DATE: Wednesday, February 26, 1997          TAG: 9702260435

SECTION: BUSINESS                PAGE: D2   EDITION: FINAL 

                                            LENGTH:   86 lines

LOCAL SCENE

WATKINS, SMITH JOIN THE TAF GROUP: Frederick V. Watkins Jr. was named a project manager and Scott W. Smith was named a design technician at The TAF Group, an architecture, engineering, construction, survey and design/build firm. Watkins was with PHR&A (Patton Harris Rust & Associates) in Virginia Beach and Smith was with GNA Design of Charlotte, N.C.

NEW HRSD MANAGER: D.R. Wheeler, previously director of water quality, was named general manager of HRSD, the region's provider of wastewater treatment services. He will replace James Borberg, who will retire March 1. Guy Aydlett, who was chief of the industrial waste division, will assume the position of director of water quality.

CHILDREN'S WORLD DIRECTOR: Gina Walker was named director of the Children's World Learning Center at 4300 Silverleaf Drive. Prior to this, she served as assistant director at a nursery school in Durham, N.C. NORFOLK

COLONNA'S GETS NAVY CONTRACT: Colonna's Shipyard Inc. has won a $5 million contract from the Navy for an overhaul of the tank landing ship La Moure County. The amphibious warship will arrive at the small Norfolk shipyard March 31 for the four-month overhaul. Colonna's employs about 400 workers and is hiring, said Doug Forrest, vice president of the yard. Colonna's is operating near its capacity, Forrest said. The yard is converting the former Navy oceanographic research ship Tanner for the Maine Maritime Academy as a training ship. That job, from the U.S. Maritime Administration, is worth about $3.7 million. The shipyard has nearly finished a makeover of the former missile tracking ship General Hoyt S. Vandenberg for use in the movie ``Virus,'' to be filmed in Hampton Roads. It also has several tugboats and barges, as well as a Delaware Capes ferry, in the yard for work, Forrest said. The La Moure County contract is Colonna's first significant Navy award since 1995. The La Moure County's home port is Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base.

DONN ELECTED EDITORIAL BOARD CHAIRMAN: Allan G. Donn, a member of the law firm of Willcox & Savage, was elected chairman of the Joint Editorial Board on Unincorporated Business Organizations of the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws and the American Bar Association. The board reviews and makes recommendations for uniform laws among the states governing partnership and limited liability companies.

SEMMEL HEADS CONTRATORS' GROUP: Bob Semmel of E.T. Gresham Co. was elected president of the Associated General Contractors of Virginia, Tidewater district. VIRGINIA

GENERAL MEDICAL ACQUIRED: General Medical, a Richmond-based distributor of medical supplies, has been acquired by McKesson Corp. for about $775 million. The deal, which was completed Monday, creates North America's largest health-care supply management company. Under the agreement, McKesson issued about 2.8 million shares of stock and paid about $174 million in cash. It also assumed General Medical's $428 million debt. General Medical owns 48 distribution centers, seven sales offices and three assembled products centers. The company had $1.7 billion in sales last year. McKesson had $13.7 billion in sales in its latest fiscal year. General Medical officials have said no layoffs are expected as a result of the deal. NEWPORT NEWS

DAVILLI INTERNS AT FORREST COILE: Nicole Davilli was named an intern project architect at Forrest Coile Associates, an architectural and engineering firm. She is a 1996 graduate of Virginia Tech.

BLESSINGS SALES RECORD: Blessings Corp. in Newport News reported record net sales of $158,135,100. It had achieved net earnings of $5,011,900 or $.49 per share on 10,149,692 average common shares outstanding. These results compared with net sales of $156,309,400 in the fiscal year ending Dec. 30, 1995, on which the company reported net earnings of $5,885,200 or 58 cents per share on 10,159,088 average common shares outstanding. For the fourth quarter ending Dec. 31, 1996, the company reported net sales of $42,340,400 and net earnings of $582,300 or 5 cents per share versus net sales of $35,756,100 and net earnings of $1,755,900 or 17 cents per share in the quarter ending Dec. 30, 1995. MEMO: To submit an item for the Local Scene, please fax it to 446-2531. ILLUSTRATION: Photos

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