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BANKING
• Bank of Utah, Ogden, has opened a new branch building at 5729 S. 1900 W., Roy. Managed by Linda Schiffman, the new 2,702-square-foot branch includes a remote drive-through service with remote camera technology. The branch has seven employees. Construction partners include Bott Pantone Architects and Stacey Enterprises Inc. Construction on the new branch began in July 2016. The new facility replaces a branch located just north of the new site. The Roy branch opened in 1953.
• Silicon Valley Bank will move to a larger office in the Salt Lake City area in 2018. The office will be at 2750 Cottonwood Parkway, Cottonwood Heights. The office will provide more space for the bank to support Utah-based technology and life science companies, as well as the global operations for the company. The bank was founded in 1983 and opened its first Salt Lake City area office in 2005. The new office will feature about 28,000 square feet and have more than 75 full-time employees.
ENERGY/NATURAL RESOURCES
• The Energy Research Triangle (ERT) program is accepting applications focused on finding rapid solutions to air and water challenges facing the energy industry. ERT is a competitive grant program that was created by the Utah Science, Technology and Research (USTAR) initiative and the Governor’s Office of Energy Development, in response to Gov. Gary Herbert’s 10-year strategic energy plan. The $435,000 grant program is split into two categories. The Energy Research Triangle — Professors grant (ERT-P) provides $125,000 per team of researchers. The program requires that at least three researchers from three different nonprofit institutions of higher education in Utah collaborate on a single project. The second category, the Energy Research Triangle — Scholars grants (ERT-S), provides $15,000 per student at any nonprofit institution of higher education in Utah. Applicants are required to obtain a letter from a Utah business indicating interest in the development of the applicant’s technology. Letters of intent are due June 16. The application deadline is June 27. Details are at https://ustar.org/our-programs/ert-energy-research-triangle.
• Three Utahns have been named to the American Plasma Energy Group (APEG) Board of Advisors: Sharlene Wells-Hawkes, chief executive officer, RMS Productions; Maj. Gen. Pat Condon of the U.S. Air Force (retired); and Brad Pace, senior vice president, Impartner. APEG seeks to reduce fuel consumption and emissions in nations’ vehicles, military and electric-generation markets.
ENVIRONMENT
• EnviroTechnologies International, Salt Lake City, has named Robert Chickering to serve on its Scientific Advisory Council. The company develops and markets, green, natural and organic products. Chickering has nearly 20 years of experience in bio-catalytic product business development. He is a principal and general manager for Environmental Treatment Co.
EXPANSIONS
• Sunroc Building Materials has opened a facility in Idaho Falls, Idaho. It is the company’s 11th location. It will service customers in southeastern Idaho with lumber, trusses, framing components (wall and floor panels), insulation, timbers, siding, windows, doors, millwork, hardware, decking and railing materials. It is being managed by VonDell Erickson, a 28-year industry veteran. Erickson previously was region manager for Cleary Building Corp.
HEALTHCARE
• UnitedHealthcare has selected Matthew C. Gibson of Draper to serve on the AARP Services Inc. (ASI) Agent Advisory Council. Gibson is senior vice president with Senior Benefits Insurance Services. He is one of only 12 health insurance agents nationwide selected to serve on the volunteer council, which is a forum established to gather information to help enhance the products and services that benefit AARP members. He was selected for the council based on his commitment to serving AARP members, knowledge of Medicare and knowledge of the Salt Lake community. He's been an agent serving the Medicare community in Utah for more than 13 years.
• Life Care Center of Salt Lake City has named Devin Rapp as executive director. Rapp most recently served as executive director for Draper Rehabilitation and Care Center in Draper, Utah. Prior to that appointment, he was executive director for another Life Care facility in Southern California. He earned his public health degree from Brigham Young University.
INVESTMENT
• NABUFIT Global Inc., Orem, has entered into an equity purchase agreement with Kodiak Capital Group LLC, a capital provider based in Newport Beach, Califonia. NABUFIT is an online fitness program. NABUFIT will have the right at its sole discretion over a period of two years to sell up to 10 million shares of common stock under the terms set forth in the equity purchase agreement. Proceeds from this transaction will be used to fund further development of the online fitness platform and mobile application that connects to monitoring devices. NABUFIT recently closed an additional $500,000 combination equity and debt round, that included venture funds LF Investments and Kjaer Holdings.
OUTDOOR PRODUCTS/RECREATION/SPORTS
• The Utah Office of Outdoor Recreation, in partnership with the Governor’s Office of Economic Development and the Division of Emergency Management, has launched the Utah Search and Rescue Assistance (USARA) card program. Outdoor enthusiasts with a USARA card subscription will be protected from expensive non-medical rescue costs if they get lost or injured. The program provides a one-year individual subscription for $25 and a family subscription for $35. Five-year subscriptions can be purchased for $100 and $140, respectively. The USARA card will supplement Utah’s Search and Rescue Financial Assistance Program, which is currently funded through surcharges on registered recreational vehicles and boats. The program distributes hundreds of thousands of dollars yearly to counties across the state, but those reimbursements often do not cover the full cost of search and rescue efforts. Details are at rescue.utah.gov.
