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Thu. Apr. 12, 2012 MassChallenge: 1,237 aspiring entrepreneurs apply for this year’s class, up 69 percent MassChallenge Inc., the Boston-based nonprofit offering more than $1 million in prizes to promising start-ups, said that there were 1,237 applicants for its class of 2012, up 69 percent from last year when there were 733 applications. Applications for this year’s class came from 36 states and 35 countries. The deadline for submitting applications for this year’s class was Wednesday. MassChallenge is open to any innovative start-up, from anywhere, that has the potential to invigorate the economy and create new jobs.	Advertisement
Entegris to create nanotech research center in Bedford Entegris Inc., a Billerica-based company that provides nanotechnology components to the makers of such products as smartphones and computers, announced plans Thursday to create a $55 million to $60 million research and manufacturing center in Bedford. About 350 of the company’s roughly 2,700 employees work in Massachusetts, and plans call for about 90 of those Bay State employees to transfer to the new facility, which will be known as the Entegris i2M Center for Advanced Materials Science.
Some BP stations running out of gas because of problems with distributor, trade group says More than 200 BP gas station owners in New England have been struggling to do business for the last few weeks -- ever since their gasoline supplier started cutting back on deliveries, and some started to run out of gas. All of the region’s BP stations have been affected, including more than 100 in Massachusetts, said Matthew LeLacheur, executive director of the New England Service Station and Auto Repair Association Inc., a trade group in Billerica that has been working with station owners.
Retail stores open at Logan’s Terminal C Thirteen new retail store have opened recently in the renovated Terminal C at Logan International Airport, including Boutique iStore selling Apple and other electronics products; Be Relax spa; the Black Dog gift shop ; and Life is Good clothing store. Westfield Concessions Management, which oversees concessions at Logan, is celebrating their grand opening Thursday with strolling musicians, giveaways, and kids’ events.
Industry executives: Drug firms face squeeze on multiple fronts The pharmaceutical industry is being squeezed by government cutbacks, brand name drugs facing new competition from low-cost generics, and investors clamoring for drug makers to divert research dollars to buy back shares, speakers told the annual meeting of the industry’s largest trade group Thursday. Christopher A. Viehbacher, chairman of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, told 300 executives gathered at Boston’s Westin Copley Place that “we’re clearly seeing the impact of austerity measures on our industry” as governments rein in their drug development support.
Kayem plans to sell its Fenway Park sausages in local grocery stores Chelsea-based meat processor Kayem Foods Inc. said it will begin selling the same sausages that Red Sox fans can now chow down on in Fenway Park at grocery stores throughout New England. Packaging for the Kayem All Natural Sweet Italian Fenway Sausage will feature a Boston Red Sox logo. Kayem has been the official hot dog of Fenway Park since 2009, a company spokeswoman said, and Fenway Franks are already available at retail.
Harvest Power raises $110m in Series C financing Harvest Power Inc., a Waltham alternative energy start-up that turns plant and animal wastes into biogas and other products, announced a $110 million financing Thursday. True North Venture Partners led the investment with American Refining and Biochemical Inc. Also participating in the round were existing investors including Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, DAG Ventures, and Generation Investment Management, among others. As evidence that its technology works, Harvest noted that it sold millions of bags of organic soils and mulches at retail in 2011.
Penn Foster hires new CEO, plans to open Boston office Penn Foster, an online education company, has appointed Frank F. Britt as its new chief executive and added that it plans to open a Boston office. Last month, Penn Foster’s parent company, Framingham-based Princeton Review Inc., said it was selling its test preparation business for $33 million in cash to an affiliate of Boston-based private equity firm Charlesbank Capital Partners. Britt was previously an executive-in-residence at Bain Capital Ventures.
John Hancock: Many taxpayers who get a refund plan to save it Many taxpayers who receive a refund plan to save it, according to a new survey from John Hancock Financial Services. Nearly half of the survey’s respondents plan to place their refund in a savings account, while 25 percent plan to use any refund to pay down debt, the survey from Boston-based John Hancock found. Despite such thriftiness, many consumers are spending more freely when it comes to their paychecks. And many are taking home more money because of a payroll tax cut.
Partners HealthCare System in talks to acquire South Shore Hospital in South Weymouth Partners HealthCare System Inc. is in talks to acquire South Shore Hospital in Weymouth, one of the largest remaining independent hospitals in the Boston area, in a deal that would reshape the competitive landscape in the region’s health care market, according to two health care professionals who have been briefed by the parties on the negotiations. The 318-bed regional hospital serves a swath of southeastern Massachusetts extending from Quincy to Taunton to Cape Cod.
Boston Marathon to generate $137.5 million The Boston Marathon is expected to generate $137.5 million in spending around the city over the course of the weekend, according to the Greater Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau. More than 500,000 spectators are expected to turn out on Monday to watch 26,700 runners make their way 26.2 miles from Hopkinton to Copley Square. The economic impact includes $92 million spent by the runners and their guests, $16 million raised at charity events, and $12 million spent by spectators.
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