In today’s wrapup of Triangle tech news from other publications:

  • HQ Raleigh is officially a “B Corp”
  • What does a B Corp really mean?
  • Lord Corporation makes an acquisition

The details:

  • B Corp status for HQ Raleigh

It’s official now. HQ Raleigh has received status as a “B Corp.”

Or Certified Benefit Corporation. It’s one of just 32 such certified companies in the state.

Reports Lauren Ohnesorge of the Triangle Business Journal:

“The new designation means HQ Raleigh will be legally required to consider its impact on employees, suppliers, community members and the environment. And the announcement comes as HQ Raleigh has outlined its own mission to make the B-Corp certification process easier for area startups. It partnered late last year with N.C. State University’s Business Sustainability Collaborative to launch the B Corp Clinic, which connects student teams from area universities to aspiring B Corporations to help them achieve the certification.”

Read the full story at:

http://www.bizjournals.com/triangle/blog/techflash/2016/03/hq-raleigh-joins-b-corp-ranks.html

  • B Corps Rising in North Carolina

ExitEvent posted an update of an earlier overview of B Corp status when news about HQ Raleigh broke.

Noting that the Triangle has also won the rights to host a national B Corp retreat in October, ExitEvent reposted Amy Huffman’s overview.

“The paper towels at HQ Raleigh are made from recycled material. Members stir their fair-trade coffee with uncooked spaghetti noodles. The toilets use as little water as possible. And the amenities for members include bike parking, showers and free locally-made beer.

“It’s all part of a two-year quest to earn certification from a growing national movement called B Corps and recognition for valuing profit equally with how the startup campus treats people and the planet. And unlike the top-down approach societies and governments typically use to force positive business practices, the B Corp movement is led by the businesses themselves.

“That’s why HQ Raleigh is partnering with the non-profit agency that certifies businesses as B Corps to train more local companies how to implement the practices, and why it’s helping to bring a national gathering of B Corp members to the Triangle [in October] to celebrate the movement.”

Read more at:

http://exitevent.com/article/North-Carolina-B-Corps-Movement-151210

  • Lord Corporation’s acquisition

Lord Corporation, which is based in Cary, has bought a Fly-by-Wire Systems subsidiary of Sweden’s SKF.

The Triangle Business Journal’s Ohnesorge spoke with Lord executive Will Austin about the deal:

“In the aerospace market, we are very strong, currently in the rotary wing marketplace, so helicopters,” Austin said during an interview shortly after the announcement. He adds that flight critical components on helicopters are a Lord sweet spot. “We have been looking to broaden our portfolio to include synergistic technologies on fixed wing airplanes. … This pending acquisition will help us do that … [FBWS] invented these systems.”

Read the full story at:

http://www.bizjournals.com/triangle/blog/techflash/2016/03/lord-corporation-exec-talks-companys-latest.html