MEM Still Ranked World’s 2nd Busiest Cargo Airport

Memphis International Airport has cemented its status as the second busiest cargo airport in the world for another year, with more than 4.33 million metric tons of cargo passing through in 2017.

That volume of cargo marks a 0.3 increase over last year’s numbers, according to the preliminary 2017 world airport traffic rankings just released by Airports Council International.

Hong Kong International Airport took home top honors with 5.04 million metric tons of cargo in 2017, while China’s Shanghai Pudong International Airport came in third with 3.82 million metric tons moved.

It is not surprisingly that the Memphis International figures were chiefly driven by operations at the FedEx Express World Hub, which accounted for roughly 99 percent of the all cargo handled at MEM. At Memphis International Airport, FedEx leases 40.9 million square feet of space and sees northward of 450 combined arrivals and departures per day.

“The huge volume of landed weight from cargo helps keep MEM’s landing fees very low, which is beneficial for cargo and passenger airlines alike because it reduces their operating costs,” Pace Cooper, chairman of the Memphis-Shelby County Airport Authority board of commissioners, said.

– Patrick Lantrip

IMC Gives Drivers Largest Pay Increase in Its History

In response to a critical driver shortage, Memphis-based IMC Companies has enacted the largest pay raise in the company’s history, effective April 15.

The pay increase for drivers in the Intermodal Cartage Co. division will average more 30 percent.

IMC said the pay increase is a proactive response to the 90,000 drivers that the American Trucking Associations says are needed to meet rising demand over the next decade.

“The ATA notes that more than 70 percent of goods consumed in our country are moved by truck, so investing in drivers literally keeps America moving,” Mark H. George, chairman of IMC Companies, said in a release.

“Our effort to increase driver pay ensures that we will continue to be able to provide the superior service on which our customers depend,” George said.

IMC Companies also supports legislation that would expand interstate trucking opportunities to include drivers between the ages of 18 and 21. Currently, the average age of a commercial truck driver is 55, and only 6 percent of truck drivers are female, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

“Proactive efforts like ours, paired with an emphasis on quality equipment and efficiency at the rails, ports and customer sites, will help us to work together through the driver shortage,” George said. “Our goal is to retain seasoned drivers while attracting new talent to our growing industry.”

– Patrick Lantrip

Tennessee Supreme Court Adopts Uniform Bar Exam

The Uniform Bar Exam will be given for the first time in Tennessee in February.

The Tennessee Supreme Court announced Wednesday, April 18, that it is adopting the UBE for admission to the bar by prospective Tennessee attorneys.

The exam is a nationwide test used in 31 jurisdictions across the country. It allows those taking the exam to transfer scores between states.

The state’s high court reacted to a filing by the Tennessee Board of Law Examiners, which filed a petition that triggered a public comment period before the court made its decision.

“As the legal field continues to evolve, the court understands its rules must modernize and adapt to changing practice realities,” Chief Justice Jeff Bivins said in a written statement. “At the same time, it is essential we ensure attorneys practicing in Tennessee are well qualified and prepared to represent clients with the vigor and excellence the law requires. The changes we have adopted strike that necessary balance.”

Jeffrey Ward, president of the Tennessee Board of Law Examiners, said the change reflects that lawyers are more mobile than they once were.

“Multi-jurisdictional, or cross-border, practice is more common, particularly in Tennessee, where we border more states than another state in the union,” Ward said. “This can be seen in the increase in applications for admissions without examination in recent years.”

There was a 90.4 percent increase in such requests between 2012 and 2016.

– Bill Dries

Quarterback and Tight End Leaving Memphis Program

Brady Davis, a quarterback recruited by former University of Memphis coach Justin Fuente, announced via social media he has been granted his release and will seek to continue his collegiate career elsewhere.

Davis, who missed the 2016 season with a knee injury, was recruited out of Starkville (Miss.) High School in 2015. He served as the third-string QB last season behind Riley Ferguson and David Moore. Davis appeared in one game last season and carried the ball one time for one yard; he did not attempt a pass.

