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A.F. Blakemore has extended its charitable trust scheme to include independent Spar retailers.
The Blakemore Foundation, which provides a £150 match fund donation to local good causes, is open to all retailers across the Meridian & Welsh Guild.
Community affairs officer Kate Senter said the extension helped retailers reach out to their communities. “The scheme demonstrates A.F. Blakemore’s on-going commitment to adding value to our trade partners and also making a positive impact in the communities we serve,” she said.
“The Spar estate that we serve represents hundreds of true community stores that play a vital role within their neighbourhoods. This scheme has been set up to recognise and reward the great community retailers that we have across the Meridian & Welsh Guild and encourage more stores to engage with local good causes.”
Four independent Spar retailers have already benefitted from the scheme’s extension. Jag Aytain of Linton Post Office held a community day to help raise funds for new sports equipment for the local school; Dyfed Thomas in Llandysul raised money for the 1st Llandysul Scoutgroup; Charlotte Fuller of Spar Rochester supported the Oliver Fisher Special Baby CareTrust; and Andrew Nardone of Ettington raised donations for the nearby pre-school.


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Researchers from Spain and Ecuador are focused on nature-driven materials for digital fabrication, outlining their findings in the recently published ‘New Materials for 3D-Printing Based on Polycaprolactone with Gum Rosin and Beeswax as Additives.’
Nature is often the inspiration for scientific findings and innovations, and the world of 3D printing is no exception, from the intense study of fish to seashell material to the ever-changing color of the chameleon’s skin, and more. In this study, the researchers experiment with the potential of gum rosin and beeswax as additives, analyzing mechanical, thermal, and structural properties.
Reminding us that polymers are indeed useful in manufacturing and many applications, some do present a hazard to the environment regarding the build-up of waste on the planet. With no desire to add to that problem, the authors sought alternative materials such as biopolymers.
While there are many benefits to avoiding the use of conventional plastics, affordability has typically been an issue, along with finding materials that have suitable mechanical properties. Blends, fillers, and composites are often the key, however, for scientists and innovators when it comes to materials like polycaprolactone (PCL) that require some refining—despite offering benefits such as biocompatibility, biodegradability, and non-toxicity.
The researchers intended to find out whether gum rosin, beeswax, and PCL would offer the ‘synergistic’ effect expounded on by other scientists as it is expected that the mixture not only will support initial benefits of all the materials but also ‘enhance the antimicrobial properties.’ Beeswax has also been known to complement polymers being used in biomedical applications like drug delivery systems. Both GR and BW are known to offer improvements to other materials in terms of adhesion (often an issue in 3D printing), toughness, and behavior of plastic overall.
The researchers used a BCN3D 3D printer with a 0.6 mm diameter nozzle to print samples that could then be compared to standard test specimens. A bed temperature of 40 °C was set for the printing of all materials, but nozzle temperatures varied among the samples, from 90 °C and 150 °C, ‘depending on the easiness of traction of the materials in the printer.’
“These differences aim to achieve and adequate printability,” explained the researchers, noting that just an ‘increment’ in the nozzle temperature could offer increased mechanical strength.
Temperatures of 110 °C for PCL-GR and 150 °C for PCL-BW were chosen as the printing temperatures.
Thermal characterization showed ‘good miscibility’ in the PCL matrix, upon examination of GR and BW, with the added note that GR did increase the thermal stability of PCL.
With GR being used as an additive, the authors noted that the material was then limited to just one phase—while with BW, two phases existed, causing low miscibility and lowered mechanical properties.
“Color measurements showed that the intrinsic coloration of natural additives has a significant effect on the color of the final materials. With respect to wettability, the addition of GR and BW increased the hydrophobic behavior of neat PCL,” said the researchers.
“Finally, it was concluded that the PCL-GR-BW formulation is the most suitable material for a 3D-printing process as it behaves better in the traction mechanism of the printer. Further, it exhibits the thermal and mechanical properties closer to neat PCL.”
What do you think of this news? Let us know your thoughts; join the discussion of this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com.[Source / Images: ‘New Materials for 3D-Printing Based on Polycaprolactone with Gum Rosin and Beeswax as Additives’]
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domain: news


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HANGZHOU, Jan. 19 (Xinhua) -- Instead of carrying heavy luggage back to their hometowns filled with boxes of gifts, more and more Chinese people are choosing to shop online in advance, sending their purchases home ahead of them and making their journeys for the Spring Festival holiday more convenient.
File photo: CGTN
Before the departure of the K1245 train from Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province, to the city of Zhaotong, southwest China's Yunnan Province, 28-year-old Li Mingzhuan arrived at the Hangzhou Railway Station very early.
He only carried with him a 24-inch suitcase and a small plastic bag of snacks for the 35-hour journey to reunite with his family in his hometown.
"I bought some local specialties online like green tea and several toys and school supplies for my children. All of these items will be delivered directly to my home instead of me carrying them all the way there," said Li. "It is really inconvenient to do security and ticket checks when all I have is my hand luggage."
Hu Zhiyun, a 45-year-old migrant worker from eastern Anhui Province, which sits to the northwest of Zhejiang Province, returned home with a backpack and a paint bucket.
"There are also many large shopping malls in my hometown with a wide range of goods," said Hu. "I will go shopping with my daughter and choose some stuff she likes."
Zhang Hong, who has been working at the railway station for 30 years, also saw the changes.
"In the past, the passageways in the waiting rooms were often occupied with suitcases and bags," he recalled. "It would take me a lot of time to keep things in order."
Nowadays, as passengers travel with less luggage, security and ticket check speeds have greatly improved," said Qiao Kezhen, a security check staff of the Hangzhou Railway Station. "Our work is getting easier."
Li and Hu are among the millions of passengers traveling home during the Spring Festival travel rush. Data showed that more than 3 billion trips are expected to be made for this year's Spring Festival holiday, which will run from Jan. 24-30.
According to Alibaba's Cainiao Logistics, the number of parcels delivered to villages and towns in the central and western regions increased rapidly in the past two years, especially during the period two weeks ahead of the Spring Festival, which falls on Jan. 25.
"My journey back home is as long as over 2,000 km, but it is becoming easier and cozier," said Li.


