Auburn University to build $94.5 million culinary education center, hotel
Auburn University is moving forward with a $94.5 million culinary science center which will include a teaching boutique hotel and restaurant. The Tony and Libba Rane Culinary Science Center is expected to open in 2021. The university’s Board of Trustees gave the greenlight for the 142,000-square-foot project last week, which will accommodate the state’s only professionally accredited hospitality program. Construction at the corner of East Thach Avenue and South College Street will begin in April, the school said. – AL.com
SWJ Tech to put North American headquarters in Tuscaloosa
A German firm is opening its new North American headquarters in Alabama. SWJ Technology will build the new 5,000-square-foot facility in a part of Tuscaloosa that was devastated by a tornado in April 2011. The company, with more than 85 employees in the Southeast, started in 2003 in Frankfurt, Germany and was known as SWJ-Breilmann until a name change earlier this year. It provides services to companies such as Mercedes-Benz U.S. International and its suppliers. – AP
Alabama’s automakers watch as trade war heats up
The European Union vowed prompt retaliation if the U.S. follows through on a threat to impose tariffs on imported vehicles, as trans-Atlantic trade tensions showed no signs of easing. If European exports are hit by U.S. actions, the EU will “react in a swift and adequate manner,” Margaritis Schinas, a spokesman for the European Commission, told reporters in Brussels on Monday — a day after President Donald Trump received a report on the national-security implications posed by auto imports. – Bloomberg
Caddell Construction wins $224M embassy project in the Bahamas
Caddell Construction has secured a potential $223.8M contract from the State Department to design and build an embassy compound in Nassau, the Bahamas’ capital. The project includes constructing a support annex, a security guard residence, a utility building, three access control installations and a new office building. – GovConWire
Doster completes work on new LG solar panel plant
Doster Construction Co. recently completed work on LG Electronics’ advanced solar module assembly plant in Huntsville, Alabama. The new factory was built in an existing building on LG’s 48-acre Huntsville campus and will produce 500 megawatts of the company’s high-performance N-type solar panels annually. – News release
Ace Aeronautics wins $50M avionics contract
Ace Aeronautics LLC recently won a fleet expansion to the direct commercial sale contract with the Republic of Austria Federal Ministry of Defense. The contract is valued at over $50 million and involves the design, manufacture, and installation of a new avionics system for three additional Austrian Black Hawk helicopters. The work will be performed at the company headquarters located in Guntersville, Alabama, with deliveries beginning in 2021. – News release
Pepper Place celebrating Entertainment District Friday
Pepper Place is choosing National Margarita Day to initiate its designation as an Entertainment District. The downtown dining and shopping destination will hold its Entertainment District Launch Party this Friday from 4:30 to 11 p.m. Shops and showrooms will be staying open until 7 p.m., including Design Supply, Richard Tubb Interiors, Cantley and Co., Charlie Thigpen’s Garden Gallery and Farmstead. Ignite Cycle will have pop-up rides, and Aero Joe will have a special aerial yoga class at 5:30 p.m. and demos at 6:30 p.m. – AL.com
