Levi Strauss & Co., the maker of Levi's jeans and Dockers slacks, will fire 3,300 people and close six U.S. plans as it shifts production to low- cost markets outside the United States. The 20 percent reduction in Levi's workforce will occur in Blue Ridge, Ga.; San Francisco; Brownsville, San Benito and El Paso, Texas; and Powell, Tenn., the closely held company said. San Francisco-based Levi said it will have two U.S. plants in San Antonio left after the closings. Another 300 jobs may be cut from these factories, Levi said. The company said in January it planned to shut an undetermined number of U.S. plants as it moves production to manufacturers overseas to lower costs.
Marconi, creditors meet
Marconi is to meet with its creditors Wednesday to hammer out a new financing plan that will likely result in a debt-for-equity swap with banks and bondholders, the Financial Times said Monday. The deal would mean creditors believe they can best recover what is owed them by Marconi continuing instead of being broken up and sold, although current shareholders would be diluted severely. Marconi is struggling to pay off $4.5 billion in debt, acquired largely when it went on a $6 billion buying spree in the late 1990s, including the purchase of Marshall Township-based Fore Systems in 1999.
Barron's: Mellon may rise
Shares of Mellon Financial Corp., which is transforming itself from a 133-year-old bank to a financial-management company, could rise if it meets earnings estimates, Barron's said. The shares could rise to more than $50 from $37.50, the financial weekly said. Mellon shares trade at a lower multiple to earnings than rivals State Street Corp. and Northern Trust Corp., according to Barron's. Mellon is aiming for a 14 percent annual increase in earnings per share, the paper said. That's more than one point above the average annual increase during the past five years. Mellon could be an attractive takeover target if the shares fall to the low 30s again, said Barron's without citing sources.
Inmedius names CEO
Inmedius Inc., a Pittsburgh-based provider of software systems for heavy equipment maintenance personnel, said it has hired Gary L. Schaffer as president and chief executive officer. Schaffer most recently served as vice president for MapInfo Corp., a leader in mapping and spatial software. Schaffer founded On Target Mapping in 1991 in Pittsburgh and served as its president until 1998 when it was bought by MapInfo. Inmedius provides logistics software for the U.S. Navy for its F-18 Super Hornet strike fighter.
Nuke plant gets good grades
The Beaver Valley Nuclear Power Station in Shippingport, Beaver County, operated by Akron, Ohio-based FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Co., received positive grades from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for performance from April 1, 2001, to Dec. 31, 2001. The performance report indicated plant personnel met commission goals in plant operations, reactor safety, radiation safety and plant security. In addition, the plant was ranked 17th out of 103 U.S. nuclear plants and 32nd out of 438 nuclear plants in the world for reliability in 2001 by Nucleonics Week, an nuclear power trade magazine.
RightAnswers hires three
RightAnswers LLC, a former unit of Oakmont-based ServiceWare Inc., said it has hired three new top executives — President Jeffrey Weinstein, Executive Vice President of Worldwide Sales Michael Pallatta and Executive Vice President of Marketing and Business Development Andrew Rawson. All three also have become investors in the company, which provides online knowledge support for information technology professionals. The three men helped build Magic Solutions, a provider of help desk products and services, before selling it for more than $100 million to Network Associates Inc. in 1998.
Penske Auto closings
Penske Auto Centers closed over the weekend and are now in a legal dispute with Kmart Corp., where the auto centers operate. The two were in court Monday negotiating the future of Penske, which on Saturday closed all 550 of its auto centers. The same day, however, a federal judge issued a restraining order, at Kmart's request, that required Penske to keep operating the auto centers. Kmart owns 36 percent of Penske. In the Pittsburgh area, there are seven Penske centers. They are in Ross Township, Moon Township, Monroeville, Bridgeville, Coraopolis, West View and Duquesne. Yesterday, several local Penske centers had telephone recordings stating that they had closed.
Palmer named CEO
Confirmant Ltd., a joint venture between U.K.-based Marconi Plc and Oxford GlycoSciences Plc, said it has named Pittsburgh native David Palmer as chief executive. Palmer, former vice president for health sciences for Marconi, will split his time between the U.K. and a home office in Pittsburgh. Confirmant is developing a "Protein Atlas of the Human Genome" designed to provide a detailed list of human proteins and their coding sequences by human genes. This information will be used by pharmaceutical researchers to speed the new drug discovery process.
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