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Despite 2020 being a year of familiar brands, comfort foods and pantry staples, new products still managed to make their mark in a year unlike any other. Infer from this what you will, but the two top-selling new consumer packaged goods (CPG) products of 2020 were alcoholic drinks.
Bud Light Seltzer and Truly Lemonade sit at the top of IRI's annual list of New Product Pacesetters, the best-selling new CPG products launched last year. "While new product plans for 2020 were well underway long before the pandemic turned everything upside down, many new products managed to overcome substantial hurdles, making their way into consumers’ baskets — whether those consumers were masked and in-store shopping … or scrolling, clicking and making purchases online," IRI wrote in its announcement.
Overall demand for CPG products, both food and non-food, was up last year as most consumers hunkered down. Despite their desires for familiarity, "many also looked for innovative products for a change of pace, ultimately driving quite a few new products to big performances."
Top 10 Food & Beverage New Product Pacesetters
- Bud Light Seltzer $193.7
- Truly Lemonade $191.3
- Mtn Dew Zero Sugar $111.2
- Starbucks Creamers $105.0
- Rebel Ice Cream $96.7
- Reign Total Body Fuel $94.4
- Cheetos Popcorn $79.7
- Kinder Bueno $61.7
- Reese's Thins $56.0
- Beyond Sausage $52.6
After those two lightly alcoholic drinks, the top 10 Pacesetters is a mixture of spinoffs of familiar brands (Mtn Dew Zero Sugar, Starbucks Creamers, Cheetos Popcorn, Reese's Thins), a handful of newcomers (Rebel Ice Cream, Reign Total Body Fuel, Kinder Bueno) and one – surprisingly only one – high-profile meat analogue (Beyond Sausage).
"Some products stepped into the spotlight just before the pandemic," IRI wrote, "but the vast majority launched into a retail atmosphere unmatched in history. Some 51 Pacesetter products, including 27 food and beverage entries, launched in fourth-quarter 2019 or January 2020, indicating that more than a quarter of New Product Pacesetters had disproportionate time in COVID-19 and did really well, regardless.
"These top 10 food and beverage and nonfood New Product Pacesetters carry a unique badge in that they won in circumstances never before seen in Pacesetter history."
Every year, IRI analyzes the top food and nonfood CPG brand launches. To be considered for Pacesetters, products must complete a full year of sales in calendar year 2020. IRI begins tracking year-one sales after a product achieves 30% ACV weighted distribution across multioutlet geography. Sales are measured in multi-outlet supermarkets, drugstores, mass market retailers, military commissaries, and select club and dollar retail chains.
As a result, there is a much longer list of Pacesetters beyond the top 10. Based on this bigger pool, IRI made these observations:
- 10 of the top 25 food & beverage Pacesetters this year are beverages, with No. 1 Bud Light Seltzer, No. 2 Truly Lemonade and No. 3 Mtn Dew Zero Sugar each generating more than $100 million in sales.
- Beer, wine and spirits new product launches were significant, as combined they generated 44% of Pacesetter beverage dollars compared with 17% last year.
- Small and extra-small companies represented just less than half of New Product Pacesetter launches but account for less than a quarter of the dollars.
- Big companies had less than a quarter of Pacesetter launches (22%) but they saw 50% of the dollars. Consistent with historical trends, big companies introduce more new products, and many of those earn New Product Pacesetter status. For example, this year Procter & Gamble has 22 Pacesetter products and Nestlé has 12.
The Top 10 C-store Pacesetters
- ZYN (smokeless tobacco) $339.2
- Reign $301.8
- Bud Light Seltzer $166.7
- Red Bull Peach Edition $151.1
- Monster Energy Ultra Paradise $125.5
- Starbucks Tripleshot Energy $78.5
- Mtn Dew Zero Sugar $67.9
- Starbucks Frappuccino with a splash of Cold Brew $66.9
- Red Bull Pear Edition $55.8
- Coca-Cola Energy $54.0


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In a short period of time, Covid-19 has turned everything in the world upside down. Most of the businesses especially retail stores are facing a steep downhill in their sales. Aside from that, there are 34% of the marketers initiated to have their campaigns on-hold for one to two months. According to a study from World Federation of Advertisers (WFA), 79% of the marketers are unlikely to continue with their planned campaign and they will be creating a new campaign that will focus on Covid-19.
In order to not fall too deep, everyone is thinking of the marketing or business strategies that suit their brands and able to benefit the brands and the public at the same time. Restaurants start to do takeaway and delivery services, fitness studios start to conduct fitness classes through Instagram Live, foodies also share some simple dish recipes so people can cook at home, beauty experts share their simple daily skincare routine where everyone is able to do so and also emphasize on the importance of self-care and singers are doing a live concert to keep their fans entertained. During this period of time, it is best for brands and influencers to get closer to their public, build a close relationship with them, and also understand the customers well.
Let’s see how brands adapt to this disaster:
1. Dettol – #handwashchallenge
We might be thinking washing hand is all about just putting soap, rub a few times, wash it away and it’s done. Washing it clean and making sure the virus doesn’t stay on our hands is the most important thing during this period of time. Dettol worked with 10 influencers to come out with a #handwashchallenge through Instagram and TikTok to encourage the public to always wash their hands clean and also making it an entertaining way to do so. Every influencer posted a simple synchronized dance move video of washing hands so that people could join this challenge too and keeping themselves clean all the time. The average engagement rate of this whole campaign was 5.93% with a total number of 83,358 likes and 622,727 views.
2. Uniqlo – AIRism Collection
In accordance with MCO, we know all the retail shops are forced to close. But, this does not stop Uniqlo from staying connected with their customers. They took the initiative by showing how the brand responds to the outbreak. Aside from that, Uniqlo worked with Jared and Marianne – Grim Film to come up with a short video to promote their AIRism collection where you still can be productive and stay cool at the same time when you are stuck at home. The video has a total of 25,549 views and a 4.78% engagement rate.
3. Maxis – #KitaSapokKita
Maxis launched the #KitaSapotKita campaign with the aim of using entertainment and business contents to encourage Malaysians to inspire each other positively and bring everyone closer during this MCO. Maxis had separated the campaign into 3 different parts and collaborated with a number of local artists, influencers and business opinion leaders to make the whole campaign goes well. For the first part of the campaign, Maxis came out with a short music video “Make It Through” sang by Faizal Tahir and Zee Avi together with 10 other local artists and it has gained over 3.4million views and over 26,000 hours of watch time since the first day of the video launched.
As for the second part of the campaign, Maxis collaborated with online influencers like Jestinna Kuan, Sazzy Falak, Leona Azhar, Farhanna Qismina, Alyssa Dezek and so on to raise the awareness of staying at home and connected with Maxis. Influencers will be doing a daily live steam session to share out the positive vibes and keep the public entertained at home as well as encourage them to share what they do daily at home also with the hashtag of #KitaSapotKita. Aside from that, they also did a TikTok parody of Ayda Jebat’s “Duduk Diam Diam” to encourage people to stay at home. This campaign has an average engagement rate of 4.02% and 452,768 likes in total.
Maxis is also aware that businesses are unable to operate as usual and it could bring a big loss to the business so Maxis wanted to do something to help them in a different way. Maxis co-creating 100 stories with the collaboration with different industries of Business Opinion Leaders with practical tips and tricks on how the businesses can survive during this tough time.
It has been a tough time for everyone during this MCO, but we all should work even harder instead of giving up. Even with the restrictions of moving around, we are also able to help everyone in different ways. Brands and businesses are trying hard to find their way out from the hardship and they will come out stronger with new campaigns through social media. Let’s spread positivity during this period of time and go through it together.