Davis has two years of eligibility remaining.

With Davis leaving the program, the QB competition this season is among Moore, Brady White and Connor Adair.

Tight end Nick Robinson also requested his release. Robinson, originally recruited as a receiver, redshirted last season and has four years of eligibility remaining.

– Don Wade

Two U of M Students Receive Fulbright Awards

Two University of Memphis students have received prestigious Fulbright U.S. Student Program awards for the 2018-2019 academic year from the U.S. Department of State and the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board.

Robert Warren Apple, a Ph.D. candidate in musicology and graduate assistant in the Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music, received the Fulbright-Mach Award, which will allow him to travel to Austria for nine months to continue his dissertation research on music composed for the keyed trumpet.

“In the course of my dissertation research, I have already documented the existence of previously unknown pieces composed for the keyed trumpet,” Apple said. “Unfortunately, many of these works only survive as unpublished manuscripts that I cannot gain access to here in the States.

“It’s exciting that I can finally travel to Austria to study these pieces and, hopefully, rediscover more,” Apple said.

Danielle Porter, a senior majoring in psychology and Spanish, received a Fulbright Award to serve as an English teaching assistant in Spain.

She will assist teachers in English language classes for pre-schools and elementary schools in the country’s La Rioja region. Porter, who graduates from the U of M in May, also will serve as a cultural ambassador to students, faculty, staff and the community.

“I’m proud to represent the University of Memphis and the South while fostering cultural exchange in the Spanish community,” she said. “None of this would be possible without the support of my professors, staff, friends and family.”

The two U of M students are among 1,900 U.S. citizens who will study, conduct research and teach abroad through the Fulbright U.S. Student Program.

Recipients of Fulbright Awards are selected on the basis of academic and professional achievement as well as their record of service and leadership potential in their respective fields.

– Don Wade

London Cathedral Choir To Perform at Calvary

St. Paul’s Cathedral Choristers from London will perform for free at Calvary Episcopal Church in Memphis on April 23 as part of an eight-venue tour of the U.S.

The tour is part of the Cathedral’s 60th anniversary of the American Memorial Chapel – a tribute to U.S. servicemen who gave their lives in World War II. The chapel was created by Dwight Eisenhower and Winston Churchill, and opened by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 1958.

“In 1953, St Paul’s was the first U.K. cathedral choir ever to tour the United States,” the Very Rev. Dr. David Ison, dean of St Paul’s, said. “It did so as a ‘thank you’ to the American people following our joint efforts in the Second World War. Over six decades on, we are thrilled such a strong connection remains, and that we are able to honor the special relationship through music.”

Andrew Carwood, director of music at the Cathedral, said the tour also recognizes the thousands of American visitors they welcome to St Paul’s every year.

“This tour is a way of giving something in return, and enabling a wider audience in the United States to experience for themselves the beauty and wonder of the English Choral Tradition, while remembering those who gave so much in fighting for our freedom,” Carwood said.

The performance at Calvary Episcopal Church, 102 N. Second St., on Monday at 7 p.m. is free, but donations will be accepted.

Visit www.stpauls.co.uk/news-press/latest-news/choristers-tour-us.

– Daily News staff

CBRE Moving Offices To Triad Centre III

Real estate brokerage firm CBRE will be moving its Memphis offices as part of a companywide Workplace360 initiative.

CBRE will occupy 10,824 square feet in the Triad Centre III building located at 6070 Poplar Ave., which is almost half of its current 20,000-square-foot space at 2620 Thousand Oaks Blvd.

“Since moving into our existing space 10 years ago, advances in technology have resulted in a different, more mobile way of working,” Frank Quinn, managing director of CBRE’s Memphis business, said in a release. “Our new office will feature amenities that enable employees to truly embrace technology and collaborate more effectively. It will also demonstrate a new way of working to our clients and the Memphis business community.”

CBRE’s Kevin Adams represented the firm in the deal.

According to CBRE, its Workplace360 strategy is designed to promote flexibility, mobility and productivity through technology-enabled, 100 percent-free address and paperless offices.

