News in brief

Launch Pad wins

3-D carving device

The Launch Pad, which is part of the Innovation Hub in North Little Rock, will receive a free 3-D carving machine, according to a news release from the Chicago-based company Inventables.

The carving machine can create precision parts and designs from materials such as wood and metal, according to the news release.

The Launch Pad will use the machine to make circuit boards that can be used in designing electronics, said Joel Gordon, director and chief executive officer of The Launch Pad.

Gordon said The Launch Pad won the carving machine through a contest sponsored by Inventables. The machines normally cost about $1,400, he said.

The Launch Pad is a "maker space," where people join with memberships to build things. The lab will move into the Argenta Innovation Center in the fall, Gordon said.

-- Jessica Seaman

Health unit called

to Wal-Mart office

The home office of Bentonville-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc. called in the Benton County Health Unit after it was determined that some workers got sick after dining in the headquarter's cafeteria earlier this week. Those who fell ill had eaten food from Salsarita's, one of several food vendors in the corporate dining hall, which is operated by Eurest Dining.

Eurest provides food services to local, regional and national companies within the business and industry markets, including employee dining centers, on-site catering, executive dining rooms and other managed services.

"While the source of the reported illnesses has not been confirmed, out of an abundance of caution, Eurest has voluntarily suspended operations of the Mexican food bar," Wal-Mart spokesman Brooke Buchanan said. As of Friday, Salsarita's was closed, though the other food providers were open to employees.

"The Walmart Food Safety team is working in full cooperation with the Benton County Health [Unit] and Eurest to determine the exact cause," he added.

Attempts to contact Loy Bailey, health district manager for the health unit, were unsuccessful Friday.

-- Cyd King

15 stocks advance,

2 decline on index

The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, climbed 2.74 points to 352.11 Friday.

Fifteen stocks advanced and two declined.

PAM Transportation Services gained 4.7 percent and hit another 52-week high. Windstream also hit a 52-week high during the session.

USA Truck gained 3.2 percent on average volume.

For the week, 15 stocks were up and two fell.

USA Truck jumped 12.2 percent for the week.

Total volume of the index was 34.3 million shares. The average daily volume for the week was 21.4 million shares.

The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.

Business on 06/21/2014

Upcoming Events