Business

Lakeside Living • February 1 2025

Enjoy a weekend – and a few hands of Queen Nazarene – at Hartman Castle

If you didn’t see it with your own eyes, you probably wouldn’t believe it. After snaking your way through the narrow roads of Alpine Bay, you’ll eventually encounter it, like some sort of mid-70s Sid and Marty Krofft meets Monty Python fever dream - a castle.
That’s right a castle — Hartman Castle, to be precise.

Lakeside Living • February 1 2025

I’m living On The Air In Pell City... Pell City, WFHK

It’s been 25 years since Pell City High School graduate, Navy veteran, and well-known Birmingham radio personality Adam Stocks bought WFHK, one of the last remnants from the staticky, crackly days of AM radio. Since then, Stocks has transformed WFHK into a unique voice for Pell City, packing some of the old music and programming in mothballs, transitioning the station to FM, branching into video, and rebranding the station as The River 94.1, St. Clair County’s only commercial FM station.

Daily Home • January 26 2025

Michael's Men's Wear still anchors the square after more than half a century

A beloved anchor of The Courthouse Square in downtown Talladega, Michael’s Men’s Wear has been one of the city’s key businesses for 56 years.

Over the Mountain Journal • January 22 2025

Katherine McRee: Leading Cahaba Heights To New... Heights - Over the Mountain Journal

Katherine McRee is a leader who doesn’t think of herself as one.  At least that wasn’t on her radar screen when she and her sister, Susan Day, opened the Lili Pad, a popular children’s boutique in Cahaba Heights two decades ago. However, in recent years, McRee has emerged as one of the most significant and highly respected civic leaders in Vestavia Hills, sparking a renewed sense of community and creativity taking root throughout the city.

Birmingham Lifestyle Magazine • June 1 2024

The Indiana Jones of Vintage Guitars

Like many young guys who grew up listening to classic rock, John Shults dreamed of becoming a guitar hero. There was only one problem—Rock star-level talent.

Despite the revelation that Shults wasn’t destined to be the next Jimmy Page, bursting eardrums and dropping jaws with his dexterity on the fretboard, it never dampened his love for the instrument that makes rock and roll possible - the electric guitar.

Birmingham Lifestyle Magazine • June 1 2024

Birmingham Barbershop Renaissance

For close to a decade, Birmingham has been experiencing a barbershop renaissance. All over the city, new barber shops are popping up led by a creative group of young men and women who believe barbering is more than a job — it’s a calling.

thehomewoodstar.com • February 28 2023

Mortgage rates are on the rise. Now what? Local experts offer advice to potential home buyers

When the Federal Reserve raised interest rates in early February to combat inflation, one area of concern for many potential homebuyers was how the Fed’s actions would affect mortgage rates and their ability to afford a new home.

However, Clint Thompson, a mortgage officer with Fairway Independent Mortgage Corp. in Inverness, says the perception that mortgage rates automatically increase following a rise in interest rates is incorrect. “There is always misinformation out there when people hear

IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest • May 22 2022

HYDMECH: 40-Plus Years of Sawing Innovation

For more than 40 years, HYDMECH has been a worldwide leader in metal band saw, cold saw technology, and metal sawing solutions. Established in 1978 in Woodstock, Ontario, by Stan Jasinski, a Polish immigrant, and engineer, HYDMECH was initially an engineering consulting firm specializing in hydraulic and forestry equipment.

IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest • April 7 2022

Scotchman Industries Leading The Way From Rural South Dakota

Nearly 60 years ago, Arthur Kroetch, an industrious entrepreneur from the small town of Philip, South Dakota, launched what would eventually become the nation’s leading manufacturer of hydraulic ironworkers. Now under the leadership of Kroetch’s son, Jerry, Scotchman Industries continues to bring innovative products to market, currently producing 13 models of hydraulic ironworkers, ranging from 45 to 150 tons in capacity all manufactured in this small South Dakota town – population 779.

IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest • February 1 2022

L&L Special Furnace has a solid reputation

After more than 40 years in business, L&L Special Furnace has developed a solid reputation for designing outstanding special industrial furnaces, ovens, kilns, quench tanks, and heat-treating systems. Based in Aston, Pennsylvania, L&L Special Furnaces specializes in batch production furnaces and ovens, with a special focus on applications requiring high uniformity and a controlled atmosphere.

IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest • February 1 2022

Sky Hook Utilized by Spencer Corporation Solves Problems

Like many machine shops and job shops, Spencer Corporation was looking for a solution to safely lift and maneuver heavy equipment parts throughout its facility in Santa Clara, California. Working with parts weighing just under 500 pounds, the potential for accidents and injury was always a present danger.

IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest • January 1 2022

Manufacturing Showcase: Hypneumat

For almost 80 years, Hypneumat, Inc. has been a leader and innovator in the drilling and tapping industry.

