Lockheed Martin’s Salina plant awarded $551M Navy contract for submarine electronic-warfare systems work

Get our email updates

Stay up-to-date on the companies, people and issues that impact businesses in Syracuse, Central New York and beyond.

SALINA — Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT) recently won a $551 million contract from the U.S. Navy for engineering and technical support and production of the submarine AN/BLQ-10 electronic-warfare systems on new construction and in-service submarines. This contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this pact to nearly $1.37 billion., […]

Already an Subcriber? Log in

Get Instant Access to This Article

Become a Central New York Business Journal subscriber and get immediate access to all of our subscriber-only content and much more.

Learn More and Become a Subscriber

Five Star Bank parent company boosts quarterly dividend by 3%

Banks & Credit Unions, Subscriber Only

WARSAW, N.Y. — Financial Institutions, Inc. (NASDAQ: FISI), parent company of Five Star Bank, recently announced that its board of directors has approved a quarterly cash dividend of 31 cents per share of its common stock outstanding. That’s up by 3.3 percent from the 30 cents a share that the banking company paid last quarter.

Already an Subcriber? Log in

Get Instant Access to This Article

Become a Central New York Business Journal subscriber and get immediate access to all of our subscriber-only content and much more.

Learn More and Become a Subscriber

Berkshire Bank parent company to pay Q1 dividend of 18 cents in early March

Banks & Credit Unions, Subscriber Only

Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE: BHLB) — parent company of Berkshire Bank, which has a significant presence in the Mohawk Valley region — recently announced that its board of directors has approved a quarterly cash dividend of 18 cents per common share. The dividend is payable on March 6, to shareholders of record as of

Already an Subcriber? Log in

Get Instant Access to This Article

Become a Central New York Business Journal subscriber and get immediate access to all of our subscriber-only content and much more.

Learn More and Become a Subscriber

FOCUS Greater Syracuse names three new board members

Subscriber Only, Nonprofits

SYRACUSE — FOCUS Greater Syracuse, Inc. — a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, bipartisan, citizen-driven organization — announced that it recently welcomed three new members to its board of directors: Reginald T. Braggs, Ryan R. Delao, and Emily Minnoe. Braggs, Ph.D., is the director of Central New York partnerships at Onondaga Community College (OCC). His responsibilities include serving

Already an Subcriber? Log in

Get Instant Access to This Article

Become a Central New York Business Journal subscriber and get immediate access to all of our subscriber-only content and much more.

Learn More and Become a Subscriber

Braggs, Ph.D., is the director of Central New York partnerships at Onondaga Community College (OCC). His responsibilities include serving as liaison to various external entities, including, workforce-development organizations, community-based organizations, as well as government and business/industry leaders. Braggs is a graduate of FOCUS Greater Syracuse’s Citizens Academy 2021 cohort.

Delao is an audit manager at Dannible and McKee, LLP, bringing a wealth of experience in providing comprehensive audit, review, compilation, and consulting services to a diverse array of clients. With a strong focus on the construction, architectural, engineering, and manufacturing industries, he excels in delivering tailored solutions that meet the unique needs of each client, FOCUS said. In addition to his industry expertise, Delao possesses significant experience in providing auditing services to a variety of employee-benefit plans and preparing financial statements for clients. Delao has been appointed treasurer of the FOCUS board.

Minnoe is the development specialist at Francis House, Inc. where she supports the organization’s fundraising initiatives through donor prospecting, data entry, social media-marketing, and event assistance. She is passionate about community and finds joy in bringing folks together to support one another, FOCUS said. Minnoe is a CenterState CEO Ambassador and volunteers her time as an Alzheimer’s Association Community representative and Syracuse Stage usher. She is a graduate of FOCUS Greater Syracuse’s Winter 2024 cohort and later joined the Citizens Academy Committee. Minnoe is currently participating in Leadership Greater Syracuse’s CNY Political Leadership Institute.

Utica–area construction company wins $22M Army contract for stone-masonry restoration services

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Mohawk Valley, Subscriber Only

UTICA — Lupini Construction Inc., of the Utica area, was recently awarded a $22.1 million firm-fixed-price contract from the U.S. Army for stone-masonry restoration services. Bids were solicited via the internet with three bids received, as Lupini beat out two other firms for the pact. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order,

Already an Subcriber? Log in

Get Instant Access to This Article

Become a Central New York Business Journal subscriber and get immediate access to all of our subscriber-only content and much more.