Memphis will join approximately 60 other CBRE offices worldwide in transitioning to this business model.

“From productivity and wellness, to engagement and recruitment, the workplace directly contributes to business results,” said Cicily Scharlach, program manager for CBRE’s Workplace360 initiative. “We will engage employees by forming committees focused on delivering an environment that supports the way they work in terms of flexibility and mobility, and the experience they want to have when they come to the office every day.”

– Patrick Lantrip

Electronic Security Firm Buys Select Frase Accounts

Memphis-based Electronic Security Specialists (ESSC), a licensed low-voltage contractor that installs and services electronic security equipment, has purchased required commercial fire alarm accounts from Frase Protection.

A required commercial fire alarm system – one that is required by the local fire department to obtain a Use Permit for a building – is typically complex and serviced by highly trained technicians. ESSC said it is uniquely positioned to take on this customer base.

“Although Frase Protection has served both residential and commercial customers in the past, they have focused mainly in recent years on wireless residential and very small commercial alarm systems,” Jim Turner, president of ESSC, said in a release. “They were ready to sell their required commercial fire alarm accounts, and ESSC was the natural choice to purchase them.”

Jonathan Frase, president of Frase Protection, said ESSC’s purchase of his company’s larger fire alarm accounts “made good business sense” for both companies.

“I know our customers will be in very capable hands with ESSC, and this transaction will allow Frase to focus more intently on our wireless residential services,” Frase said in the release.

Financial terms of the purchase were not disclosed.

ESSC has been in business in Memphis since 1987.

It is a licensed low-voltage contractor in Tennessee and Mississippi and also licensed in Tennessee, Arkansas and Mississippi to install and service electronic security equipment spanning burglar and fire alarm systems, CCTV systems and access control systems.

– Daily News staff

GTx to Present Trial Results On Phase 2 Enobosarm

GTx Inc. will present highlights of results from its open-label, Phase 2 proof-of-concept clinical trial evaluating enobosarm 3 mg in postmenopausal women with stress urinary incontinence (SUI) at the American Urological Association’s annual meeting being in San Francisco, California, May 18-21.

The company plans to summarize previously presented results, plus present additional data demonstrating duration of response from women who have reached seven months post-treatment.

Enobosarm (GTx-024), a selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM), has been evaluated in 25 completed or ongoing clinical trials using various enrolling more than 2,100 subjects. At all evaluated dose levels, enobosarm was observed to be generally safe and well tolerated. The rationale for evaluating enobosarm as a treatment for SUI is supported by preclinical in vivo data demonstrating increases in pelvic floor muscle mass following treatment with GTx’s SARM compounds, including enobosarm, and the proof-of-concept Phase 2 clinical trial of enobosarm 3 mg for the treatment of postmenopausal women with SUI.

SUI, the most common type of incontinence suffered by women, affects up to 35 percent of adult women.

Memphis-based GTx is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to the discovery, development and commercialization of medicines to treat serious and/or significant unmet medical conditions, including SUI and prostate cancer.

– Daily News staff

Archer Malmo Wins Best of NAMA Awards

Brand communications agency Archer Malmo was honored by the National Agri-Marketing Association at both the national and regional levels of the Best of NAMA awards.

The agency received a national first-place and national merit award, as well as a total of 25 regional awards.

The national awards, presented at the national Best of NAMA awards ceremony on April 11 in Kansas City, were won for the Valor EZ herbicide ‘Liquid Lion’ campaign and the SIMPAS Farm Progress Show direct mailers.

Earlier in the year, Archer Malmo won 25 regional Best of NAMA awards at the Region V awards ceremony, including 11 regional first-place awards and five regional merit awards.

In addition, Archer Malmo had winning entries in the Pacific/West Coast region and the Kansas City region for its work for Valent, Capital Farm Credit and Stoller International.

– Andy Meek

Occupational Therapy Students Host Art Auction

For the second consecutive year, occupational therapy students at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center will host a community art auction to raise funds for the Rachel Kay Stevens Therapy Center at UTHSC.

