Oak Ridge Today

State awards Aisin, Eagle Bend training grants

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Burns Phillips

Burns Phillips

Information from WYSH Radio

Two Clinton manufacturing facilities have been awarded Incumbent Worker Training grants by the state of Tennessee.

On Wednesday, Gov. Bill Haslam and Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development Commissioner Burns Phillips announced that a $25,000 grant has been awarded to Eagle Bend Manufacturing and that Aisin Automotive Casting Tennessee Inc. received the same amount.

The Eagle Bend grant will provide 76 employees with training in repair/welder qualification and re-qualification, advanced product quality planning (APQP), and FANUC (handling tool operation and programming).

The Aisin grant will provide 10 of that company’s employees with training in mechanical class and maintenance. [Read more…]

With new ISO rating, ORFD among top in nation

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Darryl Kerley

ORFD Chief Darryl Kerley

Improvement could lower commercial rates in particular, help recruitment

The Oak Ridge Fire Department has been notified by the Insurance Service Office that the fire protection rating for the department will be improving to a Class 2, a press release said.

ISO has been evaluating and assigning fire protection ratings to fire departments since 1971. Insurance companies use the fire protection ratings to determine home owners and business insurance premiums. ISO evaluates fire department equipment, station locations, training, fire prevention efforts, and many other factors to assign a protection rating.

The ORFD has held a Class 3 rating for nearly 15 years but will now be a Class 2 department effective June 1, 2014. According to information from ISO, of the 47,250 fire departments across the country, less than 650 obtain a rating of Class 2 rating or better. [Read more…]

UT names bioenergy expert as 14th UT-ORNL Governor’s Chair

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Art Ragauskas

Arthur Ragauskas

KNOXVILLE—Arthur Ragauskas, an authority in bioenergy, has been named the 14th University of Tennessee-Oak Ridge National Laboratory Governor’s Chair.

He will serve as Governor’s Chair for Biorefining, based in UT’s Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering with a complementary appointment in the UT Institute of Agriculture’s Department of Forestry, Wildlife, and Fisheries.

He will also serve in the Energy and Environmental Sciences Directorate, Biosciences Division, at ORNL and as a member of the U.S. Department of Energy’s BioEnergy Science Center, or BESC.

Ragauskas begins at UT on June 1. [Read more…]

UT report to governor: Economy to see stronger growth in 2014 and 2015

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Matt Murray

Matt Murray

KNOXVILLE—After five years of sluggish recovery, the U.S. and Tennessee economies are poised for strong growth in 2014 and 2015.

Despite the slow pace of the recovery, many indicators—including an increase in consumer confidence, rallying stock market prices, and rising home prices—point to brighter growth prospects in the quarters ahead, according to the forecast in the 2014 Economic Report to the Governor of the State of Tennessee, released Friday.

The study, prepared by the Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, predicts the course of the state and national economies by examining many fiscal factors and trends.

Household net worth grew by almost 10 percent in 2013, surpassing its pre-recession level for the first time. [Read more…]

Weston Wamp announces congressional campaign leadership

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Weston Wamp

Weston Wamp

Weston Wamp, a Republican candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives in Tennessee’s Third District, announced the first members of his campaign staff and leadership team this week.

The group includes three notable Chattanooga entrepreneurs as well as a former staffer for the incumbent, Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, and a 25-year veteran of the Chattanooga Police Department, a press release said.

“I’m honored that people of this caliber have joined my campaign for Congress,” Wamp said. “Our campaign team spans three generations, but shares a passion for seeing Washington work to serve the people again. The Congress does not have to be an embarrassment to our country. We deserve much better representation, and with this team I believe we are on our way to a winning campaign and an opportunity to set a higher standard than the current congressman.” [Read more…]

Free flu shots, warm coats available at Jan. 31 Stone Soup meal

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ORUUC Stone Soup Community Meal and Flu Shots

Free flu shots will be available at the Jan. 31 Stone Soup community meal at Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church. (Submitted photo)

Free flu shots and warm coats will be available at the Jan. 31 Stone Soup community meal at Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church.

Everyone is invited to the free community meal, scheduled from 5 to 6 p.m. Friday, Jan. 31, in the Social Hall of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church, a press release said. The church is located at 1500 Oak Ridge Turnpike. The Stone Soup team will prepare and serve homemade white chicken chili, corn bread, and a cookie and milk.

The Stone Soup Ministry team has partnered with the Free Medical Clinic of Oak Ridge, or FMCOR, to provide free flu shots to anyone in need. Nurses who are volunteers at FMCOR will be on hand to give the shots, the press release said. The vaccine is being provided by the clinic. [Read more…]

JCPenney in Oak Ridge to stay open as 33 stores close across US

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JCPenney at Oak Ridge Mall

JCPenney at the Oak Ridge Mall will stay open as the company closes 33 stores across the United States.