Learn More and Become a Subscriber

LeadSafeCNY program wins another $400,000 for prevention efforts

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Energy, Environment & Sustainability, Subscriber Only

SYRACUSE — The LeadSafeCNY initiative of the Central New York Community Foundation will continue its outreach and community engagement with the help of some additional grant money. The Mother Cabrini Health Foundation of New York City awarded the program $400,000 in funding for activity over the next two years, according to the Community Foundation’s Jan.

Already an Subcriber? Log in

Get Instant Access to This Article

Become a Central New York Business Journal subscriber and get immediate access to all of our subscriber-only content and much more.

Learn More and Become a Subscriber

SYRACUSE — The LeadSafeCNY initiative of the Central New York Community Foundation will continue its outreach and community engagement with the help of some additional grant money.

The Mother Cabrini Health Foundation of New York City awarded the program $400,000 in funding for activity over the next two years, according to the Community Foundation’s Jan. 22 announcement.

The LeadSafeCNY coalition is a collaboration of stakeholders from the health care, housing, education, philanthropy, and government sectors, as well as affected residents, who are working to decrease lead-poisoning rates in Central New York, the CNY Community Foundation said.

The coalition will use the funding to support its director position, which is held by LaToya Jones through United Way of Central New York. The money will also help pay for expenses related to resident engagement and advocacy efforts.

In addition, the coalition will use the grant funding to support one social-care navigator who will provide education and resources for local residents at risk of childhood lead poisoning.

“We are deeply grateful for the Mother Cabrini Health Foundation’s continued support of LeadSafeCNY,” Jones said in the CNY Community Foundation announcement. “As someone who grew up in these communities, I understand firsthand the devastating impact lead poisoning can have on a child’s health and future. With this funding, we are able to expand our outreach, amplify our partnerships, provide essential resources, and continue working with families, healthcare providers, and community partners to create a safer, healthier environment for everyone.”

The Mother Cabrini Health Foundation says it awards grants to meet the unmet health-care needs of individuals, families, and communities throughout New York state.

The Mother Cabrini Health Foundation chose to support LeadSafeCNY for its “potential to significantly improve” the health and safety of children in Syracuse. Over the past five years, the Cabrini Foundation has provided a total of $825,000 in support of LeadSafeCNY, the CNY Community Foundation noted.

The Community Foundation’s LeadSafeCNY program started awarding grants in 2018, and those dollars have resulted in the replacement of nearly 1,800 windows and 165 doors and the construction or renovation of more than 225 safe and affordable rental units. In addition, the funding also resulted in the training of nearly 285 people on proper lead-paint removal. Thousands of people have also been informed about the risks of lead poisoning.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reports that chipping lead paint is the leading source of lead poisoning in the U.S., per the Community Foundation announcement.

The LeadSafeCNY initiative funds a variety of approaches to address the region’s high childhood lead-poisoning rates.

The Community Foundation cites the Onondaga County Health Department as indicating 9.3 percent of Syracuse children tested in 2023 were shown to have elevated blood-lead levels. The LeadSafeCNY initiative has invested a total of $2.6 million in the community, per the foundation.

N.Y. manufacturing index turns positive in February

Manufacturing & Engineering, Subscriber Only

New orders, shipments provided a boost Increases in new orders and shipments helped push the general business conditions index of the Empire State Manufacturing Survey into positive territory in February, rising 18 points to 5.7. It was a strong rebound as the index

Already an Subcriber? Log in

Get Instant Access to This Article

Become a Central New York Business Journal subscriber and get immediate access to all of our subscriber-only content and much more.

Learn More and Become a Subscriber

New orders, shipments provided a boost

Increases in new orders and shipments helped push the general business conditions index of the Empire State Manufacturing Survey into positive territory in February, rising 18 points to 5.7.

It was a strong rebound as the index had declined 15 points to -12.6 in January after plummeting 31 points to 0.2 in December. The general business conditions index is the monthly gauge of New York’s manufacturing sector.

Based on manufacturing firms responding to the survey, the February reading indicates business activity in the sector “edged higher” in New York state, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said in its Feb. 18 report.

A positive reading indicates expansion or growth in manufacturing activity, while a negative index number shows contraction in New York’s manufacturing sector.

The Empire State Survey found the indexes for new orders and shipments “grew moderately,” and input prices increased at the fastest pace in nearly two years, the New York Fed said.

At the same time, though firms expect conditions to improve over the next six months, optimism about the outlook “dropped significantly.”

Survey details

The new-orders index rose 20 points to 11.4, suggesting orders increased after declining the prior month, and the shipments index went up 16 points to 14.2, indicating that shipments increased, the New York Fed said.

Unfilled orders held steady. The inventories index remained positive at 8.7, a sign that inventories grew. The delivery-times index came in at 5.4, suggesting that delivery times were slightly longer, and the supply-availability index dipped to -2.2, a sign that supply availability edged slightly lower.