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One of WiFi’s biggest limitations is in large areas that need a wireless LAN. Challenges of WiFi related to cost, performance, reliability, and security have created a gap that Private LTE can fill.
Ken Hosac's Blog
Taking a case-by-case strategy when it comes to smart city initiatives can help deliver a more capable, economical, and productive city in the long run.
Recently Cradlepoint customer Kymeta brought together a range of technologies for a demonstration that showed what’s possible for first responder agencies, including SD-WAN in vehicles.
Enterprises must find ways to fully embrace the increasingly technology-dependent business landscape while implementing the most comprehensive security plan they’ve ever needed.
As IoT develops, many companies are trying to come up with a game plan for how to incorporate it into their future business scope. IoT World offers chances to get answers and to gather a better understanding.
Networking advancements have given police departments opportunities such as body cameras, on-board cameras, in-vehicle computer data terminals with Internet access, traffic-monitoring radar units, and more.
The digital signage displays at Digital Signage Expo 2018 showed a variety of offerings from simple display screens to bigger, bolder, engaging displays. However, while many organizations want digital signage, adding the applications to their main network is not an option.
A digital landscape lies ahead, and despite hesitations, many organizations are transforming their WANs to align with a cloud and mobile environment. With most organizations still learning how to mesh old processes with new ones, the months ahead likely will show a few bumps in the road as CIOs find their balance with new digital strategies.
In industries ranging from retail and restaurants to healthcare, education, and public safety, organizations are deploying cloud-managed, software-defined IoT solutions over 4G LTE networks — and achieving the flexibility, scalability, security, and cost-effectiveness they need amid the Digital Transformation.


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The much awaited festive food expo in the country - World Food Expo (WOFEX), returns with thousands of exhibitors showcasing their proud line-up of food and beverage products.
This year's WOFEX happened last August 3-6,2016 in the two of the most popular event venues in the Metro - the SMX Convention Center and the World Trade Center Metro Manila. The expo for two venues is focused on two different kinds of buyers. The World Trade Center event is dedicated for traders concentrated for commercial and institutional accounts. While WOFEX Marketplace, which happened in SMX Convention Center, is open to the general public and all the market-ready products on display. As expected, this 4-day big food expo is attended by thousands of expo visitors.
Along with its purpose to connect with the buyers and traders, WOFEX also served as a battleground of the Philippine Culinary Cup, wherein the finest culinary chefs and students from different schools certified by the World Association of Chefs Societies meet. There's also the WOFEX University, wherein the experts in the food and beverage industry did free seminar for those who wants to learn advanced culinary education.
The Franchise Asia Philippines is a huge success as thousands of exhibit guests visited the Asia's Biggest 4 in 1 Franchise Event. With the theme "Building Inclusive Growth Amidst a Hypercompetitive World", this world-class franchise expo happened last July, 20-24, 2016 in the SMX Convention Center, Pasay City.
This is a great opportunity for those who plans to open a franchise business, not only in the country but also in Asia. Big and small companies joined to the 2016 edition of Franchise Asia Philippines popular franchise brands including 7-Eleven, Mini Stop, Goldilocks, Phoenix Petroleum, Seaoil, Julie's Bakeshop.
Last July 8-10, 2016 happened the 5th Travel Madness Expo in SMX Convention Center. Thousands of exhibit guests came to grab chances of many surprising offers by participating exhibitors. Aside from promos and discounts, the event organizers and exhibitors prepared some fun activities to entertain and help the guests forget the tiresome search for good travel deals.
Different tourism boards from Asia joined to invite Filipinos in their country. To name a few, Korea, Japan, Turkey, Singapore and Thailand offer mouth-watering deals for those wants to travel and find new destinations.
This is a guest contribution from writer Boom Rizal.
Any type of event, whether it’s a business conference or a family gathering, require an event planner who will handle most, if not everything, that should be organized and coordinated to make sure that the event is successful. Event planners manage every single detail—from invitations and food to the location and theme of the event. Of all the things that could go wrong, such as delays in food preparation, missing materials or venue cancellation, perhaps the worst that can happen would probably be losing the event planner and not being able to find a suitable replacement in time.


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General Maritime Corporation
will sell six double-sided Aframax tankers en bloc to Seatankers Management Co. Ltd., Cyprus for $127.5 million. The Company also announced that it has agreed to sell the Genmar Commander
, a 1989-built single-hull Aframax vessel, to Polembros of Greece for $18.5 million. The Company expects to realize a net gain of $22.5 million from the sales. The Company intends to utilize the proceeds to pay down debt and for corporate purposes which may include share repurchases; therefore the proceeds will be excluded in the calculation of the dividend for the applicable quarters. Deliveries of the six double-sided vessels are expected to take place from November 2005 thru January 2006. Delivery of the Genmar Commander is expected to take place late November 2005.
Peter C. Georgiopoulos, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President, commented, "We are pleased to have sold our last single-hull and double-sided vessels and have once again acted opportunistically thereby modernizing the Company's fleet and creating shareholder value. In a little over six weeks the company has transformed itself into a more modern fully double hull company with over a billion dollars in liquidity. The Company has substantially strengthened it balance sheet, which it intends to draw upon to create future shareholder value. In addition to pursuing opportunities to expand our fleet, we will also consider other value-creating transactions such as stock buybacks. At the same time, we intend to continue to provide shareholders with the opportunity to receive a cash dividend."
Following completion of the recently-announced sales of 17 vessels and including the four Suezmax newbuildings to be delivered between 2006 and 2008, the average age of General Maritime's fleet will be reduced to 9 years, and its entire fleet will be double-hull.


