U.S. Steel Reorganizes Operating Units

U.S. Steel Tower in downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

U.S. Steel Corp. is reorganizing its three operating units to focus on industries the company serves, the latest phase in the Downtown-based company’s Carnegie Way program to cut costs, boost revenue and return to profitability.

As part of the new management structure, U.S. Steel is realigning its North American Flat-Rolled division to focus on five markets: automotive, consumer, industrial, service centers and mining.

“These commercial entities will put our company in a stronger position to be best-in-class in product innovation, customer service and solutions, as well as steel manufacturing,” CEO Mario Longhi said.

The company is renaming its Tubular Products unit Energy Solutions, reflecting its focus on providing steel pipe to the booming oil and gas industry. And its operations in Europe were renamed U.S. Steel European Solutions.

Read more: http://triblive.com/business/headlines/7174309-74/solutions-steel-company#ixzz3JSeCmrZ7
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Exel To Close New Holland Parts-Supply Operation, Idling 97 Workers

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Lancaster County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Exel will close its parts-supply operation in New Holland at year-end, idling all 97 workers, a notice filed with the state says.

The 300 Diller Ave. operation is being shut down because Exel’s contract to provide parts to CNH Industrial is expiring.

CNH Industrial has decided to bring that activity in-house, said Exel spokeswoman Lynn Anderson.

Exel is trying to place the affected workers at another Exel facility in York, she said.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/business/local_business/exel-to-close-new-holland-parts-supply-operation-idling-workers/article_7792e96a-6f42-11e4-a18b-679e760c6626.html

Offset Paperback Manufacturers Details Plans For Layoffs In Dallas Township

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Luzerne County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Offset Paperback Manufacturers plans to shut down its sheet-fed and pre-press operations at its Dallas Township facility as the publishing industry continues to struggle, a WARN notice indicates.

The company, one of the largest paperback book manufacturers in the world, announced late last week that 37 employees received notices under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act giving them 60 days notice that jobs will be lost.

More details about the job cuts were revealed in a WARN notice Jack O’Donnell, chief operating officer for Offset Paperback, sent to Leona Annaguey, section chief of trade, rapid response and special programs for the state Department of Labor and Industry.

Read more: http://citizensvoice.com/news/offset-details-plans-for-layoffs-1.1789532

Man Allegedly Threatened People In Downtown Wilkes-Barre With Crossbow

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WILKES-BARRE, PA — A man was arrested after he allegedly threatened people walking downtown with a loaded crossbow.

Police were dispatched to South Main Street at about 5:20 p.m. for a report of a male wearing a poncho and carrying a loaded crossbow.

Reports were made that the male had fired the crossbow at a moving vehicle and pointed it at several people.

Officers located the male, identified as Joseph Warnagiris, 29, of Wilkes-Barre, who had his hands hidden under his poncho, police said.

Read more: http://www.timesleader.com/news/local-news-news/50705500/Man-allegedly-threatened-people-with-crossbow

ArtsQuest Looking For Bakeries For 2014 Cupcake Bowl

English: A cupcake (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

ArtsQuest’s Cupcake Bowl is the definition of a “sweet Saturday.”

The annual fundraising event brings together bakeries from around the area for a day of sampling.

The 2014 event will be held 12:30-2:30 p.m. Dec. 27 at ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks, 101 Founders Way in Bethlehem.

According to a news release, ticket sales have opened. Buy a ticket at artsquest.org or call 610-332-3378. Tickets cost $30, $25 for ArtsQuest members. Proceeds from the event will go to ArtsQuest’s Arts Education Programming Fund.

Read more: http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/food/index.ssf/2014/11/artsquest_looking_for_more_ven.html

PhillyDeals: Expansion Planned At King Of Prussia Plaza And Court

King of Prussia Mall (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Simon Property Group, the Indianapolis-based retail giant that owns 200-plus shopping malls nationwide, is sacrificing more than 400 parking spaces at its King of Prussia Plaza and Court to make room for at least 50 new stores and restaurants that it hopes will draw more wealthy shoppers to the region’s biggest retail complex.

