Prairie News briefs

DIGI-KEY RELEASES IPHONE APPLICATION

Thief River Falls, MN-based electronics distributor Digi-Key Corporation has released its own iPhone application. Digi-Key’s iPhone application is free and is available at the iTunes App Store for iPhone and iPod users in North America. The new application allows users to search for products and categories, upload shopping carts and convert an order similarly to how it would be handled on the company’s website. Even though the application has only been available since January 31, it has been in the top 100 business downloads of the iPod App Store several times in both the U.S. and Canada.

MINOT AND BISMARCK ADD WESTBOUND destinations

Bismarck and Minot, ND, will add flights to and from Salt Lake City on Delta Air Lines this spring. Starting on May 3, Delta will begin once daily non-stop service between Bismarck and Minot to its Salt Lake City hub on a 50-seat regional aircraft. On June 10 the carrier will add a second daily non-stop flight from Bismarck, Minot and Fargo to Salt Lake City. United Airlines will also begin twice daily roundtrip service between Minot and Denver in June on a 50-seat aircraft operated by United Express. This summer Delta will also increase the number of daily flights from Minot from four per day to seven (five to Minneapolis-St. Paul and two to Salt Lake City) and the number of daily flights from the Bismarck Airport from six per day to nine (seven to Minneapolis-St. Paul and two to Salt Lake City). Fargo, which already has one daily non-stop flight to and from Salt Lake City on Delta, will add a second daily flight to Salt Lake City starting on June 10, giving the airport nine flights on Delta per day (seven to Minneapolis-St. Paul and two to Salt Lake City). State and local airport officials are also working to encourage the addition of westbound destinations from Grand Forks, ND.

AMERICAN AIRLINES TO ADD DALLAS SERVICE FROM SIOUX FALLS, RAPID CITY

American Eagle Airlines, the regional affiliate of American Airlines, will begin non-stop daily jet service from Sioux Falls Regional Airport and Rapid City Regional Airport to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport on April 6. American Eagle will operate the year-round service with 50-seat Embraer ERJ-145 jets. “We’re delighted to add year-round service to South Dakota from our largest hub in Dallas/Fort Worth,” Gary Foss, vice president of planning and marketing for American’s regional network, said in a prepared statement. “Not only will visitors around the globe have greater access to the state’s exquisite natural beauty and powerful Black Hills landmarks such as Mount Rushmore, but they’ll also find it more convenient to visit South Dakota’s largest city, Sioux Falls.”

ULTIMED EXPANDING OPERATIONS IN DE SMET, SD

St. Paul-based medical supply manufacturer UltiMed Inc. has announced plans for an expansion of its De Smet, SD, operations. The project, which is expected to cost $993,000, is being partially financed through South Dakota Governor’s Office of Economic Development programs. As part of the expansion the company that produces insulin syringes for diabetics plans to add 40 additional full-time positions within three years and is purchasing new equipment for De Smet, including a pen needle machine and packager. “The pen needle market is really growing in the United States and Canada,” Tom Erickson, UltiMed’s CEO, said in a prepared statement. “Demand is up, and expanding our facility in De Smet is absolutely essential for UltiMed to keep up with orders.”

GREAT WESTERN BANK TO PURCHASE F&M BANKS

Sioux Falls-based Great Western Bank has signed an agreement to acquire all 10 F&M Bank branches in Iowa for $50 million. F&M Bank is a subsidiary of Citizens Republic Bancorp Inc. The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions, is expected to close this spring. Great Western Bank, which will acquire the entire F&M business that totals approximately $470 million in assets, will have assets of about $5.8 billion and 137 locations in 86 communities throughout South Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Colorado and Arizona after the transaction closes.

SANFORD HEALTH PLAN APPROVED IN NORTH DAKOTA

The North Dakota Insurance Department has given the Sanford Health Plan a certificate of authority to provide health insurance in North Dakota. Once the Sanford Health Plan’s rates and forms for each product line are approved, local independent insurance agents will begin offering the health plan. The Sanford Health Plan, which was established in 1998 as a physician-directed health plan, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sanford Health. “This is good news for North Dakotans as they will soon have another option when it comes to purchasing individual and group health insurance,” North Dakota Insurance Commissioner Adam Hamm wrote in a prepared statement. “Competition is critical to ensuring the highest quality of products at affordable prices.”

DAKOTAS, MINNESOTA RANK HIGH IN STATE COMPETITIVENESS

North Dakota placed second and Minnesota was fourth in the nation in the Beacon Hill Institute’s 2009 annual state competitiveness rankings. South Dakota was 12th in the national index that is based on a set of 43 indicators that measure government and fiscal policy, security, infrastructure, human resources, technology, business incubation, openness and environmental policy. “According to this report, open economies tend to be more competitive, and, therefore, are more productive,” Shane Goettle, commissioner of the North Dakota Department of Commerce, said in a prepared statement. “Technology is also central to economic development. State leaders and legislators have placed an emphasis on improving the state’s business climate. This study reflects the ongoing success of their efforts.”

