurred by escalating business airfares, some congressional members are pushing for legislation that could open up competition in favor of smaller facilities like Buffalo Niagara International Airport. The legislation would force the nation's...

WNY keeping pace with technology, survey shows. (Western New York)
February 2, 1998... Western New York business owners are outpacing companies nationally in their use of new technology. Some 55 percent of companies in the region have Web sites vs. the national average of 32 percent. The percentage with networks is even greater,...

Apple Computer at core of ATTO expansion. (Atto Technology Inc.'s contract with Apple Computer)
February 2, 1998... As Atto Technology Inc. enters its 10th year, the computer technology firm is set to double employment to more than 150 in the next 12 months with help from a multimillion dollar contract with Apple Computer. The new contract will also double...

Financial losses force McAuley Seton to cut jobs. (McAuley Seton Home Care)
February 2, 1998... McAuley Seton Home Care is cutting some nurses and doubling the workload of the rest to help stem expected monthly losses this year of $40,000. The action by the home care agency owned by Sisters of Charity Hospital and the Mercy Health System...

Asian currency crisis could mean slower economic growth. (impact on Western New York)
February 2, 1998... Like an earthquake, the Asian currency's initial shock passed without having much impact on Western New York. But much like an aftershock, significant effects could roll into the United States in a few weeks - possibly by summer, said Nicholas...

Athletic equipment chain examining WNY market. (Western New York)
February 2, 1998... There could be a Sports Authority in Western New York's future, but it doesn't have anything to do with a governmental agency overseeing Rich Stadium or Marine Midland Arena. The Sports Authority, a national sporting goods chain, is considering...

No refills allowed. (Lexmark International Inc.'s policy of prohibiting the reuse and remanufacturing of empty cartridge will hurt remanufacturers)
February 2, 1998... Toner manufacturers are wary of a new line of cartridges Remanufacturers of printer cartridges are keeping a close watch on sales of a new line of cartridges that include a single use only restriction. Lexmark International Inc., based in...

Regions' economy making slow, steady climb.
February 9, 1998... Things aren't great, but at least they're getting better. That sums up the status of Western New York's economy as analysts close the books on the fourth quarter of 1997. Local economic growth continues to be disappointing. Most of the...

State's used car dealers polish industry's image. (New York State)
February 9, 1998... New York used car dealers, in a move to upgrade their industry and improve their image, are mobilizing behind legislation that they say will help drive out disreputable sellers. The main thrust of the New York Independent Automobile Dealers...

Demolition looms for Chautauqua's Minturn House.
February 9, 1998... The future is bleak for a 90-year-old house on the shore of Chautauqua Lake unless investors give it a new lease on life. The Minturn House, a private residence built in 1908 in what is now Long Point in Chautauqua Lake State Park, has been...

Consumers may stand to benefit from failed HMO merger. (health maintenance organization)
February 9, 1998... Experts think the broken engagement that has sent HealthCarePlan and Independent Health in separate directions should come as good news to Western New Yorkers. It means the health insurance market will have at least the same number of players,...

Sun, wind and water power Hamburg energy firm. (National Solar Technologies' En-R-Pak energy system)
February 9, 1998... A stand-alone energy system manufactured by a Hamburg company is producing electrifying results. En-R-Pak, a self-contained unit that converts solar, wind or water energy into electric power, is raking in sales for National Solar Technologies...

Harold Haws' longevity was only part of his legacy. (Bank of Holland's former president and CEO)
February 9, 1998... Harold Haws' early memories were of listening to the stories of Civil War veterans on his newspaper route. Though only 5 years old, he and a brother had been forced by their father's death in a railroad accident to sell newspapers to help...

Computer takes intangibles out of SBA loan process.
February 9, 1998... Getting a small-business loan has always been more than just a numbers game. Besides looking at an applicant's credit history, loan officers consider such things as collateral, whether a business plan has been prepared, industry experience and...

On the fast track: journalist, consultant, and race car driver is getting the fix on ambition. (Lauren Fix)(Special Report: Freight Forwarding & Transportation)
February 9, 1998... Lauren Fix works as a consultant and owns a piece of her father's brake manufacturing company, co-owns an automotive parts manufacturing business with her husband, races cars, works occasionally as a television journalist, travels around the...

Company owner speeding growth of his taxi business. (Liberty Cab Co owner Bill Yuhnke)(Special Report: Freight Forwarding/Transportation)
February 9, 1998... When quarterback Joe Montana was in Buffalo for a game against the Bills, Liberty Cab Co. drivers were told to keep him out late. "I used to tell my drivers not to bring him back to the hotel too early," said Bill Yuhnke, president and owner of...

Price is right WNY. (comparison of consumer goods prices in New York City and Buffalo, NY)
February 16, 1998... Nowhere in America is the cost of living higher than in New York City and San Francisco. Earl Wells and Ed Knierim learned that the hard way. The Buffalo area, on the other hand, is one of the cheapest places in the nation. Wells and Knierim...

