Business First-Columbus articles from April 1998

Business First-Columbus archives from April 1998

Coke, Pepsi pour it on to top pop at OSU. (bidding for marketing and pouring rights at the Ohio State University)
April 3, 1998... Thirsting for cash, Ohio State University could become Coke or Pepsi territory this summer. In exchange for exclusive, campus-wide marketing and pouring rights at Ohio State for up to 10 years, the winning bidder would pay millions to support...

Jillian's racks up pool hall complex for North Market. (Jillian's restaurant chain)
April 3, 1998... A Louisville-based restaurant/pool hall chain plans a 28,000-square-foot entertainment complex in the North Market district. The early June opening of Jillian's, the 18th in the chain, also should give downtown Columbus an early taste of the...

1997 a year of enterprise for Nationwide Insurance. (Nationwide Insurance Enterprise)
April 3, 1998... Assets at Nationwide Insurance Enterprise grew by $16 billion last year, more than the net worth the company reached in its first 60 years. "We are pleased that last year was one of our best ever," said Dimon R. McFerson, chairman and CEO, in a...

Nationwide brings managed care idea to claims for auto-related business. (Nationwide Insurance Enterprise)
April 3, 1998... Nationwide Insurance Enterprise plans to integrate managed care into the medical side of its auto insurance business - a move it expects will save about 35 percent per medical claim and possibly reduce auto rates. Nationwide paid about $450...

First Industrial Realty expands industrial portfolio in Hilliard.
April 3, 1998... First Industrial Realty Trust Inc. has tapped the Hilliard industrial market once more as it continues to expand its Columbus portfolio. The Chicago-based REIT closed March 25 on the Northwest Corporate Center property, paying a Vantage...

Worthington Industries puts affiliates up for strategic review.
April 3, 1998... Worthington Industries Inc. has put three of its subsidiaries under strategic review for possible spinoff or sale, the company announced April 1. Buckeye Steel Castings, Worthington Precision Metals and Worthington Custom Plastics aren't part...

PDSi is up when the chips are down. (Pinnacle Data Systems Inc)
April 3, 1998... Columbus company repairs computers, extends their life A Columbus company that started out repairing computers nine years ago has found a lucrative niche in developing custom mother boards. Pinnacle Data Systems, now known as PDSi, its...

Law firm sends staff back to school in-house. (Porter Wright Morris and Arthur law offices)
April 3, 1998... Porter Wright classes range from computers to picking fight wine The law offices of Porter Wright Morris & Arthur have elevated the concept of continuing education to a whole new level with the recent formation of Porter Wright University....

Nationwide unveils arena design. (Nationwide Arena in Columbus, OH)
April 10, 1998... Developers of the $150 million Nationwide Arena have unveiled a brick-and-glass design for the 20,000-seat sports and entertainment project reminiscent of the warehouses and other buildings once common in the north end of downtown. The...

Bank One builds its brand through new partnerships. (sports brand merchandising partnerships of Bank One Corp.)
April 10, 1998... Bank One is looking for a few good partners. The Columbus Quest fits the bill. So do the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Colorado Rockies and the Dallas Cowboys. Hollywood movies like "Selena" are good candidates. Places where young adults gather,...

Robust economy drives Columbus retail wages, up, up, up. (Ohio)
April 10, 1998... Retail wages exploded in Columbus last year, skyrocketing 146 percent more than the state average and 64 percent more than the national average. According to a Franklin University study conducted for Business First, retail hourly wages shot up...

Silicon Valley Bank eyes Central Ohio for expansion. (expansion in Columbus, OH)
April 10, 1998... Silicon Valley Bank has its eyes on the Columbus market for emerging technology and life sciences companies. The $2.4 billion-asset bank on April 6 announced the opening of a Midwestern office near Chicago and the selection of Columbus as one...

Banks boost their bounty through agricultural loans. (Ohio)
April 10, 1998... The farm crisis of the 1980s is but a hazy memory to Ohio bankers like Angela Motter Hoy. In the hectic spring lending season, the 32-year-old Hoy has been cultivating new and existing farm clients to help grow Bank One's agricultural loan...

Local hospitals fret over impact of niche competitors. (Columbus, OH)
April 10, 1998... Local health-care officials fear the proposed development of two for-profit maternity hospitals in Columbus signals the passing of cooperative hospital relations that have defined the community for decades. "This is the end of an era of very...

Bill would require insurers to have outside directors. (Ohio insurance companies)
April 10, 1998... Ohio insurance companies may have to look beyond insiders in naming their boards. The Ohio Department of Insurance is drafting legislation that would require Ohio-based insurers to appoint outsiders to at least one-third of their board...

