CEG Economic Development Week in Review – October 22 – October 26, 2018
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CEG IN THE NEWS
REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT NEWS
Finch Paper considering $5 million investment
“Finch Paper is considering a $5 million wood yard upgrade that would position the company to purchase more pulpwood from area loggers.
“It’s a hedge against the wider market,” said chief financial officer Alexander Rotolo.
The Glens Falls, New York, paper manufacturer is seeking $1 million from Empire State Development, the state’s economic development arm to underwrite part of the project.”
Universal Plastics is hiring 3 people a week. They want to hire faster
“Four months after acquiring Kintz Plastics, Jay and Pia Kumar have hired close to 15 full-time employees as they increase production of plastic covers and parts for medical imaging equipment and rail cars at their factory in Howes Cave, New York.
The 80,000-square-foot manufacturing complex near Interstate 88 in Schoharie County, now called Universal Plastic Albany, is trying to increase full-time payroll from 85 to 120. The hiring binge is part of the Kumars’ strategy for doubling revenue at the former Kintz plant by the end of next year.”
Looking back at 20 years of Metroplex
“Downtown Schenectady is a very different place in 2018, vibrant and renewed compared with the timeworn and partially vacant neighborhood that existed in 1998. Our John Cropley takes a look back at a transformative twenty years with the Schenectady County Metroplex Development Authority.”
FDA approves Regeneron asthma drug
“Regeneron Pharmaceuticals was awarded federal approval Friday to market its Dupixent drug to treat patients with moderate to severe asthma.
The drug developer, which makes bulk medications at its East Greenbush, New York, manufacturing complex, already had been marketing the medication for use in patients with eczema or atopic dermatitis. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Dupixent for eczema patients in March 2017.”
Local ninth-graders get jump on computer science degrees
“A group of Capital Region ninth-graders are on the fast track to computer science degrees and careers as a new BOCES program moves through its first year.
Last week, sitting with their laptop computers, the students coded their own games: Create a path from point A to point B and move a turtle through the maze. Simple, but not really.”
Roundabout open after two months of construction
“The state Department of Transportation opened the roundabout at the intersection of Routes 9G and 23 late Tuesday morning after more than two months of work.
Traffic first flowed through the new $4.5 million roundabout near the Rip Van Winkle Bridge at about 10:40 a.m. Tuesday. DOT crews have been working to build the traffic circle since early August in the town of Greenport.”
Surge in jet repairs fuels MTI sensor business
“Mechanical Technology Inc. booked more work during its third quarter than it has in any quarter over the past decade.
A surge in jet engine repairs and U.S. Air Force business helped the company surpass $3 million in orders between July 1 and Sept. 30.”
These cities won $10 million from the state. What comes after the novelty check
“he $10 million checks the state recently gave Albany and Amsterdam to redevelop their downtowns won’t be cashed anytime soon.
Both cities are among the latest winners of the Downtown Revitalization Initiative, a competitive program Gov. Andrew Cuomo rolled out in 2016 to help reverse decades of population decline and disinvestment that have hurt cities across the state.”
Arnoff building next phase of 40-acre logistics campus in Saratoga County
“Arnoff Global Logistics is constructing the next phase of its 40-acre campus in Malta, New York, after signing a 10-year lease with Ryder to operate a truck maintenance center.
The fifth-generation moving and logistics company hired Bonacquisti Brothers Construction in Cohoes to build a 7,600-square-foot truck repair center to maintain Arnoff’s fleet of tractor trailers and delivery trucks. Ryder will also work on trucks for other customers at the site.”
GE Global Research takes lead on $34M nuclear safety project
“General Electric Global Research in Niskayuna will take the lead on efforts to develop better fuel rods for nuclear reactors, under a nearly $34 million federal contract announced Thursday.
It’s part of a widespread effort to make reactors better able to withstand accidents, an effort begun after the Fukushima disaster in Japan in 2011, in which an earthquake and tsunami disabled cooling systems at a power plant and three reactor meltdowns resulted.”
The spirits move them — new distillery bottles its first batch
“he Schenectady Distilling Co. affixed labels to bottles of its own product for the first time Wednesday and will debut the spirits for sale on Friday.
It’s an unintended bit of lucky timing: Friday happens to be 193 years to the day since the opening of the Erie Canal, for which the line of spirits is named — 36 Locks.”
