Company Notebook

FieldEddy Acquires John Pires Agency
EAST LONGMEADOW — FieldEddy Insurance, one of the largest independent insurance agencies in Western Mass., continues to expand its footprint after recently acquiring the Ludlow-based John Pires Agency. The FieldEddy network is made up of agencies throughout Western Mass., with locations in South Hadley, Monson, and Ludlow, with headquarters located in East Longmeadow. “We feel that this is a great opportunity for the customers of John Pires as well as our agency,” said FieldEddy President Timm Marini. “We look forward to delivering our top-notch service and value to these customers, which is what FieldEddy has become known for.” The transition is expected to be seamless and is already underway, he added.

Balise Collision Repair Receives Prestigious Certification
WEST SPRINGFIELD — Balise Collision Repair on Riverdale Street in West Springfield has been officially certified as a Lexus-approved repair facility. There are fewer than 25 Lexus-certified repair facilities in the U.S., and Balise Collision Repair is the only one in New England. To achieve certification status, a facility’s technicians, supervisors, managers, and office staff must complete a rigorous training program, including online classes and on-site practicums. Employees are then tested in various areas depending on their job classification. Dave Thomas, Lexus Eastern Area customer service operations manager, made the presentation to Jeb Balise, president and CEO of Balise Motor Sales. Balise cited the dedication of the staff at the collision facility.  “This is a tremendous honor for us, and all the credit needs to go to the people who work at this facility for making it happen.”

Hazen Paper Dominates AIMCAL Awards with Record-setting Seven Wins
HOLYOKE — Hazen Paper Co. was honored an unprecedented seven times with awards at the annual management meeting of the Assoc. of International Metallizers, Coaters and Laminators (AIMCAL) in Phoenix, Ariz. on March 16. The seven distinct Hazen products that merited the judges’ votes included packaging for sports equipment, drugstore and luxury healthcare, cosmetics and toiletries, a digital promotional poster for a pop/rock band, and DVD packaging. “We’re very pleased to have impressed the judges,” said President John Hazen. “Each award is validating alone. A combination of custom work we produce from the concept forward in our holographic lab and popular materials we stock to convert, as a whole they demonstrate Hazen’s versatility and exceptional ability to develop materials that ignite interest and turbo-charge sales in a wide variety of applications and markets.” Hazen received a technical award in the Nonfood category for Titleist Pro V1 and Pro V1x premium golf-ball sleeves and folding cartons featuring a rich, glowing finish created by transfer-metallizing film and laminating it to board, which Hazen completes in house. In addition to delivering a result that is twice as bright and reflective as foil, the surface achieves source reduction (95% less aluminum) and enhances recyclability, while improving folding, gluing, and filling operations. Hazen also received a technical award in Healthcare, Cosmetics and Toiletries for metallizing and converting setup boxes for Procter & Gamble’s Gucci Pour Homme and Made to Measure gift sets. Hazen metallized and laminated polyester with an Ultracure coating to litho paper for a luxurious package that resists fingerprints. AIMCAL judges awarded marketing honors to Hazen in multiple categories. In Retail Label, Hazen was recognized for a custom holographic label for Warner Home Video’s 75th-anniversary limited edition of The Wizard of Oz. The litho label features precisely registered custom holography as well as embossed lettering. In Healthcare, Cosmetics and Toiletries Packaging, folding cartons for Ultradent Opalescence Go Tooth Whitening System gleaned top honors for an eye-catching double-rainbow hologram and die-cut ‘bubbles’; Hazen metallized Double Rainbow holographic film and laminated it to solid bleached sulfate (SBS) to deliver a compelling package that simulates motion on the shelf. Custom holography earned Hazen the marketing award in Nonfood Packaging as well, for Pure Fishing’s Spiderwire Stealth Glow-Vis Braid, in a package for a unique fishing line. Hazen collaborated with Olympak Packaging and Printing to design a hologram, applied an embossable coating to polyester film, embossed and metallized the holograph, then laminated it onto recycled paperboard and sheeted it for printing in register. In Decorative/Display, Hazen Paper provided the digital substrate for a poster designed by Dwight Maddox for Don Miggs’ pop/rock band, miggs, to be printed on an HP 7500 Indigo digital press. Finally, in the Other category, Hazen custom holography won over the judges with an album cover for Gap Dream’s Shine Your Light, on Burger Records). Hazen created copyrighted holograms for front and back, and transfer-metallized the film to SBS, precisely registered for printing.

