Businesses Opening in Columbus, Norcross

Two digital imaging companies have announced plans to bring several hundred jobs to Georgia over the next few years.

YesVideo is hiring 300 people for a regional plant set to open in Norcross in Gwinnett County next month.

The Santa Clara, California-based firm converts home movies and videos to DVDs and other digital formats.

Steven Bush is the city's economic development manager. He says the jobs are quality positions:

"They are going to be a lot of tech jobs; a lot of jobs that require some training.”

Bush says salaries will be in the mid-40's. He also notes that the conversion service is available at 30,000 retail locations, including Walgreens, CVS and Costco.

The firm is the second high-tech company to open its doors in Norcross recently: Solar powercell maker Suneva opened a $75 million dollar plant in Norcross late last year.

Meanwhile, in west Georgia, Kodak is adding on a third production line at their Columbus plant.

A Kodak spokesperson says they'll add another 50 spots to the current 250 jobs over the next three years.

The plant makes digital printing plates for the packaging and printing industry.

Click here for more Georgia business stories.

Cessna to Cut Jobs in Columbus

Cessna Skyhawk (Illustration)

Cessna Aircraft says they plan to lay off about 100 workers at their plant in Columbus. There are 650 employees at the west Georgia facility, which make sheet metal parts for their light aircraft.

The job cuts are part of the Kansas-based firm’s effort to trim their workforce by 2,000 – or about 13 percent.

Cessna officials say the worldwide economic downturn is forcing customers to cancel or delay orders for new aircraft.

Cessna employs about 15,000 people worldwide.

The company also plans to order employee furloughs, beginning in March, although details haven't been released.

Workers being laid off will receive 60-day notices within the next few weeks, Cessna spokesman Robert Stangarone said in a telephone interview, adding that the cuts will be spread "across all areas and all salary levels."

Click here for more GPB News coverage about business in Columbus.

Kia Plant an Example of Jobs, Job Losses

Kia Motors assembly plant and new access road, along I-85 between West Point and LaGrange, Ga., December, 2008. (Dave Bender/file)

As state unemployment rates soar to the highest in a quarter-century, west Georgia is seeing both business development -- and recession over the new Kia auto plant under construction at West Point.

KIA and state officials unveil Now Hiring! sign at ceremony at West Georgia Technical College, Jan. 8, 2008. (Dave Bender/file)

The Latest Georgia Department of Labor statistics say almost 400,000 Georgians are looking for work.

Jobless numbers for December doubled to over eight percent since the same period the previous year.

In Columbus, a prospective Kia supplier is canceling a planned facility after changing owners. That plant would have brought 350 jobs to the city to make car parts.

Despite the gloomy figures, Mike Gaymon of the Columbus Chamber of Commerce says west Georgia will weather the recession better than much of Georgia:

"Within the next couple of quarters, you'll see the economy in our region start to come out quicker than the state; which will probably be followed sometime later on in 0-10. So, based upon all the primary jobs that will be coming into play, over the next several months, and within the next six months to a year, our economy we think is poised to be a bright spot in our state and in our region."

One signpost of that recovery is the announcement by another Kia supplier, who plans to open a seat-belt plant in West Point, that will employ 50 people.

Kia officials say the assembly line is scheduled to open in the fourth quarter of '09.
Signs of the times in west Georgia. (Dave Bender)


Click here for more GPB News coverage about Georgia's economy.

Forbes adds Aflac to 'best-managed' firms list

Forbes magazine has chosen Georgia insurance giant Aflac as one of America's best-managed firms.

This also makes the ninth year the American Family Life Insurance Company of Columbus has made the financial magazine top 400 Big Business grade.

The 53-year-old family-run business is a Fortune 500 company, with some 40 million policyholders worldwide.

Forbes editors chose the company based on an array of data covering one to five years, that include sales growth and stock market returns.

AFLAC CEO Dan Amos, last month announced he was foregoing a 13-million dollar, “golden parachute” severance package as a goodwill gesture in light of the nation's severe economic situation.

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Credit crisis hammers Aflac, Synovus 3Q numbers

Columbus-based Aflac Insurance and Synovus Financial Services are both reeling from the nationwide economic crisis.

Just-released third-quarter statements by both firms showed massive losses in investments and income from the same period last year.

