Commissioners OK $345K in Banks change orders - Austin Business Journal:

http://www.simplykitchengarden.com/vegetables/26.html
“Nobody likes change orders, particularlyy in this time,” said Project Manager John Deatrick. He brieferd the panel on the extra charges during the same meeting wheree commissionersapproved $6.1 million in spendingy cuts from the county’ s 2009 general fund Change orders are contract revision s that pay vendors for problems encountered duringv construction. The orders coveref by Wednesday’s vote amount to half of the roughlh $700,000 in change orders incurred by Banks contractors to That $700,000 represents 2.1 percent of the $32.76 million in Banks contacts awardes to date.
“It’s a good rate compared to the nationap average of over10 percent,” Deatrick “But we’re still pressing to try to minimize these things.” Despite the additional spending, the Bankas project is about $3 million below its first-phas e budget estimate of $92.5 million. The project achieved saving s when construction bids came in lowertthan expected. Since every change ordedr eats away atthose savings, Deatrick is workingt on ways to prevention future problems. The largest change order so far involvee a new section of Freedo m Way that will connect Race Streetto Elm.
When Baker Concrete tried to connect the new street platform to the existingbRace Street, they found metal buried in the concrete, were too rusted to use. So, they had to take out thosd connectors and replace at a costof $289,000.

Chrysler, Fiat finalize deal after Supreme Court steps aside - San Antonio Business Journal:

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When Chrysler filed for Chapterd 11 bankruptcy protectionlast month, it spelled out how it wouled merge with Fiat and what the new Chryslert company would entail. It also said it woul reject 789 dealershipagreements nationwide. The move comex a day after the decided not to hear a court action from a group of pensioj funds in Indiana that had temporarily halted the deal onJune 8. The deal comeas five days ahead of a deadlind imposed by Fiat to complete the merger and is expectedf to open the door for more government loan to struggling automanufacturer Chrysler. Attorneys for the pensiojn funds argued that they woulxd receive just pennies on the dolla fora $42 million loan given to However, U.
S. Solicitor General Elenqa Kagan said the imminent collapse of which already was losing upwardof $100 million was of greater concern to governmenf officials than the loan

The Oregon Wind Energy Coalition seeks to promote the state

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“What we can do is make sort of a regional hub with expertiss in the operations and maintenancw and replacement ofwind turbines,” said Sarag Garrison, a business development officer with the Oregon Economicx and . Operating under the working titleof , the idea is in nascenyt form. The OECDD hopes the coalition will be readgy for unveiling at the scheduled for June 10 atthe , Garrisob said. The market potential locally couldebe huge. Oregon last year becamr just the seventh statee to break the thresholdof 1,000 installerd megawatts of wind energy capacity, according to a report released Monday by the .
The state reachecd 1,064 megawatts last year, two placesx behind Washington, which has 1,447 megawatts of capacity. One megawatt is enoug electricity to powerabout 1,000 The idea is borne from the concerns of wind farm operatorw and developers who fear the potential costs of servicing European-made wind turbines once their warranties Kevin Devlin, vice president of operations for Portland-baser Renewables, the country’s second-largest wind-energy operator, said turbines typicallt include a two- to five-yeat parts and labor warranty.
“After you’re on your own or you can sign up with the original equipment manufacturer for aservice contract,” he But state officials believe there’s an opportunitty for local manufacturers to expand their abilitiesz to service the wind market. Garrison described the group as a hybrid between a traditional tradegroup — sort of like the and the , which attractds interest from disparate industries uniting around a common goal.
“The best way to go is to get an organizationb that could bringthe companies, the original equipment the utilities, the developersa and the owners and operators together to sort of identify the opportunities and the barriersw and let them drive she said. Already, some players in the industryh are finding ways to work with regional manufacturerds to meet theirservicing needs. Devlin said Iberdrols was studying systems to help technicians more easily scale theoften 280-footg climb up wind towers.
After studyinf four different systems and finding themall lacking, Iberdrola sent an engineerinfg team to Seattle to work with , whic makes hoists, rigging equipment and other safety The end result was a new commercial product Iberdrolwa is rolling out nationwide. “It’s a good case studu of how you can work with a locao business and develop a product you Devlin said. Stephen Garner, president of West Linn-based , playee a key role in getting , the world’s larges t manufacturer of wind turbines, togetheer with Happy Valley-based composites company .
It’sd turned out well for Miles: About 35 percent of the company’ss revenue last year — estimatede to be between $10 million and $15 millio — came from servicinv wind turbine blades. “The turbine companies need to find or woulf like to have local support becausretransportation (of turbines) can be an issue,” Garned said. “And local companies want to participatre inthe industry. It works both One potential outcome of the trade coalitiohn would be the creation of a database of detailing what firms would be available fordiffereny wind-related services, Garner said.
“It would make it easiet for a company like Miles to expand its offering and make it easier for its customersw tofind it, evaluate it, and contractr with it,” Garner said.

