SYDNEY, Nov 10 -- AsiaNet BUSINESS EXPANSION... TOKYO: VA Linux Systems Japan K.K., Japan's leading Linuxand Open Source solutions provider, announced Wednesday that itwill expand its organization and professional services to takesteps to meet the striking growth of Linux Kernel-relatedbusiness. http://www.valinux.co.jp/en/ REMOTE MANAGEMENT... ZWICKAU & SAN JOSE, Calif.: Peppercon, the OEM division ofRaritan Computer, and Amphus announced Wednesday that they areworking together to add new remote management capabilities toAmphus ManageSite management software. http://www.amphus.com NUTRITIONAL INGREDIENT... PURCHASE, N.Y.: Nutrition 21, Inc. - Three new studiesre-affirm the safety of the nutritional ingredient Chromaxchromium picolinate, further validating a rapidly increasingbody of peer-reviewed scientific research. http://www.elsevier.com http://www.nutrition21.com DRUG SCREENING... GOTHENBURG: Cellectricon announced Wednesday the launch ofthe new Dynaflow Proficient System for increased throughput inion channel drug screening, following a beta-testing of the new48-channel chip and software by GlaxoSmithKline. MEDICAL TEAM... MCLEAN, Va.: PRA International announced Wednesday theaddition of three accomplished oncologists - Elizabeth Oelmann,M.D., Violetta Laszczewska, M.D. and Steven Nagel, M.D. - toPRA's Global Medical and Safety Services group. http://www.prainternational.com ENERGY MANAGEMENT... VICTORIA: One of New Zealand's largest energy providers,Contact Energy, has equipped the country's recently completedWhirinaki power generation plant with an enterprise energymanagement system to track energy output and station service. www.pwrm.com www.qel.co.nz www.mycontact.co.nz ASIAN OFFICE... BEIJING & MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.: NextHop Technologies Inc.,the definitive source for network software solutions, announcedTuesday that it has strengthened its presence in Asia byopening an office in the China Life Building in Beijing. http://www.nexthop.com FINANCIAL RESULTS... SAO PAULO: During the January - September 2004 period, ItauHolding maintained its differentiated performance andreiterated its corporate commitment to social, environmental,and economic dimensions. http://www.itau.comFANNIE MAE... WASHINGTON, D.C.: Fannie Mae will redeem the principalamount of 2 securities issues amounting to a total of US$19.926million on November 19 at a redemption price equal to 100 percent of the principal amount redeemed plus accrued interest. http://www.fanniemae.com ADVERTISING AWARDS... LONDON: The 2004 London International Awards honouringAdvertising, Design and Interactive Media received 14,716entries from 75 countries; Asian countries won 18 categoriesincluding two grand prizes. http://www.liaawards.com NEW PRODUCTS... SAN JOSE: Atmel Corporation, a global leader in thedevelopment and fabrication of advanced semiconductorsolutions, announced Tuesday four new members of the LCD AVR(R)Flash Microcontroller family. http://www.atmel.com MESSAGING SECURITY... CUPERTINO, Calif.: Proofpoint Inc., introduced Tuesday itsnext-generation messaging security solutions, the ProofpointMessaging Security Gateway 3.0 appliance and ProofpointProtection Server 3.0 software. http://www.proofpoint.com NEW CONTRACT... SINGAPORE: Singapore Telecommunications Limited (SingTel)announced Tuesday that it has signed a three-year multi-milliondollar contract with the BMW Group. http://www.singtel.com http://www.optus.com.au COMPANY ACQUISITION... OSAKA: Elecom Co. Ltd. announces that it has acquiredLogitec Corporation, a leading manufacturer of peripheralequipment for personal computers, in an effort to enhance itsoverall business strength. GOLF VENUE... BEIJING: Johnnie Walker announced Tuesday the selection ofBeijing, China, as the host city of the 2005 Johnnie walkerClassic, Asia Pacific's premier golf event. (AsiaNet is a consortium of leading news agenciesdistributing unedited, translated news releases for worldwideclients. Visit www.asianetnews.net for full-text versions.)