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TAMPA BAY
Manufacturer adds 50 jobs
Granex Inc., a granite and marble slab manufacturer, plans to open a new headquarters in Tampa.
With the opening, Granex plans to add 50 new jobs in Hillsborough County over the next few years, according to a statement from Gov. Rick Scott. The company already employs 15 Floridians.
Granex broke ground on the facility, at 5107 E. Diana St., in 2013. It purchased the land in February 2013 for $900,100, according to Hillsborough County records.
Granex imports between 350 and 400 containers of materials into the Port of Tampa Bay each year, and it exports 40 containers. The company sends out 300 truckloads per year across the United States and Canada.
Company creates new product
St. Petersburg-based Shark Shield has developed a new shark deterrent for surfers.
The product, a removable electronic module that goes on the tail pad of a surfboard, was partially funded by the Australian government, according to a statement. The module has a sticker-thin electrode decal.
The Western Australian Government's Applied Research Program provided Shark Shield with a $300,000 grant over two-and-a-half years to develop the new technology. The product will be available for retail in July starting at $99, the company says.
“We've been working closely with Ocean & Earth and former World Surf Champion Tom Carroll to develop a product that surfers will actually use and that won't hinder surfing performance in any way,” says Amanda Wilson, general manager of Shark Shield, in a statement.
Wilson and a business partner bought Shark Shield in 2013, when it was based in Australia.
SARASOTA-MANATEE
Health platform selected by major hospital
Sarasota-based mobile health firm Voalte will do business with Tampa General Hospital, a statement says.
The hospital will replace a patchwork of pagers and an aging phone system with the unified Voalte Platform. The Voalte smartphone deployment is already live on several units and will be integrated sitewide at 1,011 patient beds at Tampa General Hospital, the statement adds.
“After an extensive review, we determined Voalte is the one vendor than can unify our multiple communication systems, tie in with biomedical devices and provide secure text messaging for our physicians on their personal smartphones,” says Dr. Peter Chang, chief medical informatics officer at Tampa General Hospital, in the statement.
With the Voalte platform, hospital staff will be equipped with an alarm-management system that will allow caregivers to receive immediate alerts and notifications from patient monitors.
“With patient information at their fingertips, caregivers can respond quickly, request help from support staff and streamline the workflow process to provide the best possible patient care,” Voalte founder and CEO Trey Lauderdale says in the release.
Hospital names new board members
Doctors Hospital of Sarasota has named three new board members.
The new members are:
Joe Hembree, president and owner of Sarasota-based Hembree & Associates Inc. Hembree has more than 25 years of real estate experience;
Patricia Courtois, president and CEO of Sarasota-based C-Suite Communications. Courtois has been affiliated with multiple companies in public relations, including Tropicana and Southeastern Guide Dogs; and
Dr. Richard Duckworth, retired internist with Intercoastal Medical Group. He practiced medicine for more than 35 years.
Doctors Hospital is an acute care facility recognized as one of Modern Healthcare's “Top 100 Best Places to Work” for the past seven years.
CHARLOTTE-LEE-COLLIER
Hotel expansion project begins
Manhattan Construction has been awarded the contract for the amenity expansion to the pool area of the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort & Spa in Bonita Springs.
The expansion involves the addition of a lazy river, a themed slide tower mimicking a tree house, two speed slides and a tube slide, a statement says. There will also be dedicated areas for food trucks.
This project marks Manhattan's fourth contract with the hotel. It previously competed renovations to meeting rooms, the on-site Tanglewood Restaurant and the Camp Hyatt childcare facility.
Manhattan Construction is the largest contracting company on the Gulf Coast. The dually headquartered company — Naples and Tulsa, Okla. — had $1.37 billion in revenues in 2015.
Hertz invests in valet parking firm
Car rental giant Hertz has funded Luxe, a startup that provides on-demand valet parking and car services, the company says in a statement.
Terms of the venture capital deal were not disclosed.
“Our investment will support Luxe's ability to scale its successful service to other major urban centers,” says Hertz President and CEO John Tague in the statement. Tague will become a member of Luxe's board with the funding round.
Luxe offers mobile application and on-demand valets on both a pay-per-use and monthly subscription basis in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Boston, Seattle and Austin. This is the second round of venture funding for San Francisco-based Luxe.
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