At extra-large shopping centers such as King of Prussia, at least, “the mall business is good, contrary to some of the naysayers,” David Contis, president of Simon Malls and a corporate senior vice president, told me Monday.

His company bought out other investors to take control of the King of Prussia mall in 2011, in deals that valued the complex at over $1 billion.

Contis said he expected to attract luxury stores from outside the region and “the best of the Philadelphia eateries” to the new space, rather than shifting current tenants there.

Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/business/20141118_PhillyDeals__Expansion_planned_at_King_Of_Prussia_Plaza_and_Court.html#4mWT6geTQWCWiwR1.99

Cadets Graduate From MCCC Municipal Police Academy

Police 1: Sean Maguire, of Jeffersonville, was valedictorian of Class 1402. Photos by Matt Carlin

Police 2: Whitemarsh Township Police Lt. Francis “Fran” Wheatley gave the keynote address to cadets from Class 1402. Photos by Matt Carlin

Police 3: Class 1402 Lt. Brett Burns is congratulated by Vice President of Academic Affairs and Provost Dr. Vicki Bastecki-Perez, Commissioner Bruce Castor Jr., and Dean of Social Sciences Dr. Aaron Shatzman. Photos by Matt Carlin

Blue Bell, Pa.—“This is not a one-time process,” said Municipal Police Academy Director Frank Williar, welcoming cadets and their families to the graduation of Class 1402 on Nov. 12 in the Montgomery County Community College (MCCC) Science Center Theater. “We have an obligation to assist each other…to provide resources to each other. People who leave here come back.

Moments before, after 19 cadets filed on stage with military precision, Horsham Township Police Officer Kate Ryan came back to the academy from which she graduated with Class 1304 to introduce Williar, who in turn introduced the evening’s special guests: Montgomery County Commissioner Bruce Castor Jr.; Dr. Aaron Shatzman, MCCC dean of Social Sciences; Dr. Victoria Bastecki-Perez, MCCC vice president of academic affairs and provost; Jesse Stemple, first deputy director Montgomery County Department of Public Safety; East Norriton Police Chief Karyl Kates; East Norriton Police Lt. Brandon Pasquale; Lower Merion Police Superintendent Michael McGrath; North Coventry Police Chief Robert Schurr, Officers Andrew Thiel and Igor Parfeniouk, and Sgt. Rob Malason; and Springfield Police Chief Michael Pitkow.

Cadet SSgt. Anastasios Apostolidis called for a moment of silence for those in uniform, both military and law enforcement, who gave their lives in the line of duty.

North Coventry Police Officer Andrew Thiel, commander of Class 1302, came back to introduce Keynote speaker Whitemarsh Township Police Lt. Francis “Fran” Wheatley, who congratulated the cadets on enduring a long and demanding course of studies.

“As a police officer, you will be constantly under intense scrutiny, both on and off duty,” Wheatley warned. “You have chosen a career and will take an oath to lead by example for the rest of your lives.” He urged the cadets never to forget the discipline they learned at the academy. “You should embrace every opportunity to be the counselor, the social worker, the help desk  . . . the life-saver” roles beyond merely catching the bad guys that make the world a better place. “We are the peacekeepers who make sure that our communities are safe.”

Class Valedictorian Cadet Cpl. Sean Maguire of Jeffersonville told his classmates that “we step out of our secular lives into a life of service. We are the next generation of law enforcement, and we are strong.”

Upper Darby Township Police Officer Laina Stevens, commander of Class 1304 and the winner of the 2012-2014 Outstanding Academy Cadet award, introduced Castor, who returns to address the graduating classes every chance he gets. Police officers, he told the cadets “are not just people. They are symbols of a free society. If you attack one of them, you are attacking all of us. You cannot enjoy any of the things you love to do if you are afraid. And that is not the promise of America.”

