Latest news with #FCT
Yahoo
11-08-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Schneider Geospatial Adds FCT to Advance Digital Permitting
CLEVELAND & DALLAS, August 11, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Align Capital Partners' ("ACP") portfolio company Schneider Geospatial, LLC ("Schneider Geospatial" or the "Company") acquired Full Circle Technologies ("FCT"), a Boston-based permitting & licensing software company that streamlines permitting for municipal departments. FCT's cloud-based PermitEyes application allows government officials to electronically receive applications, collect electronic payments, conduct inspections and issue permits. "We are thrilled to have Full Circle Technologies' customers and employees join Schneider, furthering our reach to better service communities in New England," said Jeff Corns, CEO of Schneider Geospatial. "FCT's expertise in local government permitting & licensing and their outstanding reputation for customer service make it a perfect fit with Schneider. Together, we will continue delivering powerful solutions that help communities work more efficiently with improved citizen engagement." Since 2001, FCT has empowered municipalities to move beyond paper-based processes with end-to-end tools for managing permits, inspections, licensing and internal collaboration. Designed for flexibility, the system offers integrated GIS, mobile field capabilities, online payments and configurable workflows to meet the unique needs of each community. "We've always believed that software should adapt to the community, not the other way around," said Rajan P. Nanda, CEO and Founder of Full Circle Technologies. "Joining Schneider Geospatial enables us to bring our mission to more municipalities nationwide, while continuing to deliver the same flexible, responsive service our clients rely on. It's a true alignment of vision, values and opportunity." The acquisition allows Schneider Geospatial to further strengthen its permitting and licensing solution and reinforces its commitment to serving the evolving needs of state and local governments. FCT's clients will continue receiving the high-touch support they expect, now backed by the expanded resources and innovation capacity of a national GovTech platform. FCT marks the fifth add-on for the Company since ACP acquired Schneider Geospatial in June of 2022. Partner Matt Iodice, Managing Partner Chris Jones, Vice President Andrew Foster and Senior Associate Matt Sweet worked alongside management on the transaction. About Schneider Geospatial Schneider Geospatial is one of the nation's largest providers of GIS-based SaaS solutions for Parcel Management, Permitting & Licensing and Asset Management in the GovTech Industry. With a strong commitment to innovation and customer success, Schneider Geospatial empowers over a thousand state and local governments across the United States with comprehensive solutions and expert services to optimize and improve decision-making while enhancing public service delivery. Through strategic acquisitions and a customer-centric approach, Schneider Geospatial continues to shape the future of GovTech solutions. For more information, visit About Align Capital Partners Align Capital Partners is a growth-oriented private equity firm that partners with business owners and management teams to help create shared success. ACP manages $1.8 billion in committed capital with investment teams in Cleveland and Dallas. ACP brings experience and resources to help lower-middle market companies accelerate their growth, to the benefit of management, employees and the firm's investors. ACP makes control investments in differentiated companies within the business services, technology, specialty manufacturing and distribution sectors. For more information, visit View source version on Contacts Media Inquiries Katie Noggle216-505-6463knoggle@
The Star
09-08-2025
- The Star
Nigeria's urban farmers under threat from traffic and developers
Under the din of traffic from the highway bridge that cuts over his fields, Bala Haruna inspects corn, cassava and okra on his family farm. A pump pulls up water from a nearby stream and is diverted through trenches dug through cropland wedged between four-lane roads – fields which were here long before the nearby hotel, the imposing national mosque or any of the high-rises that make up downtown Abuja were even dreamed up. 'There were no buildings here,' Haruna, 42, said, reminiscing over his childhood as birds chirped and frogs croaked. Haruna reminisces over his childhood as birds chirped and frogs croaked in the area. The urban farms dotting Nigeria's capital show the limits of the top-down management the planned city is known for – oases scattered around pockmarked downtown that has long expanded outward faster than it has filled in. They owe much of their existence to the fact that they lie in hard-to-develop gulches along creek beds. Even roads built through them over the years tended to be elevated highway overpasses. That fragile balancing act, however, is increasingly under threat, as developers fill in farmland despite regulations protecting these areas as rare green spaces in a city known for concrete sprawl. On the other side of the overpass, the future has arrived: the vegetation abruptly stops and temperatures suddenly rise over flattened fields razed by construction crews. Farmer Haruna Amadou, 38, at the urban farm in Abuja. Local farmers said the people who took the land three years ago provided no documentation and only gave the eight of them 300,000 naira to split – a sum worth only US$190 (RM801) today after years of rampant inflation. Much of the farmland in and around downtown is supposed to be a municipal green space, with neither farms nor buildings on it. But enforcement of the decades-old Abuja master plan is ripe with abuse and lack of enforcement, said Ismail Nuhu, urban governance researcher who did his PhD on the capital's urban planning. Adding to the sense of precarity is that the land, on paper, belongs to the government. 