EDC expands regulatory program

The Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation yesterday announced the expansion of the Regulatory Flexibility program, an effort to reduce the regulatory burden on small businesses. RegFlex is administered by the agency’s Every Company Counts small-business service unit. The program kicked off at an informational meeting held at the EDC for rule makers at various agencies. The expansion of RegFlex will increase the EDC’s outreach with both small businesses and state agencies to better understand the impact of state regulations and to suggest improvements that will lessen the regulatory burden. RegFlex is enabled by state statute and was initially launched by the EDC in 2005. Under the program, any new regulation that affects small business is evaluated prior to implementation. Regulatory agencies proposing new regulations must submit an analysis of the impact on small business to the agency’s Every Company Counts, which will review the proposals, determine the impact on small businesses and make recommendations for improvement.

PolyRack completes Cumberland facility

The construction of the $2.38-million, 13,800-square-foot PolyRack North America Corp. headquarters at the Highland Corporate Park, in Cumberland, has been completed by New England Construction and Vision 3 Architects. PolyRack, a German company, specializes in the design and manufacture of custom computer housings. The one-story headquarters, the company’s first U.S. facility, houses administrative offices and assembly, fabrication and storage areas.

Insurance forums target small business

As part of its recently launched Solutions Start Here health-care campaign, the National Federation of Independent Business is conducting “Fix-it Forums” across the country to engage small-business owners and employees in conversations about the challenges in finding health insurance. One such forum, to be held in Providence on Friday, will cover universal and private health care. The NFIB will then take the participant stories and feedback to lawmakers in Washington, D.C. The participants will include: Todd Stottlemyer, NFIB president and chief executive officer; Amanda Austin, NFIB senior manager for legislative affairs; and Dr. Robert F. Graboyes, NFIB senior health-care adviser. The session will be at the Providence Marriott Hotel from 8 to 10 a.m.

KVH Industries announces $6-million order

KVH Industries Inc.(KVHI:Nasdaq) yesterday said it has received a $6-million order for its precision fiber-optic gyros from Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace. The contract is subject to the successful completion of the system’s testing and qualification. This order represents an initial procurement with shipments scheduled to begin during the third quarter of this year. “This clearly establishes KVH’s fiber-optic gyros as a premier source for stabilization and pointing sensors to support these mission-critical applications,” said Martin Kits van Heyningen, KVH’s chief executive officer.

KFC recalls cakes because of allergy risk

KFC Corp. is voluntarily recalling its Double Chocolate Chip Cakes because they contain eggs, milk, wheat, soy ingredients and possibly traces of tree nuts, and are not individually labeled with ingredient information. The cakes are being recalled because people who have an allergy to those products run the risk of a serious or life-threatening reaction. There is no health risk for consumers who are not allergic to any of the ingredients. The recalled cakes were distributed nationwide at KFC restaurants and come in a round 16-ounce package with a black or clear plastic bottom and a clear plastic dome.

A.H. Belo reports below-forecast results

A.H. Belo Corp., the newspaper company spun off earlier this year from Belo Corp., said yesterday that first-quarter results fell short of forecasts and the company is considering expense cuts to cope with the toughest advertising market in the past 60 years. Robert W. Decherd, chairman, president and chief executive officer, said in a letter to shareholders, “We are looking at every sensible expense reduction while intensifying initiatives geared to maintaining core revenues and creating sustainable incremental revenue streams. We also continue to refine our thinking about the company’s organization, including matters such as how corporate overhead is allocated.” He said the company’s Internet operations at its three newspapers, The Dallas Morning News, The Providence Journal and (Riverside) Press Enterprise, have begun several initiatives to increase Web traffic and boost revenues. Dallas-based A. H. Belo (AHC:NYSE) is scheduled to report first-quarter results April 28.

APC parent misses first-quarter estimates

Schneider Electric SA, the French company that acquired West Kingston-based American Power Conversion Corp., said first-quarter sales missed estimates on slowing home construction. But revenue increased 11 percent to $6.8 billion. Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News estimated a 14-percent increase. Schneider, which gets 28 percent of its revenue in North America, said a slowdown in the residential market there deepened. The falling value of the dollar against the euro trimmed sales in the region by 13 percent. In Europe, Schneider’s biggest market, homebuilding slowed in the United Kingdom and Spain. “The residential market is suffering, and that leads us to think that Schneider’s 2008 objectives won’t be met,” said Salah Seddik, a fund manager at Richelieu Finance, which oversees $6.3 billion in investments. “The euro-dollar is also unfavorable for the company.” Schneider reiterated a forecast for like-for-like revenue growth of 6 percent to 8 percent this year. Earnings before interest, taxes and amortization should equal 15 percent of sales from 14.8 percent last year, it said.

Home Depot hires Hasbro exec

Home improvement retailer Home Depot has announced that Frank Bifulco has been named senior vice president and chief marketing officer. He will report to Craig Menear, executive vice president for merchandising. Bifulco will have full responsibility for the strategic marketing vision along with category marketing and brand development and will join the company April 28. Most recently, he was chief customer officer and president of Hasbro North America sales, where he was responsible for account management and for setting the overall customer strategy and go-to-market approach for toy and game sales in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Green awards in hospitality, tourism arena

The state Green Hospitality and Tourism Leadership Council will hold its first Green Hospitality Certification Awards Program today at the Rhode Island Convention Center Rotunda. The program, the only one officially endorsed by the Department of Environmental Management, will recognize the first 32 businesses to have completed the certification requirements for green certification. The new program charts a road map for hospitality and tourism businesses to employ green business practices with a focus on energy conservation, water conservation, waste minimization and recycling.

Webster Bank appoints executive

Webster Bank National Association, a subsidiary of Waterbury, Conn.-based Webster Financial Corp., the parent company of Webster Bank, which has branches in Barrington and Warwick, has named John R. Ciulla executive vice president and chief credit risk officer, a position he has held on an interim basis since January. Ciulla, who was a Webster regional president since September 2007, will now report to bank chairman and chief executive officer James C. Smith. Ciulla will be responsible for the corporation’s credit policy function and credit risk management in the bank and subsidiaries. He will oversee underwriting procedures, assess portfolio underwriting risk and evaluate the adequacy of the allowance for loan and lease losses.