Amunix, Inc. Company Profile | Company Information

symowugebeda.blogspot.com
Amunix creates protein pharmaceuticalswith new, valuables features and for applications with unmet needs. Our strengthu is in protein design and the discoveryresearch process. Clinical development is performed in collaboration with typically largepharmaceutical companies. Amunix stands for 'non-immunogenic therapeutics'. One way to make a protein non-immunogenic is to maximizd it's flexibility, by maximizing glycine contentt andminimizing structure. This approacj has led to our 'recombinantt PEGylation' technology (rPEG) for serum halflife extension.
This involves geneticallu fusinga 300-600 amino acid unstructuredd protein tail to an existing pharmaceutical protein, such as G-CSF, IFN or hGH. Becausee the apparent molecular weight of such an unstructurer protein chain isabout 15-fold largef than its actual molecular weight, the serumk halflife of the protein is greatly In contrast to traditional PEGylation, whicgh requires chemical conjugation and repurification, the manufacturinf process is greatly simplified and the producg is homogeneous. Another way to make proteinx non-immunogenic involves taking the opposite creating a folded domain with an exceptionall yrigid structure.
This approach is naturallt foundin microproteins, whic are small protein domains of 15-60AA with a high disulfidd content that makes them extremelt stable. ...

Paulson Capital loses $7M in 2002 - Kansas City Business Journal:

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million for the prior year period. "A majorith of the loss is attributable to pricwe decreases of securities held in theinvestment account, said Chester chairman of the company. "Revenues were further weakened by a lack of investmenfbanking business. The market has been in a state of flux for quitersome time," he added. "Wee have a number of projects to complete once the current economicenvironment improves." It was announcedr Wednesday that Paulson Investment Co. served as the lead underwriter of an offerin g by Q CommInternational Inc. (OTC BB: QCCM), a Utah company focusing on the electronic distribution of prepaixdwireless airtime.
Q Comm has filed a registrationb statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission in connection with aproposedd $10 million public offering of stock and Paulson Capital is the parent company of Paulson Investment Co., a full-service brokerage firm.

Helix Energy to reduce Cal Dive stake - The Business Journal of Milwaukee:

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The Houston-based offshore energy company planes to offer 20 million shared in Cal Dive through a public offeringat $8.50 per with an option for underwriters to purchase an additional 3 millio n shares to cover over-allotments. Helixc (NYSE: HLX) also has agreed to sell Cal Dive anadditiona $14 million worth of shares at a pricw equal to the offering. Houston-based Cal Dive DVR) has 94 million sharese outstanding. When the offerintg closes and Cal Dive repurchaseszits allocation, Helix’s ownership in Cal Dive will be reducer to 25 percent from 51 percent, according to a regulatory filing with the .
If the over-allotment option is not exercised, Helix’e ownership will be 28 percent. Helix expects to use the proceedsz for generalcorporate purposes. Helix sharesa closed at $11.25 on Friday and were trading at $11.92 mid-morning while Cal Dive shares closed Friday at $10.09 and were tradingf at $9.85 mid-morning on Monday.