'Politicians still use it to grab lands, just to say, 'Oh, according to the master plan, this is not to be here',' no matter what the document actually says, he said, adding that, technically, even the presidential villa is not located where it is supposed to be. The urban farms dotting the west African capital show the limits of the top-down management the planned city is known for, oases scattered around pockmarked downtown. Nyesom Wike, the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), which includes Abuja, recently told reporters he would 'enforce' the 1970s-era master plan by building roads and compensating and evicting settlements that stand in the way. FCT officials including Wike's spokesman did not respond to requests for comment. Urbanising country, not enough jobs The farms have provided steady employment – a lifeline for some as the rapidly urbanising country fails to produce enough jobs. A recent opening for 10,000 government jobs saw 450,000 applicants, according to local media. 'Having a green space ... in a very thick, populated city like Abuja does a lot of good,' said retiree Malik Kuje Guni, who started farming three years ago to supplement his pension. While tens of thousands of residents pass by the farms each day without second thought, Guni, when he was working as a civil servant, would often come down to visit, enjoying the shade and fresh air. Now tilling a potato plot of his own, 'I can come down, work, sweat,' the 63-year-old said. 'I have hope something will come out of it.' Souleymane Mari, 40, is one of the farmers in the urban farm, which is increasingly under threat. A few blocks over, squat, informal houses made of wood and sheet metal give way to a field of sugarcane, corn and banana trees. Glass-panelled highrises, half-finished construction and the imposing Bank of Industry tower above. The crops give way to land cleared by developers a few months ago, some of whom pushed into Godwin Iwok's field and destroyed his banana trees. Iwok, who quit his security job 22 years ago to make more money as a farmer, has had parts of his fields destroyed twice in the past two years, neither time with compensation. To Guni, the farms represent the city's rural heritage. Despite decades of government promises to relocate Nigeria's capital from the crowded, congested mega-city of Lagos, the move only occurred in 1991. But neither Iwok, 65, nor Haruna want their children to continue their increasingly precarious line of work. 'I wouldn't want my children to stand under the sun as I did,' Iwok said. 'I only use what I'm getting here... to make sure my children go to school.' – By NICHOLAS ROLL/AFP
Edinburgh Reporter
04-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Edinburgh Reporter
Forth Children's Theatre rocks the Fringe with high-energy musical
Get ready to crank up the volume and feel the beat because Forth Children's Theatre (FCT) is back with a bang for their 44th Edinburgh Fringe production – the sensational, hilarious, and heartwarming musical 'School of Rock', by Andrew Lloyd Webber. This electrifying production promises laugh-out-loud comedy, epic guitar solos, and a whole lot of heart as it storms the stage at Broughton High School (29 East Fettes Avenue, EH4 1EG). School of Rock – hilarious and heart-warming. Based on the hit movie, School of Rock follows down-and-out rocker Dewey Finn who poses as a substitute teacher at a posh prep school – only to transform a class of bookish students into a mind-blowing rock band. Along the way, he shakes up the system, discovers unexpected friendships, and even melts the icy exterior of the school's strait-laced headmistress. With a talented young cast, a live band, and enough high-octane music to blow the roof off, FCT's latest production promises high energy entertainment for families, Fringe-goers, and anyone ready to rock. It is the most complex show FCT has staged and with more than 40 young people taking part it also features one of the largest casts. For many of the cast and band this will be their last show, and many are going on to dance schools, theatre schools and conservatoires around the UK. FCT has played a big part in their musical and theatre training and will hopefully be, as for so many before, a springboard to a career in the arts. Director, Kayleigh MacDonald said: 'It has been a privilege to work with such a wonderful group of young performers who have consistently worked hard to bring their characters to life – tackling intricate harmonies, impressive choreography and the added complexity of live instruments being played on stage.' A talented and dedicated young cast – Broughton High School until Saturday 9 September. Musical Director, Evie Alberti, added: 'School of Rock has been a formative influence on my musical journey. The show's celebration of creativity, individuality, and empowered young musicians – particularly female instrumentalists – played a key role in shaping my aspirations as a performer. Working on this production with such a talented and dedicated young cast has been an incredible experience – and a powerful continuation of the legacy of rocking, fearless female musicians.' Performance Dates: Matinee performances on Wednesday 6 and Saturday 9 September. Evening performance at 7pm from Tuesday 5 to Saturday 9 September. Tickets are available from the FCT Hotline: 07415 082493 or at the Fringe Box Office. Like this: Like Related
