Alaska Business Monthly

Browse past and current articles from this publication.

Preventative health care for businesses: just a few simple changes in company policy will result in healthier employees and heal
"A stitch in time saves nine" easily applies to one's health. If you take care of yourself now, you reap the rewards of good health later in life. Companies also can benefit from encouraging emplo . . .

Peninsula Airways marks 50 years of superior service with an emphasis on safety: PenAir celebrates the past, but looks forward t
Peninsula Airways is celebrating its golden anniversary this year, an achievement few companies can appreciate, especially in Alaska. In 1955, when Elvis Presley was signing his first recording co . . .

Usibelli revived: things are looking up for this interior coal mine.(Usibelli Coal Mine Inc.)
Three years ago, Alaska's only commercially producing coal mine lost its only overseas supply contract for ultra-low sulfur coal mined near Healy. The resulting effects echoed throughout Usibelli Co . . .

CH2M Hill.(Floyd Damron, Dan Sterley, Eric Cutbirth appointed)(Brief Article)
Floyd Damron, vice president and professional engineer with CH2M Hill, has accepted the role of marketing lead for the Water Business Group in Alaska and will continue his role as the northwest regi . . .

Alaska Airlines.(Amanda Tobin joined)(Brief Article)
Amanda Tobin joined Alaska Airlines as manager of media relations. In this role, Tobin will serve as one of the airline's primary spokespersons to regional and national news media. Tobin comes to . . .

Credit Union 1.(Gia Fowler, Melinda Longlet and Lorraine Bennett promoted)(Brief Article)
Credit Union 1 promoted Gia Fowler to DeBarr branch manager, Melinda Longlet to Eagle River branch manager, and Lorraine Bennett to assistant vice president of member services. Fowler has worked a . . .

Alaska Commercial Banking Group.(Rick Flake joined)(Brief Article)
Rick Flake was named business relationship manager for Wells Fargo's Alaska Commercial Banking Group. Flake has 16 years of experience as an internal auditor for Wells Fargo. His most recent positio . . .

RIM Architects.(Krista Phillips joins National Architectural Accrediting Board )(Brief Article)
Krista Phillips, associate AIA and a senior intern architect with RIM Architects, was selected by the American Institute of Architects to serve on the National Architectural Accrediting Board visiti . . .

ADF&G.(Alaska Department of Fish and Game hired Cynthia Pring-Ham )(Brief Article)
McKie Campbell, commissioner of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, announced that Cynthia Pring-Ham was hired as the department's new mariculture coordinator. Pring-Ham will be managing ADF&G's . . .

Tryck Nyman Hayes Inc.(Shaun McFarlane appointed)(Brief Article)
Tryck Nyman Hayes Inc. hired Shaun McFarlane as a senior marine engineer in the Marine Engineering Department. McFarLane holds a master's degree in ocean engineering from Texas A&M University and a . . .

DAT/EM Systems International.(Julie Perilla appointed)(Brief Article)
DAT/EM Systems International, a developer of digital mapping software, has added Julie Perilla to its software engineering team. Perilla moved to Anchorage from Philadelphia recently. While in Phila . . .

Alaska Growth Capital.(Jeff Batton appointed)(Brief Article)
Alaska Growth Capital added Jeff Batton to the executive team, serving as vice president of client services. Batton will be responsible for establishing and growing the company's consulting practice . . .

Alaska Airlines.(Right Moves)
Alaska Airlines was named one of the 100 Best of America in Reader's Digest Magazine's annual compilation of the 100 best people, places, ideas and innovations in America. Alaska Airlines won Best A . . .

UAA.(University of Alaska Anchorage College of Business and Public Policy annual awards )
The University of Alaska Anchorage College of Business and Public Policy celebrated its partnerships with the business community when two of its many corporate partners and a former UAA student were . . .

Tactix.(opened its regional sales office in Anchorage)(Brief Article)
Tactix has opened its regional sales office in Anchorage, a move the company hopes will allow it to provide information technology products and services to a broader set of customers in the greater . . .

AT&T Alascom.(President's Circle Award, Achiever's Club Award)(Brief Article)
Twelve Alaskans have been recognized for their role as corporate leaders and received the AT&T national 2005 Achiever's Club Award. The Achiever's Club is the top honor from AT&T and is given to the . . .

Alaska Travel Industry Association.(Shirley Laird elected for Educational Foundation for Woman in Accounting)(Brief Article)
Shirley Laird, director of finance and human resources for the Alaska Travel Industry Association, was elected president of the Educational Foundation for Woman in Accounting. The EFWA is a national . . .