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Crytek's Cevat Yerli has stated that if Germany bans action games, the company will be forced to relocate to another country.
"A ban on action games in Germany is concerning us because it is essentially like banning the German artists that create them," he stated. "If the German creative community can't effectively participate in one of the most important cultural mediums of our future, we will be forced to relocate to other countries.
"The current political discussion will deprive German talent of its place on the global game development stage, and deprive German consumers of entertainment that is considered safe and fun around the world."
German legislators are contemplating a ban on action games due to the inherent violence contained in them.
This would mean that not only would retailers be prohibited from selling titles of this genre, but companies could no longer manufacture or develop action titles either.
More over on PC Games Germany.


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Rumor: Wii U will have a Mario game at launch
During GTTV’s All-Access Weekly show host Geoff Keighley let slip that “Mario Wii U” will be out at the system’s launch.
We’re not sure exactly what context he said it in, but it appears like he let it slip before he was suppose to reveal it. This isn’t much of a surprise as Nintendo has said they will be showing off a Mario game for the Wii U at E3 based off last year’s demo of New Super Mario Bros. Mii.
We’ll follow up with more details as they come in. Stand down excited gamers, as this could end up being a simple prediction from the GTTV host, not actual confirmation.


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- 1 min read
Google to roll back app permissions list on Play Store
According to Techcrunch, Google didn't specify when the permission section will be back on the PlayStore
After initially removing them in place of Data Safety labels, tech giant Google has now said that it is rolling back the app permissions list on the Play Store.
The tech giant, however, did not specify when the permission section will be back on the Play Store, reports TechCrunch. "Privacy and transparency are core values in the Android community. We heard your feedback that you find the app permissions section in Google Play useful, and we have decided to reinstate it. The app permissions section will be back shortly," Android Developers wrote on Twitter."
Privacy and transparency are core values in the Android community. We heard your feedback that you find the app per… https://t.co/MNdSuMvB53— Android Developers (@AndroidDev)1658415753000
The Data safety section provides users with a simplified view of how an app collects, shares, & secures user data, but we also want to make app permissions information easily viewable for users to understand an app's ability to access specific restricted data and actions too," it added.
Google launched the Data Safety labels on Play Store in April after announcing them last year. Apple, on the other hand, launched its own data privacy labels in 2020, showing what data an app can collect from the people. As Google was rolling out the Data Safety label across apps over the last few months, several blogs and researchers noted that Google also removed the permissions section, allowing one to see what kind of data access an app has on your phone from the Play Store.
Google had removed the permissions section from its Play Store a few days back.
Users could still go to the apps menu on their phone and check out permissions for the individual app, but it's not just reflected on the install page on Google's app store. But the new change will let them see both Data Safety labels and app permissions directly from the Play Store.


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Archive for 26 October 2011
We’re not so sure about the Mass Effect 3 Multiplayer [Preview]
Any multiplayer component for Mass Effect 3 was always going to have to be more than the usual offerings of deathmatches, leaderboards and/or hideously tacked-on co-op.
Midasaurus: Jurassic Park goes gold
Telltale has announced that Jurassic Park: The Game has now officially gone gold.
Royale with games: new indie bundle scheme launched
Indie Royale will bring fortnightly deals on bundles of four indie titles.
New XIII game is an ‘interactive story’
First screenshots below.
A new photo album on French publisher Anuman Interactive’s Facebook page has provided further snippets of info regarding the new XIII game which we broke news of last week.
Activison try to keep you from BF3 with COD double-XP weekend
In war, timing is everything.
This weekend Activision will be holding double-XP weekends for both Black Ops and Modern Warfare 2 across all applicable platforms.
GTAV could sell 25 million copies, says some guy
How to get quoted in a videogame publication 101.
Some guy named Arvind Bhatia, an analyst for Sterne Agee (who?), believes the Rockstar’s recently announced Grand Theft Auto V could sell 25 million copies.
Hero of the Galaxy: MDK 2 HD [Review]
I have two enduring memories of the MDK series, and the first is of MDK2 on Dreamcast having some of the worst controls I’ve ever suffered in my life.
Beauty and the beast: Battlefield 3 [360 Review]
[PS. If you’re only interested in multiplayer, scroll about hafway down to the ‘Multiplayer’ heading.]
“Boys, we’re attracting a lot of fucking attention!”
Spoken early in Battlefield 3’s campaign, is that line that perhaps sums up this FPS juggernaut more than any other.


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Former Galvin Pool Co. site in Orange is new home for large liquor store
Liquor store to move there
ORANGE >> The former Galvin Pool Co. building at 374 Boston Post Road has been purchased by the family that owns Racebrook Wine & Liquor World for $1.2 million, according to officials with North Haven-based Pearce Real Estate, which represented both the buyer and seller of the property.
Racebrook Wine & Liquor World is currently located in Firelite Shopping Center, but plans to relocate to the Gavin Pool building in the not-too-distant future, according to Paul Grimmer, executive director of the Orange Economic Development Corp.
Tom Smith, the owner of the store, was not immediately available for comment on when Racebrook Wine & Liquor World might move.
Grimmer said the Galvin Pool building “has been under-utilized for the past five or six years,” attracting only temporary or seasonal tenants.
“This is a positive for Orange, given the high visibility of the building involved, ” he said, referring to the Galvin Pool building. “The liquor store has a good following that will move with them to the new location. I can’t imagine their current space being empty for long either.”
The former pool retail space was owned by Galvin Realty Associates.
The Galvin Pool building gives Racebrook Wine & Liquor World both warehouse and retail floor space. The 17,000-square-foot building includes a 6,000-square-foot warehouse and 11,000 square feet of retail space.
The Smith family bought the business in 2008 when it was known as the Race Brook Package Store and there was just 3,300 square feet of space. Since then, according to Racebrook Wine & Liquor World website, the business has expanded the space it has in the Firelite Shopping Center to 12,000 square feet.
Call Luther Turmelle at 203-680-9388.


