Astro-Med’s 2nd quarter sales increase

West Warwick-based Astro-Med Inc. (ALOT:Nasdaq) yesterday said second-quarter sales increased 15 percent to $18.7 million, compared with $16.3 million in the comparable period last year. Net income for the second quarter increased 20 percent to $886,000, or 12 cents per diluted share, from $740,000, or 10 cents per diluted share. For the six-month period ended Aug. 4, the company reported sales of $35,101,000, an increase of 10 percent over $31,908,000, reported in the same period last fiscal year. Year-to-date net income was $1,408,000, or 19 cents per diluted share, compared with $1,283,000, or 17 cents per diluted share. Commenting on the results, Albert W. Ondis, chief executive officer, stated: “We’ve achieved significant sales growth as a company, but we are especially gratified that second-quarter sales were robust in among all our brands, both domestically and internationally.”

Nasdaq warns Kopin about delisting

Taunton, Mass.-based Kopin Corp. (KOPN:Nasdaq) said it received a Nasdaq Staff Determination letter indicating that the company is not in compliance with Nasdaq marketplace rules because it did not timely file its Form 10-Q report for the quarter ended June 30. The notice, sent Tuesday, also indicated that Kopin’s common stock is subject to delisting unless Kopin requests a hearing before the Nasdaq Listing and Hearing Review Council. Since the issue of the overdue periodic reports already is pending before the council, Kopin requested that no action be taken on the most recent staff determination letter to allow the company time to complete its investigation into past stock option practices and related accounting. The company is working to complete any necessary restatements of its financial statements.

Protest at State House over low-income cuts

Advocates for low-income people held a midday protest yesterday at the State House over some $15 million diverted from helping the disadvantaged toward closing the state budget deficit. The General Assembly shifted the money from a heating-assistance program which was supposed to start July 1 but instead is on hold for at least 18 months. The George Wiley Center and representatives of the R.I. Campaign to Eliminate Childhood Poverty organized the protest

Hope Artiste Village in Pawtucket set to open

The first residential tenants of the Hope Artiste Village in Pawtucket will occupy the live/work studios in September. Among the tenants are Ahlers Designs, Warlick Furniture Design, Internal Arts, Warehouse on Earth, Jen McWalters Pilates Studio, The Hive Gallery, Rhode One Technology and Michael Green Sculpture. The village will hold an open house Sept. 14. Hope Artiste Village in one of the largest mill restoration projects in Rhode Island.

Wu appointed to post with Textron China

Providence-based international conglomerate Textron Inc., has named Kevin Wu vice president of government relations and business development for Textron China. He will use his extensive experience to advance the company’s relationships in the region, as well as drive strategy for growth in China. Wu also will be responsible for strengthening Textron’s business relations with the company’s current and potential domestic partners in China. He will report directly to Ee Soon Kiong, president of Textron China. “Textron’s presence continues to grow in China — particularly with strong aviation sales at Cessna and several new manufacturing facilities at Kautex — and we are pleased to bring Kevin on board to help drive the strategic advancement of our businesses in the region," said Siisi Adu-Gyamfi, senior vice president for international marketing. "China is a very important component of our strategy to build global business and get even closer to our customers."

Study shows effectiveness of Alexion drug

Blood, the journal of the American Society of Hematology, has published an analysis of clinical studies showing the efficacy of Soliris, a drug produced by Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc., which is developing a manufacturing plant in Smithfield. Patients with a rare blood disorder called paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH), experienced a 92-percent reduction in the incidence of life-threatening blood clots (thromboses) after treatment with Soliris (eculizumab), the study shows. The drug is the first therapy approved for PNH, a rare, debilitating and life-threatening blood disorder defined by the destruction of red blood cells. Alexion (Nasdaq: ALXN), paid $13 million earlier this year to buy the former Dow Chemical plant in Smithfield and plans $13 million in renovations to produce Soliris on the site. The company plans to keep its headquarters in Cheshire, Conn.

Harvard’s endowment rises to $34.9 billion

Harvard University’s endowment has risen 23 percent in fiscal 2007 on gains in U.S. stocks and emerging- market bonds. Harvard, with the largest higher-education fund, outpaced its 16.7-percent return a year earlier, according to a statement released Tuesday by Harvard Management Co., the Cambridge, Mass. school’s investment arm. The fund gained $5.7 billion, totaling $34.9 billion on June 30, the end of the year. The period elapsed before more-recent market turmoil linked to high-risk mortgages. This was first full fiscal year that the fund was managed by chief executive officer Mohamed A. El-Erian, who took over in February 2006 after Jack Meyer and a portion his staff quit. The figures represent the fourth-best increase in value since the management company was started in 1974.

Vermont Film Commission has new head

A Vermonter with a Hollywood background has a new role: head of the Vermont Film Commission. Joe Bookchin, 46, was named Monday to head the organization, which was created in 1996 to attract film, TV and new media productions to the state and help state residents get work in them. Effective Sept. 24, Bookchin will take over as executive director, succeeding interim director Loranne Turgeon. The salary is $80,000 a year. Bookchin, a film school graduate of New York University, worked at CBS News in New York and later Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. studios in Los Angeles. For 12 years, has been director of film production at Burlington College. He has also produced films for Vermont Educational Television and the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts.

Unemployment up in Vermont

Vermont’s unemployment rate jumped three-tenths of a percentage point from June to July and four-tenths of a point from last year. The state Department of Labor reported a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 4.1 percent, compared to with a national rate of 4.6 percent, which rose a tenth of percentage point from June. Unemployment rates for Vermont’s 17 labor market areas ranged from 2.4 percent in Hartford to 5.1 percent in Newport.