By Jennifer Farnsworth
Core Tech Industrial Corp. is looking to wrap up the construction of a $1.7 million expansion of its Ballston facility factory by late summer.
The just over 140,000 square foot project is a reflection of the growing demand for equipment at power plants in both the Capital Region and across the country, according to the company, located at 2 McCrea Hill Road.
Owner George Hubschmidtt said Core Tech designs and produces mechanical, electrical, and fire suppression equipment for several large manufacturers. Many of those customers, he said, have a strong need for power generation equipment. The demand has not wavered during the pandemic.
Designers Of Office Space Help Safely Get Employees Back Into Their Work Spaces
By Jill Nagy
As business owners prepare to re-open in a changed world, many are turning to office designers for guidance in meeting new requirements for minimizing the spread of COVID-19.
Dorothy Rogers-Bullis and her business drb Business Interiors in Saratoga Springs offers her own office as an example. Several employees are still working remotely. She encourages others to work in the office at alternate times. When clients arrive, they are asked to sign in and out, wear face masks and have their temperatures taken.
“People want to get back to work,” she said. “Some people work really well at home” but, in general, “not a lot of good work gets done at home.”
There are too many distractions. In addition, people working at home miss the connections, collaboration and creativity of a shared workplace.
Lisa Boyle of the Boyle Group in Ballston Spa advises clients on how to reorganize their work space.
For example, in an open office plan with everybody at eye level, desk and tables have to be moved apart, she said. Often, barriers are needed. The result is a reduced capacity.
Business Report: Working From Home A Joy?
by mark shaw
As anyone with small children at home will tell you, this working at home thing is not all it is cracked up to be. Parents are now employees, educators, day care and much more.
This means more than ever we are relying on technology to get our work done. With everyone leaving the office and its technology security blanket, we are opening doors to cyber-attacks.
I know what you are thinking, another article about cyber security and how everything we are doing now is terrible. That is not really the case at all. The facts so far have proven that there has been no major spike in cyber crime, but that does not mean we should not consider some simple and easy ways to work at home safely.
There are several small steps you can do to protect yourself and your company’s data. If you are an employer, you can use this time to refresh what might be an outdated training program.
Consider a cyber-security training program. Even a technology firm like ours still does education for all our staff. OrbitalFire Cyber Security does a great job training, educating, and testing our staff to ensure we all know the basics in the ever-changing battlefield against the bad guys. First thing is always training. All the technology in the world cannot fix human error.
NBT Bank Re-Opens Branch Office Lobbies With Health, Safety Protocols Now In Place
Courtesy NBT
NBT Bank has expanded its services to include full branch lobby access with the implementation of protocols to protect the safety of its employees and customers.
The bank had its lobbies closed for business due to the COVID-19 pandemic, utilizing ATMs, the internet and drive-through windows for services.
Appointments are no longer required for customers to visit a branch lobby.
“NBT has spent weeks developing a careful approach that both expands branch access and ensures that our employees, customers and communities remain safe,” said NBT Bank President of Retail Community Banking Joseph R. Stagliano. “Thoughtful consideration has included a market-by-market analysis of conditions, close coordination with local government and health officials and strict adherence to state and federal guidelines.”
SUNY Empire State Has Its First Fully Online Degree Program In Security Studies
SUNY Empire State College is implementing its first fully online, accredited bachelor of science degree program in security studies to help meet the growing need for modern security experts in high-demand positions in homeland security, emergency management, disaster relief, and law enforcement in the U.S. and around the world.
Officials said the program can be completed entirely online, providing students with flexibility and convenience to earn their degree around the demands of their busy lives, as well as face to face at SUNY Empire campuses and learning hubs across the state.
The program was approved by the state Education Department earlier this month.
SUNY Empire’s program will prepare students for careers in security policy, emergency management, and criminal justice in the private and public sectors, examining complex global security issues through the perspectives of the social sciences, legal studies, and international relations. It will examine issues of homeland security, terrorism, privacy, and law enforcement policy and practice to prepare well-rounded leaders in these fields.
Adirondack Trust, Saratoga Hospital Team Up To Help Businesses Resume Operations
Saratoga Hospital and Adirondack Trust Co. are teaming up to help businesses resume operations safely.
With support from Adirondack Trust, the hospital has launched the COVID-19 Business Safety Consultation Program to help area employers review their safety plans and fine-tune practices on screening, masking, social distancing, contactless interactions, disinfectant use and other measures that can help prevent the spread of the new coronavirus.