Business Times
24-07-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Frasers Centrepoint Trust retail portfolio occupancy hits 99.9% in Q3
[SINGAPORE] Committed occupancy in the retail portfolio of Frasers Centrepoint Trust (FCT) reached 99.9 per cent in the third quarter ended Jun 30, 2025. This was a growth of 0.2 percentage point year on year, and 0.4 percentage point quarter on quarter. The Q3 2024 figure excludes the Tampines 1 mall, and the Q3 2025 figure excludes Hougang Mall, due to asset enhancement initiative (AEI) works, its manager said in a business update on Thursday (Jul 24). The committed occupancy at all of its malls – excluding Hougang Mall – remained above 99 per cent, with several seeing full occupancy. Both shopper traffic and tenants' sales across its retail portfolio increased in the period. Shopper traffic was up 2.1 per cent on a yearly basis; tenants' sales were up 4.4 per cent. The manager expects government support measures, such as Community Development Council and SG60 vouchers, to boost retail spending. The trust's recent acquisition of Northpoint City South Wing further strengthened the portfolio, added the manager, noting that it offers organic growth through potential AEIs and cost-savings over time. This acquisition 'consolidates FCT's position as Singapore's leading prime suburban retail space owner', it said, adding that Northpoint City is well-positioned to benefit from the north region's revitalisation, underpinned by substantial new homes and its transformation into a 'work-live-play hub'. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up The trust has completed equity fundraising of S$421.3 million, and issued S$200 million of perpetual securities, at a 'competitive pricing' of 3.98 per cent. FCT's manager also noted its healthy financial position, with an improved cost of debt at 3.7 per cent in Q3 2025. This is against 3.8 per cent in the preceding quarter, and 4.1 per cent in the corresponding year-ago period. Its average leverage was 42.8 per cent as at Jun 30, or 40.4 per cent on a proforma basis, based on total assets as at Jun 30, assuming the repayment of loans from the proceeds of the perpetual securities. Rents and retail sales remain resilient, amid geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty, the manager said. It noted limited new retail space in the pipeline, with the private retail supply pipeline between 2025 and 2028 estimated to increase by about 2 per cent from the existing private stock. 'Limited supply and healthy demand continue to underpin the Singapore suburban retail market,' it added. The counter closed at S$2.20, down S$0.01 or 0.5 per cent on Thursday, before the announcement.
Business Times
15-07-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Stocks to watch: SGX, Frasers Centrepoint Trust, NTT DC Reit, BRC Asia
[SINGAPORE] The following companies saw new developments that may affect trading of their securities on Tuesday (Jul 15): Singapore Exchange (SGX) : Shares of Hong Kong-listed pharmaceutical group China Medical System are expected to commence trading on the SGX on Jul 15, although there is no guarantee that the proposed listing will happen as it is subject to conditions. The closing price of its shares as quoted on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Monday was HK$12.540, the company said in a bourse filing on Monday. SGX shares closed on Monday 1.2 per cent or S$0.18 higher at S$15.64. Frasers Centrepoint Trust (FCT) : The manager of FCT announced that the agreement between the trustee-manager and property manager of retail mall Northpoint City South Wing has been automatically renewed for a further 12 months commencing from Monday. The agreement is generally aligned with the property management agreements across all retail malls owned by FCT and managed by the property manager, and include the adjoining retail mall known as Northpoint City North Wing. Units of FCT closed up 1.4 per cent or S$0.03 at S$2.22 before the news. NTT DC Reit: Units of the real estate investment trust (Reit) commenced trading on the local bourse at 2 pm on Monday, marking the largest Reit initial public offering on the SGX in a decade. Pol de Win, head of global sales and origination at SGX Group, noted that the listing 'underscores Singapore's position as Asia's leading Reit hub'. Units of NTT DC Reit closed flat at the offer price of US$1 on Monday. BRC Asia : The prefabricated steel reinforcement company secured around S$570 million worth of contracts for the Changi Airport Terminal 5 project, where it will supply steel reinforcement for the substructure of the upcoming terminal. The group said on Monday that the new contracts bring its outstanding sales order book to S$2 billion as at Jul 14, and extend its revenue visibility through to 2029. Shares of BRC Asia closed flat at S$3.33 before the announcement.