Class 1402 Cadet Lt. Brett Burns was honored for his leadership. “Brett stamped his personality on the class,” Williar said. “You left some big shoes to fill.”

Burns presented the Director’s Spirit of Distinction Award to Cadet Cpl. Ryan Cifelli of Chalfont, and congratulated Cadet Joseph “Joey” Metzinger on his acceptance to the Pennsylvania State Police Academy.

Cadet David Arredondo of Stockton, Calif., won the James R. Miller Marksmanship Award in memory of the Upper Dublin police sergeant who died in a motor vehicle accident in the line of duty in 2004.

Robin Pritchett introduced the second annual Charles O. “Chip” Pritchett Exceptional Police Academy Instructor of the Year Award, named in honor of her husband, an East Norriton police officer and Municipal Police Academy deputy director who died in October 2013, and read the name of the second recipient: North Coventry Police Chief Robert A. Schurr.

“We miss him every day,” Schurr said, of Pritchett. “I’m humbled. And thank you.”

Dr. Bastecki-Perez conferred diplomas on Cadets Lt. Brett Burns, Abington; SSgt. Anastasio Apostolidis, Abington; Sgt. Joseph Metzinger, Rockledge; Sgt. Dylan Royce, Schwenksville; Cpl. Kelly Adams, Newtown; Cpl. Josué Gerena, Philadelphia; Cpl. Sean Maguire, Jeffersonville; Cpl. Branden Sisca, Trappe; David Arredondo, Stockton, Calif.; Ryan Cifelli, Chalfont; John Davis, Douglassville; Colleen Harner, Glenside; Marc Laing, Trappe; Christopher Miller, Gilbertsville; Aamir Raza, Warrington; Kevin Siebert, Oreland; John Smart, Bensalem; Steffy Shane, Perkiomenville; Cadet Kyle Williamson, Montgomeryville.

No doubt, many of the graduates will return to speak at future graduations and to assist their successors.

Lt. Burns passed the torch to his own successor, Lt. Brian Manion, Class 1404, completing the continuity inherent in the ceremony. Manion’s classmates provided an honor guard throughout the graduation.

Cadets from class 1402 attended the academy full time, Monday through Friday, for 22 weeks, alternating studies with physical conditioning, as Maguire put it, “running and more running.”

Montgomery County Community College, in conjunction with the state training commission, operates the Municipal Police Academy at the Montgomery County Public Safety Training Campus, 1175 Conshohocken Road, Conshohocken.

The academy has been the training ground for approximately 3,500 cadets with a consistent graduation rate of more than 90 percent. The 800-hour curriculum allows successful students to articulate up to 15 credit hours toward an associate’s degree in Criminal Justice Studies.

MCCC Students Inducted Into Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society

Blue Bell/Pottstown Pa.—A total of 167 students were inducted into Montgomery County Community College’s (MCCC) Alpha Kappa Zeta (Central Campus) and Beta Tau Lambda (West Campus) chapters of Phi Theta Kappa (PTK), the international honor society of two-year colleges, during the fall 2014 semester.  To be eligible for PTK membership, students must maintain a grade point average of 3.5 and must have completed at least 12 credits. 

The fall 2014 inductees are listed below by area of residence:

Ambler: William Cagney, Renee Campanell, Amanda Ciammetti, Bradley Collings, Anna Colins, Christina Mascuilli, Carlo Pipitone, Kyree Sullivan

Ardmore: Joshua Clair

Audubon: Jenna Gaasche

Bala Cynwyd: Catherine Morroney

Bellmawr, N.J.: Nicole Hacking

Bensalem: Barbara Schick

Blue Bell: Alexander Booth, Johnna Corson, Theresa Jun, Steven Mitchell, Nicole Ragusa

