WEST WARWICK – Astro-Med Inc. makes printers for U.S. military planes that fly all around the world. Now, they will also be found in Europe’s newest military transport aircraft.
The company said it has inked a deal with Toulouse, France-based Airbus to provide printers for its new A400M. The military transport planes will carry Astro-Med’s ToughWriter 4, designed to fit into cockpits and provide pilots with hard copies of weather data, maps and flight instructions from the ground.
The contract, valued at $4 million to $6 million, calls for Astro-Med to begin shipping the cockpit printers to Airbus for testing later this year. Shipments of printers for production models of the new aircraft are to begin in 2008, the company said.
Astro-Med, based in West Warwick, has existing contracts to make printers for the U.S. military’s C-13 and C-17 planes. Its products can also be found in the cockpits of commercial jets, such as the Boeing 787 and Airbus A380.
MultiCell Technologies places $1.7M in stock
LINCOLN – MultiCell Technologies Inc. said this month that it has finished a $1.7 million private placement of 17,000 shares of convertible preferred stock, with 10.5 million warrants to buy common stock. Its shares trade over the counter under the symbol “MCET.”
MultiCell said it plans to use the new capital to fund research and development, with an emphasis on sending its MCT 125 – a drug to treat fatigue in people with multiple sclerosis – into Phase III trials. “We are extremely pleased and appreciative to have received such strong support from both existing and new investors,” said President Stephen M. Chang. “We are excited about our prospects for advancing development of our MS therapeutics program.”
Textron profits drop with lower Bell sales
PROVIDENCE – Textron Inc.’s profits sank in the second quarter on lower shipments of V-22 Osprey aircraft to the U.S. government, at its Bell segment, and an after-tax impairment charge related to the sale its Fastening Systems business, according to the Providence-based holding company.
Revenue for the second quarter was $2.8 billion, up 5.7 percent from the same period a year ago, with increases in income seen at all but one of Textron’s segments.
But those broad gains were offset by $120 million in expenses from the sale of Textron’s Fastening Systems business, in Troy, Mich., to a California-based private equity group, Platinum Equity. The charge was disclosed in June, along with the $670 million sale.
Textron’s net income for the second quarter fell to $69 million or 53 cents per share, from $123 million or 89 cents per share during the same period in 2005.
KVH sees demand rise for mobile products
MIDDLETOWN – KVH Industries Inc. saw profits soar in the second quarter, due to greater demand for the company’s mobile communications and navigation equipment.
The company said net income jumped by 77 percent to $1.7 million, or 11 cents per share, in the three months ended June 30, compared with earnings of $952,000 in the same period last year. “Building on our successful start to the year, the second quarter was highlighted by record revenue, strong earnings growth, and increased demand for our new products,” said Martin Kits van Heyningen, KVH’s president and CEO.
Quarterly revenue was $22 million, up 17 percent from the $18.8 million posted for the second quarter of 2005. Revenue from mobile communications products was $16.8 million, up 22 percent. Income from navigation systems was $5.2 percent, up 3 percent.
The sharpest increase in revenue came from interest earned on investments and marketable securities, which KVH said was $511,000, compared with $68,000 in the second quarter last year.
RISD students win Adobe design awards
SAN JOSE, Calif. – Two Rhode Island School of Design students are among the winners of the 2006 Adobe Design Achievement Awards, an international competition that this year drew more than 1,800 entries from 24 countries.
Students competed in graphic design, photography, illustration, animation, digital filmmaking and computer art, using the latest Adobe products to create their work. The winners were honored July 20, in a ceremony at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto.
In the interactive design category, the winner was Janina Boesch from RISD; one of the two finalists, Filip Olszewski, was from RISD as well.
First-place entries received $5,000 and a selection of Adobe products. Students also get internships and opportunities to showcase their work at events such as the ZeroOne Festival and Sundance.
Torex signs contracts with Paramount Foods
CUMBERLAND – Torex Retail North America, a division of Torex Retail LLC, has signed contracts with Paramount Foods, operator of a four-store, Clinton, N.C.-based Piggly Wiggly supermarket franchise, for its network-based ISIS retail system.
ISIS is a Microsoft.net-based point of sale, back office and multi-store management solution, used with HP, Epson, NCR and Symbol hardware. The system “will help Paramount to enhance customer service, improve front-end operations and overall efficiency,” Torex said in a news release.
“Applying Torex solutions will enable Paramount to better manage their business and serve their consumers,” said Don Gusse, solutions director for Torex Retail. “We are excited to partner with another Piggly Wiggly franchise operator,” he said. The ISIS solution is also installed in two other Piggly Wiggly franchise chains.
