GLITR Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Your report for Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Seven companies, 2,815 jobs for Michigan
State officials Tuesday announced seven projects being assisted by the Michigan Economic Development Corp. that will create 2,815 new jobs, retain 150 jobs and generate $254 million in new investment for the state. The MEDC is also backing three brownfield redevelopment projects. The projects include the expansion of an auto supplier, an IT center in Detroit, a new corporate headquarters in Eaton County's Delta Township, near Lansing, and brownfield redevelopments that will transform abandoned sites into new centers of economic activity. More.

LTU panel: Wood makes green buildings greener
The wood industry gets a bad environmental rap, said three speakers related to the Canadian timber industry Tuesday night in Southfield. It turns out wood is the greener choice, speakers said at "Wood: the More Sustainable Structural System," a presentation of Lawrence Tech, the Canadian Council of Forest Ministers, the Detroit Regional Chapter of the United States Green Building Council and WWJ Newsradio 950. More.

ECD, Austin Energy to build Austin's biggest solar rooftop
Rochester Hills-based Energy Conversion Devices Inc. said Tuesday that its Uni-Solar laminates will power a 136-kilowatt solar photovoltaic rooftop system at the Austin Water Utility's Glen Bell Service Center in Austin, Texas. More.

Aerospace may help lift Michigan manufacturers
The Michigan Aerospace Manufacturers Association is opening doors for its members to a global manufacturing giant. Representatives from about 50 Michigan manufacturers Monday received advice from top executives of United Kingdom-based Rolls-Royce about how to do business with the global company. More.

DTE's SmartCurrents gets $84 million DoE grant
Detroit-based DTE Energy Tuesday announced a grant of nearly $84 milliion from the United States Department of Energy that will allow the company to move forward with its SmartCurrents program, which will provide customers with improved electric service reliability, the distribution of smart appliances and ways to control and reduce energy consumption and costs. More.

CEOs say national recession ending, but not Michigan's

Business Leaders for Michigan’s quarterly survey of 70 of Michigan’s most prominent CEOs indicates that Michigan will continue to lag the nation’s economic performance over the next eighteen months, but there is less pessimism than in the second quarter survey.

The CEO’s represent a cross-section of industries across Michigan and are in a unique position to assess the direction of the economy.

Highlights of the survey include:
* Most Michigan companies expect to perform better than their sector competitors.
* Approximately 90 percent forecast flat or lower employment and capital investment in Michigan in the next 6 months.
* One hundred percent believe Michigan’s economy will be the same or deteriorate over the next 6 months, but less severely than in the 2nd quarter survey. Ninety-five percent think the national economy will be the same or get better.
* Sixty-six percent think Michigan’s economy will be the same or continue to get worse 18 months from now, while 98 percent think the national economy will be the same or better. The Michigan outlook is 21 percent better than the 2nd quarter survey.

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Michigan Council of Women in Technology auctions lunch with CIOs
Michigan business leaders will come together Nov. 7 at The Henry Ford in Dearborn for the Michigan Council of Women in Technology’s annual signature event. To support the nonprofit MCWT Foundation’s mission to encourage women’s interest in technology education and careers, prominent area CIOs have agreed to put themselves on auction to raise funds for programs like scholarships, educational programs, girls’ summer IT camps and robotics grants. More.

Federal procurement center opens satellite office at Automation Alley
The program manager of the Procurement Technical Assistance Center sponsored by Schoolcraft College will now have an office at the headquarters of Automation Alley in Troy. Jann Deane will provide free assistance to businesses that are interested in government procurement opportunities at the local, state and federal levels. More.

Caraco sales, profits fall
Detroit-based Caraco Pharmaceutical Laboratories Ltd. Tuesday reported net income of $6.7 million or 16 cents a share in its fiscal second quarter ended Sept. 30, down from $8.4 million or 21 cents a share in the same quarter a year earlier. Revenue was $78.4 million in the quarter, down from $122.2 million a year earlier. For the six months, the company posted a loss of $2.8 million or 7 cents a share, down from net income of 417.9 million or 44 cents a share a year earlier. Revenue was $126.4 million, down from $230.5 million in the first half of the prior fiscal year. More.