SIOUX FALLS NAMED ONE OF TOP CITIES FOR WAREHOUSING, DISTRIBUTION

Expansion Solutions Magazine has selected Sioux Falls as one of the nation’s top five communities for warehousing and distribution. The national publication referred to Sioux Falls as the “crossroads of the nation,” mentioning its location at the intersection of interstates 90 and 29, the Sioux Falls Regional Airport, more than 50 truck lines serving local terminal facilities and BNSF Railway access. The magazine also mentioned South Dakota’s attractive business climate, which includes no state corporate or personal income taxes, no personal property tax and no inheritance tax.

LAKE AREA IMPROVEMENT CORPORATION HOLDS ANNUAL MEETING

Attendees at its annual meeting in late January were told that the Lake Area Improvement Corporation is focusing on job growth in the service industry, medical and information technology areas in the future. Dustin Williams, president of the Lake Area Improvement Corporation Board of Directors, told those in attendance at the annual meeting at the Dakota Prairie Playhouse and Conference Center in Madison, SD, that utilizing Dakota State University and its supply of technology graduates will help accomplish those goals. Slater Barr, president of the Sioux Falls Development Foundation, said at the meeting that communities will continue to lose manufacturing jobs, the rural to urban migration will continue and that economic development roles are changing because of technology.

SOUTH DAKOTA SCHOOL OF MINES CELEBRATES 125TH ANNIVERSARY

The South Dakota School of Mines and Technology is celebrating its 125th anniversary this year. The Rapid City-based School of Mines was founded in 1885 and is known for its strong engineering and science programs and prominent research. The college held a 125th anniversary kick off ceremony in late January at the Surbeck Center ballroom.

SALES AND MARKETING EXECUTIVES MEET IN FARGO

Matthew Mohr, president and CEO of Fargo’s Dacotah Paper Company, delivered a presentation in late January to members and guests of the Sales and Marketing Executives of Fargo-Moorhead at Best Western’s Fargo Doublewood Inn & Conference Center. Mohr discussed key concepts for being successful in a business career, advising business professionals to do what you say you will do, look for miracles, not be afraid to try new things and stay with the job as long as possible.

CLEAN ENERGY ON DISPLAY IN GRAND FORKS, ND

The Clean Energy Solutions Showcase in Grand Forks, ND, in late January featured tours of the LM Glasfiber wind turbine manufacturing plant and other local clean energy projects. Those who participated also heard comments from a number of local officials, including Mayor Michael Brown and President Robert Kelley of the University of North Dakota. The event was organized by the North Dakota Climate Solutions Partnership.

CHOICE HOTELS TO CLOSE MINOT, ND, CALL CENTER

Choice Hotels International Inc. recently announced plans to transition its contact center in Minot, ND, to a home-based operation as part of an effort to increase efficiency in its service and reservation centers. Choice Hotels announced that it plans to close the physical contact center facility in Minot in 2011. The Silver Spring, MD-based company has stopped hiring employees in Minot and says it will focus on placing associates in home-based positions in the next several months. At the time of the announcement Choice Hotels employed about 350 in the Minot area, including about 50 home-based teleservice representatives. The exact number of future employees had not yet been finalized, but the company said it planned to significantly increase its number of home-based positions in the Minot area. “While the decision to close the physical center in Minot by 2011 was not an easy decision to make, we feel strongly that it provides the best balance of business continuity and operational flexibility, enabling us to preserve the strengths of our Minot operation while positioning us effectively for the future,” Mary Beth Knight, Choice Hotels’ senior vice president of ecommerce and global distribution, said in a prepared statement.

NEW BIOPHARMACEUTICAL COMPANY LAUNCHED IN FARGO

AltraVax Inc., a new Fargo-based biopharmaceutical company, plans to eventually create a number of professional research and administrative bioscience-related jobs in Fargo. AltraVax, which is led by entrepreneurs Michael Chambers and James Burgum, has acquired vaccine development technology from Maxygen Inc. Arthur Ventures Growth Fund is the lead investor in AltraVax. The new company will work with Aldevron, a Fargo-based biosciences company that Chambers launched in 1998, and Cetero Research, which operates a clinical research facility in Fargo.

OUTLAND RENEWABLE ENERGY COMPLETING CANBY, MN, RENOVATION

Canby, MN-based Outland Renewable Energy has completed the second phase of a three-phase expansion and renovation project. Outland Renewable Energy is re-purposing a former furniture store and John Deere dealership in Canby into a secure warehouse for high-value inventory in Outland Renewable Energy’s growing service division. The expansion project includes adding a new area to handle tooling and deliveries for strategic partner Hansen Service Wind and will provide a permanent clean room and processing area for technicians within a 2,400-square-foot viewable storage area.

GOVERNOR PAWLENTY PROMOTES JOB GROWTH AT WELLS CONCRETE PLANT

Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty pointed to Wells Concrete’s growth during difficult economic times as an example of what can happen when businesses and communities work together during a visit to the company’s new plant in Albany, MN, in late January. Wells Concrete opened a new 185,000-square-foot facility in Albany late last year. The new plant added 50 jobs in the community and is expected to create another 100 jobs in the next five years. “We are all in the business of creating jobs,” Pawlenty, shown with Wells Concrete CEO John Rivisto, said during the event. “We must continue to work to make Minnesota more competitive for businesses. With strong leadership, a devoted workforce, and a community of support, Wells Concrete is a shining example of how the public sector and private sector can come together to help businesses grow.”

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