Mercy Home Care Receives Top Rating from DPH
WEST SPRINGFIELD — Mercy Home Care has earned a perfect, deficiency-free survey from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH). To receive such a survey, home-care agencies must successfully complete a rigorous, unannounced evaluation that includes a review of medical records, clinical procedures, staffing levels, and quality data.  Surveyors also accompany staff members on home visits and interview patients about their experience with the agency. “The very nature of such a DPH survey leaves no room for preparation prior to the arrival of reviewers. Consequently, this deficiency-free survey underscores Mercy Home Care’s daily success in providing outstanding in-home nursing and rehabilitation services to patients who are recovering from illness or injury,” said Christopher McLaughlin, chief operating officer of the Mercy Continuing Care Network within the Sisters of Providence Health System. In Massachusetts, home-care agencies are reviewed by DPH surveyors every three years. Mercy Home Care’s most recent survey took four days to complete and involved 10 home visits with different clinicians as well as intensive reviews of 20 records. “Mercy Home Care patients are at the center of a multi-disciplinary approach to care that is designed to help them maintain or regain their independence. This approach requires staff members to work as a cohesive group, and the deficiency-free survey is a reflection of the outstanding teamwork at Mercy Home Care,” said Sue Pickett, executive director of Mercy Home Care.

More Than $800,000 Given to Schools Through Big Y Education Express
SPRINGFIELD — Big Y Foods Inc. announced recently that more than $800,000 in free educational materials was awarded to more than 2,000 schools in Massachusetts and Connecticut through the grocery chain’s Education Express program. The company provided a partial list of those supplies, which included 2,236 playground balls, 975 books, 372 calculators, 97 digital cameras, 59 computer tablets, 579 musical instruments, 1,313 packs of crayons, 2,523 reams of copier paper, and 27,128 pencils. Since its inception in 1993, the Big Y Education Express Program has awarded close to $14 million in free supplies and equipment to local schools. “At Big Y, we believe it is important to support our communities and the education of our children,” said Donald D’Amour, Big Y Chairman and CEO. “The Education Express Program helps our local schools supplement their tight budgets and get items for the arts, technology, and even necessities like paper and pencils. It’s just one way we are able to give back and help our future generation receive the essential tools they need for the best education possible.” Community support was the key ingredient to the success of Education Express, and the program was a win-win for customers, he added. Customers purchased money-saving products designated throughout the stores by specially designed school-bus logo shelf tags to earn valuable merchandise points for the school of their choice.  Schools then redeemed those points for free educational supplies such as computers, art supplies, musical instruments, and sports equipment. The program was free to Big Y customers, and shoppers could track their donated point totals on their register receipt and through a Facebook app. In addition to the Education Express Program, Big Y operates the Big Y Scholarship Program, which awards 300 scholarships worth $250,000 annually to academically outstanding students in its market area. Big Y also donates food valued at more than $4.5 million to local nonprofit organizations, schools, churches, and educational programs each year.

Fallon Health Marks Milestone
WORCESTER — Fallon Health, a not-for-profit healthcare-services organization, recently celebrated a historic milestone in the growth of community-based care for seniors. With its opening of four new programs last month, the number of Programs of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) now exceeds 100 across the U.S. PACE, which was developed in San Francisco in the 1970s, helps to keep nursing-home-eligible elders living in the community. “The story of PACE is a rarity in today’s healthcare policy environment,” said Shawn Bloom, president and CEO of the National PACE Assoc. “PACE is a common-sense approach to providing care to older people that was rigorously studied and tested and then able to become a permanent part of our healthcare system. We don’t often see successful innovations allowed to thrive and grow like PACE.” The various PACE programs bring together a coordinated team of doctors, nurses, social workers, and therapists to provide seniors with an individualized care plan that addresses each person’s unique medical care and social needs. The result is higher-quality care and more favorable outcomes compared to traditional care options. More than 90% of PACE enrollees reside outside of nursing homes. “In Massachusetts, Fallon Health is proud to have led the way in senior-care services with our PACE program, Summit ElderCare, which we’ve offered for the last 19 years,” said Richard Burke, president of Senior Care Services and Government Affairs. “Today, Summit ElderCare is the largest PACE organization in New England and the fifth-largest in the nation.” There are now 103 PACE organizations operating in 31 states. As the only health plan in Massachusetts that is both an insurer and a provider of care, Fallon Health operates its PACE program in six locations in the Commonwealth: Worcester (two sites), Charlton (two locations), Leominster, and Springfield.