2005 excellent year for military construction, 2006 even better: Army Corps of Engineers' spending recycles taxpayer dollars bac
Military construction is booming on the Last Frontier. This year, the Army Corps of Engineers, the military's chief construction agency in Alaska, is expected to spend about $680 million on statewid . . .

Associated builders and contractors push agenda: from gathering recruits to opposing Project Labor Agreements for the gas line,
In a trend that has Alaska builders pulling their hair, the construction .trades reportedly will require 1,000 new recruits per year for the next 10 years in Alaska to make up for the recent ebb of . . .

Alaska businesswoman tranforms wilderness travel: Alpaca Raft Inc. is growing due to woman's endurance.(Interview)
Some people take the old adage to heart: If you want something done right, do it yourself ... or better yet, ask your mother to do it. When Thor Tingey returned from a trip through the Brooks Range . . .

Superior Machine & Welding Inc.: Jan Tina Lunsford didn't want to own her own business. But she loved a challenge.
When Jan Tina Lunsford was a kid growing up in Alaska, if you had asked her if she would someday take over the family business, she would have laughed and went right back to daydreaming. Her father . . .

Northern Dame Construction: Doris Coy started her business because of a bad boss, and now grosses more than $1 million a year.
When Doris Coy first got started in the construction business, she didn't have a lot of experience. But she did have the belief that she could do the job and had the patience to learn the topes alon . . .

Women in construction: women are making headway in the construction industry.
It used to be that construction was considered a man's job. Women were thought to be too weak to do the work, and didn't have the skills required to make their way in this most masculine of industri . . .

Alaska's top women-owned business: an annual directory of women who own businesses and provide jobs to their communities.(Alaska
This year, 81 women are recognized for their role as owners of a business in Alaska, most with revenues above $250,000. These women provide jobs to employees, donate to nonprofits and others in the . . .

State fair offers last blast of summer: this year the fair runs from Aug. 25 through Sept. 5, celebrating the final days of summ
As opportunities to sneak in summer fun dwindle with the length of the days, the fair in Palmer offers a perfect way to get outdoors, see some unusual things, dive into tasty food and indulge the in . . .

2005 August events calendar.(Calendar)
Anchorage 5-14 Silver Slam'n Salm'n Derby A benefit for the Downtown Soup Kitchen. Fish a world-class sport fishery right in the middle of downtown Anchorage from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. at Ship Creek. . . .

Insurance for small businesses: companies in Alaska are lagging behind when it comes to providing health care benefits--which is
Insurance is one of the most important benefits companies offer their employees. But rising health care costs--and premiums--make it more difficult for businesses to provide workers with health care . . .

Slow going: the governor is still looking at three options to get North Slope gas to market.
Commercial development of Alaska's vast North Slope natural gas resources continues to advance in 2005, albeit at a seemingly snail's pace for those expecting contracts for public review during the . . .

Investment Group purchases Era Aviation.(Era Aviation Investment Group LLC, SEACOR Holdings Inc.)(Brief Article)
Era Aviation Investment Group LLC announced it has entered into ah agreement with SEACOR Holdings Inc. to acquire the Alaska-based regional airline, Era Aviation Inc. For the first time since 1991, . . .

Northland buys back barge freight service.(Northland Services Inc.)(Brief Article)
The management team and founding owners of Northland Services Inc., in partnership with Endeavour Capital, have completed a management buyout of the Seattle-based common carrier and contract barge f . . .

TSA imposes trucker fingerprinting.(Transportation Security Administration's rule for commercial truckers hauling hazardous mate
Commercial truckers hauling hazardous materials in Alaska are required to complete new federal security requirements, including background checks and new fingerprinting administered only by federall . . .

Everts Air services Southeast.(Everts Air Cargo)(Brief Article)
Everts Air Cargo has begun cargo service to the Southeast cities of Juneau, Ketchikan, Sitka, Wrangell and Petersburg, with departures from Anchorage Monday through Saturday. Everts is operating the . . .

GCI announces repurchase of all Series B preferred shares.(General Communications Inc., Toronto Dominion Securities Inc.)(Brief
General Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:GNCMA) has reached an agreement with Toronto Dominion Securities to repurchase the remaining 4,314 shares of GCI Series B preferred stock for $6.6 million. The . . .

ACS signs wireless with State.(Alaska Communications Systems Group Inc., Alaska )(Brief Article)
Alaska Communications Systems Group Inc. (NASDAQ:ALSK) has entered into a contract with the State of Alaska for wireless services. ACS is supplying phones and services for about 4,400 state employee . . .

