Oct 19, 2021

ABC of Western Washington

Kirkland-based Wood Solutions joined the Associated Builders and Contractors of Western Washington. The company focuses on exterior remediations and renovations, including siding replacement, decks and balconies, stairs, landings, windows and doors. It is led by David Molina and Jeff Hughes, each with over 15 years of building remediation experience.

SMART Heroes

Two members of the first class of SMART Heroes are set to graduate in November and January. The SMART Heroes program provides a bridge for those leaving the military to a civilian career in sheet metal, welding and HVAC. Joshua Buckley will graduate in November and Richard Quintana in January, both earning five-year apprenticeships in four years. Buckley works in architectural sheet metal often used on building exteriors and interiors. Quintana plans to work in HVAC service. The program was created by the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation (SMART) workers; the International Training Institute, SMART's education arm; and the Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors' National Association, the contractors' side of the unionized sheet metal industry. Using curriculum developed by the International Training Institute, the organizations then collaborated with Sheet Metal Workers Local 66, its joint apprenticeship and training committee, SMACNA Western Washington and Helmets to Hardhats.

Thermatech Northwest

Azusa, California-based Alliance Environmental Group acquired Lakewood-based Thermatech Northwest, which provides hazardous waste removal and demolition services in western Washington. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Alliance is an environmental remediation and indoor air quality services contractor operating in California, Nevada and Arizona.

Hayden Homes

Redmond, Oregon-based Hayden Homes bought the home lot supply of Ryn Built Homes of Spokane Valley. The single-family lots are in multiple projects throughout the Tri-Cities and Spokane markets. Ryn Built Homes used to be Viking Builders. It said it will continue to build apartments and some smaller single-family homes, as well as continue with land development.

Low Income Investment Fund

The Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF) named Emma Chavez as its new market director of the western region. Based in the Los Angeles office, Chavez is responsible for lending activities in California, Oregon, Washington and Colorado. Her work includes developing, managing and supporting local funder relationships. Chavez has 20 years of experience in affordable housing finance and development. Prior to this new role, she was vice president of community development lending at Boston Private Bank. Early in her career, she was a loan officer for LIIF and has also served as a lender at the California Community Reinvestment Corporation and the Chicago Community Loan Fund. LIIF invests in projects that have high social value but lack access to traditional financial institutions. Since 1984, LIIF has deployed more than $2.9 billion to serve more than 2 million people in communities across the country from its five offices.

Amazon

Amazon announced that 150,000 seasonal jobs are now available across the United States. Amazon jobs in the U.S., including seasonal roles, have an average starting pay of $18 per hour. Jobs in Amazon's operations network include stowing, picking, packing, shipping and more. New hires will be trained and all facilities follow strict COVID-19 health and safety protocols. Jobs are available in hundreds of cities and towns across America. Washington and Oregon are among the states with the greatest number of seasonal roles available. Interested candidates can get more details at http://www.amazon.com/apply.

Spice AI

Spice AI, a startup enabling developers to integrate AI into their applications, announced funding of $1 million from leading AI-focused venture and angel investors. Founded by Luke Kim and Phillip LeBlanc, Spice AI takes a developer-first approach to building intelligent apps. Spice AI's first release and namesake, Spice.ai, is an open-source project that enables developers to access machine learning tools in minutes instead of months. Spice AI is backed and advised by a number of tech leaders, including Nat Friedman (CEO of GitHub) and Mark Russinovich (CTO of Microsoft Azure), together with institutional investors Madrona Venture Group, Picus Capital, TA Ventures, Elysium Venture Capital, Cardinia Ventures and Founder's Co-op. Spice AI will use the funding to build its core team in the Pacific Northwest and is currently hiring full-time software and machine-learning engineers.

Oct 15, 2021

Summit Bank

Hemmings

In Eugene, Oregon, Summit Bank promoted Chris Hemmings to chief operating officer. Hemmings has been with the bank since 2008 and has served in various capacities, most recently as senior vice president and chief administrative officer, and before that as controller. He currently is chair of the bank's operations committee, which evaluates and guides efforts that support strategic initiatives, and is chair of the bank's compliance committee. Summit has offices in Eugene/Springfield, Central Oregon and the Portland area.

CLIPr

In Seattle, video analysis and management company CLIPr appointed Diego Piacentini to its advisory board. Piacentini has been a technology business leader for over 30 years. He is currently a senior advisor at KKR and a non-executive member of the Economist Group's board. Prior to this, he was senior vice president of international consumer business at Amazon for over 16 years, and the general manager of Apple EMEA during its transformative years. CLIPr uses AI and machine learning to index video content to help people save time and reduce fatigue when viewing videos.

Floor & Decor

Floor & Decor, a specialty retailer of hard-surface flooring, will open a store next week in Tacoma at 7601 S. Hosmer St. The 78,000-square-foot warehouse store and design center will be the Atlanta-based company's third store in the Seattle market. It will be managed by Makinzie Saxey, whose title is chief executive merchant. The grand opening will be held Oct. 21 and a $5,000 floor makeover sweepstakes will run through Nov. 20. Register at http://www.floormakeovertacoma.com. Contractors, designers and Realtors can privately tour the store through Nov. 3 and register to win a Chevrolet Colorado truck and other prizes. To schedule a tour, text 253PRO to 26786.

Mister Car Wash

Mister Car Wash opened at 1035 N. Stratford Road in Moses Lake, its ninth location in the Tri-Cities area. It is open 7:30 a.m.-7 p.m. all days except Sunday, when it's open 8 a.m.-6 p.m. The company is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona.