Seven of the 10 companies selected to receive a total of $1.1 million in Energizing Careers Program grants for work force training from the Ohio Department of Development (DOD) are located in Northwest Ohio.

Owens Community College worked with six of the seven local companies to write and submit applications for those grants, which are funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and U.S. Department of Labor.

A total of $989,571 was awarded to those companies to train 290 workers in this region. The program reimburses companies for the cost of training up to $6,000 for each full-time employee.

“The future of our economy is advanced energy manufacturing and our workforce must keep up with the demands of the marketplace. These training dollars will benefit incumbent workers as well as new employees to be hired,” Christiane Schmenk, director of the Ohio DOD, stated in a news release.

Rex Reimer shows solar racks to AET’s Craig Winn and Owens’ Michael Bankey.

The Workforce and Talent Division of the DOD administers the Energizing Careers Program in Ohio to assist companies that are manufacturing components for the solar, wind and biomass industries.

Owens will work with the six companies to develop and provide customized work force training programs for new and existing employees funded by the grants.

“Owens is pleased to collaborate with Northwest Ohio business and industry to provide leading-edge training, enabling our region to remain competitive in today’s ever-changing global economy. It’s a win-win situation for everyone involved,” said Michael Bankey, vice president of Workforce and Community Services at Owens.

The seven local companies awarded grants are Applied Energy Technologies and Pro-Pak Industries of Maumee, TecnoSunSolar of Toledo, ARGO-HYTOS and Marathon Special Products of Bowling Green, POET Biorefining of Fostoria, and AP Alternatives of Ridgeville Corners in Henry County.

Applied Energy Technologies (AET) received an $180,000 grant to train 35 new employees for the design, engineering and manufacturing of mounting solutions for solar installations. AET is making racks for solar panels in its new 43,100 square-foot manufacturing and warehouse facility opened in Maumee in April.

Craig Winn, president of AET, said the company customized hand and machine assemblies for developers and installers of solar panels. It has provided mounting solutions to 400 customers nationally from the East Coast to the U.S. Navy in Hawaii.

Winn said the company would not have known about the training grants if Bankey had not reached out to the company about the program.

Rex Reimer, director of operations at AET, said AET will conduct ergonomic training to provide an optimum workplace for all employees and technical training on automated systems for production workers over the next 12 months.

AP Alternatives received a $210,000 grant to train 20 new and 15 current employees to modify products, purchased from Alex Products, used to assemble and install solar mounting systems. Both AP Alternatives and Alex Products are owned and operated by the David Von Deylen family.

Argo-Hytus is the recipient of a $100,200 grant to train two new and 17 current employees in the design and production of customized manifolds, valve assemblies and power packs for filtration and hydraulic tank solutions for the wind energy market.

Marathon Special Products received a $250,600 grant for training 120 current employees for the design and production of electrical devices. The company is developing solar power integration components, wind power connections and wind circuit protection devices.

POET Biorefining is the recipient of a $43,371 grant to train 43 current employees at its ethanol production facility, which consumes 22 million bushels of locally grown corn to produce 68 million gallons of ethanol annually. POET is working on training programs with Terra Community College in Fremont.

TecnoSunSolar received a grant for $49,400 to train one current employee and 12 new employees in the production of its patented dual axis tracking systems for solar installations. The tracking systems are designed to follow the movement of the sun and increase solar panel output by 20 to 40 percent.

Greg Knudson, CEO of TecnoSunSolar USA, said Owens will develop four training courses for its employees to be conducted in the next 12 months.

Pro-Pak Industries received a $156,000 grant for training three new and 23 current employees on the design, manufacturing and assembly of packaging for First Solar and Willard & Kelsey, two of the largest manufacturers of solar panels in Northwest Ohio. Pro-Pak is working with AET to provide packaging for shipment of its solar racks.

Owens is already collaborating with First Solar Inc. and the Willard & Kelsey Solar Group, both of Perrysburg, and The Dow Chemical Company branch in Findlay on worker training from recent Energizing Careers Program grants totaling more than $1.8 million.

Tags: AP Alternatives, Applied Energy Technologies, ARGO-HYTOS, Bowling Green, Fostoria, Henry County, Marathon Special Products, Maumee, Ohio Department of Development, POET Biorefining, Pro-Pak Industries, Ridgeville Corners, TecnoSunSolar

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 11th, 2011 at 2:32 pm and is filed under Entrepreneurs, Toledo Business Link.
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July 1

• Mud Hens postgame, Fifth Third Field

July 2

• Luna Pier, Clyde Evans Pier
• Mud Hens postgame, Fifth Third Field

July 3

• Adrian, Lenawee County Fairgrounds
• Bowling Green, BGSU stadium
• Cedar Point, 10 p.m.
• Clyde, Community Park
• Defiance, Pontiac Park
• Findlay, Hancock County Fairgrounds
• Fostoria, Meadowlark Park
• Hillsdale, Hillsdale County Fairgrounds
• Maumee-Perrysburg bridge, 10 p.m., (bridge closed to pedestrians 8-11 p.m.). Activities start 5 p.m. in Maumee and 4 p.m. in Perrysburg.
• Monroe, River Raisin Independence Festival, Sterling State Park, events start at noon.
• Mud Hens postgame, Fifth Third Field
• Oak Harbor, downtown, events start at 5 p.m.
• Oregon, Boomfest, Oak Shade Grove, 3624 Seaman Road, activities start at 2 p.m.
• Sylvania, Star Spangled Celebration, Centennial Terrace, 5773 Centennial Road. Activities start at 7 p.m. $5 adults, $3 12 and younger, $5 parking. Fireworks also visible from Pacesetter Park ($5 parking)
• Swanton, carnival and fireworks, Swanton High School, activities start at 5 p.m.
• Toledo, Red, White, KABOOM, 10:15 p.m. Promenade Park and International Park. Activities start at noon. After 4 p.m., $3 for 12 and older.
• Woodville, Trail Marker Park

July 4

• Lakeside, at the dock, events start at 10 a.m.
• Napoleon, Glenwood Park, 10 p.m.
• Port Clinton, Waterworks Park
• Put-in-Bay, downtown harbor

July 9

• Temperance, Bedford Community Stadium

Tags: Adrian, Bowling Green, Cedar Point, Clyde, Defiance, FIndlay, fireworks, Fostoria, Hillsdale, July 4, Lakeside, Luna Pier, Maumee, Monroe, Mud Hens, Napoleon, Oak Harbor, Oregon, Perrysburg, Port Clinton, Put-in-Bay, Swanton, Sylvania, Temperance, Toledo, Woodville

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 30th, 2011 at 12:13 pm and is filed under Arts and Life, Holidays.
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By Matthew Hathaway

ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH

A Fostoria, Ohio, man, fed up with deceptive junk mail, made the mistake of losing his temper while on the phone with a St. Louis company pitching an extended auto-service contract. Now he finds himself behind bars, where he is charged with making a terrorist threat.

According to court documents, Charles W. Papenfus, 43, allegedly told a sales representative during a May 18 telephone call that he would burn down the building and kill the employees and their families. He was indicted for making a terrorist threat, a Class D felony; and he could be sentenced to up to four years in prison if convicted.

Papenfus’ wife, Tracie, said she hasn’t seen her husband since his arrest on June 27, when he was lured to a Fostoria police station with a false story about being suspected in a tavern fight there. Charles Papenfus, a self-employed mechanic who sometimes works on the department’s police cruisers, dropped by the station to clear his name, she said.

Tracie Papenfus said she still can’t understand why her husband is held 450 miles from home at the St. Louis workhouse on a $45,000 bond she can’t afford to pay. (That amount could be lowered at bond-reduction hearing scheduled for July 27.)

“He shouldn’t have mouthed off on the phone, but this is overkill,” Tracie Papenfus said. “He just can’t handle it in there. He’s not a criminal. … They make it sound like he’s a terrorist, and he’s far from it.

Court records don’t name the firm that Papenfus allegedly threatened, but they say the business is located at 300 North Tucker Boulevard. The only firm in that building that sells service contracts — popularly known as “extended warranties” — is TXEN Partners, which does business as Service Protection Direct. The firm did not respond to requests for comment.

The Better Business Bureau recently accused the firm of sending mailers to consumers that incorrectly state factory warranties on their vehicles either have expired or will run out soon. Last year, then-Attorney General Jay Nixon sued the firm for misleading consumers, and a condition of that suit’s settlement was that TXEN Partners would refer to consumers’ expiring warranties only if the company believes “in good faith” that those claims are true.

Tracie Papenfus said her husband called a St. Louis telemarketing firm — she didn’t know the name — after getting a mailer stating that the factory warranty had expired for the 1996 Ford Taurus driven by his 23-year-old son. The car, bought as-is for $3,000, hasn’t had a factory warranty for years.

“He wanted to know, ‘Why are you sending this when we’ve never had a warranty?’” Tracie Papenfus said.

In fact, Charles Papenfus asked that same question several times. He called the firm after receiving the mailer, then he called the company back to complain some more, said Douglas Forsyth, a local attorney representing Papenfus. The call during which Papenfus allegedly made a terrorist threat was initiated by the firm, in a response to a voice-mail message left by Papenfus, Forsyth said.

“They insulted each other,” Forsyth said, adding that Papenfus called the company “a scam” and the telemarketer called Papenfus “a jackass or (an expletive) or both.”

Forsyth said that, several minutes into the call, Papenfus said something about burning down the firm’s building.

Tracie Papenfus said the outburst was unusual for her husband, who she described as “a cool-headed guy.” However, she said, he hadn’t quite been himself after taking prescription painkiller medication for a compound wrist fracture he received in a motorcycle accident a few days before the call occurred. Irritability can be one side effect from those drugs, Forsyth said.

Christopher Thetford, a spokesman for the BBB in St. Louis, said he isn’t surprised to hear of a consumer threatening a service-contract broker.

“While it’s not something we condone, it is something we can understand,” Thetford said. “Oftentimes, consumers feel pushed and pushed. … It’s a frustration we hear from consumers every day when they talk about the extended-service contract industry.”

Authorities would not discuss facts of the case, but one official said that business practices of a telemarketing firm shouldn’t be a factor.

“I think all sorts of people get frustrated with all sorts of businesses,” said Ed Postawko, chief warrant officer in the Circuit Attorney’s Office. “The solution is to don’t patronize that business, it’s not to break the law. … Two wrongs don’t make a right.

To read comments on this article on the St. Louis Post-Dispatch Web site, click here.

Tags: Fostoria, phone rage

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 21st, 2009 at 2:16 pm and is filed under Breaking News, Community.
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