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Good news to all Shopee lovers!!! Shopee partners with leading global quick-service restaurant McDonald’s for its Shopee 12.12 Big Christmas Sale. From December 1 to 12, users can play Shopee Shake for a chance to win McDonald’s Shake Shake Fries and up to 12 million Shopee coins.
Users can play Shopee Shake at 12:00 NN and 9:00 PM daily for a chance to win McDonald’s Shake Shake Fries. On December 10, consumers can look forward to upsized Shopee Shake sessions with 7 rounds while on December 12, users can play up to 8 sessions for more chances of winning.
Winners of the Shake Shake Fries will receive a special code via push notification that they can present at any McDonald’s branch nationwide to redeem their prize.
And don’t forget on December 12, Shopee 12.12 Big Christmas Sale will feature all-day sitewide free shipping with ₱0 minimum spend, 50% off deals, and amazing prizes to be won from Shopee Catch and Shopee Catch, including an iPhone 11. Users can also tune in to Shopee Live at 6 PM every day for a chance to take home ₱10,000 worth of prizes.
Shoppers should stay tuned as these major brands will be giving away discounts up to 70% off:
FMCG brands including Pampers, Pantene, Safeguard, Olay, Enfagrow, Unilever, Maybelline, and Nestle
Electronic brands such as Vivo, Tigernu, Globe, and Huawei
Lifestyle brands like SM Store and Bosch Fashion brand INSPI
For more information about the Shopee and McDonald’s partnership, visit https://shopee.ph/ShopeeXMcdo.
Find out more about Shopee 12.12 Big Christmas Sale at https://www.shopee.ph/12-12.
So what are you waiting for? Download the Shopee app for free via the App Store or Google Play.


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In an astonishingly hostile remark today, Tesla CEO Elon Musk concluded that Apple is the place for those who can't make it at Tesla, jokingly referring to it as the 'Tesla graveyard'.
...of Windows devices with tiny prices, iCortana, and an amazing little Pi
LG 65" 4K OLED Curved TV review
First Look: LG V10
Hands-on and first impressions of Microsoft's Lumia 950 flagship
As general release nears, what do you think of Windows 10 Mobile?
Hands-on and first impressions of Microsoft's Lumia 950 XL flagship
lumia 950 xl
Google has officially announced its partnership with major automobile manufacturers in forming the Open Automotive Alliance to integrate Android in cars for navigation and entertainment purposes.
Nokia's entry into the world of in-car connection is HERE Auto, connecting cars to the cloud with a number of features revolving around navigation whilst APIs will pave the way for future development.
If you've ever wanted to see how far you could take the concept of car modification, 3DTuning might be the best thing since sliced bread. The site allows you to butcher cars to your heart's content.


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Coronavirus-stricken tourism stakeholders have welcomed the UK decision to remove travel advice urging British nationals to avoid all but essential travel to Cyprus.
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) said based on the current assessment of Covid-19 risks, Britons could travel to the Mediterranean island for non-essential reasons, overturning their previous advice.
News of the travel advice comes days before the UK is set to revaluate its COVID assessment of countries when updating its traffic light safe travel list.
Cyprus is on the UK’s amber list of countries, which means travellers have to take a COVID test within 72 hours before they travel back to the UK and spend 10 days in quarantine upon return, then take another test on day two and eight.
However, a recent UK government decision will allow fully vaccinated Britons to travel to amber countries without self-isolating from 19 July.
The Cyprus Hotel Association welcomed the development as one less obstacle in the path of British tourists.
“In the gloomy landscape caused by the pandemic crisis and Cyprus’ epidemiological performance, this development is like an oasis in the desert.
“We can be moderately optimistic that a dynamic trend from our traditional market will start to build over the next few weeks or even days,” said CHA Director-General Philokypros Rousounides.
He told the website Stockwatch that the lifting of the travel advisory means that British holidaymakers can make their travel arrangements, knowing that insurance companies will now have to compensate them for any last-minute cancellation or other unexpected problems.
However, the island is not yet in the clear; it may not be in the amber category after Thursday when the UK revaluates the safe travel list.
Last week, Cyprus was put in the highest risk ‘dark red’ zone by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) after registering 493.13 cases per 100,000 inhabitants over 14 days.
Cyprus was the only EU country slotted in the ‘dark red’ zone, deemed the riskiest from an epidemiological standpoint.
Although reports say it is unlikely to happen following the FCDO’s change of advice on Monday, it could see the island slip into the UK’s red category.
Cases remain stubbornly high, peaking at 993 last week.


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BusinessDay Leads Discussions around SMEs’ Funding
The session delved into the impact of current economic state on lending appetite, among other aspects
Telecoms: Announcing LATTICE Conference 2022 by BusinessDay
BusinessDay is set to host a conference tagged Lattice; a major telecoms conference.
Interswitch Collaborates with Industry Stakeholders for The Future of Payment and Fraud Conference
In light of advancements in global payment systems, Africa’s leading integrated payments and digital commerce company, Interswitch, has been confirmed as a gold sponsor of the Future of Payments and…


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Every month, SecureState CEO Ken Stasiak addresses the hottest topics in information security, providing his unique spin on all the issues..
Holiday “Critical Warning” Why your security team should be on high alert.
Amazon Shows Off Planned Drone Delivery Service In a PR stunt that made lots of headlines, Amazon unveiled their Air Prime delivery system, which uses drones to deliver packages. This opens up a whole new arena for hackers and criminals.
Top Infosec Stories of 2013 Ken weighs in on the biggest stories of the year including:
Associated Press Hacked
And ongoing Obamacare Problems
Beyond Security: 2014, 15, 16 . . . The security industry is changing and so is the role of CISOs. Ken talks about this evolution and introduces a new series published by SecureState. Read More >>
State of Security – November 2013
State of Security – September 2013
State of Security – August 2013
State of Security – July 2013


