This four-part seminar series offers small business owners an in-depth solution for leveraging social media to improve marketing results.
Seminars are FREE but registration is required and seating is limited. Contact Carter McClure, ESU Business Accelerator Manager at (570) 422-7953 or email him at cmcclure2@esu.edu
HERSHEY, PA – Gov. Tom Corbett recently recognized two Monroe County companies that are creating jobs and making positive contributions to the state’s economy at the inaugural Governor’s ImPAct Awards.
The Governor’s ImPAct Awards recognized 50 companies from throughout the state in five categories: Jobs First, Community Impact, Small Business Impact, Entrepreneurial Impact and Export Impact.
Two Monroe County businesses were recognized. Sanofi Pasteur of Swiftwater was awarded the Community Impact Award and Vigon International of East Stroudsburg received the Small Business Impact Award.
The Corbett administration created the awards initiative to honor businesses that are creating job opportunities and contributing to the state’s economy. The awardees were chosen by an independent judging panel selected by the state’s partners, Team Pennsylvania Foundation and Journal Multimedia.
Nominations for each award were provided by the state’s regional economic development partners — the Partnerships for Regional Economic Performance network. Each of the 10 PREP regions was eligible to submit up to five nominations per category. A total of 250 nominations were received.
The Corbett administration developed the PREP network to regionalize and coordinate local economic development services to businesses and entrepreneurs. The Department of Community and Economic Development provides grants through PREP to local economic development service providers that provide assistance and other resources to support local business expansion and growth.
The awards are sponsored at no cost to the taxpayers by the state’s private sector partner, Team Pennsylvania Foundation, and are coordinated by DCED, Team PA and Journal Multimedia.
For more information, visit www.newPA.com/impact-awards
A free webinar is being offered to local businesses on Combined Heat & Power (CHP) on Tuesday June 18, 2013 from 9:00 am to 1:00 am.
During this in-depth, one-hour webinar you’ll learn the facts about CHP including:
*Overview of CHP and CCHP
*How CHO works
*Efficiency of CHP systems
*Types of CHP systems
*CHP market drivers
*Elements of an economically viable CHP project
*Potential CHP savings and payback
*CHP incentives
*Applications that are a good fit for CHP
*CHP Case Studies
Register today at www.ugi.com/webinar or for more information download a copy of the Free Webinar Flyer
Fifteen Monroe County projects will share more than $3.9 million in the latest round of gaming fund revenues generated by Mount Airy Resort and Casino and distributed through the Commonwealth Financing Authority. The monies will fund major infrastructure, roadway, and business support initiatives in Monroe County, along with a number of community improvement projects.
The funding is in addition to the $2.4 million in gaming revenues earmarked for the expansion of Northampton Community College’s Tannersville Campus, bringing to the total gaming benefit to more than $6 million.
Six of the projects will be administered directly by the Monroe County Industrial Development Authority, including $600,000 to extend a natural gas pipeline to Vigon International in East Stroudsburg, boosting the company’s business infrastructure with an eye toward future job creation; $400,000 to boost development at Arcadia New Ventures Park in Blakeslee, and $250,000 to fund the MCIDA’s Small Business Grant / Loan Program.
Funding will also support bridge repairs in Polk Township and a much needed Emergency Response Vehicle for the American Red Cross of the Poconos.
The funding is provided through the Pennsylvania Horse Race and Gaming Development Act, or Act 71, which set up a “local share assessment account” (LSA) and required Pennsylvania’s Commonwealth Financing Authority to distribute money that is generated by licensed gaming facilities to support community and economic development projects and mitigate the impact of gaming activities. The current allocation brings total gaming revenues distributed through the program to nearly $30 million.
“This is the second straight year we will see significant investment a gas line and marks an important expansion of that type of infrastructure,” says MCIDAExecutive Director Chuck Leonard. “Combined with hundreds of thousands of dollars committed to roadway and bridge upgrades, and the significant investment in our Small Business Grant and Loan Program, Monroe County is being well positioned to support local entrepreneurs as well as companies seeking a vibrant business environment with great market access.”
“We think this will be a great boon to our area’s business retention and expansion efforts.”
The $5.9 million distribution represents 50 percent of Mt. Airy’s contribution to the local share account. Commonwealth law mandates that Monroe County must share gaming fund revenues equally with neighboring counties.