The JCPenney in Oak Ridge will stay open as the retailer closes 33 underperforming stores across the United States.

The list of closures announced Wednesday includes only one Tennessee store, the JCPenney at Northgate Mall in Chattanooga.

The JCPenney in Oak Ridge is at the city’s mostly empty mall, where a $85 million redevelopment has been proposed. Crosland Southeast, the North Carolina company that has had a purchase contract on the mall since January 2013, has said the renovated 59-acre site could open in  2016 and include a mix of retail and office space, a hotel, and up to 50 multi-family residential units, as well as a few restaurants. Belk and JCPenney are expected to stay. [Read more…]

Tennessee named ‘2013 State of the Year’ for economic development

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Governor Bill Haslam

Bill Haslam

Business Facilities magazine cites diverse top projects in award

NASHVILLE—Tennessee is the “2013 State of the Year,” according to Business Facilities magazine, a national economic development publication.

Tennessee’s top five economic development projects created a total of 6,900 jobs and $3.2 billion in capital investment, and they included seven expansions and three new recruitments. The magazine picked the state after evaluating the top five projects for the number of jobs created and amount of capital invested from Oct. 1, 2012, through Oct. 31, 2013.

“A lot of hard work goes into keeping Tennessee competitive, and I want to thank Business Facilities for recognizing the efforts of so many people across the state,” Gov. Bill Haslam said. “We understand that jobs are created when someone is willing to risk capital, and we will continue working to make Tennessee a great place to invest.” [Read more…]

Weston Wamp will oppose Fleischmann again in U.S. House race

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Weston Wamp

Weston Wamp

Weston Wamp announced on Monday that he will oppose U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann again.

Wamp, the son of former Congressman Zach Wamp, is a Chattanooga Republican who ran against Fleischmann in the 2012 election. Fleischmann is now in his second term, and he represents Tennessee’s Third District, which includes Oak Ridge.

Fleischmann replaced Zach Wamp, Weston’s father, in 2010, when Zach Wamp unsuccessfully ran for Tennessee governor.

In a campaign announcement, Weston Wamp took aim at federal legislators in general and Fleischmann in particular. [Read more…]

Sen. Corker completes Middle East trip with visits to Oman, Bahrain

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Sen. Bob Corker Meets with Tennessee Sailors and Marines

U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, a Tennessee Republican, meets with Tennessee sailors and marines deployed to Bahrain with the U.S. Fifth Fleet. (Submitted photos)

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MANAMA, Bahrain—U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, a Tennessee Republican and ranking member of the Foreign Relations Committee, completed a three-nation trip to the Middle East on Dec. 5 in Bahrain, where he continued to assess U.S. diplomatic and security relations in the Gulf region, a press release said.

After a visit with U.S. Ambassador Thomas C. Krajeski, he met with Crown Prince Sheikh Salman bin Hamad al Khalifa to discuss the state of U.S.-Bahrain relations and the Crown Prince’s ongoing efforts for political reform and stability amidst continued unrest.

“Bahrain is an important and longstanding U.S. ally, hosting the U.S. Fifth Fleet, which plays a significant role in regional stability and protecting the global flow of energy,” Corker said in a press release. “It is in our national interest to continue our strong military partnership, ensure the country remains stable, and encourage nonviolent reformers on both sides to continue to work together to achieve a political solution to Bahrain’s own internal problems.” [Read more…]

Aisin auto casting announces $53.8 million expansion in Clinton

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An auto parts manufacturer in Clinton has announced a second major expansion, a $53.8 million investment expected to create 81 new jobs during the next two years.

The investment was announced Tuesday by Tennessee Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bill Hagerty and executives from Aisin Holdings of America Inc.

The company’s subsidiary in Clinton is called Aisin Automotive Casting Tennessee, and it’s located along Frank L. Diggs Drive south of State Route 61 and just west of Interstate 75. It’s the company’s second major business expansion since locating in Tennessee in 2004. [Read more…]

Gun season for deer opened Nov. 23, continues through Jan. 5

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The Tennessee gun season for deer opened Nov. 23 and continues through Jan. 5, state officials said.

It’s the third year there has been a continuous season. The continuous season replaced the previously two segmented hunting seasons that were in place prior to 2011, a Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency press release said.

The TWRA divides the state into three deer hunting units: A, B, and L. Hunters may harvest one antlered buck per day until the statewide bag limit of three is reached, including those deer harvested during archery and muzzleloader seasons, the press release said. An antlered buck is a buck with an antler at least three inches long. [Read more…]