Aloha Air Cargo is offering a new interisland cargo service with lower rates for less time-sensitive shipments.

The company's Aloha FlexShip service delivers goods in three to five days and can be used for nonperishable cargo. The service is available between Honolulu and Kahului, Kona, Hilo and Lihu'e.

Aloha Air Cargo is offering a discounted, introductory rate of 18 cents per pound and will offer additional discounts for returning customers. For more information, go to www.alohaaircargo.com.

Aloha Air Cargo is a unit of Seattle-based Saltchuk Resources Inc., which also owns ocean freight shipper Young Brothers Ltd.

HOUSTON FIRM GETS SADDLE ROAD CONTRACT

The federal government has awarded a $32.8 million contract to rebuild a two-lane segment of the Big Island's Saddle Road.

The contract from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Land Highway Division was awarded to a subsidiary of Houston-based civil engineering firm Sterling Construction Co. Inc.

Construction is expected to begin late in the third quarter and last about 24 months, according to the Sterling affiliate, Road and Highway Builders LLC.

UH GRANTED $300,000 FOR OBESITY TOOL KIT

Kaiser Permanente has pledged $300,000 over three years to the University of Hawai'i to develop and implement a tool kit to manage childhood obesity.

The grant is among more than $11 million in grants and donations Kaiser Permanente made to nonprofit agencies and programs during the second quarter.

This UH grant will develop policies for early identification of overweight and obese children, determine implementation of the tool kit by safety-net providers and evaluate the effectiveness of the tool kit.

BELT COLLINS PLACES ON INTERNATIONAL LIST

Belt Collins, a Honolulu-based planning, design and consulting firm, was ranked 118th on the Engineering News-Record's 2009 list of Top 200 International Design Firms.

The firm reported international revenues of $59.1 million in 2008, with $41.4 million of that derived from outside the U.S. Belt Collins was the only Hawai'i-based firm to make the list.

In addition to its U.S. offices in Honolulu, Seattle and Boulder, Colo., Belt Collins has offices in Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Singapore, Bangkok, Bali, Guam and Manila.

Founded in Honolulu in 1953, Belt Collins has more than 500 professional and support staff.