REAL ESTATE
• Peak Capital Partners, a Provo-based apartment investment and management company, has acquired Haven Pointe, a 192-unit affordable apartment community in West Haven, Utah. Haven Pointe is Peak’s 18th apartment community to be acquired in Utah. It encompasses eight three-story residential buildings and offers two- and three-bedroom units.
RECOGNITIONS
• The Utah Hispanic Chamber of Commerce presented its Quixote Awards during its recent Convention & Expo. Woman of the Year was presented to Pilar Pobil. Business Executive of the Year is Leonardo Ruiz of Univision. Large Business of the Year was presented to WCF Insurance. Small Business of the Year is Coffee Links. The UHCC Member of the Year is Alvaro Mora.
• Spherion Staffing Services, Salt Lake City, recently honored Northern Utah franchise owner Ron Zarbock with the company’s 2016 Owner of the Year Award. The annual award recognizes the individual owner or ownership team that best symbolizes the Spherion pillars of business growth, leadership and community involvement during the previous year. Zarbock and his team also received the company’s annual President’s Award, which recognizes the six owners and supporting staff who have best demonstrated continuous growth and an overall dedication to community and local workforce improvement during the preceding three years. Of the six President’s Award recipients, one ultimately is recognized as the Owner of the Year. This marks the fourth consecutive year that Zarbock and his team have earned the honor.
• Qualtrics, Provo, has been named a leader in customer feedback management by independent research firm Forrester as part of “The Forrester Wave: Customer Feedback Management Platforms, Q2 2017” report. The Forrester Wave report focuses on customer feedback management (CFM). Forrester further recognized Qualtrics with the highest possible score in 13 criteria. Qualtrics achieved the highest possible score on both employee experience feedback collection and employee experience and retention.
• Global Access, a Salt Lake City-based provider of cross-border commerce technologies and shipping solutions, has been named a finalist for the Direct Selling Association's (DSA) Partnership Award. The honor recognizes supplier companies that provide a product or service that has had a measurable impact on the growth or development of a direct selling member company or its profitability.
RETAIL
• Honnen Equipment Co. has promoted Matt Murphy to director of John Deere sales. He will be responsible for contributing to the overall sales strategy throughout 10 branches in Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and southern Idaho. He has 19 years of heavy equipment sales and sales management experience. To fill Murphy’s previous position, the company has promoted Kevin Krausch to Colorado Front Range sales manager. Krausch has more than 18 years of heavy equipment industry sales experience, including the past seven as a territory/account manager with Honnen.
SERVICES
• Nearmap, Salt Lake City, has appointed Sanchit Agarwal as vice president of field operations. The company provides location content, specializing in high-resolution aerial imagery. Agarwal will be responsible for customer support operations, generating educational content, training, product and market strategy, and certifying and scaling sales teams. He has worked extensively in mapping and geographic information systems. He has served as a director of mapping operations for Sanborn, as chief technology officer and director of operations for HJW Geospatial (Quantum Spatial), as a senior analyst on mapping and subject matter expert for Fugro, and as a research associate for NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Program at Ohio State University.
• Hudson Printing Co., Salt Lake City, has hired Greg Kempton as vice president of sales. Kempton has more than 19 years of industry experience leading enterprise print business solutions and sales. Most recently, he was a regional sales manager for 11 years with R.R. Donnelley & Sons Co.
• Sølv Signs + Graphics, a full-service, custom sign company that designs and fabricates images of all types, has opened at 6430 N. Business Park Loop Rd., Unit F, Park City, in the Silver Creek Commons. Owners are Liz and Eric Myers. Liz Myers has been a graphic designer for the last 20-plus years. She has worked with many local businesses and nonprofit organizations over the years. Sølv is Norwegian for “silver.”
TECHNOLOGY/LIFE SCIENCES
• Marketware, a Cottonwood Heights-based healthcare relationship technology company, has named Jacob Evans as chief technology officer. Evans has more than 16 years of experience building and leading software engineering and product development teams. Most recently, he spent 12 years serving as the CTO of Solutionreach. Prior to Solutionreach, Evans led software development teams at Savage Services, Convergys and the University of Utah.
• Code, a Salt Lake City-based barcode reading technology company, has promoted three team members: Rene van Mourik, John Deal and Kerri Humpherys. Van Mourik has been director of APAC and EMEA sales since 2013 and has been promoted to vice president of APAC and EMEA sales. Since joining Code in 2014, Deal has served as director of product management and has been promoted to vice president of product strategy. Director of marketing since 2007, Humpherys has been promoted to senior director of channel management, where she will manage Code's distribution, partner programs and partner relationships.