Hotels bonus workers who find new job candidates. (employee referral bonuses in Columbus, OH)
April 10, 1998... At a time when unemployment rates are at their lowest, keeping good employees can be as hard as finding them. The hospitality industry, traditionally known for high employee turnover, is inventing new ways to avoid the airport-like...

COSI seeks Imax funding. (Center of Science and Industry's proposed Imax motion picture theater in Columbus, OH)(includes related article on funding requests for various projects in Franklin County, OH)
April 17, 1998... Asks $5M from Ohio for 6-story theater Community and business leaders are asking the state for $5 million to build a six-story-high, 80-foot-wide Imax theater screen at the new COSI complex on downtown's Scioto Peninsula. The...

Buyer of ConQuest shifts HQ from L.A. to Dublin. (ConQuest Communications Inc.)
April 17, 1998... The Los Angeles-based acquirer of ConQuest Communications Inc. has quietly moved its national headquarters to Dublin as it continues its rapid expansion in the prepaid telecommunications market. SmarTalk TeleServices Inc. plans to move this...

Bank says merger won't put crimp in philanthropic support locally. (Banc One Corp.)
April 17, 1998... Banc One does not make contributions. Bank One does. And you have Bane One Chairman and CEO John B. McCoy's word that the contributions will continue. As the headquarters of Bane One Corp. heads to Chicago following its acquisition of Chicago...

No turning back. (Banc One Corp.'s relocation from Columbus, OH to Chicago, IL following merger with First Chicago NBD Corp.)
April 17, 1998... McCoy: 'Forever' decision right for everyone Chicago-based Banc One Corp. As hard as it is for Columbus to get used to that appellation, Banc One employees are having a harder time figuring out the future of their company - and their future...

Funding challenges prevent take off of airport tower. (Port Columbus International Airport in Ohio)
April 17, 1998... The Federal Aviation Administration has completed the site for a new $13.5 million, 200-foot tall air traffic control tower at Port Columbus International Airport. But construction on the five-level, 12,000-square-foot tower and a...

Report card helps businesses rate workers' comp carriers.
April 17, 1998... Employers have 2 months to pick provider Ohio employers are in the first month of a two-month open enrollment period during which they may pick a new managed care organization to handle workers' comp cases. Employers have been bound to their...

Trial lawyers win 1st round in tort reform law challenge.
April 17, 1998... Supporters of act had hoped for lower court case reviews The right surrounding current Ohio law placing limits on personal injury lawsuits goes on, with trial lawyers scoring first by having their case go directly to the Ohio Supreme Court....

Convention Center picks architect. (Greater Columbus Convention Center)
April 24, 1998... Karlsberger-led partnership in lead for $65M project A Karlsberger Cos.-led architectural team has emerged as the leading candidate for the design of the Greater Columbus Convention Center expansion and related projects. The Franklin County...

New players bring new business model to auto dealers. (Columbus, Ohio)
April 24, 1998... Consumers seeking lots of choice when they buy but demanding fast, convenient service are driving the way Columbus auto dealers do business. While consumers are changing the market, large public companies - such as Sonic Automotive Inc., which...

Banc One merger could spell opportunity in Indy for others. (merger with First Chicago NBD Corp.; Indiana)
April 24, 1998... Before Banc One Corp. gets bigger, it will have to get smaller - and that means opportunities for other banks, including Huntington Bancshares Inc. Banc One and merger partner First Chicago NBD Corp. announced their combination April 13 and...

Medicare market crowded but still attractive to HMOs. (Central Ohio; health maintenance organizations)
April 24, 1998... More managed-care companies are preparing to launch Medicare HMO products in Central Ohio in what's already considered a crowded market. The Medicare HMO penetration rate for Central Ohio is at 15 percent of the more than 175,000...

Population growth is linked to hospital admission uptick. (Ohio)
April 24, 1998... Admissions detail AVERAGE LENGTH ADMISSIONS OF STAY (DAYS) 1997 1996 1997 1996 ...

Auro Computer acquisition gives Cable link new lines. (Auro Computer Systems)
April 24, 1998... When Cable Link Inc., a cable equipment reseller, announced earlier this month it was buying Auro Computer Systems, a Westerville value-added computer reseller, it may have seemed like an odd fit. Cable Link buys outdated but still serviceable...

Macola targets small firms for successful software line. (manufacturing, distribution and accounting software)(Company Profile)
April 24, 1998... MARION - Growth is a key word at Macola, a leading maker of manufacturing, distribution and accounting software. This privately-held, employee-owned company has been on an upward spiral since its beginnings in 1971. And, the '90s have been...

Cheap power: industry sees cost cut in electric deregulation.(Inside Report: Manufacturing)
April 24, 1998... Deregulation of the state's electric utility industry would have a powerful impact on Ohio manufacturers. "For many companies, energy is a significant cost of production," said Bill Burns, spokesman for the Ohio Manufacturers' Association, a...