CVS seeks medical clinic licenses in Mass.

Woonsocket-based CVS Caremark Corp. has applied for licenses to open the first 10 MinuteClinics at retail sites in Massachusetts. The state recently adopted regulations to allow the medical clinics in retail locations. MinuteClinic, which runs 500 clinics nationwide, said it plans to open 30 sites in Massachusetts by the end of the year. The first 10 would be located in Ashland, Beverly, Bridgewater, Danvers, Medford, Medway, Stoughton, Taunton, Tewksbury and Westford. The for-profit clinics are staffed by nurse practitioners and physician assistants trained to give customers quick and inexpensive care for common illnesses. CVS wants to open the clinics in its stores in Rhode Island, but during previous hearings before state regulators, the proposal has encountered stiff opposition from primary-care doctors, who say visits with doctors provide more complete health care and that the clinics would strip away routine patient visits and leave them with only more chronic cases.

National Grid sells fiber-optic operation

National Grid has sold a fiber-optic division of its KeySpan Corp. subsidiary. Lightower Fiber LLC, a provider of digital fiber-optic networks, yesterday announced plans to purchase KeySpan Communications. That acquisition, coupled with Lightower’s purchase of DataNet Communications Group Inc., will expand the company’s fiber-optic network in the Northeast. Lightower, headquartered in Boxborough, Mass., did not disclose the sale price in its announcement. National Grid spokesman David D. Graves confirmed the sale. The deal, he said, will allow National Grid to focus on its core natural gas and electricity businesses. The purchases will extend Lightower’s network to more than 3,600 route miles connecting Boston, Albany, Manhattan and Providence, according to the company. Lightower said it expects to secure regulatory approval for the KeySpan Communications purchase in the second quarter of this year. KeySpan Communications is the owner, operator and developer of a 1,000-route miles, high-speed fiber-optic network that crosses Long Island and part of New York City. The network has access points to transatlantic cable systems that run between Long Island, London and Paris, according to Lightower. National Grid is the dominant energy provider in Rhode Island, where it has about 476,000 electricity customers and supplies power to residents and businesses in 38 of the state’s 39 municipalities. It also supplies natural gas to 245,000 customers in Rhode Island. In 2006, National Grid completed its $7.3-billion purchase of KeySpan, a gas and electricity provider.

Networking author to speak at Business Expo

Author and “master networker” Jeffrey W. Meshel will deliver a speech at this year’s Business EXPO, the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce announced yesterday. The speech will take place at the Rhode Island Convention Center. The Business EXPO will be held May 6 and May 7. Meshel’s speech is set for May 6. Meshel is the author of One Phone Call Away, Secrets of a Master Networker. At the Business EXPO, he will discuss ways to organize and use contacts. “Networking is one of the most powerful ways to build professional relationships, actively foster contacts and disseminate information in today’s busy world,” Laurie White, the chamber president, said in a statement. “Jeffrey’s approach gets to the core values of successful networking and will certainly provide event attendees and exhibitors with ways to effectively employ networking and take their business or service to the next level.” For more information on the Business EXPO, visit: providencechamber.com

General Dynamics raises dividend

General Dynamics Corp., the owner of Electric Boat at Quonset Point, boosted its quarterly dividend 21 percent to 35 cents a share. The dividend is payable May 9 to shareholders of record on April 11, the Falls Church, Virginia-based company said. The previous quarterly dividend was 29 cents a share. The rise is the 11th consecutive annual increase in the company’s quarterly dividend, chief executive officer Nicholas Chabraja said. General Dynamics is benefiting as the war in Iraq lifts sales of Stryker troop transports, Abrams battle tanks, ammunition and other combat gear. Total revenue jumped 13 percent to $27.2 billion last year.

GRRL Tech expo at university today

The seventh-annual GRRL Tech, an interactive technology expo designed for sophomore and junior high school girls and their teachers, will be held today at Roger Williams University. The 2008 GRRL Tech conference, which continues to gain in popularity from year to year, will match local high school girls with Roger Williams faculty members and female professionals from Raytheon, Amgen, Gilbane and other local businesses for workshops and presentations that promote science and technology education and careers. GRRL (Girls Reaching Remarkable Levels) Tech is organized by Tech Collective, the industry association for information technology and biotechnology in Rhode Island. Roger Williams University is cosponsoring the event with the Rhode Island Department of Labor.

Raytheon wins missile-defense system deal

Waltham, Mass.-based Raytheon Co., the world’s largest missile maker, has won an initial contract to provide engineering services related to a U.S. government foreign military sale of the Patriot missile-defense system to South Korea. The contract calls for Raytheon to perform preliminary planning and program development for the integration of the missiles into South Korea’s national command and control structure. Financial terms weren’t disclosed. South Korea had announced plans in September 2006 to buy Patriot missile equipment and military radios valued at as much as $1.5 billion to upgrade its air-defense capabilities. Raytheon anticipates “significant” follow-on awards to complete the system for South Korea and to provide equipment and training.

Mass. ruling allows tax on utility poles, wires

The administration of Massachusetts Governor Patrick has cheered an Appellate Tax Board ruling Monday allowing cities and towns to tax telephone poles and wires over public ways. The decision not only allows communities tap a new source of revenue, in some cases back to 2003, but the administration said it supports taxation of cable TV and other utility lines. Cities and towns already tax wires and poles on private property, and Patrick has said closing the loophole exempting equipment over public ways would give cash-starved communities up to $78 million annually. The Department of Revenue says it intends to begin allowing the taxes immediately, but it also warned cities and towns not to count on spending the money because of the likelihood of an appeal. Verizon New England Inc., which had been targeted in an array of appeals by cities and towns, said it was analyzing the ruling, as well as its financial impact.

Robot firm awarded military contract

Burlington, Mass.-based iRobot Corp. has received an award under the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) LANdroids program to develop a new portable communications relay robot that is small, inexpensive, intelligent and robust. The new effort takes advantage of the company’s extensive experience in mobile robot design and production. The goal is to develop technologies to enable a soldier operating in dense urban environments to rapidly deploy and maintain a vital communications infrastructure that is reconfigurable. During this program, iRobot will design and develop a robot small enough that a single dismounted soldier can carry multiple robots, inexpensive to the point of being disposable, robust enough to allow the soldier to drop and throw them into position, and smart enough to autonomously detect and avoid obstacles while navigating in the urban environment.