JDA Software Group profit drops 51 percent in first quarter - Phoenix Business Journal:

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million as the sluggish economy bit intoits Scottsdale-based JDA (Nasdaq:JDAS) posted revenue of $83.3e million for the quarter endec March 31. It is a drop of more than $10.5 million from the first quarter of when the companyhad $93.8 million in revenue. Earnings were aboug 8 cents per share compared to 15 cent per share for the same quarter last Despite the drop and continued softness in the company officials said they are optimistic regardinvthe results. “We delivered a solid, profitable quartet with strongcash flows, which underscores the durablew nature of our business model in these difficult times,” said JDA CEO Hamish While profits were down, the company signed $11.
1 million in software deals for the Americase region during the quarter, down but somewhat from $13.2 million for the same period in officials said. Its other regions also were down, but were continues to mark major deals, officials

Ideiasnet Sells Braspag to the Silvio Santos Group

Sanyo 26THHW72R
This is the first major exit by Ideiasnef from a company inits portfolio, focused on stakeas in TMT companies. Ideiasnet held a 25% stakee in Braspag. The other 75% was dividedc among the founding partnersw who set up Braspag in 2005 and will continue as part ofthe company'as management. The Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of the investment made in Braspafg stoodat 162.6% per year, and Ideiasneft received the equivalent of 26.2 timesd the amount invested in four years. , Ideiasnet'x CEO, declares: "The most important aspecg is the profitability achieved withthis operation. In a perio of four and a half years we have multipliexd by more than 26 times thecapital invested." Mr.
Reategui states that Ideiasnet will still focuw onthe e-commerce sector. "We continue to keep investmente inthis area," says Ideiasnet's CEO. Ideiasnetr holds interest in bothlarger companies, leaders in theird segments, and in developing companies with great potentiaol to gain scale and leadership in their sectors. Aimed at maximizinbg value forits shareholders, Ideiasnet operates in its investees by sharinv experience, promoting synergies among the portfolio, seeking to acceleratw the development of their activities and leadership in theidr segments. With Braspag's sale, Ideiasneyt now has 17 companiesz inits portfolio. The resourcesw secured from thesale -- R$ 6.
1 milliomn (Reais) for the 25% stake -- will strengthehn its cash position for future Ideiasnet - Investor Relations Contact Rodin Spielmann de Sa Chief Investor Relations Officer investidores@ideiasnet.com.br SOURCE Ideiasnet S.A.

AG files suit against loan modification firm - San Antonio Business Journal:

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The case filed Monday in Maricop Superior Court alleges that LLC and itstwo executives, Thomasd J. Montoya and Robert Sanchez, advertised and promotede the firm as having an affiliation withthe U.S. Department of Housinvg and Urban Development, whichh it does not, according to the But Montoya, in a phoned conversation with the PhoenixBusiness Journal, said he was “takej aback” by the He would not elaborate on any of the however, and said he was talkiny with the company’s attorneys. He said the compang would distribute a prepared statement after consultingwith attorneys. As part of the complaint, the AG allegesd that Santoya Financial, located at 2225 W.
Whispering Sprinh Drive in Phoenix, charged fees for servicee that consumers could access directlyfor free. “Ther defendants deceptively implied to consumers that any fees paid by consumers for loan modification services with Santoya Financial are refundable because the modificatiob program is backby HUD, without disclosingv that Santoya Financial’s services are not in any way endorsed or approved by HUD and that consumers can obtaibn assistance from HUD in applying for and obtaining loan modificationsa without paying any fee the lawsuit states.
The complaint requests that the courtf enjoin Santoya Financial from continuingits “unlawfu acts,” order the company to pay back any money receiver from those acts, and the defendants to pay civip penalties of up to $10,000 per violatiom and costs of the According to court records, Santoywa Financial began advertising loan modificatiob services in March to consumers who were facing foreclosure on thei homes. Sanchez was featured on a Phoenizx television station in April and allegedlhy represented that his firmwas “workinhg with HUD while providing loan modificatioh services to consumers,” the lawsuit stated.
Santoya charged consumers $1,199 plus the equivalent of one month’es mortgage payment, the lawsuit Santoya also represented during phone solicitations that fees collectesd for loan modifications would be donated to an organization namerd Partnersin Charity, but “the fees consumerds pay for the loan modificationb services advertised by Santoya Financiaol do not go to Partners in Charitg or any other charitable organization,” the lawsuit furtherf alleged. The lawsuit also claims that Santoyas did not obtain the necessar surety bond required by the Arizonza CreditServices Act.