The index for number of employees fell to -3.6, suggesting that employment levels moved somewhat lower, while the average-workweek index was -1.2, indicating that hours worked remained steady.

Both price indexes climbed for a second consecutive month: the prices-paid index rose 11 points to 40.2, its highest level in nearly two years, and the prices-received index increased 10 points to 19.6.

Manufacturing firms expect conditions to improve in the months ahead, but optimism “declined noticeably,” the New York Fed said. The index for future business activity fell 15 points to 22.2. Capital-spending plans remained “soft.” Supply availability is expected to “contract somewhat” over the next six months.

The New York Fed distributes the Empire State Manufacturing Survey on the first day of each month to the same pool of about 200 manufacturing executives in New York. On average, about 100 executives return responses.

7 Brew brings new coffee option to Rome

Sports, Entertainment & Tourism, Mohawk Valley, Small Business, Subscriber Only

ROME — Rome has a new coffee option — more than 20,000 coffee options, actually — now that 7 Brew has opened its newest drive-through coffee stand at 201 Erie Blvd. The location marks the fifth for franchise group Brew Team NY, LLC, says Nick Vidal, director of operations and operating partner for the group.

Already an Subcriber? Log in

Get Instant Access to This Article

Become a Central New York Business Journal subscriber and get immediate access to all of our subscriber-only content and much more.

Learn More and Become a Subscriber

ROME — Rome has a new coffee option — more than 20,000 coffee options, actually — now that 7 Brew has opened its newest drive-through coffee stand at 201 Erie Blvd.

The location marks the fifth for franchise group Brew Team NY, LLC, says Nick Vidal, director of operations and operating partner for the group.

“We’re a rapidly growing coffee brand, and we’re revolutionizing the customer experience,” he says of 7 Brew, which is headquartered in Arkansas.

The company is known for its speed of service, the quality of its coffee, and especially for the overall friendliness of employees, he says.

The brand’s brews start with the “7 originals” which include flavors such as caramel, vanilla, hazelnut, white chocolate, and mocha. But the flavors go beyond that, Vidal says, with more than 20,000 flavor combinations available for coffee lovers.

“We even have our own energy drink,” he adds. The coffee stand also sells flavored sparkling water, teas, lemonades, smoothies, and even shakes.

What they don’t sell is a full menu of food, Vidal says. There is a selection of pre-packaged muffin tops available for those who want a snack along with their beverage, but that’s it.

It ties back to their goal of providing quick service. “We handcraft every drink that’s made,” Vidal says, and the goal is to have customers on their way with their drink in less than five minutes. “We understand that our customers have places to go.”

The 7 Brew in Rome formally opened on Feb. 3 and held a ribbon-cutting ceremony with the Rome Area Chamber of Commerce on Feb. 5. During the event, 7 Brew presented a $6,112 donation to Northern Rivers Foster Care. Funds for the donation were raised the week before the official opening when 7 Brew invited people to stop by for a drink in exchange for a ‘pay what you want’ donation.

Other opening festivities included a “swag day” on Feb. 8, where everyone who purchased a large drink received a free 7 Brew T-shirt. “We have a lot of fun that day,” Vidal says. “There’s a lot of energy.”

That fun and energy is part of the everyday experience at 7 Brew, he adds, and that’s part of what sets them apart from the competition.

Another thing that sets them apart is the strictly to-go concept. “We’re not a coffee house,” Vidal says. While customers can walk inside to order a beverage, there is no indoor seating area. “A lot of our customers are not looking for a place to hang out.”

The to-go concept allows the stand to operate very efficiently from just under 500 square feet, he adds. Each stand is a modular building that’s brought to site and quick to set up. “It doesn’t take a whole lot of time to put it up,” Vidal says.

What does take time, he adds, is preparing a team of more than 50 part-time employees and one full-time manager to run the Rome location. The team prepares for about a month before the location opens, Vidal says, so they are ready to hit the ground running on day one.

Along with the Rome location, Brew Team NY operates 7 Brew franchises in New Hartford, Cortland, Colonie, Cortland, and Johnstown.

“We’re very busy with openings,” Vidal says. “We’ll open at least another five this year.” Brew Team NY’s franchise area spans across Upstate and Central New York from Albany to Rochester, as far south as Cortland, and as far north as Watertown.

Another franchise team operates the two other 7 Brew locations, which are in Vestal and Binghamton, and a third franchise team covers the Buffalo area.

The Rome 7 Brew location is open Sunday through Thursday from 5:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.

