Send Business News items to news@busjrnl.com.Banking & Finance
Three teams of employees from Redwood Credit Union recently participated in Human Race events held in Sonoma, Marin and Mendocino counties. A total of 130 volunteers from Santa Rosa-based RCU, including employees, family and friends walked or ran in the races, raising funds for a variety of local nonprofits. In addition to voluntary support and the Credit Union's corporate sponsorships, RCU staff collected monetary pledges and donations, bringing RCU's collective contributions to over $24,000.Energy
MCE Clean Energy said customers of the consumer-choice aggregation power agency have greater savings since Pacific Gas & Electric Co. increased rates May 1. Projections indicate $5.9 million in savings for MCE customers this year. The city of San Rafael saved more than $30,000 by choosing MCE's Light Green 50 percent renewable energy service last year, the agency said. A comparison of the city's annual usage at current rates results in an even larger savings of approximately $47,000 in 2014. The analysis was prepared by comparing the city's actual utility payments in 2014 with PG&E's otherwise applicable rates for the year. The financial benefits for the city of Richmond, also a customer of MCE, have been even more pronounced. That city expects to save almost $60,000 on its energy bills this year. West Contra Costa Unified School District expects an even greater savings, about $66,000.Health Care
The Eye Works Optometry is the first eyecare provider in Napa to offer patients the iWellnessExam, powered by Optovue. The exam uses state-of-the-art spectral domain optical coherence tomography to produce high-definition cross-sectional images of patients' retinas, the back of the eye that receives light. Often compared to an MRI or CT scan, SD-OCT images provide stunning details of retinal structures that are not visible with other examination techniques or tests. This is important because it enables the doctor to detect very early signs of vision threatening disease, such as glaucoma, macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy.Marketing
Boylan Point Agency, a Santa Rosa-based advertising and marketing firm, was selected to provide creative development and media placement for Ross Valley Sanitary District's Lateral Grant Campaign. In addition to print and online advertising, the agency has been charged with creating additional collateral support to promote the campaign. The lateral grant program allows for homeowners within the district to receive funds to offset the replacement costs for leaking laterals.Retail
Oakville Grocery Company, California's oldest continually operating grocery store, with locations in Oakville and Healdsburg, is expanding its reach into wine country this spring and summer. Nationally renowned for its selection of locally sourced gourmet products, Oakville Grocery is now the official cheesemonger for the St. Helena Farmer's Market, which takes place every Friday in Crane Park through October.Technology
Arcturus UAV of Rohnert Park announced development of its JUMP-25 and CAT-25 long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicles. The JUMP-25, vertical takeoff and landing capable, will have a larger fuselage and wingspan and more powerful VTOL and tractor motors than the recently announced JUMP-15 and JUMP-20 models. The CAT-25 will be a larger version of the company's T-20 catapult-launched UAV. The new JUMP-25 and CAT-25 UAVs will integrate Cloud Cap Technology's new TASE500. The TASE500 is said to exceed the capabilities of the L3 Wescam MX10. The TASE500 is a 10-inch, 27-pound imaging payload that provides an all-HD, fully integrated solution utilizing ViewPoint Tactical PED software.
Cyan, a Petaluma-based provider of software-defined networking and packet-optical solutions for network operators, announced that Colt's Carrier Ethernet Multi-Service Platform, supported by Cyan's Blue Planet SDN and Z-Series Packet Optical platforms, won the Global Telecoms Business Innovation Award this year for "Fixed Network Infrastructure Innovation." The awards were presented at the Innovation Awards Dinner on May 14, following the GTB Innovation Summit in London.