Bridgeport: Irving Galvan, Ronald Quay

Chalfont: Morgan Ewart, MacKenzie Mazak

Cheltenham: Nam Dangvy

Collegeville: Antonio Aloia, Julie Clark

Colmar: Holly Figueiredo

Conshohocken: Jonathan Drozd, Madison Eichert

Douglassville: Adriana Giotti

Doylestown: Christine Bradley

Eagleville: Daniel Buttorff, Lindley Yarnall

East Norriton: Kathryn Hall, Angela Mertz

Elkins Park: Michele Gravel, Eitan Laurence, Bruno Saint-Louis

Flourtown: John Berger

Fort Washington: Nathanael Plaster

Gilbertsville: Brittany Benson, Donna Braner, Kathryn Brown, Robert Brown, Marion Bucci, Maryalice Enright, Glendon Liggett, James Pederson

Glenside: Crystal Nieman

Green Lane: Angelina Sirak, Stephanie Sirak

Harleysville: Michael Covel, Justin Eppley, Virginia Hoffman, Mehdi Hooshmand, Abigail Landis, Jennifer Solomon, Hollie Southard, Amanda Zacharias

Hatboro: Loriann Greger, Chun-Te Li

Hatfield: Rebecca Goodolf, Taylor Jordan, Farad Zaman

Horsham: Stefanie Barszowski, Maria Boggi, Jennifer Goodwin, Ryan Marinelli

Huntingdon Valley: Samantha Smyth

Jeffersonville: Morgan Kerper, Justin Mitchell

Jenkintown: Kelli Dietrich, Sunghee Lee

King of Prussia: Hayme Mikael Morelos

Lansdale: Rabbil Ahmed, Rebecca Booz, Jarrett Faulk, Rachael Grallnick, Teresa Gruber, Mis Kulsum, Ashley Lepera, Jennifer Lieu, Lee Miletich, Doreen Panico, Gregory Regan, Gabrielle Scotti, Ashley Sheely

Limerick: Alexandra Barnes, Lindsey Ridenour

Malvern: Jacob Robertson

Mullica Hill, N.J.: Donna Sulvetta-Student

Norristown: Samantha Barnaik, Mattie Hargrove, Heidi Hunsberger, Joseph Kent, Diahann McIntyre, Caroline Moman, Tarah Organtini, Joanne Ratteree, Sima Seddighi, Eric Shope, Sarina Wang

North Wales: Angelina Barton, Kathleen Cronin, Rebecca Cronin, Robert Pritchard

Oreland: Kelly Maguire, Alexander McDermott, Matthew Will

Pennsburg: Michaela Buckwalter, Autumn Detweiler

Perkasie: Sandra Deiley

Philadelphia: Jillian Rogers, Sheena Santos, Max Woessner

Phoenixville: Brittany Fuller, Kemarie Kurtz, Jessica Loughery, Philip Zhu

Plymouth Meeting: Scott Lukens

Pottstown: Molly Adams, Hector Astacio, Megan Bealer, Michael Carbo, Nick Centofanti, Kristyn Fetterman, Brandi Haas, Tory Hudgins, Leif Hums, Deborah Jackson, Bridget McLaughlin, Christina Miles, Kelly Moorman, Meghan Oberholtzer, Emily Staab

Roslyn: Amy Tassone

Royersford: Kelley Burris, Michele Taluc-Chance, Aadil Esmail, Gabrielle Fisher, Joanne McDowell-Henderson, Tammy Moyer, Abigail Rutkowski

Sanatoga: Tyler Musser

Schwenksville: Erin Duvinski, Elizabeth James, Jena Polvino, Melissa Rufe, Drew Smyth, Tara Veve, Kathryn Warren

Sellersville: Donna Gastner

Souderton: Myles Menardi, Carly Plawa, Dennis Stone

Spring City:

Stowe: Victor Hall

Telford: Jessica Minguez, Keara Snyder

Warrington: Matthew Shetzline

Willow Grove: Chelsea Baranowski, Dana Fornicola, Perry Jones, Margaret Thompson, Randy Willis

Worcester: Michael Gawbill

Wyncote: Tatianna Devaughn

Zieglerville: James Cox