About 7 Brew

On its website, the company says: “7 Brew was born from a desire to change drive-thru coffee into a fun, mind-blowing experience for everyone. We dreamed of serving premium coffee in record time and making new friends while we’re at it. The dream came alive with our first “stand” in Rogers, Arkansas and our 7 original coffees.”

There are currently nearly 350 locations of 7 Brew across the U.S.

Number of NY farms dipped slightly in 2024

Energy, Environment & Sustainability, Manufacturing & Engineering, Small Business, Subscriber Only

The number of farms in New York state fell in 2024 compared to a year earlier, the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) reported on Feb. 14. NASS estimated that the number of farms in the state totaled 30,500 last year, down less than 1 percent from 30,700 farms in 2023. Total land on farms

Already an Subcriber? Log in

Get Instant Access to This Article

Become a Central New York Business Journal subscriber and get immediate access to all of our subscriber-only content and much more.

Learn More and Become a Subscriber

McFarland Johnson looks ahead to growth

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Employee Benefits & Human Resources, Manufacturing & Engineering, New York News, Small Business, Southern Tier, Subscriber Only

BINGHAMTON, N.Y. — McFarland Johnson, Inc. recently announced some leadership changes, but those are not the only exciting initiatives at the growing employee-owned company. “We have grown by double digits every year for the last five years,” President Chad Nixon says of the engineering firm. With that growth comes change, especially with the retirement of

Already an Subcriber? Log in

Get Instant Access to This Article

Become a Central New York Business Journal subscriber and get immediate access to all of our subscriber-only content and much more.

Learn More and Become a Subscriber

BINGHAMTON, N.Y. — McFarland Johnson, Inc. recently announced some leadership changes, but those are not the only exciting initiatives at the growing employee-owned company.

“We have grown by double digits every year for the last five years,” President Chad Nixon says of the engineering firm. With that growth comes change, especially with the retirement of McFarland Johnson’s CEO of engineering, James M. Festa on Jan. 31.

The company kicked off February with a new CEO of engineering, Thomas Kendrick, and a slew of other promotions. McFarland Johnson named Erik Atkins director of transportation, appointed Chris Kopec as director of facilities, named Ruthanne Bulman VP and director of human resources, and appointed Jason Shevrin VP and director of technology.

But the growth and change doesn’t stop there, Nixon says.

“We are hiring like crazy in Upstate New York,” he notes. McFarland Johnson has close to 250 employees and continues to seek out top engineering talent around the state.

McFarland Johnson currently has four locations in New York — Binghamton, Buffalo, Pittsford, and Saratoga Springs — with plans to open a Syracuse location later this year.

“We see Syracuse as a growth opportunity for our company,” Nixon says. The firm already has a number of employees in the Syracuse area and hopes to attract even more to serve both the Central New York market as well as the North Country.

“We are actively looking at office space right now,” Nixon says, adding he hopes the office will open sometime in the second or third quarter of this year.

McFarland Johnson, which has some remote employees, also has a presence in Connecticut, Florida, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, North Carolina, South Carolina, New Hampshire, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Vermont, as it continues to grow.

When he started at the firm a few decades ago, projects were maybe
$50 million in value, Nixon recalls. Now, projects are regularly in the $500 million to $1 billion range, he says, and located beyond New York’s borders. “We’re doing work in Alaska,” he says. “We’re doing work in the Cayman Islands.”

McFarland Johnson’s work has also expanded in terms of what services it provides. It still focuses on planning, engineering, environmental, technology, and construction services in the aviation, transportation, civil/facilities, and environmental fields, but the complexity of projects has pushed the firm into new disciplines like software development, Nixon says. McFarland Johnson even developed and patented a platform for airport management called AVIAS.

While growth is important, Nixon notes, it only makes sense if it benefits the company, including its employee owners, as well as clients. Success is where employees, clients, and projects align; where the work is meaningful; and employees feel valued and enjoy the work, he says.

Get our email updates

Stay up-to-date on the companies, people and issues that impact businesses in Syracuse, Central New York and beyond.

Get our email updates

What's New

Upcoming Events

GOFCC Business After Hours

Greater Binghamton Chamber of Commerce Connect Over Lunch

CNYSME Professional Development Series Session Four: Emotional Intelligence Fundamentals

CNYBJ Job Board

Get Instant Access to This Article

Get Instant Access to This Article

Get Instant Access to This Article

Get Instant Access to This Article

Get Instant Access to This Article

Get Instant Access to This Article

Get Instant Access to This Article

New orders, shipments provided a boost

Survey details

Get Instant Access to This Article

About 7 Brew

Get Instant Access to This Article

Get Instant Access to This Article

Get our email updates