Alaska Football Camp teaches state's players.(Brief Article)
Players from more than half the state's high school football teams got a head start on the season--and in some cases their college careers--at the All Alaska Football Camp this summer. More than 3 . . .

UNOCAL and CNOOC.(China National Offshore Oil Corp. to buy Unocal Corp.)
Will the six-story office building at 9th Avenue and I Street in downtown Anchorage, with the word UNOCAL atop it, one of the city's longtime landmarks, soon be replaced with Chinese characters for . . .

Alaska Press Women.(Rhonda McBride honoured with National Communicator of Achievement Award)(Brief Article)
Alaska Press Women nominated member Rhonda McBride for the National Communicator of Achievement Award, the highest honor awarded by the National Federation of Press Women. The prestigious award is b . . .

Alaska Trends for July 2005 sponsored by American Fast Freight.(economic conditions)(Illustration)
ALASKA TRENDS FOR JULY 2005 Indicator Units Period GENERAL Personal Income--Alaska Millions of $ 4thQ04 Personal Income--United States . . .

Building permits: changes in anchorage.(Alaska Trends for July 2005)(Brief Article)
There was a significant increase in building permit valuations in Anchorage during the month of April 2005. The combined residential and commercial permits were valued at $74.69 million in April 200 . . .

Need workers? Hire the disabled: many disabled individuals are ready, willing and able to work, and oftentimes they stay on the
Patrick Shallcross was optimistic he'd find a job after graduating from the University of North Alabama in 2000. The 33 year-old Alaskan believed his bachelor degrees in criminal justice and sociolo . . .

Keeping Alaska clean: Superfund and FUD sites, left polluted from practices of the past, are still undergoing cleanup and will f
Alaska is known for its cool, clean air, its pristine streams and rivers, and its acres upon acres of unsullied land. And this reputation for having such a spectacular environment is one that the pe . . .

Alaska Quality Seafood Program.(Cheryl Cummings appointed)(Brief Article)
Cheryl Cummings, formerly marketing director for the Alaska Manufacturers' Association, was named managing director for the Alaska Quality Seafood Program. Cummings has more than 20 years experience . . .

Alaska State Chamber of Commerce.(executives appointed)(Brief Article)
The Alaska State Chamber of Commerce announced its 2005 Executive Committee. They are: Joan McCoy, chair of the board, Nexus Northwest, Anchorage; Joe Marushack, chair-elect, ConocoPhillips, Anchora . . .

ESRI.(Environmental Systems Research Institute Inc.'s partnership with GeoEngineers Inc.)(Brief Article)
ESRI, a geographic information systems software company, recently named GeoEngineers as Business Partner of the Year for the Northwest Region during the 2005 ESRI Worldwide Business Partner Conferen . . .

Crowley Marine Services.(Joe Rella appointed)(Brief Article)
Joe Rella joined Crowley's ship assist and escort services group as director of business development. In his new role, he will be responsible for growing the company's participation in the liquefied . . .

HDR Alaska.(Pat Tilton, Melanie Oldford and Chris Hughes appointed)(Brief Article)
HDR Alaska has added several new members to its staff. Pat Tilton was hired as a ROW expert with HDR; he has more than 30 years of experience in land management. Melanie Oldford is a civil enginee . . .

Horizon Lines.(2004 Toyota Logistics Partners Excellence Award)(Brief Article)
Horizon Lines was awarded the 2004 Toyota Logistics Partners Excellence Award for marine services on-time performance. Horizon Lines provides transportation and logistics services to Toyota in suppo . . .

Koniag Inc.(Perry Eaton and Toro Panamaroff appointed)(Brief Article)
At a recent meeting, the Koniag Inc. board of directors appointed shareholder Perry Eaton to fill a vacant three-year term. Eaton has been employed with Alyeska Pipeline Service Co. for the past fiv . . .

Alaska Commercial Co.(Rex Wilhelm appointed)(Brief Article)
Rex Wilhelm was appointed president of Alaska Commercial Co. Wilhelm's appointment was part of a long-term succession plan coinciding with the retirement of Jerry Bittner. Wilhelm joined the company . . .

ATHENA Society.(Barbara Cash of RIM Design gets 2005 Anchorage ATHENA Society Award)(Brief Article)
The Anchorage ATHENA Society, a program of the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce that encourages the potential of women in business, recognized Barbara Cash, owner of RIM Design, as the 2005 Anchorage A . . .