Synovus's net income nosedived 85-percent to $66 million dollars over loan losses and defaulted mortgages.

Similarly, Aflac's net income tumbled 76-percent to $100 million dollars.

The insurer had close to 400 million dollars in shares in Lehman Brothers, Washington Mutual and Ford Motor Company, among others.

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Job cuts in Columbus

Pratt & Whitney has cut 55 jobs at its jet engine and repair business, the Columbus Engine Center. The Connecticut-based company says the cuts are a result of a reduction in the volume of engine overhauls. Earlier this year, the company conducted a voluntary separation program for workers at least age 60 with 10 years of continuous service.

(Associated Press)

Major Ga. auto dealer to close branches on Friday: report

"Mr. Big Volume" Bill Heard dealership in Columbus. (Courtesy Mike Haskey/Ledger-Enquirer)

Columbus-based Bill Heard Enterprises Inc. will shut down its 13 auto dealerships on Friday, the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer reports.

Heard, once one of the largest Chevy dealers in the country, is also trying to unload its flagship operation in Columbus, according to the report.

The state of Georgia filed a $50 million deceptive advertising lawsuit against Bill Heard Enterprises Inc. in July of last year. The case was one of many complaints against the company, according to the Governors Office of Consumer Affairs.

Heard has dealerships throughout the southeast and Nevada, and closed a dealership in Arizona earlier this year.

Click here for more GPB News coverage about Georgia business.

Moving Georgians: a look ahead

Georgians will be able to tell state officials what they want in public transportation next week. The plan's dubbed the Investing in Tomorrow’s Transportation Today initiative (IT3).

Officials say they want to hear what Georgians want in public transportation. They say they'll use that input to set strategic policies, and create a business model for the future.

The public is invited to a week-long series of meetings starting September 22. They'll be held in Atlanta, Augusta, Columbus, Dalton, Macon, Savannah and Valdosta.

Officials on-hand for the series of public forums will include DOT commissioner Gena Abraham, department board members, and local officials to the particular area.

Ericka Davis of the Department of Transportation says the forums will be one-stop shopping for residents to give their opinions:

"That’s an opportunity for them to be in one spot and the key decision-makers on the transportation plan for Georgia will be right there listening to what they have to say."

The legislature failed to pass a transportation plan this past session. That was after a group of legislators held similar hearings around the state last year.

Lawmakers are expected to try again come January.

More information is available at http://www.it3.ga.gov.

Click here for more GPB News coverage of state transportation and infrastructure issues.

Columbus man running for state rep slot

Zephaniah Baker (Courtesy)

Columbus native 31-year-old Zephaniah Baker, plans to run for District 132 as an independent on the November 4 ballot.

Running what he calls a “people over politics” campaign, Baker says he's calling for better educational opportunities, especially in the district's middle and high schools. He says he wants to create a more welcoming business climate for industry, that would bring, in his words, “high paying jobs,” to the area.

Baker says he started canvassing the district in January, and has received a requisite 990 verified signatures to be added to the ballot as an independent candidate.

Baker tells the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer newspaper that he's running, in his words, "for the post," and not against the current Democratic representative, Calvin Smyre.

Smyre is a 30-year veteran of Georgia politics and serves as House Minority Whip.

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Feds: $200M lawsuit against GA credit card firm

Federal officials have filed a $200 million dollar lawsuit against an Atlanta credit card marketing firm, accusing it of deceptive practices.

The Federal Trade Commission and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation on Tuesday filed lawsuits against Atlanta-based CompuCredit, and two out-of-state banks.

The feds say the companies, "misled" borrowers several times over a two-year period.

They allege that, in some cases, two thirds of a $300 dollar credit limit on the unsecured cards was eaten up by hidden fees.

Columbus Banking and Trust markets the cards, and were also named in the lawsuit. But rather than go to court, they agreed to pay ten million dollars in fines and restitution.

CB&T CEO Steve Melton says borrowers who took out the cards knew what they were getting into:

“...Well, they haven't been bamboozled by the small print, and the people who take these cards have been denied – and we wouldn't have issued these customers a card in the normal course of our business.”

Melton says borrowers knew what they were getting into:

“I don't want anyone to think that this market segment is a bunch of ignorant people that don't know what they're doing when they get a credit card. That's not the case.”

