Articles

Purdue president wants stronger NASA link

Purdue University has hired a Washington, D.C., lobbying firm that specializes in aerospace, aviation and defense to recreate strong ties the school had in the past with NASA, reports the Journal & Courier of Lafayette. As former chief scientist at NASA, Purdue President France C?rdova has ties with the firm, The National Group. Cordova believes […]

Read More

Rural areas might forego asphalt for gravel

The skyrocketing cost of asphalt is forcing some local officials to consider tearing out asphalt on rural roads and replace it with gravel, according to The Republic of Columbus. Local governments are struggling to fill potholes in asphalt roads, which is increasing chances for damage to cars. Conversions to gravel would occur if the condition […]

Read More

Perch farm opens near Muncie

Bell Aquaculture near Muncie has begun operating a yellow perch farm that is projected to yield up to 100,000 pounds of fish per year. At full capacity, the facility in Albany could produce 9 million pounds annually and employ 70 people. The first fish, which take about 10 months to reach market size, should be […]

Read More

UPDATE: FedEx hangar lease includes offices

Shipping giant FedEx has snapped up 126,000 square feet of the former ATA maintenance hangar at Indianapolis International Airport. About 80,000 square feet of the leased space is hangar bays, and the rest is office, training rooms and other uses, said FedEx spokeswoman Paula Bosler. FedEx will use the ATA space to maintain all but […]

Read More

AIT Laboratories adding 50 workers

An ongoing expansion of AIT Laboratories will create 50 jobs this year in addition to the 60 created last year, the Indianapolis forensics lab said today. By the end of next year, total headcount will hit about 214, said the company, which has expanded its operation at 2265 Executive Drive near Indianapolis International Airport. The […]

Read More

Johnson officials hope for office park

Cheryl Morphew, executive director of Johnson County Development Corp., and Greenwood Mayor Charles Henderson are discussing starting an office park southeast of the city. The officials are learning from getting passed over for a 1,300-worker Medco Health Solutions Inc. pharmacy distribution center late last year, according to the Daily Journal of Franklin. The New Jersey […]

Read More

Shortage of welders coming

About 450,000 welding jobs will be available by 2014, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, and at least one Indiana company is already experiencing a shortfall of workers, reports The Journal Gazette of Fort Wayne. Welders at Warsaw Engineering and Fabricating Inc. are working overtime to keep up with production and officials there […]

Read More

Rising costs hurt FinishMaster profit

Fourth-quarter profit fell nearly 70 percent for FinishMaster Inc., the Indianapolis company that distributes auto paint and other products to body shops. The $2.4 million profit was down from $7.6 million a year earlier, partly because the year-ago period benefited from the settlement of a lawsuit, FinishMaster said today. After taking out the settlement, profit […]

Read More

Rising costs hurt FinishMaster profit

Fourth-quarter profit fell nearly 70 percent for FinishMaster Inc., the Indianapolis company that distributes auto paint and other products to body shops. The $2.4 million profit was down from $7.6 million a year earlier, partly because the year-ago period benefited from the settlement of a lawsuit, FinishMaster said today. After taking out the settlement, profit […]

Read More

UPDATE: Allied Waste center to employ 350

Allied Waste Industries Inc. said this morning it will establish a customer service center in Morocco, Ind., and add 350 jobs within six years, according to the Indiana Economic Development Corp. The center is the result of the Phoenix-based company’s decision to consolidate its regional customer support operations into a centralized location. It will support […]

Read More

Johnson officials considering hotel tax

Officials in Greenwood and Franklin want Johnson County to consider implementing a hotel tax, reports the Daily Journal of Franklin. The money would be used to create a convention and visitors bureau. The tax, which likely would be as high as 5 percent, wouldn’t happen before next year because the current legislative session is set […]

Read More

Carlyle Capital in default on loans

Carlyle Capital Corp. Ltd., a unit of Carlyle Group, a Washington D.C.-based private equity group, did not meet banks’ margin calls on its $21.7 billion portfolio, according to several news services. Last fall, Carlyle Capital bought Allison Transmission in Indianapolis from General Motors Corp. for $5.6 billion. Carlyle Capital has received several notices from banks […]

Read More

Report: Allied Waste to create 350 jobs

Allied Waste Industries Inc. will announce this morning that it plans to remodel a site at Morocco, Ind., and add 350 customer service jobs within six years, according to The Journal & Courier of Lafayette. Morocco is between Lafayette and Merrillville in northwest Indiana. Allied Waste, headquartered in Phoenix and traded on the New York […]

Read More

UPDATE: Finish Line shares fall after sales report

Athletic-footwear retailer Finish Line Inc. said today its fourth-quarter same-store sales fell 6 percent, versus a 5.4-percent decline in the year-ago period. Stock in the Indianapolis company fell 3.4 percent, to $3.99, following the news. Same-store sales, or sales at stores open at least a year, is a key indicator of retailer performance since it […]

Read More

Closing empties big Seymour warehouse

A 750,000-square-foot warehouse in Seymour will become vacant this summer after the latest in a string of third-party logistics providers moves out. Germany-based Schenker Logistics has announced it will leave the facility, which distributes computer printers for Lexmark International Inc., an IBM spinoff headquartered in Lexington, Ky. About 80 full-time and 40 temporary workers will […]

Read More

Lamar buys Hoosier Outdoor billboard firm

Hoosier Outdoor Advertising Corp., a Bloomington-based billboard company operating primarily in southern Indiana, has been acquired by Lamar Outdoor Advertising, a unit of Lamar Advertising Co. of Baton Rouge, La. Some Hoosier Outdoor workers no longer are with the company following the Feb. 21 deal, according to The Herald-Times of Bloomington. The company would not […]

Read More

Fed says Midwest manufacturing ‘stable’

Growth in the Midwest manufacturing sector was stable in January and February, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago reported today in its Beige Book report. Manufacturers tied to aircraft, cranes, energy extraction and mining flourished, the Fed said. Steelmaking, aided by the low price of the dollar, was close to full production. However, makers of […]

Read More

Farmland values surge on growing farm income

Indiana farmland values skyrocketed to record levels last year, according to the most recent survey of agricultural lenders by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. Prices in the northern two-thirds of the state shot up 6 percent in the fourth quarter and 16 percent in 2007. Southern Indiana was not included in the survey because […]

Read More

Local women charged with mortgage fraud

Two women accused of purchasing houses, recruiting buyers and then falsifying documents so lending companies would pay more than the houses were worth have been charged with mortgage fraud, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Indiana announced today. Beverly Ross and Donella Locke, both of the Indianapolis area, were indicted by a […]

Read More

Thompson calls for ‘broader’ economic policy

Jill Long Thompson said this morning that if she is elected governor, she will focus economic development policy on broad issues, including expanding tax incentives, reforming health care and education policy. Thompson, a former congresswoman and agriculture undersecretary who faces Indianapolis architect Jim Schellinger for the Democratic nomination, said incumbent Gov. Mitch Daniels has focused […]

Read More