Kate Schwartz
Phone: 949-833-8373 Extension: 229
Recent Stories
Nonprofit Choreographs Future to Reach Kids Across US
Santa-Ana based nonprofit organization The Wooden Floor is taking a new approach to growth, recently licensing its unique curriculum to Washington, D.C.-based CityDance.
Tough Work Leads to Rewarding Job
Experience On Clergy Abuse Cases Help Him Advise on Workplace Issues
Chad Franks is at the top of his field—a young and successful general counsel who leads a team of attorneys at Irvine-based staffing company Decton Group of Cos.
Military Contractor Wins $42M Navy Job
Mercury Defense Systems, a subsidiary of Chelmsford, Mass.-based Mercury Systems Inc., was awarded a $41.8 million contract from the U.S. Navy this week.
Wastewater Outfit Buys Firm in Canada
Costa Mesa-based wastewater solids reduction and removal company JWC Environmental acquired IPEC Consultants in Canada on undisclosed terms.
Fluidmaster Buys in Turkey
San Juan Capistrano-based toilet tank component manufacturer Fluidmaster Inc. acquired Istanbul-based Key Teknik, a sanitary equipment business with a large market presence in the Middle East and Europe.
Kaiser Income Up; Revenue Misses
Foothill Ranch-based Kaiser Aluminum Corp. fell short of analysts' third-quarter estimates, though its revenue increased.
Q&A
Dr. Bob Foresman, a local Orange County orthodontist and avid sailor, gathered around the kitchen table with his family and invented the first product of what would become an innovative profitable manufacturer nearly 50 years later.
Diva Gets It Done
What Opera, Precision Manufacturing Have in Common
Robin Follman-Otta has sung operas alongside Andrea Bocelli and overseen the production of $100,000 acoustic measuring instruments for oil drills.
Incubator to Back, Build Female-Led Startups
ECONOMY: Chapman-based group led by serial entrepreneur
Orange-based incubator and start-up accelerator Chicklabs Inc. has considerable goals: launch female-led and owned businesses, make a name for itself in the niche market of consumer products, and mentor Chapman student-entrepreneurs in the process.
McLarand’s 2-Way Street
Architect Worked China During Recession, Carves Niche as Guide for US Projects
Carl McLarand went to China to find a way through the Great Recession.
SA Manufacturer Bought by PE Firm
Santa-Ana based Garrison Manufacturing Inc. was acquired by Menlo Park-based private equity firm Salt Creek Capital.
Simply Simon
‘Real Success Is Achieving What Others Believe to Be Impossible’
Ronald Simon started small.
Buy Sends Tustin Engineering Firm to LA
Tustin-based electrical engineering firm R.E. Wall and Associates Inc. was acquired by Morrow Meadows Corp. in Los Angeles.
Engineering Firms Reverse Last Year’s Billings Drop
Increase Total By 1.7% Following 1.5% Decrease
Orange County’s top engineering firms with headquarters or significant operations here have recovered from a 1.5% drop in billings last year, posting a 1.7% increase in local billings during the 12-month period ended June 30.
Architecture Firms Ramp Up With 9% Billings Increase
40 Biggest Combine For $474M in Local Work
Orange County’s architecture firms combined for a 9.1% increase in local billings this year following a modest 1.6% increase in local billings last year, and are on track to return to the 13% surge they had in 2013.
OC on Road Map for Autonomous Vehicles
ENGINEERING: Link to Bay Area test station runs through Irvine
Orange County has become a key pit stop in the race to develop a fully autonomous car.
Tustin Engineering Firm Acquired
Tustin-based electrical engineering firm R.E. Wall and Associates Inc. was acquired by Los Angeles-based Morrow Meadows Corp.
J-Squared Away
Started With Faculty Housing at Pepperdine, Developing Government Niche
Santa Ana-based J-Squared General Contractors Inc. started in owner Jeff Clark’s North Tustin home in 2013 after a falling-out with his previous employer.
Mazda Charity Gives $500K to Food Bank
The Mazda Foundation announced a $500,000 grant to Irvine-based Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County.
Texas Outfit Buys Yorba Linda Firm
Cortech Engineering LLC in Yorba Linda was acquired by Houston-based industrial equipment wholesaler DXP Enterprises Inc.
Ball Bearing Maker Plans Detroit Move
Ningbo, China-based CW Bearing Inc. will move its North American headquarters in Tustin to suburban Detroit.
Yorba Linda Pump Distributor Acquired
Yorba Linda-based Cortech Engineering LLC has been acquired by Houston-based industrial equipment wholesaler DXP Enterprises Inc.
Employment Services Firm Adds Execs
Irvine-based Accurate Background Inc. hired President and Chief Operating Officer Tim Dowd, Chief Product Officer Alek Zdziarski and Chief Technology Officer Connie Suoo.
Stantec Buys Another Neighbor in Irvine
SERVICES: Latest deal brings ‘unique skills’ on water work
Irvine-based civil engineering firm VA Consulting Inc. has been acquired by Stantec Inc. on undisclosed terms.
Bicycle Maker to Move to OC This Year
Wilmington, Del.-based bicycle designer and manufacturer Blue Bicycles said it will move to Orange County by the end of the year and that its current chief executive, Steven Harad, has resigned and will remain with the company for 90 days to assist in the transition.
