PROVIDENCE – The Rhode Island Manufacturers Association (RIMA) and TrainRI have merged their administrative staffs, the groups announced Oct. 1. They plan to continue using the same names.
Officials from the two nonprofit organizations said that the mission of RIMA, to foster work force development for the manufacturing industry, would enhance the mission of TrainRI, which specializes in customized employee training.
As a result of the merger, RIMA represents more than 300 manufacturers employing more than 40,000 workers across the state. Founded in 1998, RIMA works on behalf of manufacturers on issues such as taxation, trade, technology and work force development.
Since its inception in 1997, TrainRI, formerly known as the Manufacturers’ Partnership, has successfully coordinated high-quality training programs for some 4,240 manufacturing employees from 257 Rhode Island companies.
While the group’s primary focus will remain manufacturing, its customer base has grown to include a number of financial services, information technology, health care and construction.
New entryway planned for Westin Hotel
PROVIDENCE – The Rhode Island Convention Center Authority recently announced plans for an additional new entryway to the Providence Westin Hotel and pedestrian skybridge to Providence Place mall.
The $1.7 million renovation is intended to create a natural flow of foot traffic from Exchange Street to the hotel’s meeting facilities as well as the mall, while thinning lobby traffic for hotel guests.
The plan is the result of a controversy that arose in March 2002, when hotel officials moved to close the skybridge to public foot traffic. In a press release, James P. McCarvill, the authority’s executive director, said the “strong public reaction” prompted officials to devise a different plan.
Construction of the new entryway, which has been designed by the architectural firm of Robinson Green Beretta Corp., is slated to begin in February and be completed by August 2004.
