ITT Corp. on Thursday announced the names for the defense and water businesses it plans to spin off into standalone companies.
The defense business, which employs about 1,000 in Fort Wayne, will be ITT Exelis and trade under the symbol XLS.
The company’s core industrial business will keep the ITT Corp. name and ticker symbol ITT. The water business will be known as Xylem and trade under XYL. All companies are expected to trade on the New York Stock Exchange. No date was given for the spinoff.
The defense business makes communication, computer, surveillance and other products for the U.S. military and other customers. The name Exelis is derived from the root “ex,” meaning “out front” or “beyond.”
“The name ITT Exelis signifies the expeditionary spirit, exceptional foresight and strong commitment to proactively anticipating and adapting solutions to our customers’ most critical problems,” the company said in a statement.
SDI appoints new OmniSource executive
Steel Dynamics Inc. on Thursday announced Russell Rinn has been named executive vice president of metals recycling and chief operating officer of OmniSource Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of Steel Dynamics.
Rinn, 53, will oversee OmniSource’s ferrous and nonferrous scrap operations. He succeeds Mark Millett, who in April was appointed Steel Dynamics’ president and COO.
Rinn, who has more than 30 years in the industry, was previously executive vice president of Commercial Metals Co. and president of its Americas Division.
Millett said the Fort Wayne-based steelmaker searched three months to find the best candidate for the position. “(Rinn) is a proven leader, proficient in delivering bottom-line results,” he said.
Home-building decline continues locally
Home building activity continues to decline in the Fort Wayne area.
The Home Builders Association of Fort Wayne on Thursday said Allen County residential construction requests in June decreased 16.4 percent to 56 permits, compared with 67 permits the same month a year ago. Year-to-date figures declined 15.4 percent to 301 permits, compared to 356 permits in June 2010.
The average house price declined as well to $188,886 in June, compared with $190,611 in June 2010.
Report: Swiss bank UBS to cut 5,000 jobs
Switzerland’s biggest bank, UBS AG, plans to cut 5,000 jobs in an effort to rein in soaring costs, a Swiss newspaper reported Thursday.
Zurich daily Tages-Anzeiger cited unidentified bank insiders as saying UBS wants to save 1 billion Swiss francs ($1.23 billion) annually.
The bank declined to comment on the report. But a spokeswoman, Tatiana Togni, said “cost management is a top priority” for UBS.
Deutsche Boerse gets nods for NYSE deal
German stock exchange operator Deutsche Boerse AG said Thursday that enough of its shareholders have tendered their stock for its merger with NYSE Euronext to go through.
Deutsche Boerse said that over 80 percent of shares were handed in by the Wednesday night deadline. It needed 75 percent.