Automation Personnel Services Blog • October 27 2021

How To Video Conference Like A Pro

The COVID-19 era has forced businesses far and wide to get up to speed technologically, and in a hurry, specifically when it comes to mastering the art of the video conference. By this point, the video conference is a regular part of our day and the brand Zoom, for many of us, is now a verb. Whether you're chatting in a one-on-one job interview or part of a video meeting with multiple people, here are some helpful tips and points of etiquette to help you nail your next video conference like a pro.

Business Xpansion Journal • October 25 2021

Indiana: Strong Growth in Manufacturing, Logistics & Technology

By leveraging world-class universities and research partnerships, sound fiscal policy and a pro-business environment, Indiana has the resources and people needed for new opportunities for jobs and investment in the global marketplaceGovernor Eric J. Holcomb announced a record-breaking year for economic development in 2017. Businesses in Indiana and around the world have committed to creating up to 28,846 new Indiana jobs in the coming years.

Mrs. B. On A Mission • June 9 2021

The Leadership Of Joe Torre

Guest Post: What We As Leaders Can Learn From The Legendary New York Yankees Skipper.

Joe Torre, the legendary manager of the New York Yankees in the 1990s and early 2000s was a different kind of leader. For decades, the Bronx Bombers, under the iron grip of irascible owner George Steinbrenner, was led by a revolving door of hotheads, oddballs, also-rans, none of whom could get the Yanks back to their winning ways.

Portico Magazine • May 1 2021

Portico Magazine - Women In Medicine Special Issue

Special issue of Portico Magazine featuring the top women physicians from the Mountain Brook and Homewood communities of Birmingham, Alabama.

Business Xpansion Journal • December 11 2020

California: Sixth Largest Economy in the World

If California were a country, its $2.60 trillion economy would be the sixth largest in the world, and its economy represents 14 percent of the U.S. economy. Over the past three years, $78 billion in venture capital has been invested in California companies, which is more than five times the total of any other state.

According to the Inc. magazine 5000 fastest growing companies in America list, California holds the top spot for most companies on the list at 670. The state is home to many people

Automation Personnel Services Blog • December 11 2020

Automation Personnel Services Open During Covid-19 Pandemic

Automation Personnel Services Dedicated To Providing Employment To Those Displaced From Jobs Due To Coronavirus Shutdowns

If you are looking for work due to a coronavirus-related shutdown, Automation Personnel Services can help you find a job. As many of the nation’s restaurants, bars, schools, and other businesses close in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, many Automation Personnel Clients in the warehouse, distribution, and logistics sectors - among others - are working around the clock to r

Automation Personnel Services Blog • December 11 2020

How To Video Conference Like A Pro

The COVID-19 era has forced businesses far and wide to get up to speed technologically, and in a hurry, specifically when it comes to mastering the art of the video conference. By this point, the video conference is a regular part of our day and the brand Zoom, for many of us, is now a verb. Whether you're chatting in a one-on-one job interview or part of a video meeting with multiple people, here are some helpful tips and points of etiquette to help you nail your next video conference like a pr

IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest • July 1 2019

Talking Shop with: Mark Soucie — President & Owner, Ferroloy, Inc.

Q: What is the history of Ferroloy?

A: Ferroloy Foundry was started in 1950 and for the first 50 years of its operation was captive to a company called Easton Corporation. We moved to our current location in 1968. In 2001, The Easton Corporation shut down and Ferroloy Foundry, Inc. turned its focus toward becoming a supplier to the agricultural equipment industry.

IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest • June 3 2019

Don’t Fear The Robotics!

While many economists and cultural commentators continue to warn of doom and gloom for the American workforce over the coming industrial automation revolution, many experts in workforce and economic development see plenty to remain optimistic about, for the rank-and-file worker and upper decision makers alike. Throughout the nation, community colleges, economic development organizations and state-run organizations are on the cutting edge of identifying the new jobs necessary to compete, creating

IndMacDig | Industrial Machinery Digest • May 20 2019

Reshoring initiative achieves record high results in 2018

In 2018 the number of companies reporting new reshoring and foreign direct investment (FDI) was at the highest level in history, up 38% from 2017. The combined reshoring and related FDI announcements totaled over 145,000 jobs, the second highest annual rate in history. Including upward revisions of 36,000 jobs in prior years, the total number of manufacturing jobs brought to the United States from offshore is over 757,000 since the manufacturing employment low of 2010.

Allowing for a two-year l

Business Xpansion Journal • May 14 2019

OKLAHOMA: Making Strides in Aerospace Development

Oklahoma is located in the heart of the U.S. with easy access to suppliers and customers. The state’s integrated infrastructure system is a large reason for the success the state’s economy has seen in recent years.

Business Xpansion Journal • May 11 2019

Texas: 10th Largest Economy in the World

The list of good things happening in the economy of Texas is long, and the environment for business and a skilled workforce keeps getting stronger. If Texas were a nation, it would rank as the 10th largest economy in the world based on GDP.

Texas continues to maintain its position as the nation’s top exporter, a title the state has held for 15 consecutive years. In 2016, Texas exported $232 billion in goods to destinations all over the world with Mexico, Canada, China, Brazil and Korea as its t