1.   Both run more centralized operations, West added.

2.   By selling Transamerica Financial, the company aims to become more profitable with a centralized lending operation and a focus on home-equity loans.

3.   He created a centralized operation to serve customers no longer judged to merit the personal attention of a broker.

4.   Napster was a soft target, a centralized operation in which the pirated music resided on servers conveniently located where the short arm of the law could reach them.

5.   The company faced increased competition from other finance companies with centralized operations.

6.   The Environmental Protection Agency, the US Agency for International Development, and the US Customs Service will consolidate their offices into centralized operations at the site.

7.   The sales are part of a plan to shift to selling consumer loans through a centralized lending operations instead of relying on branches, which are expensive to operate.

8.   The unit, which stores petroleum and chemicals, also has closed sales offices, installed new computers and centralized operations, spokesman George Lowman said.

9.   The unit faced increased competition from other finance companies with centralized operations.

10.   Transamerica plans to use the proceeds from its sale to pay off debt, fund the new centralized lending operations, and buy back stock.