Infinite Group releases year-end numbers
Infinite Group, Inc., of Warwick, reports revenues for the year ended Dec. 31, 1999, of $9,239,969 compared with revenues of $7,396,105 for the previous year – a 25 percent increase. Infinite also reported a net loss for the year ended Dec. 31, 1999 of $569,190, or $0.25 per share, compared with a net loss of $121,886, or $0.05 per share, for the year ended Dec. 31, 1998. “We are pleased that the 1999 year-end results reflect significant revenue growth,” said Clifford G. Brockmyre,” Infinite’s president and chief executive officer. “However we experienced operating losses due to delays at our Laser Fare subsidiary in the receipt of materials for aerospace and jet engine parts, and in combustion liner retooling for new aircraft engine designs.”
CVS part of WorldWide Retail Exchange
CVS Corporation has joined 10 other major international retailers in forming a collaborative partnership to establish the WorldWide Retail Exchange. The new Web-based, business-to-business exchange is expected to begin operating by the middle of this year. It is designed to facilitate and simplify trading between retailers and over 100,000 suppliers, partners and distributors.
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Together, the group – which includes K-Mart and Target – operates more than 30,000 stores and had 1999 combined sales of over $300 billion.
“WorldWide Retail Exchange will be the largest Internet exchange company of its kind, and our participation in this venture reflects our commitment to using technology to grow our business,” said Thomas Ryan, chairman and chief executive officer at CVS.
In the first few years, according to a CVS press release, overall investments in the collaborative partnership are expected to amount to approximately $100 million. Savings generated from the WorldWide Retail Exchange are expected to rapidly exceed costs.
Community colleges key in technology economy
In a new, technology driven economy the nation’s community colleges are playing a critical role in delivering the skills needed to keep leading industries competitive and have become the de facto provider of choice for computer training, according to a national survey.
Conducted jointly by the American Association of Community Colleges and ACT, the “Faces of the Future,” survey examined a national sample of 100,000 students enrolled in both credit and non-credit classes among the nation’s 1,132 community, junior and technical colleges.
Among the key findings are:
Students from 18 to 80 are turning to community colleges for computer-related education, giving the colleges a critical role in narrowing the “digital divide.” Gaining computer/technology skills was reported as a major reason for attending for 18 percent of all credit respondents.
Community colleges are a vital education link to providing the quantity and quality of workers needed to fuel the exploding technology industry, a fact that may fundamentally change the nature of non-credit coursework. Over one in 10 (12 percent) credit students who reported they were training for a new career were studying in a computer or communications-related field, including 16 percent of students aged 40 to 59. Among non-credit respondents aged 40 or older, fully one-third said that gaining computer/technical skills is the major reason for enrolling.
Students who already have attained advanced degrees choose community colleges to upgrade skills. Almost one-third of non-credit students at respondent colleges had already earned bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral degrees.
Community colleges play a substantial role generally in preparing students for today’s workplace. Among credit students, 60 percent said the major reason for taking classes was to meet occupational requirements. Nearly half of full-time, employed credit students said that increasing their earning power was a major motivator, and 37 percent said the major reason for attending was to make a career change.
”Our survey points to the effectiveness of community college curriculum and its impact on helping people achieve their life and career goals,” said ACT President Richard L. Ferguson.
E-commerce site for small businesses
NE Shopper has developed an e-commerce Web site that offers shoppers the opportunity to shop at stores all over New England – without leaving home.
The idea conceived by Mark Levin, president of NE Shopper and implemented by UNICOM, provides an opportunity for small businesses to get onto the Internet without the costs of building and implementing an independent site.
Originally, NE Shopper’s site offered only close-out merchandise. With the system developed by the NE Shopper/UNICOM technology partnership, the site now includes a directory of New England merchants and regular merchants from throughout New England.