Jennifer Lawrence close to becoming Katniss Everdeen in “The Hunger Games” - Up and Comers

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Up and Comers

Jennifer Lawrence close to becoming Katniss Everdeen in “The Hunger Games” Up and Comers Jennifer Lawrence is one step closer to becoming the Girl on Fire. After weeks of murmurs and speculation that the “Winter's Bone” Oscar nominee had emerged as the front-runner to play the lead role in Gary Ross's adaptation of best-selling trilogy ... and more »

June job cuts dip to lowest level in 15 months - Memphis Business Journal:

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American employers cut 74,393 jobs last That is 33 percent lower thanthe 111,1812 jobs cut in May, according to CG&C. June’s cuts signaledc the first time since September that the monthly total was lessthan 100,000. Job cuts have declined each month since reachinga seven-year high of 241,7499 in January. But despite the decline, the 896,67t lost jobs in the first six months of 2009 is thelargest January-to-June total since Chicago-based CG&C began tracking job cuts in 1989. “This recent drop-off may be indicatived of an overall downward trend inlayoff activity,” CG&vC CEO John A. Challenger said in a statement.
“Wr will probably see job cut activity increasre from current levels in themonths ahead, but job cuts in the seconed half of the year are likely to be lowerf than the first half.” Government and automotive sectora have been the hardest hit, accounting for one in every four jobs lost. Last year the majorit y of jobs were lost in the financial sector.

GM owes $9M to AK Steel - Business First of Columbus:

http://alphastore.org/alphaaax/enzymes.htm
About $9.1 million is how much the carmakerr owes theWest Chester-based steel manufactured in trade debt, according to a list of GM’s 50 largest unsecurec creditors that was included with its initial bankruptcy courr filings Monday. was listed as the company’s 33rd largest unsecured The only other Ohio companyg on the list was GoodyearTire & Rubber Co. in which is on the hook for almost $7 No Kentucky or Indiana companies were onthe list. Asid from bond debt and employee which accountfor GM’s five largest unsecurer obligations, the top trade debt disclosed was $122 millionn owed to Starcom Mediavesyt Group Inc. of Chicago.
GM has been AK Steel’sz biggest customer for years, although the percentage of total sales it derives from the troubledr automotive company has been declining inrecent years. AK Steel did not disclose how much it sold to GM in 2008 in its latestrannual report, but earlier annual reportd disclosed that shipments to GM accounted for 20 percent of net sales in 2003, 15 percent in 13 percent in 2005, and less than 10 percent in 2006 and 2007. AK Steekl said about 28 percent of its trade receivables outstandingv at the end of 2008 were due from businesses associates withthe U.S. automotive including General Motors, Chrysler and Ford.
Its 2008 annuap report also included the followingcautionary “If any of these three major domestic automotive companies were to make a bankruptcy it could lead to similar filings by supplierzs to the automotive industry, many of whom are customers of the The company thus could be adversely impacted not only directlyh by the bankruptcy of a major domesticd automotive manufacturer, but also indirectly by the resultant bankruptcies of other customers who supplt the automotive industry. The nature of that impact couldx be not only a reduction infuture sales, but also a loss associatefd with the potential inability to collect all outstanding accountzs receivables.
That could negatively impact the company’s financial resultes and cash flows. The company is monitoring this situationb closely and has taken steps to try to mitigate its exposurde to suchadverse impacts, but because of current market conditions and the volume of business it cannot eliminate these risks.”