The feds are seeking $217 million dollars in fines and restitution from CompuCredit, and the other two banks, Wilmington-based First Bank of Delaware and First Bank & Trust of Brookings, South Dakota.

The firms deny the charges and say they'll fight the lawsuit.

FTC officials did not respond to repeated requests for comment.

If you have a credit card that bears the name of any of the following companies, or your are a CompuCredit customer, you may be eligible to receive damages: Aspen, Aspire, Aspire A Mas, Emerge, Fingerhut Credit Advantage, FreedomCard, Imagine, Majestic and Tribute.

Click here for more GPB News coverage of banking issues in Georgia, and here for more on credit card issues.

Columbus: GA GOP unites behind McCain

Sen. Chambliss addresses a sparse crowd of convention delegates at the Columbus Civic Center, on Friday, May 16th, 2008. Many more arrived for Saturday's session. (Dave Bender)

Georgia Republicans united behind likely GOP presidential nominee John McCain on Saturday and fired up their faithful members at the party's annual convention Saturday.

Delegates were selected to represent the state at the national GOP convention in September, and a steady stream of elected officials who took the podium said the party needs to come home to its bedrock conservative issues from taxes and immigration to military might and gun rights.

"We've got some work to do. We've got some proving to do,'' said U.S. Rep. Lynn Westmoreland of Sharpsburg. "The base didn't get lost. We got lost.''

Governor Sonny Perdue urged Republicans to avoid poll-driven "gimmicks'' and suggested there was a damaging disconnect between party leaders in Washington and conservative states like Georgia.

Recent contests in the Bible Belt that have elected Democrats "ought to be a warning around the South and around the United States,'' Perdue said. But, he later told reporters, "I feel very good about Georgia.''

Democrats made gains in 2006 by winning control of the U.S. House and Senate, but Georgia bucked the trend by electing Republicans to a couple of statewide posts that had been held by Democrats.

However, Republicans said they were not taking anything for granted, especially after Democrats cast more ballots in this year's Feb. 5 presidential primary than the GOP.

The main order of business Saturday was to select delegates who will attend the national GOP convention. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee won Georgia's presidential primary with strong support from religious conservatives and independents. But on Saturday, John McCain stickers were everywhere and nearly every speech plugged the Arizona senator.

The slate of 30 delegates and 30 alternates selected included prominent supporters of Huckabee, as well as other former GOP contenders including former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani; Fred Thompson, the one-time senator from Tennessee; and ex-Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

Among the delegates were supporters of U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas. A vocal group of Paul supporters were also in the stands, according to the Associated Press.

Bickering on the floor turned caustic at times. One delegate demanded a resolution condemning abortion as "prenatal murder.'' Another participant had his microphone turned off when he criticized the war in Iraq.

"I've never seen debate stifled that much,'' said state committee member Brian Laurens, of Ellijay, who said he's been involved in state conventions since 2002.

Turnout by delegates on Friday afternoon's 2 p.m. opening session was light; many arrived later in the evening, and on Saturday. (Dave Bender)

U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss on Friday said he'd warned President Bush that vetoing the farm bill could hurt presumptive GOP nominee John McCain in reliably Republican states this fall.

"If they get turned off by Republicans it's going to make it tough for John to get those votes," Chambliss told reporters following his speech.

Chambliss, a loyal Bush ally who is running for re-election, said he told the president that that with his low approval ratings he should avoid alienating voters in agriculture-rich states in the South and the Midwest that have supported him.

White House officials have suggested Bush will veto the bill.

Chambliss, the top Republican on the Senate Agriculture Committee, defended the recently adopted bill from critics who said it is heavy on rich subsidies to wealthy farmers.

"That's ridiculous," Chambliss said. He said the bulk of the farm bill spending went to nutrition programs, like food stamps and school lunches. And he argued that individual farmers earning more than $750,000 a year don't qualify for federal aid, under the bill.

Chambliss was asked about the five-year $300 billion farm bill by reporters but he made no mention of it in his speech to the party faithful at the Columbus Civic Center for the kickoff of the state party's convention. Also missing from the speech: Any reference to President Bush.
Bush's dismal approval ratings have many election-bound Republicans steering clear.