Printing a Promising Future
Couple Hopes to Pass on Company to Third Generation
Robert and Amy Miller enjoy running their printing company, Anaheim-based Lester Lithograph Inc., together, but for years they tried to guard their four children from feeling pressured to join them.
All About Quality
Fourth Generation Steers Construction Materials Specialist
Nearly 70% of family-owned businesses fail or are sold before the second generation gets a chance to take over, according to an article in the Harvard Business Review.
Bicycle Maker Plans Move to OC
Delaware-based bicycle designer and manufacturer Blue Bicycles said it will move to Orange County by the end of the year and that its current chief executive, Steven Harad, has resigned and will remain with the company for 90 days to assist in the transition.
Business Journal Honors Family Firms
More than 250 people attended the Business Journal’s 16th annual Family Owned Business Awards luncheon at Hotel Irvine.
Business Journal Honors 5 Family-Owned Businesses
About 275 people turned out for today’s luncheon at the Hotel Irvine to celebrate five honorees of the Business Journal’s 16th annual Family Owned Business Awards.
SA Design Firm Buys Atlanta Co.
Santa Ana-based facilities design firm Salas O’Brien Engineers said it acquired Atlanta-based firm HESM&A Consulting Engineers on undisclosed terms.
Job Well Done
Employees at Best Companies Give Rave Reviews
The businesses featured on this week’s Best Places to Work lists say they commit time and resources to create a productive, enjoyable, and balanced workplace, and according to their employees, their efforts are working.
Ammonia Producer Finishes Plant
Santa Ana-based QuantumSphere Inc. said it had completed a manufacturing facility in Santa Ana.
Anaheim Software Maker Acquired
Anaheim-based Scenario Virtual Project Delivery was acquired by Plantation, Florida-based e-Builder Inc. on undisclosed terms.
Kaiser Aluminum Up, Upbeat on Q2
Kaiser Aluminum Corp. beat Wall Street expectations on second-quarter revenue and income, sending shares up about 6% in midday trading Wednesday to a $1.5 billion market cap.
Hyundai Capital Sets Sights on Makeover on MacArthur
Firm Uniquely Emphasizes Office Design, Worker Space
Hyundai Capital America is often identified locally in connection with the large, transparent building next to the San Diego (405) Freeway in Irvine known as The Michelson.
Tenant-Improvement Contractors’ Work Gains Slow
Dollar Value Up 16.2% After 29%, 20% Increases
Orange County’s largest tenant-improvement contractors continued their growth trend last year but slowed in all aspects, including local revenue and number of employees.
One Source Industries Plans San Pedro Plant
One Source Industries LLC, an Irvine-based provider of point-of-purchase displays, product packaging, and global promotional programs, plans to open a 25,000-square-foot production facility in San Pedro.
Irvine Firm to Open San Pedro Plant
One Source Industries LLC, an Irvine-based provider and developer of point of purchase displays, product packaging, and global promotional programs, plans to open a 25,000-square-foot production facility in San Pedro.
Software Maker Drawloop Acquired
Irvine-based Drawloop Technologies Inc. recently announced it was acquired by Nintex USA LLC for an undisclosed amount.
Irvine Software Maker Acquired
Irvine-based Drawloop Technologies Inc. announced it has been acquired by Bellevue, Washington-based Nintex USA LLC for an undisclosed amount.
Determined to Defeat Duchenne
Mother Trains Business Experience on Disease That Struck Son
Debra Miller’s son has Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
Bundles Make Big Business for Maker of Security Systems
More Than $70M in Sales To A-List Customers
Priti Sharma moved to Chicago from India at age 16 and at the time had no idea that she would one day own a multimillion-dollar company.
Avanti Moves HQ to Costa Mesa
Avanti Restaurant Solutions said it moved its corporate headquarters from Sacramento to Costa Mesa.
Businesswomen Honored by Journal
A crowd of more than 800 attended the Business Journal’s 21st Annual Women in Business Awards, where cosmetics entrepreneur Toni Ko delivered the keynote address challenging female entrepreneurs to redefine the benchmarks of success in their professional and personal lives.
21st Annual Women in Business Awards Winners Announced
A crowd of more than 800 attended the Business Journal’s 21st Annual Women in Business Awards, where cosmetics entrepreneur Toni Ko delivered a keynote address that challenged female entrepreneurs to redefine the benchmarks of success in their professional and personal lives.
Goodwill Data Plan to Connect Vets in Need, Service Providers
NONPROFITS: $1.6M for program at new Tierney Center
Goodwill of Orange County has received a $1.6 million grant from America’s Warrior Partnership (AWP) and taken on a new challenge that follows a recent study that found social service programs for military veterans here are disjointed and would benefit from a new level of coordination.
MagnaFlow Owners Keep OC Ties Amid Expansion in SD
MANUFACTURING: $10M HQ in works next to factory there
A Rancho Santa Margarita-based manufacturer of catalytic converters and performance exhaust systems broke ground on a $10 million, 100,000-square-foot headquarters and manufacturing facility in Oceanside late last month.
Pacific Wave to Canada Company
Pacific Wave Systems Inc., a microwave component manufacturer in Garden Grove, fetched $20.1 million in a sale to Canada-based telecom systems manufacturer Com Dev International Ltd.
$20.1M for Garden Grove Manufacturer
Pacific Wave Systems, Inc. a microwave component manufacturer in Garden Grove, fetched $20.1 million in a sale to Canada-based telecom systems manufacturer COM DEV International Ltd.