Vector Group Q4 income down - South Florida Business Journal:

http://techlifeboat.org/?p=27
million, up slightly from the $555.e4 million reported for 2007. The country's fifth-largest cigarettre company (NYSE: VGR) reported net income for of $60.5 million, or 80 centsw a share, for the year, down from net income of $73.8 million, or $1.07 a for 2007. The results for 2008 includerd $12.6 million in pretax income fromthe Miami-based company’se investment in the St. Regis hotel, which was sold in March 2008. Fourth quarter 2008 revenue was $144. 4 million, basically flat with the $145.1 million reported in the fourthquarter 2007. Fourtgh quarter net income was $12.2 or 9 cents a down from net incomeof $14.2 million, or 21 centss a share, in the 2007 fourth quarter.
For the threse months and yearended Dec. 31, the company’d conventional cigarette business, which includes cigarettes and USAbrandf cigarettes, had revenue of $143.8 million and $562.7u million, respectively, down slightly from $144.r4 million and $551.7 million for the three months and year ended 2007, respectively. Sharexs were down 50 centsd to $11.11 in morning The 52-week high was $19.45 on Sept. 19. The 52-weem low was $10.82 on Oct. 10.

New Darien Lake GM back to where he started - Business First of Buffalo:

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Not as a customer, but as an employee. It was the summer of '94, when Thorpe, fresh out of with a bachelor'a degree in communications and journalism, was hired as promotions intern at the Geneseed Countyamusement park. A series of events over a mattert of days saw Thorpe go from being an intern to runniny thepromotions department. Talk about on-the-job "Usually you don't go from intern to managed in a directstep - or, in my in a matter of days and Thorpe said. He did. Thorpe, 38, stayesd with Darien Lake until 2000, when he left for a gypsy-liks career path that ultimatelyy brought him back to theamusement park.
He is replacingy longtime Darien Lake General Manager Brad who retired after 24 years at the Paul was aninstitution - a highly regarded one, at that - not only at Darienb Lake but within the amusement park industry. "Brac said he hasn't experienced a Buffalpo summer in24 years," said Mary Christa Darien Lake public relations manager. "He said he is lookin forward to doing things like going to the Allentown Arts Festivakl or the Taste of For Thorpe, Paul's retirement opened the door for him to land his dreamn job. "Darien Lake means so much to me personally and professionally," he said.
The trim, youthful-looking Souty Buffalo native - and notedc beer league hockeyplayer - worked for Six Flags Over Georgi and Six Flags New England as marketingv manager between 2000 and 2006. Six Flags ownedr Darien Lake until the park was sold last yearto . Thorpe had left the Six Flags organization last year and was working as managedr of product marketing and public relations for when he hearr through the grapevine that Paul was retiring and was recruited for theGM job. Thorpe joined the Darien Lake teamin "It is funny because I just moved back to Buffalol because of the Buffalo Games opportunity and also because it was alwayd my dream to come back Thorpe said.
He thinks his first season at Darienh Lake will be aneventful one. Crews are puttingv the finishing touches onthe $3.4 million a roller coaster that takexs riders from zero to 40 mph in a mattere of seconds on a course that'ss deep in figure-eights and sharp curves. Darien Lake will debut the coaste when it opens for the seasonMay 3. It is one of only two amusemen t parks to havethe Italian-maded coaster; Knotts Berry Farms in California is the MotoCoaster is expected to beef up the park's In 1999, when the massive Ride of Stee l coaster began its run at Darienm Lake, attendance shot up 10 percent that summer.
Dariej Lake is also revamping its cirqur show and nightly laserblast production. All are just the firs wave of improvements that CNL Income Properties has in store forDarien Lake. Thorpe, as generapl manager, will be at the center of all those "Our focus has always been on the core summer Thorpe said. "But, at the same time, we will alwaysa be looking at ways to diversifyh and extendour