Las Vegas business news briefs

sgreen@lasvegassun.com

Wednesday, April 8, 1998 | 11:12 a.m.

* SIDE AIRBAG USE COULD HELP LV FIRM -- Ford Motor Co. said today it plans to offer side air bags on all its cars starting with its luxury models, making it the first major American automaker to make the safety devices so widely available. General Motors Corp. announced this week that it plans to offer the bags in 15 more of its models by next model year. Six of GM's 81 models already contain the devices. The Las Vegas chemical company American Pacific Corp. could benefit from the growing side airbag market. It makes sodium azide -- which is used in airbag inflators -- at a plant in Cedar City, Utah. AP's sodium azide sales during the fourth quarter were $4.9 million and should trend upward thanks to a three-year, $50 million, contract with airbag maker Autoliv ASP.

* VIDEO POKER ON TRIAL IN SOUTH CAROLINA -- Video gambling is a "scourge of our state" that should be outlawed, a lawyer told South Carolina's Supreme Court today. While the issue has been debated for almost 10 years in pulpits and the Legislature, video gambling has grown into a $2 billion-a-year industry. Gov. David Beasley, who calls video poker "the crack cocaine of gambling," is leading a charge to outlaw it. The state Supreme Court until now had avoided deciding whether video poker is an illegal game of chance or a game of skill. But the issue was thrust at the justices by a federal lawsuit filed against the industry by people who have lost money in the machines. A federal judge hearing that case asked the state's highest court to advise him on the machines' legality The plaintiffs in the lawsuit "seek relief from the pestilence of unlimited lotteries which have become the scourge of our state," their lawyer, Richard Gergel, argued before a packed courtroom today.

* TIMET BUYS ITALIAN FIRM -- Titanium Metals Corp. of Denver, which has a big Henderson plant, said it completed the purchase of Italian titanium maker Loterios S.p.A. It has annual sales of about $22 million and is a leader in supplying the North Sea oil and gas drilling market.

* BANK OPENS HEADQUARTERS -- BankWest of Nevada opened its new corporate headquarters today at 2700 W. Sahara Ave. The bank opened a Henderson regional office last year and plans a third regional center in the Northwest Valley.

* POLE INVENTORY -- Global Positioning Satellite technology will be used to survey the approximately 90,000 utility poles used by Nevada Power in Southern Nevada. The company has contracted with Osmose Wood Preserving Inc. to conduct the survey, which will determine the exact location and size of poles, the amount, type and condition of equipment strung from the poles and whether lines are properly attached. Nevada Power plans to use the information for better response during emergencies and for routine maintenance.

* STARWOOD CREATES NEW HOTEL BRAND -- Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc., owner of Caesars Palace and the Desert Inn in Las Vegas, said it will launch a new hotel brand this fall with a hip, urban style. The W Hotel concept is described as providing business travelers the highest level of service in properties that are sophisticated and retain their distinct personality and sense of style. Starwood is converting three Doral properties in New York into W hotels, and will open additional W properties in Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco and Denver.

* DESERT INN GETS FOUR DIAMOND RATING -- The American Automobile Association awarded a 1998 Four Diamond rating to The Desert Inn hotel-casino, the fifth Las Vegas hotel-casino to receive the distinction. The others are The Mirage, the Golden Nugget, the Las Vegas Hilton and the Rio. The Desert Inn's Monte Carlo restaurant also achieved a Four Diamond rating, awarded to the top 5 percent of AAA-rated properties and restaurants for providing "a skilled and attentive staff, high level of customer service and top of the line amenities and ambiance," according to AAA's Nevada Division manager, Richard Purvis. The 715-room Desert Inn recently completed a $200 million expansion and renovation.

To contact SUN Business Editor Steve Green, call 259-4083 or e-mail sgreen@lasvegassun.com