AUTOMOTIVE
This year’s Orange County International Auto Show will occupy 25% more space at the Anaheim Convention Center for its Oct. 6-9 run to accommodate about 50 work trucks and vans in the inaugural So Cal Work Truck & Van Show.
EDUCATION
Irvine Co. said it will give $20 million over 10 years for art, music and science education in the Irvine Unified School District. The grant will help pay for more than 30 elementary school teachers. Irvine Co. made a similar grant to the district in 2006.
Sandy Bond is the new director of Cal State University-Fullerton’s Real Estate and Land Use Institute. The center, in the Mihaylo College of Business and Economics, is a branch of the 23-campus California State University system’s applied research and professional education center for real estate and urban land use. Bond replaces Michael LaCour-Little, who’s now overseeing the statewide Cal State center.
FINANCE
Opus Bank in Irvine was named official bank of the Pac-12 Conference and sponsor of Pac-12 Networks. The conference will promote the bank in its media, which includes web and television.
Carrick Capital Partners in Newport Beach invested $50 million in InstaMed in Philadelphia. Jim Madden, co-founder and managing director of the venture capital and private equity firm will join InstaMed’s board of directors. InstaMed creates healthcare payment systems that allow health insurers, healthcare providers and patients to see billing on the same system.
HEALTHCARE
Allergan Plc’s local operations provide 1,563 jobs here with a combined payroll of about $307 million, based on the company’s average statewide salary, said an economic impact study presented last week by the Orange County Business Council at Allergan’s campus in Irvine.
Ensign Group Inc. in Mission Viejo plans to sell 16 urgent care facilities that are open or in development in the Seattle market to MultiCare Health System in Tacoma, Wash. The deal on undisclosed terms is scheduled to close Dec. 11 and completes Ensign’s exit from that segment of healthcare facility ownership.
Frost Data Capital in San Juan Capistrano will work with DST Systems Inc. in Kansas City, Mo., on big-data analysis for healthcare companies. Frost is an incubator and venture capital firm. DST is a technology consultant and outsourcing firm. The two plan to create startups focused on value-based care instead of volume-based care. They say that in the latter, doctors and hospitals are based on the number of tests and procedures performed.
INSURANCE
Pacific Life Insurance Co. in Newport Beach named Darryl Button chief financial officer, effective in March, to replace Adrian Griggs, who’s slated to become chief operating officer on Jan. 1. Griggs will be both COO and CFO until Button arrives at OC’s largest privately held company.
MARKETING
The chief creative officer of Mazda North American Operations’ advertising agency of record, Garage Team Mazda in Costa Mesa, has “chosen to leave his position to pursue other interests,” the Irvine-based automaker said. Harvey Marco led “the creative pitch for the Mazda business” in 2009 for Garage Team parent WPP plc.
REAL ESTATE
Newport Beach-based real estate developer Irvine Co. named Chad Bustos senior vice president of sales and marketing for its resort properties, a new title. He reports to Ralph Grippo, president of resort properties. Bustos joined Irvine Co. in 2006 from KSL Resorts as senior director of marketing for the division and was named vice president in 2011.
The California Energy Efficiency Industry Council named Irvine Co. one of three Energy Champions for the year. The council is a nonprofit group in Oakland that supports energy programs and efficiency. Irvine Co. implemented plans to save over 4.2 million kilowatt hours annually in 120 low-rise office buildings in California, the nonprofit said during its annual awards event in Oakland.
TECHNOLOGY
OCTANe in Aliso Viejo will merge with Orange County Technology Alliance in Mission Viejo. OCTANe is a life sciences and technology accelerator; OCTA is a nonprofit trade association for midmarket tech companies. The technology alliance will become part of OCTANe on Dec. 31.
