Acton

Since the Great Recession of 2009, business tenants in Greater Boston, including MetroWest towns along Interstate 495, have enjoyed low commercial rents and the upper-hand in negotiations with landlords. But is that starting to change? It's highly possible, according to data released this month in indSTATus, the industrial real estate market publication by TranswesternRBJ, the Boston-based commercial real estate firm that services clients between Boston and the 495 corridor.

An Acton home construction company has changed hands, with long-time employees taking ownership from the company's founders.

With one of the highest traffic death rates in the Western Hemisphere, Brazil recently took a bold step by requiring all professional drivers to pass a hair drug test when they apply for license renewals every five years. Effective Jan. 1, the Brazilian federal government hopes the law will act as a powerful deterrent to drivers, many of whom transport goods on 18-wheelers on Brazilian highways. By requiring hair testing instead of less-sensitive urinalysis, more professional drivers who use drugs and alcohol habitually will be prevented from renewing licenses, keeping the roads safer.

Acton-based Carbon Design Systems Inc., which builds virtual prototypes for architects and engineers, announced Wednesday an expanded partnership agreement with San Jose-based Cadence Design Systems to create faster and more effective system models.

Sales and profits surged at Psychemedics Corp. of Acton in the third quarter.

The parent company of Enterprise Bank, which has branches in three Central Massachusetts communities, saw net income grow 15 percent for its most recent quarter, and 10 percent for the first nine months of 2013.

A federal appellate court ruled last week that SeaChange International sufficiently modified its video system to avoid infringing on an Arris Group, Inc. patent, the Acton-based video software manufacturer said.

The 495 North submarket, which has struggled with office vacancy and offered lease rates well below those found in neighboring regions, showed signs of improvement in the third quarter of 2013, according to Boston commercial real estate advisory firm Richards Barry Joyce & Partners (RBJ).

Results from a clinical trial suggest that a Cognoptix eye test will be able to improve early diagnoses of Alzheimer's disease, according to the company.

Bombay Duck Co., a Concord-based food processor that supplies specialty food stores across the United States, has moved to a new facility in the Acton Technology Center in Acton, according to a real estate broker involved in the transaction.