Chambliss did talk up McCain and urged Georgians to unite behind the Arizona senator. Georgia went for former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee in the Feb. 5 primary. Huckabee drew strong support from independents and religious conservatives.

Chambliss made a case for his own re-election to a second-term by issuing a dire warning about what the nation will be like if Democrats win a handful of additional seats in the U.S. Senate. Under Senate rules, Republicans will lose the ability to block the Democrats' agenda.

Click here for more GPB News coverage of the presidential elections.

(The Associated Press)

Lawsuit filed vs. coal-fired plant

The first coal-fired power plant to be built in Georgia in two decades faces a lawsuit. The Atlanta Business Chronicle reports the Sierra Club, GreenLaw, and Friends of the Chattahoochee are teaming up in the suit. They claim mercury emissions from the Longleaf Energy Station would be built near Columbus would violate the Clean Air Act.

New air service to Columbus

The Eclipse 500 is part of a new airplane category called "very light jets," and carries three passengers at speeds up to 425 mph — faster than the average propeller plane its size. (Wilfredo Lee/AP file)

A regional business air-carrier has just added Columbus to its roster of destinations in Georgia and across the southeast. DayJet bills itself as the world's first per-seat, on-demand jet service.

The carrier currently serves 45 destinations across the southeast, catering to business travelers able to pay premium prices. For example, a hop between just-added destinations, Columbus and Savannah, runs between $300 and $1,000 dollars.

While DayJet is aimed chiefly at Columbus's executive clientèle like AFLAC and Synovus, Georgia Third District Congressman Lynn Westmoreland says the increased flight options will bolster smaller industries, as well:

"With the hassle of airports and major hubs, now, we just think this is going to be the access for a lot of businesses; some of these businesses in outlying areas to have a chance of promoting business and getting people to come to their area, because they'll now have this transportation for people within the business."

Westmoreland, who sits on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, and the aviation subcommittee says Ft. Benning's planned expansion will also benefit from the increased air traffic.

The training post is expected to see over 30,000 troops and dependents moving to the area over the next three years, as part of the Army's base relocation project:

"With the expansion of Ft. Benning, and all the things that Ft. Benning is doing, and the armor division coming down, and the new infantry museum... we just think that there needs to be just a little bit better regional service to the Columbus area. I think, right now, Delta has maybe two flights a day."

Westmoreland says DayJet may create a market more attractive to carriers like Delta, Airtran or Southwest.

A company spokesman says they'll be announcing other Georgia destinations in coming weeks.

Click here for more GPB News coverage of transportation issues.

Drought Hitting Hay Prices, and Horse Breeders

Buglioli with one of her horses. (Courtesy Little Creek Farm)

The prolonged drought is hurting many agricultural areas in Georgia, among others, hay growers for horses and livestock.

Prices for a bale of hay for Georgia horse breeders and boarders have more than doubled this winter.

Kathy Buglioli of Little Creek Farm in Upatoi near Columbus, blames the drought.

She says her business has seen prices for a single 900 pound bale that feeds horses for only three days - jump from $30 to $50, and even $100 dollars:

“…it has affected hay production to the point of reducing not only the number of bales that the hay farmers get per acre during the harvest season, but also how many times there able to get a cutting.”

She says other boarders are buying from Florida and Louisiana, where hay is cheaper.

Click here for more GPB News coverage of the drought.

Columbus: 'Smog Alerts Just A Start'

(Department of Natural Resources)

Air quality in Columbus is worsening, and the city is starting out the New Year with smog alerts.

Federal and State Environmental Protection agency officials are threatening the city with what's know as “non-attainment” of air quality goals. City officials say the designation would sharply curtail business development.
Today's air quality is at 42, considered according to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.

Although the city says it currently meets federal air-quality smog standards, Columbus admits that in 2007, they racked up no less than ten violations for particle pollution.

Columbus Planning Director Rick Jones says, "...it means simply that our air standards don't meet national standards, that the EPA has established... What we're setting up is an email notification system, to let folks know what the air-quality will be for the next day...”

But Jones says the city's cleaning up their act before the 2009 cutoff date.

In September, the city spearheaded a volunteer program with over 60 municipal and local organizations to cut diesel emissions, car idling, limit open burning and raise public awareness of the issue.

