HAWAII

Spirent cuts about 40 more Hawaii jobs

Spirent Communications, struggling to adjust to spending delays that have plagued the telecommunications industry, said yesterday it has laid off about 40 people, or 20 percent, of its 212-member Honolulu work force.

The layoffs from the company formerly known as Adtech came as part of a divisionwide reduction by U.K.-based parent Spirent plc, which purchased Adtech in 1997. Spirent, which delivers test solutions and services for the telecom industry, said that overall it is cutting 230 jobs, or 10 percent, of its communications-unit work force.

Spirent announced the reduction in conjunction with an earnings warnings in which it said second-half operating profit will be significantly lower than first. Spirent's stock lost two-thirds of its market value after the warning.

Jackie Jefferson, spokeswoman for Spirent Communications' Honolulu division, said the remaining employees in the company's Kaimuku office will join the rest of its staff in First Hawaiian Center. She had no timetable for the transition.

Earlier this year, Spirent shifted its Hawaii assembly department operations to California.

Island Colony gets $2 million renovation

Marc Resorts Hawaii said it is spending $2 million to renovate the 342-room Island Colony hotel in Waikiki, built in 1979.

The first phase covers the hotel lobby, elevator ports, entry areas and port cochere, and is scheduled to be finished by next week. The second phase will include a new guest services center and renovations to about 150 rooms and suites, to be completed by spring.

Marc Resorts, which manages 15 properties in the state, was sold earlier this year by then-bankrupt time-share operator Sunterra Corp. to Heller-White Hotel Management of Phoenix.

'Legends in Concert' may be back on stage

The Aloha Showroom at Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center could get a $1.5 million overhaul as part of a Las Vegas company's plan to bring the "Legends in Concert" celebrity impersonation show back to Waikiki.

On Stage Entertainment Inc. has been negotiating for a lease with shopping center owner Kamehameha Schools, and would have to cover the cost of renovating the theater.

The former operator of Legends in Concert stopped running the show in 1999 and went out of business. On Stage Entertainment could begin running shows after about three months of renovations, and said it plans to hire 60 to 80 workers.

Young leaders wanted for fellows program

A local non-profit is looking for about 25 of Hawaii's "most promising" residents to enter a nine-month program to help them become Hawaii's future leaders. The Fund for the Pacific Century is looking for people in their mid-20s to early 40s to become Pacific Century Fellows.

The local program, based on the White House Fellows program and chaired by Mufi Hannemann, starts with a two-day retreat and moves to an all-day seminar once a month, each dealing with an individual topic such as the environment, defense, economic development or health care.

One intent of the program, which started in 1996, is that participants will continue to develop and help others after "graduation," said Hannemann, who was a White House Fellow in 1983-84. The cost is $1,500. Companies are encouraged to sponsor employees, but tuition assistance is available.

For more information and applications, call 478-2467. The application deadline is Oct. 29.

In other news ...

The University of Hawaii School of Travel Industry Management is taking its graduate education online, with the introduction of the eTIM graduate-level certificate program. For more information, visit www.tim.hawaii.edu/etim.