October 1, 2005

Dell Opens Winston-Salem Plant

Round-Rock, Tex.-based computer maker Dell has officially opened its new $100 million manufacturing facility in Winston-Salem, N.C., less than a year after announcing the project. Chairman and founder Michael Dell announced at the grand opening ceremony that the plant will produce about $10 billion worth of computers per year at full production. About 1,500 workers are expected to be employed at the facility.

Rita Second-Worst Storm for Utility

Officials with Entergy Corp., an electric utility that serves Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, said that Hurricane Rita was the second-worst storm in the history of the utility. Katrina, of course, was the worst. Entergy officials estimated that the cost of restoring services in Texas and Louisiana as a result of Rita could top $500 million.

350 New Jobs Announced in Georgia

The Faus Group, an international manufacturer of laminated flooring, has announced that it has selected a facility in Gordon County, located in northwest Georgia. The company, founded in Gandia, Spain in 1953, is moving into an existing 400,000-square-foot facility in Calhoun, Ga. The deal is expected to create about 350 new jobs.

MedImmune to Boost Sales Force by 125

September 4, 2005—Maryland’s MedImmune will drop a co-marketing deal with Abbott Labs for its top-selling drug, the latest move to expand its pediatric medicine business. As a result, the company plans to increase its sales force. MedImmune will end a co-promotional deal for Synagis with Abbot in 2006. Currently, the Gaithersburg-based company gives Abbott a portion of Synagis sales in exchange for its marketing of the drug, a treatment for respiratory infections in infants. MedImmune says eliminating the co-promotion fees will substantially improve earnings beginning in 2007.

MedImmune (NASDAQ: MEDI) says it plans to expand its 300-person pediatric sales division by hiring an additional 125 professionals.

New Mississippi Steel Plant a Done Deal

After more than a year of planning and negotiation, SteelCorr Inc., a new steel manufacturer headed up by John Correnti, the former president of Charlotte-based steelmaker Nucor, announced it is building a new $880 million plant in Columbus, Miss. Economic development officials in Columbus told SB&D that graders began preparing the site on October 1. The plant, to be called SeverCorr, will produce high-quality steel for foreign automakers operating facilities in the Southern Auto Corridor (www.SouthernAutoCorridor.com) such as BMW, Honda and Mercedes. Investors in the new company include Russian steel manufacturing company OAO Severstal and GE Capital.

500 New Jobs Announced in Kentucky

Cardinal Health, an Ohio-based health care company, announced on September 29 that it is creating 500 new jobs in rural Radcliff, Ky. The company, a $75 billion global concern, offers a wide range of health care products and services. The Hardin County, Ky., customer service facility will provide support services for Cardinal's 50,000 U.S. customers, including hospitals, pharmacies and physicians offices.

Financier David Murdock Unveils Plan for $1B Biotech Center in N.C.

California-based financier David Murdock has unveiled plans for establishing a biotechnology research campus in North Carolina that could grow to a $1 billion development and would create 5,000 new jobs. Murdock, who owns Dole Food Co. Inc. and a real estate development firm, announced plans to transform a 250-acre former Pillowtex Corp. plant and 100 adjacent acres in downtown Kannapolis into the North Carolina research campus. The campus, which Murdock wants to develop with the University of North Carolina system, would create 5,000 jobs with spinoff employment projects hovering around 30,000. Murdock wil personally establish a $100 million venture capital fund to attract an anticipated 100 biotech companies to the campus. Plans call for one million square feet of office and lab space, 350,000 square feet of retail and commercial space, and about 700 residential units.

For more biotech news from around the South, visit www.BioIndustrySouth.com

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