The Rachel Kay Stevens Therapy Center Art Show and Auction is set for May 8 from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the center, located on the 4th floor of the Boling Center at 711 Jefferson Ave. Admission is free, and the public is invited to view and bid on the pieces created mostly by children who are receiving occupational therapy services or are enrolled in special-needs classes in the community.

Launched in February 2016 by the students and faculty of UTHSC’s Occupational Therapy Department, the center was founded in memory of Rachel Kay Stevens, who died suddenly, shortly after starting her occupational therapy training at UTHSC. The center provides occupational therapy services to the uninsured or underinsured, initially serving only pediatric clients, but now transitioning to serve all ages.

The center is managed and staffed primarily by occupational therapy student volunteers under the direct supervision of faculty.

– Andy Meek

MIFA Founders Day Celebration May 22

As the first of a several events to commemorate MIFA’s 50th anniversary, the nonprofit will hold its annual Founders Day celebration May 22 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Church of the Holy Communion’s Cheney Hall, 4645 Walnut Grove Road.

The event, “MIFA at 50: Celebrating God’s Tapestry,” will pay tribute to MIFA’s interfaith legacy and recognize outstanding donors and volunteers. The keynote speaker is the Rev. Ollie V. Rencher. The city of Memphis, Memphis Islamic Center, Temple Israel, and Church of the Holy Communion are sponsors of the event.

Rev. Rencher was associate rector of Church of the Holy Communion in Memphis for four years prior to becoming rector of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, in 2012. While in Memphis, he served on MIFA’s board of directors from 2008 to 2012.

Rencher is an alumnus of the General Theological Seminary in New York City and is a member of the Fellowship of the Society of St. John the Evangelist.

Honored at the event for their lifetime giving to MIFA will be inductees into the Benefactors Circle of the Norfleet Center of Philanthropy. They are Glenna Boales Flautt, and Erin and Ray Schultz.

Tickets to the event, which includes a brief reception with refreshments and music by Earl Randle, are $35 each. Tables for eight are available for $250.

For reservations, visit www.mifa.org/foundersday or call 901-529-4569.

– Don Wade

Major Violent Crime Drops In Latest Crime Stats

Major violent crime for the first quarter of 2018 was down 5.1 percent in Memphis compared to a year ago and down 4.9 percent countywide over the same period.

The crime statistics from the Memphis-Shelby Crime Commission and the University of Memphis Public Safety Institute released Tuesday, April 17, show major property crime was up 2.8 percent in the city and increased 4.5 percent countywide from the first three months of 2017.

The figures are from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

“While it’s too early to predict a trend, a lot of the steps in the Operation: Safe Community plan that are designed to impact the violent crime rate are now being implemented,” said Bill Gibbons, president of the crime commission and executive director of the public safety institute. “With a focused and sustained effort, we can impact the crime rate significantly.”

Operation: Safe Community is the anti-crime plan backed by a coalition of local law enforcement and criminal justice system leaders.

The rate of murders in Memphis from January through March was down 37.8 percent compared to a year ago with 28 murders through the end of March, or 4.3 per 100,000 population.

The decrease was 35.6 percent countywide over the same period with 29 murders for the entire county, or 3.1 per 100,000 population.

Only one of the four categories that make up the major violent crime rate – aggravated assaults – increased in the first quarter, up 0.4 percent countywide and 1.2 percent in the city.

Motor vehicle thefts drove the city and countywide jump in major property crime for the quarter with a 31.1 percent increase from a year ago in Memphis or 198.9 per 100,000 population. The countywide increase in motor vehicle thefts was 30.8 percent higher than a year ago with 153.5 per 100,000 population.

District Attorney General Amy Weirich, who is chairwoman of Operation: Safe Community, said nearly half of the auto theft cases are the result of drivers leaving keys in the ignition and/or leaving a car running while they step away.

“Certainly lives are always more important than property,” she said in a written statement. “So I am extremely happy to see in this report a reduction in violent crimes both in the city and in the county.”

