BIZNOTES FOR 11/26/2004

Wisconsin Sign Association
The Wisconsin Sign Association, Milwaukee, announced the winners of the 2004 Sign Design Contest. The annual statewide contest recognizes winners of 10 categories. The Tom Derse Best of Show Award was presented to Western Wisconsin Technical College (WWTC) Cyber Center, created by Jeff Fredrick of LaCrosse Sign Co. Inc, Onalaska. Poblocki Sign Company, Milwaukee, received best exterior identification for Kopp’s Custard, Glendale; best directional signing for The Wisconsin Heart Hospital, Wauwatosa; best individual letters for Johnson Outdoors; best highway display for The Wisconsin State Fair, Milwaukee, and best directory/poster case/display case for the Marquette University Al McGuire Center, Milwaukee. Orde Advertising, De Pere, received best vehicle for its Zoo Mobile digital vehicle wrap and best exposed neon for Ink Jet Ideas. LaCrosse Sign Company won best interior identification for the WWTC Cyber Center and best mural for Seven Springs Farm. Appleton Sign Company, Neenah, won best awning for the Weidert Group, Appleton.
Stephens Trzinski Advertising
Noah’s Ark, Wisconsin Dells, has selected Stephens Trzinski Advertising, Waukesha, as their new partner for development of advertising and marketing campaigns. Stephens Trzinski will also assist Noah’s Ark in promoting its new ride coming in Summer 2005.
She’s The Painter, LLC
Christine Fichtner, of Not So Faux, Mequon, and Shirley Schultz of She’s The Painter, Grafton, have merged their painting companies to become She’s The Painter, LLC, Grafton. She’s The Painter, LLC, provides interior enhancement services, custom finishes and textures for residential clients. Their projects have included interior texture finishes, faux finishes and wallpapering.
Wisconsin Commercial Real Estate Women (WCREW)
Wisconsin Commercial Real Estate Women (WCREW), Milwaukee, recently awarded Blue Harbor Resort & Conference Center, Sheboygan, with the 2004 Real Estate Development Showcase Award and six local projects with the Judge’s Choice Award. Blue Harbor Resort & Conference Center was developed by The Great Lakes Companies, Inc., the construction managers were Kraemer Brothers and Neumann Brothers and the architects for the project were Architectural Design Consultants, Inc. and Water Technology, Inc. The Judge’s Choice Award went to Boston Lofts, Milwaukee; Cathedral Place, Milwaukee received the Heart of the Community Award; Korger’s Decorating & Fine Furniture, Chippewa Falls, won the Phoenix Award; Urban Ecology Center, Milwaukee, won the Leading Edge Award; Legacy Bank, Milwaukee, won the Spirit Award and Centralia Center, Wisconsin Rapids, won the Grass Roots Award. The awards honor outstanding real estate development or redevelopment projects in Wisconsin based on job creation, economic development, creative use or reuse of space, community impact, architectural merit, minority and cultural contributions and success in overcoming obstacles such as environmental contamination or economic constraints.
Alliant Insurance Associates, LLC
Republic Associates of Wisconsin, Inc., Wauwatosa, has joined Alliant Insurance Associates, LLC, Mequon. Republic Associates of Wisconsin, Inc., is a 16-person agency, owned by Craig Lemke, that offers commercial and personal insurance. Alliant Insurance Associates is a property and casualty insurance cooperative that consists of Fitzgerald, Clayton, James & Kasten, Inc., Mequon; The Bruce Gendelman Company, Mequon; Ed Levine Agency, Mequon and Burdick-Kellenberger Insurance Inc., Milwaukee. With the addition of Republic Associates of Wisconsin, Alliant Insurance Associates consists of 87 insurance professionals.
Brien Lee Videostory, Inc.
Brien Lee Videostory, Inc., Milwaukee, received a certificate of merit from Intercom, the international film and video competition, a part of the Chicago Film Festival, for a DVD produced for the Milwaukee Repertory Theater. The DVD is entitled, "The Rep – 50 Years." Kolb Syverson Communication, Appleton, also received recognition at the event.
Waukesha Floral & Greenhouse
Waukesha Floral & Greenhouse, Waukesha, received the Florist of the Year Award from Floral Management magazine. The award is open to retailers, wholesalers and growers throughout the country. The award is presented to one business each year and is chosen by the Society of American Florists from its 3,400 members.
Medical College of Wisconsin
The Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, received a two-year, $60,000 grant from the American Sleep Medicine Foundation to develop online sleep medicine education and to study its effectiveness. Dr. Hari Bandla, assistant professor of pediatrics for pulmonary and critical care and Dr. Rose Franco, assistant professor of medicine for pulmonary and critical care, are principal investigators of the grant. The grant is titled, "Cost effectiveness of asynchronous self paced e-learning modules for advancement of sleep medicine education in medical schools."