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Navistar recalling thousands of International trucks for
Apr 30, 2021 · Navistar is recalling thousands of certain International trucks due to an issue that may cause the engine to stall. Specifically, Navistar is recalling more than 10,000 International LT and RH trucks model year 2019-21. According the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the wrist pin in the engine may crack and cause connecting rod failure.
DA: 57 PA: 36 MOZ Rank: 57


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SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Shares of Network Appliance Inc. rose nearly 7% Wednesday evening as the company met its prior earnings forecast and offered a upbeat outlook for its fiscal year, while Salesforce.com Inc. shares fell more than 10% after it lowered its financial outlook for the remainder of the year.
The Nasdaq-100 After Hours Indicator, which tracks the evening action of the technology-heavy index's leading shares, was up 0.29 point at 1,582.58.
Network Appliance shares
Network Appliance also said its fiscal year earnings would fall in the 76 cent to 79 cent range, ahead of the 73 cent projections of analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call. See full story.
Salesforce.com Inc. shares
Shares of Hot Topic Inc. HOTT fell 12.7% to $13.80 after the company turned in weaker second-quarter earnings and signifcantly chopped its third- and fourth-quarter forecasts. The teen-wear retailer said it made 2 cents a share for the quarter as total sales rose 12% to $152.2 million, while sales at stores open longer than a year declined 3.5%.
Hot Topic warned that third-quarter earnings will fall in a per-share range of 15 cents to 18 cents and in a range of 30 cents to 38 cents for the fourth quarter. See full story.
Shares of Synopsys Inc.
Shares of Morgan Stanley
BEA Systems Inc. BEAS shares fell less than 1% to $9.25 after the company reported second-quarter net earnings of 9 cents a share. Pro forma earnings were 9 cents a share. Revenue rose to $285.2 million from $262.3 million last year. The San Jose, Calif.-based infrastructure software firm was expected to report earnings of 9 cents a share on revenue of $286 million, according to analysts. See full story.
Harman International Industries Inc.


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It’s been a little while since Persona 5 launched on PS3 and PS4, garnering a 10/10 from PlayStation Universe. So naturally Atlus are looking to the future of that series and beyond. We’re talking Persona 6 and beyond!
So when Atlus released a survey about its franchises, you can bet your bottom dollar it was going to ask about Persona 6.
Who wants Persona 6?
The Japanese survey touches on multiple franchises and mediums for them. Where Persona is concerned, the survey asks if fans want a Persona board game, fighting game, online RPG, strategy RPG, action RPG, or even (shudders) a shooter. Oh and you know, maybe you might just prefer a completely new plain ol’ Persona 6? That’s thankfully an option too.
Intriguingly for each of those options, the additional question arises over which platforms you’d like to see them on. Notably, all three existing PlayStation platforms are options with PS4, PlayStation VR, and PS Vita among the selection. A VR Persona? Yes, I can deal with that.
Anyone for a Persona Remake?
Another big talking point is Atlus asking if fans want a remake of one of many of the developer's games. The list includes The whole freakin’ Persona series, both the Devil Survivor, and Devil Summoner series, Etrian Odyssey, Digital Devil Saga, and the numbered Shin Megami Tensei titles. I can almost hear the cacophony of fans screaming YES! NOW DAMMIT! at their screens for a few of those.
This is followed up by a question on spinoffs, something Atlus is rather prolific at. developed by other developers. The likes of Soul Hackers, Devil Summoner, Devil Survivor, Persona, Shin Megami Tensei, and Etrian Odyssey are among the options here.
The final highlight of the survey comes from Atlus asking if new IP’s are wanted. If so, it then asks which of its development teams would you want to tackle such an intimidating task.
Atlus’ stock has risen significantly in recent years. Mainly thanks to the growing success of the Persona series in the West. That it’d be equally exciting to get a new entry, spinoff or brand new IP from an Atlus studio says a lot about the enduring quality of the games it puts out.


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The investing platforms shares dropped after an SEC filing indicated that early investors in the company will sell up to about 98 million shares, currently worth around $6.3 billion, over time.
The ride-hailing giant has been in discussions about how it could resolve some of the problems that emerged after it listed on the NYSE on June 30, according to people familiar with the matter.
The popular trading app isnt the first to sell a piece of itself to its own customers. Investors who jumped on prior brokerage-firm IPOs often ended up shooting themselves in the foot.
An additional after-tax contribution to your 401(k)now allowed in the plans of many large employers can grow tax free if its moved to a Roth account.
Deal activity and public offerings in the advertising and marketing technology industry are rising as the sector gets a boost from a flush of available capital and companies looking for a share of a growing digital ad business.
Investors should savor the dividends and buybacks coming from big U.S. banks right now. They might not get the same kind of boost next year.
The company led by CEO Dan Houston is planning to exit most of its business selling life-insurance and annuities to American consumers.
In a year of twin crises related to the collapse of clients Archegos and Greensill, Credit Suisse had a booming blank-check business to fall back on. That has now slowed dramatically.
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Fifteen-year-old Carter Kostler thinks people like their water with kick.
The Virginia Beach resident and Cox High School student does.
For years, Carter and his family drank from pitchers that his mother, Carla Weisman, filled with water and fruit, which added a healthy zing.
That was fine for home.
"Whenever she left the house, she grabbed a soda or juice," he said. "That's where I got the idea."
Carter's idea drew attention from no less than Bill Clinton and Michelle Obama. So he sketched out a design, and the Define Bottle was born.
The 16.9-ounce water bottle contains two segments, with a filter that separates the two, so water becomes infused with the fruit, which stays contained in the bottom chamber. The water flows freely through both segments.
He found a company, A N Design Lab in Los Angeles, he thought could turn his idea into a product. Carter's stepfather, Mark Weisman, a Norfolk doctor, was the "chief check writer," and contracted the firm to put the design to work.
Weisman made an initial investment of $200,000.
The Los Angeles firm contracted with a Chinese company, which produced 1,500 of the bottles, most of which sold out online.
A second batch of 2,500 had a major hiccup - they were warped, so now Carter and his parents are waiting on a third batch. They have just placed another order for 10,000 bottles
Carter calls the bottle "eco-chic," because it's made of co-polyester materials that are phosphate-free.
Like any other entrepreneur, one of the biggest challenges Carter has faced is marketing the bottle. One of his first moves: He registered the domain names spawaterrecipes.com, fruitinfusedwaterrecipes.com and infusedwaterrecipes.com.
That turned out to be a good idea.
An organizer of Bill Clinton's Clinton Foundation Health Matters Initiative conference came across one of those websites and asked Carter to attend in January.
There, Clinton recognized Carter during a speech, and Carter donated 500 bottles to conference attendees.
In March, he attended Michelle Obama's Conference on Childhood Obesity. The bottle was chosen as one of the top three finalists in Obama's Childhood Obesity Innovation Challenge.
Carter and Weisman recently returned from the Las Vegas Healthy Beverage Expo, where Carter picked up several retail accounts and sold 100 bottles, which retail for $29.95
Latest Inside Business
While there are other similar water bottles on the market, Carter said the Define Bottle is different because it has a patent pending on a freezable base to keep the water cold and a strainer piece in the middle of the bottle to keep the fruit separate from the water being consumed.
In addition, he said, other bottles require drinks to mash up or "destroy" the fruit. The Design Bottle does not.
Carter hopes to eventually sell the bottles in speciality stores such as Whole Foods.
As for his future, Carter hasn't decided on a career path.
"I don't how far these things will go," he said. "I'll probably put up another entrepreneurial effort, expand or come up with a new idea."nib