Current air quality information is available here: http://www.air.dnr.state.ga.us/columbussmogforecast/

Georgians will be able to sign up for the emails as of next week at the city's website: http://www.columbusga.com/MPO

Click here for more GPB News coverage of pollution issues.

CSU Graduation Set For Saturday

CSU belltower. (file photo/Dave Bender)

Columbus State University will recognize about 450 degree recipients in a commencement on Saturday.

The ceremony also will feature an honorary degree presentation to Thomas B. Buck Jr., a senior member of the CSU Foundation Board of Trustees. A well-known business and civic leader, Buck is credited for playing an important role in the growth of CSU and Columbus.

Expanded graduating classes in the past three years reflect a 35 percent enrollment increase since 2001, the university said in a statement released to the press.

A live Webcast will be available at http://graduation.colstate.edu. A high-speed connection is recommended, and a room in Lumpkin Center and Fine Arts Hall auditorium will be set up for attendees seeking an alternative viewing location, the statement said.

Click here for more GPB News about CSU.

Local officials slam state water plan

Shoal-marker and vegetation, both once submerged in West Point Lake, show extent of drought. (file photo/Dave Bender)

An eleventh hour change in the plan seeks to allocate water according to so-called “service delivery regions,” and not by watershed.

That concept didn't sit well with Bob Tant, Columbus Water Works vice-president:

"They introduced this change right at the last minute, and it was such a major change, it almost begs anyone who follows this process to have to bail out on the plan."

Critics decried what they say was a lack of local influence in decision-making. They fear the water plan serves political and business needs of Atlanta, more than those of communities downstream.

About 40 officials and experts attended the final round of these statewide meeting.

The final draft will go before the state legislature in January.

Click here for more GPB News coverage of the water crisis.

Wheeler's falls victim to housing slump

In business for more than half a century, Rome-based Wheeler's Building Materials is one of many forced to downsize because of reductions in new home construction. According to the Rome News Tribune, the company will reduce its 1,000 member workforce to less than 500.

Experts say Georgia has lost nearly 10,000 manufacturing jobs in 2007 and that additional losses in 2008, could mean a rocky road ahead. Jeff Humphreys directs the Selig Economic Forecast center at UGA's Terry School of Business.

"Prepare for subdued growth but recognize that the risk of recession is unusually high about 40 percent. So, we're close to a tipping point. It looks like we'll be safe. But there is a huge downside risk and the risk is greatest during the first half of 2008."

Not all economic news was bad news for the state. Humphreys says look for growth in the health care industry, as well as expansion in the Columbus area, where changes at Ft. Benning are expected to mean thousands of new jobs.

Panasonic plant closure to hit 250 workers

Panasonic Primary Battery Corporation of America plans to close one of three battery manufacturing facilities in Columbus, in the first quarter of 2008.

Plant administrators informed the 250 employees of the decision on Monday, citing competition from Chinese imports. A employee who recently left the company said they had no prior warning of the impending closure of the facility, which makes alkaline batteries.

Local officials of the Osaka-based firm, a subsidiary of Matsushita, said they planned to offer severance packages, and would work with state officials to retrain employees.

The company's two other facilities will be unaffected by the March 31 closure, and will employ over 100 workers, according to a report in the Ledger-Enquirer newspaper.

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Synovus spinning off TSYS

Synovus' Columbus headquarters. (Dave Bender)

Electronic payment processor TSYS (NYSE:TSS) said Thursday it will spin-off from parent Synovus Financial (NYSE:SNV) Corp. to become an independent company.

Financial services company Synovus, which owns an 81 percent stake in the company, will distribute all of its shares of TSYS common stock to Synovus shareholders.

Synovus CEO Richard E. Anthony, in a statement to stockholders said:

"This change presents an exciting opportunity for each company to focus exclusively on its core business, which we believe will lead to increased shareholder value."

Under terms of the agreement, TSYS will pay a one-time cash dividend of $600 million to all TSYS shareholders, including Synovus. The company plans to fund the dividend through a combination of cash on hand and a revolving credit facility. Based on the number of TSYS shares outstanding as of Sept. 30, TSYS expects its shareholders to receive a cash dividend of about $3.04 per share.

The transaction is expected to be completed by the end of 2007, subject to certain conditions, including the approval of the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance.

(With The Associated Press)

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