Leonard points out that since the initial distribution of LSA funds in 2009; Monroe County has received more than $29 million in support of local initiatives.
“The Monroe County Industrial Development Authority is part of the Pocono Mountains Economic Development Corporation, a non-profit economic development corporation dedicated to creating jobs for Monroe County residents, expanding the county’s tax base and attracting new investment with the direct support of the Monroe County Commissioners. More information on economic development in Monroe County can be found at www.www.pmedc.com
More information on the local share assessment account is available at www.newpa.com or by calling 1-866-466-3972.
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EDITOR’S NOTE: In addition to $2.4 million previously by the county to fund costs associated with the expansion of Northampton Community College’s Tannersville campus, The Monroe County Industrial Development Authority received LSA funding for the following Monroe County projects:
Other funded projects include:
PPL Electric Utilities plans to bring automated grid technology to Monroe County next year, a $10 million project that will improve the reliability of electric service to 70,000 customers.
Design and engineering work completed this year will open the way for the installation of 230 automated devices on 52 distribution circuits as well as upgrades to 16 area electric substations, mainly in Monroe County. The bulk of the construction work will be performed between March and November of 2013, with full benefits in place in 2014.
The automated distribution system will sense where a problem occurs on the line, such as a fallen tree, animal contact or vehicle accident, and automatically reroute power from other lines – all in a matter of moments so that the majority of customers only experience a momentary interruption. It will also help crews to identify the location of the damage, eliminating the time normally spent on inspecting lines that can be miles long.
“We targeted Monroe County for this project because we believe it’s an area where automation would have the most benefits, in terms of improving reliability for our customers,” said Paul Canevari, PPL’s regional community relations director for the Pocono region. “Our goal is to reduce the number of outages and outage length. With improved reliability, we hope to better satisfy our customers in the area.”
Historically, customers in the Pocono region have experienced more outages of longer duration than the average PPL customer. This is partly due to the wooded and mountainous terrain in the region, Canevari said.
“Our power lines pass through many heavily forested areas in northeastern Pennsylvania. When tree limbs fall on wires and poles, the new automated devices will detect situations like this and automatically reroute power around downed lines,” said Canevari. “So, we believe we’ll have fewer customers affected by outages and shorter duration interruptions.”
Learn about smart grid technology by viewing the “Strengthening Our Delivery System” video at www.pplelectric.com/smartgrid or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxRVYhPthJ4
What it is and how it works
Typically, if a tree falls on a distribution line, power isn’t restored until the outage has been reported, crews have opened switches at both ends of the affected section, the tree is removed and the switches are closed.
In the event of a local interruption, the grid sensors can detect the fault and automatically send energy to another circuit serving the area. Customers could be back online within minutes. By comparison, it might take a field crew an hour or more to patrol the line, identify the problem and reroute power to another circuit before fixing the line.
The technology that makes this possible can be compared to a brain, a body and a nervous system that connects the two.
• The “brain” is a new distribution management system that is made up of many operating programs that constantly monitor and analyze power flow and can automatically take action in certain situations. The system’s capabilities can also be used on areas of PPL Electric Utilities’ delivery network that do not yet have smart grid devices installed.
• The “body” is the collection of hundreds of remote switches, relays, sensors and other devices that gather information from local circuits and can respond or act based on remote commands from the utility control center.
• The “nervous system” is high-speed communications equipment that enables communication between system operators and our substations and devices in the field.
PPL Electric Utilities is investing $3.6 billion over five years to upgrade its transmission and distribution systems as part of an ongoing, long-term commitment to replace aging infrastructure and modernize its systems, improve operations, and strengthen reliability for customers.
PPL Smart Grid pilot
In 2009, PPL Electric Utilities designed its “smart grid” pilot project in Dauphin and Cumberland counties around Harrisburg to benefit approximately 60,000 customers. The three-year, $40 million project, supported with a federal stimulus grant, became the basis for the second phase of smart grid deployment in the Pocono region. The Harrisburg project involved installation of about 500 automated devices along local distribution circuits, upgrades at 10 area substations, and construction of dedicated wireless and fiber optic communications systems.
