Monday – June 11, 2007

ORMOND BEACH MANUFACTURER GETS TRAINING $$ – Command Medical Products Inc., Ormond Beach, has been awarded a $9,050 Incumbent Worker Training grant from Workforce Florida for training in lean manufacturing protocols. The state grant will be matched by more than $36,000 from the company and will impact 75 workers.

SIGNIFICANT JOB LOSS COMING TO KENNEDY SPACE CENTER – As NASA retires the aging space shuttle fleet between 5,000 - 8,000 jobs will be lost at Kennedy Space Center -- nearly half of the direct workforce. These job losses will have an economic impact on as many as 12,000 jobs throughout the Space Coast area, including Volusia County. The overall impact to Central Florida is being studied.

WORKSHOP FOCUSES ON DOING BUSINESS IN JAPAN – Enterprise Florida is sponsoring a workshop on doing business in Japan. The session will be July 16, from 8:30 a.m. - 10:30 a.m., at the Enterprise Florida offices at 800 N. Magnolia Ave., Suite 1100, Orlando. The program and a complimentary continental breakfast will feature Ken Nadler, vice president of International Banking for Fifth Third Bank; Sam Tabuchi, Enterprise Florida representative to Japan; Takeshi Saito, Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), Atlanta, and Yoshikazu Nomura, Shizuoka Prefecture. Reservations are required and can be made by calling Misty Kane at 407/956-5642 or by email at mkane@eflorida.com

HUDSON TOOL & DIE HAS NEW NAME – Founded in 1940 in New Jersey, Hudson Tool & Die moved to Ormond Beach in 1969. The company has evolved into a customer centric organization that focuses on providing engineered solutions and has changed its name to reflect these changes. The company now is called Hudson Technologies.

FUNDS APPROVED FOR FLORIDA MANUFACTURERS -- The Legislature has approved $3.6 million to fund the Succeed Florida Career Paths grant program. Of this, $1.2 million has been earmarked for Florida’s manufacturers. The remaining $2.4 million will be divided evenly between the aerospace and automotive industries. Succeed Florida Career Paths is a post-secondary adult certificate training program. For more information about training opportunities, please call Frank Mercer, DBCC’s Center of Business & Industry, at 386/506-4224.

BUSINESS FORUM TO FOCUS ON WEB MARKETING – The Port Orange/South Daytona Chamber of Commerce has scheduled a workshop on web-based marketing. The session will be Wednesday, July 25, beginning at 7:45 a.m. at the Riverside Pavilion, 3431 Ridgewood Ave., Port Orange. This workshop is part of the chamber’s popular Sunrise Business Forum. Titled “Maneuvering the Maze of the Web and Web Marketing”, the forum will focus on the Internet and how a business can profit from having a web presence. For additional information, please contact the chamber at 386/761-1601.

SUMMIT TO FOCUS ON HISPANIC EDUCATION, IMMIGRATION, ECONOMICS AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP – The Hispanic Summit at the Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport will offer a dynamic lineup of speakers and opportunities to exchange information and facilitate understanding regarding the growing strength and size of the Hispanic community in Central Florida. The session will be June 28-29. Central Florida is the fifth largest destination in the country for Hispanics who comprise 17 percent of the population. About 25 percent of the businesses in Central Florida are Hispanic owned with Hispanic spending adding more than $4.3 billion to the regional economy. In 2006, Volusia County was home to more than 45,000 Hispanic residents. For more information, contact Vilma Quintana at 407/835-2520 or vilma.quintana@orlando.org.


NEWS ITEMS WANTED! – Please send your business news items to Dave Byron, Volusia County Community Information Director, 123 W. Indiana Ave., DeLand, 32720-4612, by fax at (386) 822-5072 or by e-mail at dbyron@co.volusia.fl.us