Brampton Brick has more than 100 years of history in Canada and recently opened its first manufacturing facility in the United States. Keith Regan learns from the company’s new vice president of strategic planning how the company plans to use diversification along with a continued emphasis on quality and service to pave the way for future growth.

Austin Building Company, a subsidiary of Austin Commercial, is the general contractor for the new W Austin Hotel & Residences in downtown Austin, a 37-story tower combining hotel, condominiums, and retail and office space. Iris Seymour has the story

Abacus Mining & Exploration holds the rights to mine copper and gold from the former producing Afton-Ajax property in British Columbia. Keith Regan learns how a recent joint venture agreement will enable Abacus to bring the mine back into production without diluting shareholder value, with global implications well into the future.

American Sugar Refining is to buy the sugar business of UK food processing company Tate & Lyle for £211 million ($299 million) in cash, it has been announced. 

The group said that the proceeds of the deal, which is expected to be completed within the next two months, will be used to reduce its net debt levels.

France's Sanofi-Aventis has agreed to acquire San Diego-based TargeGen, a biopharmaceutical company, for up to $560 million.  Sanofi-Aventis will make an upfront payment of $75 million upon closing of the deal, which is expected in the third quarter. Further milestones payments will occur at different stages of development of TargeGenÔÇÖs lead product TG 101348.  TargeGen develops kinase inhibitors for the treatment of leukemia, lymphona and other blood disorders.

US-based Emerson Electric Co. has countered ABBÔÇÖs recent offer to buy the UKÔÇÖs Chloride Group with its own offer of ┬ú997 million (approximately $1.5 billion).  The offer, at 375 pence a share, is 15 percent higher than Switzerland-based ABBÔÇÖs 325 pence a share bid, which was announced on June 8 and accepted by Chloride.  Emerson took its offer directly to shareholders after management at Chloride reportedly spurned prior approaches. Emerson has outlined annual operating cost savings of at least ┬ú33 million (approx.

Exploration firm EnCore Oil has announced that its Catcher prospect, off the east coast of Scotland, may hold up to 300 million barrels of oil—about 150 million of which is extractable.

EnCore is the operator of the Catcher joint venture and holds a 15 per cent stake. Premier Oil holds 35 per cent; Wintershall (UK North Sea) holds 20 per cent; Nautical Petroleum has 15 per cent; and Agora Oil & Gas holds a 15 per cent stake.

The proposed acquisition will expand URS’s infrastructure capabilities in the UK across a range of markets, including rail and transit, transportation infrastructure, and ports and harbors.

Peel Airports owns Liverpool John Lennon Airport, Robin Hood Airport near Doncaster and a 75 per cent stake in Durham Tees Valley Airport (local borough councils own the remaining 25 per cent).

 Liverpool's John Lennon Airport is one of the UK's 10 busiest airports, serving almost five million passengers last year, while Robin Hood Airport, which opened in 2005, is its newest airport, serving more than 850,000 passengers in 2009.