IN BRIEF
PORTERSVILLE — The Pittsburgh Intellectual Property Law Association recently presented its 2014 Inventor of the Year Award to Bill Adams, founder and chairman of Adams Manufacturing.
The award recognizes the innovative contributions Adams has made to progressing the design and use of consumer products, such as suction cups, outdoor resin furniture and holiday accessories.
It also recognizes the significant economic impact Adams Manufacturing has had in Western Pennsylvania.
To be eligible, an inventor or team of inventors must live or work in, or have some special connection to, the Pittsburgh tri-state area.
Founded in 1976, Adams Manufacturing has consistently grown because of a commitment to innovation and to the idea of designing products that enrich the lives of consumers.
The company has been issued 208 design or utility patents. Its products are sold throughout the U.S., Canada and Europe.
Adams Manufacturing employs about 300 people.
S & T Bank makes 2 promotionsS & T Bank has announced two promotions.Cari Jack is the new assistant vice president, community banking manager at its Butler office.In her 15 years with S & T Bank, she has been the assistant manager in Butler, assistant manager of the Hilltop Plaza location and a regional sales coach. She has earned certifications in annuities/life insurance and consumer lending.Debbie Hopper will be vice president, community banking manager at O'Hara Township branch.Now in her 11th year with the bank, she has been the manager of the Butler office since 2010.A recipient of the Chairman's Circle of Excellence Award for outstanding sales performance, she has a bachelor's degree in finance from Indiana (Pa.) University, as well as certifications in commercial lending, consumer lending, business development, leadership development and annuities/life insurance.S & T Bank has branch locations in 11 counties.
Nursing home gets 2 new officialsHARMONY — Reliant Senior Care has announced new officials for its Evergreen Health and Rehabilitation Center with the appointment of Ellen Perry as administrator and Ann Walter as director of nursing.Both have been working at Evergreen since November 2013 and have years of experience in long-term care.Perry had been acting administrator at Evergreen and came there after eight years at Reliant's Whitecliff facility in Greenville, Mercer County.She got her degree in gerontology in 2003 from Kent State University in Ohio and earned her nursing home administrator license in 2012.Walter came to Evergreen after being director of nursing for Reliant's Silver Oaks Health and Rehabilitation Center in New Castle.Walter got her Associate of Science degree as a registered nurse from Beaver County Community College and earned her license as a practical nurse in 1987 at the Lawrence County Vo-Tech Practical Nurse Program.Evergreen Health and Rehabilitation Center has 115 beds and offers comprehensive health services.
Northpointe gains new tech companySOUTH BUFFALO, Armstrong County — The Armstrong County Industrial Development Council has a new company for the Technology Center II facility at Northpointe.NanoVision Diagnostics completed its move into the multi-tenant building in early April.NanoVision is commercializing a novel technology to detect cancer. The company's electro-optical system assesses molecular-level changes in DNA structure. These changes have been shown to correlate with cancer in multiple clinical studies.NanoVision Diagnostics will offer its proprietary technology as a diagnostic service.Michael Lang, founder and CEO, said, “Our technology was licensed from University of Pittsburgh, so Northpointe is an ideal location for us to launch operations.”The company has two employees.The Technology Center II is a 30,000-square-foot, multi-tenant facility.
Starbucks rolls out soda, lunch itemsNEW YORK — Starbucks keeps finding ways to squeeze more money out of people.The Seattle-based chain reported a stronger quarterly profit Thursday as global sales at established locations rose 6 percent, including in its flagship U.S. market. Operating margin improved as a result of lower costs for ingredients, and the company raised its profit outlook for the year.Starbucks has continued to report healthy sales gains, even as others in the fast-food sector have struggled. Its strategies have included price hikes, getting people to sign up for its loyalty program and the rollout of new items such as breakfast sandwiches, salads and bottled juices. Later this year, it plans to introduce its made-to-order Fizzio soda offerings at 3,000 U.S. locations.After seeing through the rollout of its new La Boulange baked goods this year, chief operating officer Troy Alstead said Starbucks will move on to refining its lunch options, with some items already being tested.
Honda's 4th quarter profit doublesTOKYO — Honda Motor said Friday that its profit for the fiscal fourth quarter zoomed to more than double the previous year's as the benefits of a weak yen added to strong sales, but momentum was forecast to ebb as the currency perk wears off.January-March net profit totaled 170.5 billion yen ($1.67 billion), up from 75.7 billion yen the same period the previous year, the automaker said. Quarterly sales surged 13 percent to 3.1 trillion yen ($30 billion).Honda sold nearly 1.2 million vehicles worldwide during the quarter, helped by purchases by Japanese seeking to beat a sales tax rise on April 1, up from slightly more than 1 million the same period a year earlier.