McDill Design
McDill Design, Milwaukee, received four Awards of Excellence in the American Corporate Indentity/20 competition. The American Corporate Identity/20 is an annual national competition for the field of corporate identity. McDill received an award in the trademark and logo design category for a design created for the Raabe Corp. and in the packaging category for designs for SAB Miller/Harley-Davidson commemorative secondary packaging; Stone’s Throw Winery, 2001 Monterey Chardonnay label and Stone’s Throw Winery, estate label. Other Wisconsin winners included Catral Doyle Creative Co., Milwaukee; Hare Strigenz Design, Inc., Milwaukee and Foth and Van Dyke, Madison.
RedPrairie Corp.
RedPrairie Corp., Waukesha, has integrated its radio frequency identification (RFID) compliance applications with EPC Encode & Apply, a system from Lowry Computer Products, Inc., Brighton, Mich. Lowry Computer Products is a manufacturer, integrator and provider of wireless, RFID-EPC, bar code and data collection solutions. The combined offering provides companies an RFID "slap and ship" solution to more easily meet mandated RFID compliance deadlines. The solution is designed to automate "slap and ship" operations at the point of distribution. The automated "slap and ship" system consists of a combination of the RedPrairie RFID Igniter, Paragon PLS-430 Encode & Apply System, a smart conveyor controls application, both bar code and EPC readers, material handling equipment and related services. It will be sold and supported through RedPrairie in North America.
Italian Community Center of Milwaukee
Mario Carini was re-elected to a second term as president of the Italian Community Center of Milwaukee. Also re-elected were Michael Palmisano as vice president, David Spano as treasurer and Anthony Zingale as officer. Rose Anne Ceraso-Fritsche was elected secretary. Catherine Balistrieri-Busateri, Joseph Campagna, Jr., Joseph Dentice and Paul Iannelli were elected to two-year terms on the board of directors. Campagna and Iannelli are past presidents of the organization.
Grandview Management, Inc.
Grandview Management, Inc., Waukseha, the umbrella company for Ellen Zilli’s Catering (formerly Ellen’s Prestige Catering), Zilli’s Grandview Inn and Coast – A Zilli’s Restaurant, is launching an intensive re-branding campaign, which will introduce a new corporate name and company name. The new corporate name for Grandview Management is Zilli Hospitality Group and in addition to the corporate name change, Ellen’s Prestige Catering has been renamed Ellen Zilli’s Catering. The re-branding effort will include a logo change.
Tri-Marq Communications, Inc.
Tri-Marq Communications, Inc., Milwaukee, has partnered with Backlot Imaging, Inc., Milwaukee. Backlot president Steve Muckerheide, the former vice president of Worldwide Technical Services for Walt Disney Studios, joined with Jim Culhane and Chris Johnson, directors of Tri-Marq Communications, to establish Backlot Imaging. Backlot Imaging creates graphic, animates and live-action imaging for motion picture, television and corporate productions. In addition to Muckerheide, Johnson and Culhane, Rick O’Hare will serve as Backlot’s Hollywood representative.
Milwaukee Area Technical College
Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC) has received four grants worth $654,300 to expand its registered nursing, practical nursing, radiography and certified nursing assistant programs. The programs are among the health programs at the college that are filled with students to capacity. The grants were awarded by the Wisconsin Technical College System Board, using state-general-purpose revenue funds and are being used to hire additional instructors. Grant amounts include $224,200 for registered nursing, $205,900 for radiography and $112,100 each for practical nursing and the certified nursing assistant programs.
Milwaukee Downtown BID No. 21 and Kujawa Enterprises, Inc.
Milwaukee Downtown BID No. 21 and Kujawa Enterprises, Inc. (KEI), Oak Creek, received the Award of Distinction by the Associated Landscape Contractors of America (ALCA). The Award was for the collaborated effort of both organizations on the streetscape project, which included the installation of planters and hanging baskets along the Riverwalk and portions of Wisconsin Avenue. David J. Frank Landscaping Contracting Inc., Germantown, was another Wisconsin award winner. The landscaping company received a distinction award for residential landscape.
Vollrath Associates, Inc.
Vollrath Associates, Inc., Mequon, received three awards in the 2004 MarCom Creative Awards Competition. Vollrath Associates received a platinum award for the ONYX North America employee newsletter, "EcoSpeak," and gold awards for the Hudson Highland Group 2003 annual report and the Littelfuse Inc. 2003 annual report. The international award competition recognizes those in fields such as advertising, public relations, corporate communication departments, educational institutions, government entities, video production, broadcast and cable operations. Other Wisconsin platinum award winners were Bottom Line Marketing & Public Relations, Milwaukee; Jacobson Rost, Sheboygan; Milwaukee Center for Independence, Milwaukee; Bouwer Printing and Mailing, Appleton and National Association of Tax Professionals, Appleton.
November 26, 2004, Small Business Times, Milwaukee, WI