– Bill Dries

Commercial Appeal Sells 5 Acres to Investment Firm

Gannett Co. Inc., The Commercial Appeal’s parent company, has sold 5 acres adjacent to its 495 Union Ave. location to a New York-based investment company that specializes in acquiring underperforming and underutilized locations from legacy newspapers.

Twenty Lakes Holdings, doing business as 597 Beale Street LLC, purchased the parking lot behind the CA building for $1 million, according to a Tuesday, April 17, warranty deed.

While the parcel that the newspaper building sits on was not included in the sale, sources close to the transaction said they expect Twenty Lakes Holdings’ purchase of the building to be finalized soon.

Twenty Lakes’ portfolio includes more than 180 properties encompassing 2.3 million square feet in 29 different states, according to its website.

Its investment arm targets “opportunistic returns through a focus on legacy newspaper properties, surplus corporate real estate and high yielding transitional real estate backed by companies with investment grade and non-investment grade credit,” the website says.

Twenty Lakes recently acquired a handful of other Gannett-owned newspaper properties, including the Evansville, Indiana Courier & Press building, the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Patriot-News building, the Now Media Group building in Waukesha, Wisconsin, and the Ventura County Star building in Camarillo, California.

– Patrick Lantrip

Mike Miller Added To Memphis Basketball Staff

University of Memphis coach Penny Hardaway has added another assistant to his first Tiger basketball staff: former Memphis Grizzlies swingman Mike Miller. He begins his coaching career after a year away from the game.

Miller, 38, joins former Tiger guard Tony Madlock on the staff.

Miller, a native of Mitchell, South Dakota, played 17 seasons in the NBA, including seven with the Grizzlies. His first stint with the Grizzlies lasted six seasons (from 2002-03 to 2007-08) and included setting several franchise records.

During a game against the Golden State Warriors on Feb. 21, 2007, Miller set the Grizzlies’ single-game scoring mark with 45 points. A month earlier, also against the Warriors, he set a franchise record with nine 3-pointers. Following the 2005-06 season, he was named the NBA Sixth Man of the Year after averaging 13.7 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists.

His second stint with the Grizzlies came during the 2013-14 season, one in which Miller played in all 82 regular-season games and shot 45.9 percent from beyond the arc.

Miller, who played at the University of Florida, also had NBA stints with the Orlando Magic (who drafted him in the first round in 2000), Minnesota Timberwolves, Washington Wizards and Miami Heat. With the Heat, he was on back-to-back NBA championship teams in 2012 and 2013.

– Don Wade

FedEx Freight CEO Michael Ducker to Retire

FedEx Corp. has announced that FedEx Freight president and CEO Michael L. Ducker will retire effective Aug. 15.

Ducker took the helm of FedEx Freight in 2014 after working at FedEx Express for nearly 40 years. Since joining FedEx in 1975, Ducker has held many notable international roles, including vice president of Southern Europe, vice president of the South Pacific and Middle East region, and senior vice president of the Asia/Pacific region.

Ducker was also named the chief operating officer of FedEx in 2009. No successor has been appointed at this date.

“For more than 43 years, Mike Ducker has answered the call when FedEx asked him to lead in each new opportunity and role. Whether in Europe, Asia or the Americas, Mike has been a model of our People-Service-Profit philosophy. His leadership and strategic instinct have been integral in growing the global business we have today,” Frederick W. Smith, FedEx Corp. chairman and chief executive officer said in a release. “There is no way to pinpoint his greatest accomplishment, but I can tell you it is hard to imagine FedEx without Mike Ducker, and that is the mark of a truly transformational leader.”

– Patrick Lantrip

Dixon Files Permit For New Addition

The Dixon Gallery and Gardens has filed a $2.1 million building permit application with the Office of Construction Code Enforcement to construct a new addition to the historic property.

Grinder, Taber & Grinder is listed as the project’s contractor.

