Port of Vancouver wins contract for Washington’s newest wind farm
The Port of Vancouver was selected as the port of entry for the largest wind-powered electric generation facility scheduled for construction in Washington State this year. With the addition of the Wild Horse project in central Washington, Port of Vancouver will have been involved in moving wind turbine components for all six wind farms in the state.
Over the next six months, Vancouver will move 1,000 sections of gigantic towers, propeller-like blades and nacelles to their destination in Ellensburg.
This is the fourth wind energy project the port has partnered on with Vestas American Wind Technology Inc. based in Portland. It is a subsidiary of Vestas Wind Systems A/S of Denmark, the world’s leading wind turbine manufacturer. The 127-unit Wild Horse Wind Farm is Puget Sound Energy’s second wind-power electric generation facility in Washington.
The port’s recent purchase of a 140-metric-ton heavy lift crane will assist in the project.
Nutter awarded for erosion and sediment control
Nutter Corp. has been recognized once again in the second year of the Regional Erosion Prevention Awards. This is the second year the company has received awards as a result of the Federal Clean Water Act, which subjects local excavating and construction firms to adhere to strict standards in implementing successful erosion and sediment control programs.
Counties and municipalities throughout the Northwest each choose a company that best represents implementation of specific applications and approaches for erosion and sediment control projects within their communities.
Nutter instituted many erosion control measures prior to the law being enacted. To be nominated, a company cannot have any violations and must have completed the job on time. Nutter was among 17 companies honored for large developments among the 25 jurisdictions being recognized.
Nutter was honored for its work on Lincoln Heights Subdivision in Happy Valley, Ore. The project was located next to a cemetery, so there had to be extreme sensitivity to the ground. The company was also recognized for work in Vancouver on the Bridge Subdivision, which was in close proximity to neighbors and on a steep, sloping terrain.
Dotster helps businesses target local customers
Dotster Inc., a Vancouver-based domain registration and Web hosting company, introduced its new Local Site Promotion tool, designed to provide one source for small businesses and merchants to register their Web sites with all search engines and increase traffic from local consumers.
Local Site Promotion allows businesses to target online consumers who are searching for products and services in specific geographic locations including metropolitan regions, cities and even specific neighborhoods.
Local Site Promotion uses a pay-per-click model where merchants only pay when potential customers click the merchants’ advertisement and visit their Web pages from search engine listings.
Dotster e-mails merchants with customized traffic reports on site visits, inbound phone calls, emails and coupon redemption directly related to each merchant’s online campaign.
Pacific Continental officially opens in Vancouver
Continental Bank opened its first Vancouver office at 911 Main Street on June 12. The 1,860-square-foot office is focused on providing business banking services. The company said Vancouver is a natural extension of Pacific Continental’s growth strategy in the greater metropolitan Portland market.
Pacific Continental Vice President, Todd Burchett, will lead the Vancouver expansion effort. Other office employees include Lori Lindsell, Brent Anderson, Barbara Warren and Yvonne Krecklow.
Wacom receives red dot Award
Wacom’s Cintiq 21UX interactive pen display was awarded the "red dot" for superior design quality and innovation by the Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen, home to the red dot design museum in Essen, Germany. Criteria included degree of innovation, functionality, form quality, ergonomics and emotional attachment.
The design of the Cintiq 21UX reflects Wacom’s philosophy to develop intuitive interface solutions that provide a natural and harmonious interaction with the computer. The Cintiq 21UX had to meet high design standards and fulfill the professional requirements of digital content creators working in a variety of applications. The in-house design process was supported by the industrial designers of RiskyBrand and involved a global team from Wacom’s offices in Japan, Europe and the USA.
Winners were chosen from a field of 4,000 from 40 countries.
Local hotel industry supports Skills Center
Students enrolled in the Skills Center’s Travel and Hotel Management program will now receive new scholarship dollars to support post-secondary education.
Participating hotels include the Heathman Lodge, Embassy Suites at the Airport, Holiday Inn at the Airport, Red Lion Hotel on The River at Jantzen Beach, the Northwest Hospitality Group and the Clark County Lodging Association.
Each has pledged $500 to $1000 scholarships to students in the program. Based on the new agreement, each hotel will sponsor a student who exhibits outstanding performance throughout the academic year and then award the student scholarship money to continue a post-secondary education.
In the Skills Center program, students from Southwest Washington intern at local hotel properties. Their classroom curriculum is shaped by national standards, endorsed by the American Hotel and Lodging Association and monitored by a Program Advisory board of travel and hotel professionals to assure real world application. The students earn industry certifications and college credit while the hotels are able to handpick future employees.
Seattle forum offers local businesses $1 billion in contracting opportunities
Congressman Brian Baird announced the U.S. Department of Energy will hold its annual Small Business Conference at the Washington State Convention and Trade Center in Seattle from June 27 to 30. Local small businesses owners will have the opportunity to discuss government contract opportunities with DOE officials.
The conference will feature talks by prominent government, corporate and business leaders on how small businesses can better access DOE procurement opportunities, and a business expo will provide business owners with an opportunity to showcase their products and services to hundreds of corporate and government officials.
Small business owners, organizations, presenters and individuals interested in attending or learning more about the conference may visit www.smallbusiness-outreach.doe.gov or call 888-246-2460.
BIA announces Remodeled Homes Tour People’s Choice Winners
More than 700 people attended the Building Industry Association of Clark County’s Remodeled Homes Tour in May and voted for the People’s Choice Awards.
Winner of Best Presentation went to Mike Kinnaman of Designers Northwest whose Fargher Lake project featured a large addition which overlooked a scenic vineyard.
Brian Kashas, of Kashas Construction took home the Best Transformation award. This project featured a whole house remodel which included concrete floors, a state of the art kitchen and the seamless integration of old and new.
Eight projects were featured in the tour showcasing a variety of scales, neighborhoods, designs and price ranges.
Junior Achievement receives HP technology grant
Junior Achievement–Columbia Empire was selected as one of 104 non-profit organizations in the U.S and Puerto Rico to receive and HP Technology for the Community Grant valued at $17,000 in HP wireless technology.
The grant is designed to provide technology tool to non-profit organizations to enhance their effectiveness and support the use of mobile technology. Junior Achievement, dedicated to educating young people about business, economics and free enterprise in Oregon and Southwest Washington, will utilize the technology as part of its JA Enterprise Village Program. The program, which will be launched in the 2006-07 school year, is a 9,000-square-foot replica of an American city that gives an economic simulation to fifth grade students.