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RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) – At the beginning of the pandemic, Raleigh city officials implemented curbside pickup zones to help local businesses continue to serve customers even when their doors were closed.
This week, city council members agreed to make two dozen curbside pickup zones in the city permanent. Parking in these zones will be restricted to 30 minutes.
City staff say those pickup zones provide both customers of local businesses, and food delivery services, safe and convenient locations to pick up and drop off orders from businesses.
Click here to view a map of the curbside pickup zones in the city,
In addition, city council agreed to convert 11 loading zones into mixed use loading. The mixed use loading zones can be used for vendor deliveries or by customers for pick-up orders.
City staff said they alerted impacted property owners and business owners and received no
responses with concerns. The permanent conversion of these spaces will impact some visitors to downtown. The city reported the zones would take away 44 metered parking spaces throughout the Downtown Corridor.
This isn’t the city’s go around with making these spaces permanent. In March, they traded in 15 parking spots for eight curbside pick-up zones along Hillsborough Street near N.C. State.
Curbside pickup zones are not the only pandemic-era adjustments sticking around. In Nov. 2021, city leaders agreed to spend $500,000 from their American Rescue Plan funding to expand outdoor dining. The money was used create up to 20 permanent outdoor dining extensions for businesses.
The city agreed to construct the platforms, walls and security measures. Businesses were responsible for installing any plants, furnishings or heaters to personalize them. The spaces would take up what’s traditionally been parking or loading spaces.


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Most people would never hand over their credit cards to strangers, but many do every time they eat at a restaurant when they pay for their meal.
In New York City, investigators arrested 13 people accused of preying on unsuspecting patrons at restaurants in at least five states. They are expected to be arraigned Monday.
When customers paid by credit card, the crooks skimmed their information using devices so small, they can fit in a pocket.
"They take it out and they skim your card," The Early Show financial correspondent Susan Koeppen said. "And then they move on and they actually do your transaction. That little device can hold hundreds of credit card information. Then they sell that information. They make counterfeit cards and then they go on shopping sprees."
The people who were just arrested are accused of making counterfeit cards and racking up more than $3 million in fraudulent charges.
Sean Steele recently fell victim to skimming at a restaurant in Washington, D.C.
"You sort of just trust or trusted a waiter or server to run the transaction and bring my card back," he said.
Now some restaurants are taking action to combat the problem. Hooters, for example, is testing portable devices that will allow patrons to pay their tabs right at the table, so their credit cards never leave their sight. It's an effort to make things more convenient for customers and to crack down on fraud.
But this kind of theft isn't limited to restaurants. The No. 2 location is gas stations and it can also happen at ATM machines. It even happened to Koeppen.
"My credit card company called me and said, 'Are you in Japan right now buying shoes?' And I said, 'No, I'm in Chicago.' They said, 'Well, somebody has your credit card and is trying to buy a pair of shoes.' I looked in my wallet and I said, 'I have my card in my wallet.' They said, 'Oh, you've been skimmed,' " she said.
Koeppen has some tips for avoiding being skimmed:
for more features.


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Tech Talk: Facebook buy looks promising
Facebook made a major move last week, closing a deal to purchase the WhatsApp messaging service for about $16 billion.
The price tag seems high compared with the company’s $1 billion acquisition of Instagram in 2012, but WhatsApp has more active users than Instagram and is successfully reaching the users Facebook needs: people who are cutting back on Facebook.
Launched in 2009, WhatsApp (www.whatsapp.com) is a cross-platform messaging application for mobile devices.
The service, available on iOS, Android and Windows Phone, among other platforms, allows users to text, video and voice message other personal WhatsApp contacts without paying for a wireless carrier text/SMS plan. The service is free for one year, after which users can pay $1 a year for unlimited use. That’s pretty good, considering some wireless carriers still charge an arm and a leg for single text messages.
Unlike iMessage, which is restricted to users on Apple devices, WhatsApp works on a variety of platforms, so users don’t have to worry about what kind of phones their friends have. This kind of simplicity extends to the service’s functionality, as the app is easy to use and intuitive.
On top of traditional messaging features, WhatsApp allows for easy group messaging and status updates. It also (currently) has no ads or games, allowing users to avoid most of the clutter that comes with modern social network apps. It does what a social network is supposed to do: let users communicate and network, without the fluff.
Away from (and back to) Facebook
WhatsApp is popular overseas and with teens, two areas that Facebook has recently had trouble reaching. The influx of family members, work associates and authority figures to online social networks have driven users to more private experiences, such as WhatsApp, Snapchat and WeChat. That some apps, such as WhatsApp, keep messaging simple and put the focus back on communication is a bonus.
The WhatsApp purchase by Facebook brings young users and those disinterested in a full, bustling social network back under the Facebook umbrella. It also gives Facebook instant credibility in the non-SMS messaging space, where WhatsApp enjoys a high adoption rate. Some competitors may have different or more innovative features, but WhatsApp has the users.
In an online post, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said WhatsApp will be left alone and will operate independently. The app will exist alongside Facebook Messenger, as the company sees the uses of each as distinctly different (which they are). WhatsApp does not monetize the app beyond the $1 subscription fee for users after the first year, so Facebook’s early stance on WhatsApp’s autonomy is promising.
This is the opinion of Times Digital Products Specialist Andrew Fraser. Follow him on Twitter @AndrewFraser.