Built in 1939 by Hugo Dixon, the palatial estate and its English-style garden at the southwest corner of Park Avenue and Cherry Road was converted into an art museum in 1976 and is known for its extensive permanent collection focused on French and American impressionism.

The 6,000-square-foot addition is being built with a $2.5 million gift from Liz and Tommy Farnsworth. It is one of the largest contributions in the Dixon's history.

The new education building, named in honor of the Farnsworths, will have indoor and outdoor classrooms, a permanent interactive gallery, storage rooms and office space for the Dixon staff. It will include a bus drop off area for school groups, and the public will access the structure through the museum.

The education building will be surrounded by interactive learning gardens.

The building is being designed by architect Brady Moore to be compatible with the Neo-Georgian architecture of the original building.

Dixon officials plan to break ground later this month or in May, with an opening date in early spring 2019. The building will be the first museum expansion since 1985.

– Bill Dries

St. Jude Launches Data Platform for Researchers

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital has launched a new cloud-based data-sharing and research collaboration platform called St. Jude Cloud, an online portal with benefits that include giving researchers quick access to the largest public repository of pediatric cancer genomics data in the world.

St. Jude Cloud was developed as a partnership between the hospital, a biomedical informatics and data management company called DNAnexus and computing giant Microsoft. Among other thing, the new system offers data mining capabilities – which are important to researchers who want to study and find patterns in large data sets – as well as analysis and more, all in a secure cloud-based environment.

The pediatric cancer genomics data available to researchers through the platform is expected to include the availability of 10,000 whole-genome sequences available through St. Jude Cloud by next year. Currently, the platform includes thousands of datasets from more than 5,000 pediatric cancer patients and survivors – data that’s been generated from three large St. Jude-supported efforts.

They include the St. Jude–Washington University Pediatric Cancer Genome Project, which was designed to help provide an understanding of the genetic origins of childhood cancers; the Genomes for Kids clinical trial, focused on moving whole genome sequencing into the clinic; and the St. Jude Lifetime Cohort study, which conducts clinical evaluations on thousands of pediatric cancer survivors throughout their lives.

One example of how the St. Jude Cloud can be used: One of its own scientists was able, in only a few days, to use the platform to replicate experimental findings that took the research team originally more than two years to pull together.

– Andy Meek

Cordova’s Tyler Harris Chooses Memphis Tigers

Cordova guard Tyler Harris on Friday signed a national letter of intent to play at the University of Memphis. Harris led the city in scoring this past season with a 30.3 average.

Harris joins East High’s Alex Lomax in new coach Penny Hardaway’s first wave of recruits. They’re the first local players to sign with Memphis in three years.

– Don Wade

Germantown Multifamily Project Files Eight Permits

Thompson Thrift Development has filed $9.6 million in building permit applications with construction code enforcement officials to move ahead with a Germantown multifamily project.

Known as the Watermark at Forest Hill Heights, the 310-unit complex is slated for a 17.7-acre site on the north side of Crestwyn Hill Drive east of Tyndale Drive.

In total, eight permits totaling $9.6 million were filed for two- and three-story multifamily buildings at various addresses.

The applications list Humphreys & Partners Architects of Dallas, Texas, as the architect and Integrity Structural Corp. as the engineer. No contractor was listed.

Thompson Thrift’s final site plan for the Watermark at Forest Hill Heights was approved by Germantown Planning Commission on Nov. 7.

– Patrick Lantrip

Methodist Le Bonheur Patient Records on iPhone

Patients of Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare now have access to their medical information through the health app available on Apple’s iOS mobile platform.

Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare supports Health Records on the iPhone, which brings together hospitals, clinics and the existing Apple health app to make it easy for patients to see their available medical data from multiple providers whenever they choose.

Before, patients’ medical records were held in multiple locations, requiring patients to log into each provider’s website and piece together the information manually.

Now, patients will have medical information from participating institutions organized into one view, covering allergies, conditions, immunizations, lab results, medications, procedures and vitals, and will receive notifications when their data is updated.

Health Records data is encrypted and protected with the user’s iPhone passcode.

– Andy Meek