THE WORLD IN TECH

Music service Lala lauds MP3-killing iPhone app
Online music retailer Lala is preparing to launch an iPhone application that its co-founder says paves the way for the end of downloading songs in the MP3 format. The app allows users to buy the right to stream songs from a digital locker forever for just 10 cents each. The song quality is lower than what Apple Inc.'s iTunes offers, but "intelligent caching" lets the tracks load and play in seconds, with playback possible even outside of cell phone coverage. More.

Twitter user list favors Democrats in California governor's race
When people sign up for Twitter, the popular social-networking site presents a list of suggested users to follow, driving significant traffic to sports figures, celebrities, politicians and other prominent posters. In California, the list has attracted the attention of political watchdogs because it apparently favors Democrats over Republicans in next year's race for governor. San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom is on the suggested user list and has 1.2 million followers. His likely opponent for the Democratic nomination, Attorney General Jerry Brown, also made the list and has 960,000 followers, even though he is not a declared candidate and has posted the fewest tweets of all the gubernatorial hopefuls. None of the three Republican candidates is on the list, and each has fewer than 5,000 followers. "It's a dumb move," said Bob Stern, president of the Center for Governmental Studies, an independent nonpartisan think tank in Los Angeles. "Somebody should have been thinking that it's pretty obvious you don't put just the Democrats on it." More.

Los Angeles OKs plan to use Google Web services
City Council members tentatively approved a multimillion-dollar proposal Tuesday to tap Google Inc. for government e-mail and other Internet services, a boon for the Web giant as it seeks to wrest market share for office software from rival Microsoft Corp. The Council voted unanimously for the $7.2 million deal with contractor Computer Sciences Corp. to replace many city computer systems with the so-called Google Apps services. An amendment added shortly before the vote makes the contract contingent on Computer Science agreeing to pay a preset penalty if a security breach occurs. More.

Travel book goes mobile with scannable QR code
Many travelers still rely on comprehensive printed guidebooks for tourism information. But travelers are also increasingly using mobile technology to plan a trip or find their way around. Now a technology called QR codes, for Quick Response, offers a way to forge a functional relationship between your guidebook and your smart phone. The codes are already big in Japan, but relatively unknown in the U.S. QR codes are essentially barcodes that can be scanned by smart phone cameras and other devices. You aim your camera at a QR code on a page in a travel book, for example, and it links to information online, such as a map or directions based on the user's location. The user can also store information in the phone about the place that's described on the page. More.

Stocks: Shares end mostly lower on mixed data; IBM lifts Dow
Rising energy stocks and a decision by IBM Corp. to double its stock-repurchase plan propped up the Dow Jones industrials but the Nasdaq composite index slid after Chinese Internet search company Baidu Inc. warned its revenue could take a hit as it switches its advertising system. Two stocks fell for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange. Bond prices rose after strong demand at a government debt auction, signaling that investors are still seeking safety. Stocks rose at the start of trading following a report that home prices in 20 major metropolitan markets increased for the third straight month in August. The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller home price index gained 1 percent in August from July. However, the gains in home prices couldn't offset worries that consumers might not be in a mood to spend this holiday season. The Conference Board said its Consumer Confidence Index fell unexpectedly to 47.7 in October, its second-lowest reading since May. Analysts predicted a figure of 53.1. More. The Nasdaq Composite Index (COMP) fell 25.76 points or 1.2 percent to 2,116.09. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ($INDU) rose 14.22 points or 0.1 to 9,882.17. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index ($SOX) fell 8 points even or 2.5 percent to 305.44. The Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index (MSH) fell 8.67 points or 0.7 percent to 530.88. The NYSE Arca Pharmaceutical Index (DRG) added 2.59 percent or 1 percent to 288.97. The NYSE Arca Biotech Index (BTK) fell 0.77 points or 0.1 percent to 860.63. Finally, the Standard & Poor's 500 (SPX) fell 12.65 points or 1.2 percent to 1,066.95.

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