ECMC expanding highly rated cardiac surgery. (Erie County Medical Center)
February 16, 1998... Erie County Medical Center is expanding its top-rated cardiac surgery program by adding a surgeon. Dr. Charles Dietl, who mined down an offer by ECMC about a year ago for a position in California, will start Feb. 16. He will join ECMC at a...

Bills switch advertising account to Rochester agency. (Buffalo Bills)
February 16, 1998... A Rochester company has landed the Buffalo Bills' advertising account, apparently at the expense of a Buffalo agency. Jay Advertising was awarded the contract in what the Bills have termed a new marketing partnership. Industry sources say the...

Doctors, Community Blue reach accord on lawsuits. (amicable settlement between HMO and physicians)
February 16, 1998... Community Blue and 2,000 physicians have reached a tentative settlement related to a pair of lawsuits that charged the HMO wrongly withheld millions of dollars of payments from the practitioners. The HMO and the doctors agreed to a settlement...

Sportservice lands 3 contracts at Florida, Arizona training sites. (Sportservice Corp.)
February 16, 1998... Major league pitchers and catchers aren't the only ones now preparing for the upcoming baseball season. Sportservice Corp., a division of Delaware North Cos. Inc., was awarded three concession contracts for spring training baseball sites in...

City forges ahead with plan to utilize vacant plant site. (utilizing Buffalo Forge property)
February 16, 1998... The vacant Buffalo Forge Co. plant on Broadway may see new life in an innovative housing/job training program. Armed with a $12 million federal grant, city officials are considering using the neighborhood around the sprawling plant, including...

Battle for gambling dollar leaves tracks in the dust. (horse racing business)
February 16, 1998... The horse racing business in New York state has not been the same since state-sponsored Off-Track Betting took a post position in the early 1970s. Now, Western Region OTB might become a track owner, a move that could further upset the horse...

Janitorial services firms survive in competitive field. (Canteen Corp.)
February 16, 1998... Finding reliable employees is among the greatest challenges for janitorial service companies in Western New York. Employers use various techniques to search out and retain good workers. "You try to gear towards a person looking for...

Manufacturing jobs holding steady. (Buffalo, New York)
February 23, 1998... Buffalo's manufacturing sector no longer carries the clout of the days when the likes of Bethlehem Steel, Republic Steel and Trico employed thousands. But the sector remains a strong part of the region's economy. A recent Business First...

Second group enters bidding for OHL team. (Clarence Expansion Group; Ontario Hockey League)
February 23, 1998... A second group has entered the bidding to bring an Ontario Hockey League franchise to Western New York. A group calling itself the Clarence Expansion Group has expressed interest in placing a team at an as yet undesignated suburban site....

Demolishing aud is cheaper than first estimates. (renovation of Buffalo, New York's Memorial Auditorium)
February 23, 1998... A report by Buffalo Mayor Anthony Masiello should heighten the debate over whether the next date booked for Memorial Auditorium should be with a wrecker's ball. When the and closed m summer 1996, the demolition price tag was about $8 million....

California tire recycler seeks financing for WNY plant. (Envirotire LLC's plant in Niagara County, New York)
February 23, 1998... A California company, planning to build 10 tire recycling plants across the nation, is looking to place one in Niagara County. Envirotire LLC, of Yorba Linda, wants to locate an $8.7 million recycling plant in a vacant facility at 3501 Hyde...

New UB vice president gets top health position. (Michael Bernardino appointed University of Buffalo vice president for health affairs)
February 23, 1998... A physicians-administrator from Atlanta's Emory University has been named to the top health-care post at the University at Buffalo. Dr. Michael Bernardino will begin his duties as UB's vice president for health affairs on April 1. He will...

Minority loan guarantees gaining more SBA attention. (Small Business Administration)
February 23, 1998... James Anderson runs a successful home building company. But Anderson, owner and president of James Management Co. Inc., knows the construction industry is volatile by nature so he was not surprised when he applied for a loan through M&T Bank...

Bush Industries' growth linked to exports. (Bush Industries Inc.)
February 23, 1998... Profits can become decidedly greener for those businesses that understand the intricate nuances of exporting. But tapping foreign markets is almost a wistful dream, or a crashing nightmare, for some unprepared companies that have peaked out...

Most valuable engineer. (Buffalo Bills' engineering and operations manager Joseph Frandina)
February 23, 1998... He doesn't punt, pass or kick, but he's a team player for the Bills Joseph Frandina has a dream job he never dreamed of. He works to maintain and improve one of Western New York's most prominent structures, travels the country each fall and...

Computer power. (ECS DataSystems Inc.)(Company Profile)
February 23, 1998... Software eases the workload for chambers of commerce What's going on: ECS DataSystems assists businesses select, set up and upgrade their computer equipment. The company is what's known as a "value added reseller" and is certified to handle...