“We want to see our region reopen safely—to help keep our community healthy and get people and businesses back to work,” said Charles V. Wait Jr., president & CEO of Adirondack Trust. “This is uncharted territory, so most businesses could use some help. Saratoga Hospital has had great success managing these issues since the start of the pandemic. They’re the logical partner for this effort.”
The free consultation, provided by Saratoga Hospital Medical Group – Occupational Medicine, includes:
• An on-site visit to assess issues, including work flow, staff-to-staff and customer-to -staff interactions, meeting space, distance between desks or stations, break rooms, rest rooms and other key spaces.
• Recommendations on employee and customer screenings for COVID-19 symptoms or exposure.
• Masking best practices.
• Cleaning and disinfecting protocols.
• Review of the New York Forward industry-specific guidelines for reopening.
• Help completing the state-required COVID-19 safety plan, which must be available on-site for state officials to review upon request.
Business Report: Everyone Is Their Own Movie
By April P. Weygand
Are you welcoming people into your business for the first time in a while and need some help navigating New York state rules on how to do that?
New York state is tough, and they want us to be prepared. There are some common-sense rules: wash hands, use hand sanitizer, wear masks, use tissues, and clean and disinfect surfaces.
The words cleaning, sanitizing, disinfecting, electrostatic spraying, and fogging are being thrown around a lot lately. However, they are not the same and should not be used interchangeably. “Cleaning” is the act of removing soils and germs from a surface. It doesn’t usually kill anything, but it does remove them by washing them away.
“Sanitizing” means reducing the number of bacteria by 99.9 percent to a level considered safe by public health organizations. Many over-the counter products sanitize in less than 30 seconds. It’s important to note here that Sanitizing kills bacteria, but it does not kill viruses. That’s where Disinfection is necessary.
Common Roots Brewing Co., At The End Of A Challenging Road, Is Ready For The Future
Courtesy V&H Construction
By Andrea Harwood Palmer
Common Roots Brewing Co. is open at its new, expanded facility at 58 Saratoga Ave. in South Glens Falls.
The 15,000-square-foot facility is on the site of the company’s original brew house that was gutted by fire in March 2019. It is open seven days a week from noon to 8 p.m. for to-go sales only from the new taproom.
It will open with beer-to-go service and outdoor on-premise seating, as allowed by guidelines imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A gastro pub-style menu will be rolled out with food to go.
Phinney Design Group in Saratoga Springs designed the structure. V&H Construction of Fort Edward built it.
Christian Weber founded the company with his father, Burt Weber, in 2014.
“We understand it’s a destination spot for a lot of people,” said Weber. “The experience of coming to Common Roots has always been really important to us. Right now, the only thing more important than the experienced and the culture, is safety. Safety is our number-one priority so our staff and customers have a safe and comfortable experience.”
Plug Power Acquires Pennsylvania Company
Plug Power, which has an office in Clifton Park, has acquired United Hydrogen Group and Giner ELX, prompting the Latham fuel cell maker to increase 2024 revenue projections from $1 billion to $1.2 billion.
The company announced in June that it completed the acquisition of the Pennsylvania and Massachusetts companies.
The moves are part of chief executive Andy Marsh’s strategy to position the upstate New York company to generate at least half of the hydrogen its customers use from renewable energy sources by 2024.
“As a team, we can accelerate the adoption of low carbon and zero carbon hydrogen on a global scale,” Marsh said in a news release.
United Hydrogen Group Inc. is headquartered in Canonsburg, Pa., and operates a plant in Tennessee that is capable of producing 6.4 tons of liquid hydrogen per day with plans to expand to 10 tons soon.
Business Report: COVID-19 Changes
By Michael Cruz
Your employees are working under new circumstances and new expectations. In fact, we all are, you included.
After years of working to ensure good culture, we now see each other less often. How are you ensuring that remote working and less meetings do not negatively affect your company culture? Locally, we have been able to pass through the crisis mode.
Yet, every time we watch the news, we are treated to doom scenarios. And as employees and coworkers hear those stories, it creates anxiety. We’re bombarded with messages like “new normal,” “social distancing” and, of course, “lockdown.”
In the face of that, it is hard to do back to (old?) normal.
Therefore, some of the changes are for a while. You can focus on that in your business. What makes sense for one business will not make sense for another. You will find ways to make your teams physically safe. Yet, what all businesses face is the need to keep everyone engaged. As leaders, we need to focus on keeping our people psychologically safe. There is a lot to react to right now.
Each and every person has a different capacity to accepting and adapting to the changes. How can you help your people do what is needed in a different environment?