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For more B2B news visit MARCH 6, 2017 Volume 25, Number 11 $3.00 Subscribe online Don't miss being a part of biggest sales lead generation day of the year on June 8th 2017 Introducing the ALL NEW Members Push The Hartford Club has unveiled new renovations that aim to attract members as the downtown Hartford social club looks to rebound from a tough few years. PG. 3 G R E AT E R H A R T F O R D ' S B U S I N E S S N E W S w w w. H a r t f o rd B u s i n e s s . c o m Index ■ Reporter's Notebook: PG. 4 ■ Week in Review: PG. 6 ■ The Lists: PG. 9 ■ Deal Watch: PG. 10 ■ Movers & Shakers: PG. 19 ■ Opinion & Commentary: PG. 20 REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK Construction Woes A legal dispute between the owners of Hartford's Radisson Hotel and the contractor hired to do millions of dollars in work to convert the property's upper floors into apartments has delayed the project's launch. PG. 4 Growth Ambitions The University of Hartford's Barney School of Business is closing in on a multi-million-dollar fundraising goal that would enable the largest expansion in its nearly 50-year history. PG. 5 By John Stearns jstearns@HartfordBusiness.com C hanges and consolidations in the financial-services indus- try inspired 24 independent firms around the U.S., including three in Connecticut, to form one of the country's largest benefits firms that executives say will make it easier to compete with other major players that offer more products and services. Alera Group formed in November in what may be one of the largest mergers of its kind — not in terms of deal value but the number of firms joining forces all at one time. Indus- try experts say there could be more deals like it, especially with private- equity investors showing more inter- est in the industry. Overnight, Alera says it has become the country's 14th largest private insur- ance firm and seventh largest private employee-benefits firm with $158 million in annual revenues and more than 750 employees. The three Con- necticut firms — Beacon Retiree Ben- efits Group LLC of Plantsville, CBP of Stamford and C.M. Smith Agency LLC of Hartford — are joining 21 other Continued on page 18 Why one CT producer is investing time, millions to reshore By Gregory Seay gseay@HartfordBusiness.com C romwell factory owner Jack Carey saw the threat looming several years ago, and began steps to protect his product source, employees and the future of family-run Carey Manufacturing Inc. Well before this sitting president's "Amer- ica First'' campaign and mounting public support for boosting jobs at home, Carey, whose company supplies metal latches, catches and handles to commercial, indus- trial and military customers, sought to end its reliance on heavily subsidized Chinese raw materials and manufacturers of hard- ware found on everything from office desks to missile containers. HOMEWARD BOUND Continued on page 16 Carey Manufacturing Owner Jack Carey (right) and staffer Paul Lavoie with a Trumpf Inc. laser cutter. The technology was key to Carey's decision to reshore hardware production. P H O T O | S T E V E L A S C H E V E R John O'Connell, president of C.M. Smith Agency LLC Amid consolidation, CT benefits firms bet on multi-state alliance