Relocations, consolidations

Two separate Nashville operations are consolidating in Chattanooga offices: Platinum Financial Funding, a mortgage-loan packager, is moving its HQ into existing Noog offices, to better reach markets in Tennessee, Georgia and Florida, according to reported comments by Founder-President Chris Payne, who had been based here. Elsewhere, at least 11 have been laid off in Nashville and Loudon, as nationwide metals distributor Ryerson Inc. consolidates in Chattanooga, citing cost-cutting and efficiency. No word on whether the Volkswagen-Wacker Bubble may be tilting consolidation decisions in favor of Chattanooga, but there is mounting evidence that companies plan to get by with fewer outposts. A third company, multilevel marketer Ecoquest International, based in Greeneville, Tenn., has been bought by Dallas-based Aerus Holdings, and layoffs are apparently in prospect following integration of operations. Ecoquest apparently had FTC legal problems, earlier this decade.