Rockline recognized for safe work hours
Rockline Industries has been recognized by the Arkansas Department of Labor for 7 million safe work hours at its Springdale plant.
Since 1976 there have been 11 other companies in Arkansas recognized for the milestone. The Department of Labor recognizes companies with the award as a way to help promote workplace safety.
Businesses are awarded based on the number of work hours without an employee losing a day because of work-related injury or illness.
"We're incredibly proud to be recognized for this achievement and congratulate our hard-working associates who always make safety a top priority at Rockline," Rockline Industries President Randy Rudolph said in a statement.
Founded in 1976 the company employs about 2,000 people and is based in Sheboygan, Wis., with operations in Arkansas, New Jersey, England and south China.
-- Chris Bahn
Entrepreneurs to vie for $40,000 training
Entrepreneurs from Arkansas and seven other Mississippi Delta states will have a chance to win $40,000 in small business training as part of the Delta Regional Authority's third Delta Challenge pitch competition.
North Little Rock's Arkansas Regional Innovation Hub is the first of six locations for the competition on Sept. 13. Other locations will be in Cape Girardeau, Mo., on Sept. 20; Jackson, Tenn., on Sept. 28; Oxford, Miss., on Sept. 29; Livingston, Ala., on Oct. 11; and Ruston, La., on Nov. 1.
Twenty entrepreneurs and 16 support organizations will be selected for the Delta Regional Authority's entrepreneurship network. Winners get to pitch their plans to investors at New Orleans Entrepreneur Week in March.
Interested entrepreneurs must submit a business summary at least a week before the competition they attend. Registration is available at dra.gov/entrepreneur.
-- David Smith
Arkansas Index rises 1.76 to close 341.97
The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, rose 1.76 to 341.97 Monday.
"The major averages closed higher as investors reacted to optimistic data on consumer spending and hawkish comments from the Federal Reserve over the weekend," said Bob Williams, senior vice president and managing director of Simmons First Investment Group Inc. in Little Rock.
The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.
Business on 08/30/2016