PPL Electric Utilities, a subsidiary of PPL Corporation (NYSE: PPL), provides electric delivery services to about 1.4 million customers in Pennsylvania and consistently ranks among the best companies for customer service in the United States. More information is available at www.pplelectric.com.
On Monday, January 7, 2013 from 1:30-3:30 p.m. at The Commonwealth Medical College, Senator John Blake will host the Northeastern Pennsylvania Bioscience Forum 2013.
It will provide presentations and discussions about the NEPA Regional Bioscience Initiative. It will also help to increase career and business opportunities within the life sciences industry sector in Northeast Pennsylvania by bringing together regional leaders in science, education, industry, government and community.
This forum will include a Keynote Presentation from Hon. C. Alan Walker, secretary of PA Department of Community & Economic Development.
To secure your attendance please RSVP via email to blake@pasenate.com in the subject line, please indicate “BLAKE BIOSCIENCE FORUM” and provide your name, organization, title, telephone number.
HR Knowledge Base and Beck ‘N Call invite you to attend a FREE breakfast or wine & tapas discussion on Evolving Your Workforce.
The discussion will focus on the benefits of hiring individuals with disabilities, including returning veterans. Join them for networking and information on tax advantages, workforce strategies, impact on marketshare, disability etiquette tips, recruitment techniques and more.
The Breakfast will be held November 13, 2012 from 8:00 am to 10:00 am at J.R. Grill and the Wine & Tapas session will be held November 14, 2012 at Peppe’s Bistro.
Register by calling Melissa Lear at (570) 426-7507 or email Victoria Mavis.
Pocono Mountains Industries (PMI) announced today the latest round of corporations, businesses, and individuals accepted as members of the not-for-profit organization.
“Our membership reorganization in 2010 has reinvigorated PMI,” says Executive Director Chuck Leonard. “Each round of new members arrives with fresh energy and innovative ideas, helping us to remain a vital and forward looking organization. We are sure this group will be no different.”
The newest member group includes corporate members National Penn Bank and Pocono Star Properties Inc.; business members Pocono Health System/Pocono Medical Center and Strauser Nature’s Helpers; and individual member Blake Martin.
PMI reorganized in 2010 to maintain its status as Monroe County’s only certified processor of Pennsylvania Industrial Development Authority loans. Qualified companies can secure PIDA loans with current interest rates as low as 2.25%.
Business owners and individuals interested in organizational membership can learn more by calling (570) 839-1992 or visiting the Membership Page at www.pmedc.com
Corporate members receive benefits including corporate listing in the Pocono Mountains Economic Development Corporation’s online membership directory, email updates on local and regional economic development news, the opportunity to attend quarterly breakfasts with legislators or regional business leaders, two tickets for the organization’s annual membership meeting, and corporate membership in Monroe Citizen’s Against Regulatory Excess (Monroe CARE), a subcommittee focused on streamlining the responsible regulatory process and fostering job creation in Monroe County.
Pocono Mountains Industries is part of the Pocono Mountains Economic Development Corporation, a non-profit economic development corporation dedicated to creating jobs for Monroe County residents, expanding the county’s tax base and attracting new investment with the direct support of the Monroe County Commissioners. More information on economic development in Monroe County can be found at www.pmedc.com.
East Stroudsburg University’s Research and Economic Development division in collaboration with its community partners, including PMEDC, is hosting a series of seminars for individuals who embrace innovation and entrepreneurship. Seminar 1 will be held on October 23 from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm and the topic is “Creating Ideas for Business Success.”
The seminars are free to attend but registration is required because seating is limited. All seminars will be held at the ESU Innovation Center located at 562 Independence Road in East Stroudsburg.
To register contact Carter McClure, the ESU Business Accelerator Manager at (570) 422-7953 or email Carter.
Representative Rosemary Brown invites new businesses, existing businesses and entrepreneurs to attend a Business Financing Seminar on Friday, October 12, 2012 starting at 9:30 am. Speakers include Scott Dunkelberger from the PA Department of Community and Economic Development, Chuck Leonard from PMEDC, Leigh Magnotta from Metro Action, Tom Pellegrini from NEPA and Keith Yurgosky from the Scranton SBDC.
The seminar will be held in the Public Meeting Room on the second floor of the Smithfield Township Building, 1155 Red Fox Road in East Stroudsburg.
Reservations are encouraged but not required by calling (570) 420-8301.