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One of the more unusual scams is criminals impersonating a police officer, this report by the City of London police involves a case where the supposed police officer checks for counterfeit money. This would never happen with real police officers who would be very careful in dealing with a visitors personal items especially cash and credit cards. If you were suspected of a crime, the usual routine would be you would be taken to the local police station. Plain clothes policeman should have identification and must show it if they want to carry out a search. If you are approached by a policeman in this type of case and are suspicious, demand to be taken to the local station or find a uniformed officer before you give any items over to the person.
Police impersonator who stole from London’s tourists sentenced to ten months in jail
The man was part of an organised crime group who targeted victims by posing as tourists and police officers.One of the gang would pose as a fake tourist and then approach a genuine tourist asking for directions using a map. This encounter gave an opportunity for a fake police officer to intervene so that he can then search the genuine tourist for counterfeit money.
The police impersonator uses a UV torch to scan over cash and will use an official identity card as a fake warrant card. During the search, the fake officer will take items such as cash, identity cards, bank cards, personal items and sometimes demand the victims pin for their bank cards.
On 28 January 2014 City of London Police officers arrested the man on suspicion of going equipped to steal. He was dressed in smart clothes and was accompanied by another man impersonating a tourist, with a camera around his neck. Following a search by City of London Police officers the man was found in possession with an identity card in a black wallet alongside a photo card that flipped out of the main wallet giving the appearance of some type of official document.
He also had a small key ring style torch, a pair of Nokia mobile phone earphones that had one of the earphones removed which was dangling from an inside jacket pocket.
The camera was non functional and was believed to be a prop.
City of London Police Inspector Doug Blackwood Said, “These men deliberately preyed on innocent tourists who were not familiar with police procedures in the UK. This made them easy targets to this type of scam.
“What was meant to be an enjoyable and unforgettable visit to London had instead turned out to be a nightmare for many of the victims. They left London with the memory of the man stealing their money and personal belongings.
“I hope today’s sentencing acts as a warning to those predators who wish to come into the City and prey on innocent victims.
If you come across suspicious activity, report it to a uniformed officer in the street or in a police station.
101 is the Non emergency number to call when you want to contact your local police in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland – when it’s less urgent than a 999 call.
Non emergency usually include: Stolen car, Laptop, Smartphones and mobile phone, Minor traffic collision , Property damage, Drug dealing.
London Visitors is the official blog for the Visiting London Guide .com website. The website was developed to bring practical advice and latest up to date news and reviews of events in London.
Since our launch , we have attracted thousands of readers each month, the site is constantly updated.
We have sections on Museums and Art Galleries, Transport, Food and Drink, Places to Stay, Security, Music, Sport, Books and many more.
There are also hundreds of links to interesting articles on our blog.
To find out more visit the website here


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The ongoing lawsuit regarding dumping of Chinese plywood products into the US market and the proposed tariffs thereof evolved further in recent days. While the final decision and announcement from the ITC (International Trade Commission) are not due until December 19th, the DOC (Department of Commerce) weighed in with their decision. They propose a 22.98% countervailing duty and a staggering 183% antidumping duty.
Obviously, Chinese plywood importers reacted swiftly with reactions ranging from taking themselves temporarily off the market to raising prices dramatically. Mason’s Mill and Lumber has positioned itself accordingly and while we had some existing inventories on hand, due to the huge spike in usage in recent months as a result of Hurricane Harvey, we have been making multiple purchases weekly in order to keep product available. This has resulted in our costs being affected rapidly and forcing us to reflect current market pricing, as volatile as it may be.
We are doing our best to keep costs down and have increased the stocking volumes of both imported and domestic plywood in recent months. Mason’s will continue to strive to minimize the impact of current market volatility, but buyers should be prepared for substantial fluctuations in pricing. As such, prices quoted for Chinese plywood are for prompt shipment only, and volumes may be limited.
We appreciate your patronage and will continue to keep our customers updated as this situation evolves and a final announcement is made in December.


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Girl Scout Mobile Payments Show As Much Variety as Their Cookies
The Girl Scout troops are once again proving to be an ideal test case for mobile card acceptance.
Sage North America is working with more than 30 Girl Scout councils, which represent more than 40,000 troops, to handle mobile credit and debit card payments for cookie sales. Other vendors, such as Intuit and Mophie, have worked with Girl Scout troops in past years to promote mobile payments.
The technology is boosting sales, the Sage said in a June 21 announcement.
The Girl Scouts of Central California South claim a four-fold increase in transaction amounts from 2011 for troops that used the Sage reader. Girl Scouts of North East Ohio claims a 27% increase in total cookie sales and a 14% increase in the per-girl average number of boxes sold.
Girl Scouts of North Carolina Coastal Pines saw a 13% increase in sales for troops using Sage's technology. It saw a 3% increase in overall sales.
"Girls today are tech-savvy," said Cathy Ferguson, chief executive officer of Girl Scouts of Central California South, in a press release. "They need to see we're moving along their same wavelength. Overall, the girls using Sage Mobile Payments can gain a better sales experience for both their customers and themselves."
Last year, Girl Scouts of North East Ohio used Intuit's GoPayment device to accept card payments for cookie sales. The scouts said at the time that the organization sometimes lost out to sales when potential buyers did not carry enough cash.
Also last year, Girl Scouts San Diego used technology from Mophie, which relies on Intuit's hardware. Sage North America is a unit of Sage Group PLC.
Aaron McPherson, a research manager for payments at the Framingham, Mass., research firm IDC Financial Insights, said in an interview last year that the Girl Scouts serve as a good model for how small or unconventional businesses can accept payments.
The Girl Scouts' example will make mobile card acceptance "a more popular choice for small businesses or organizations," he said.


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latest news releases from the newsroom
Law Offices of Howard G. Smith
Law Offices of Howard G. Smith Announces Investigation On Behalf of Shareholders of PharmaNet Development Group, Inc.
BENSALEM, Pa., Nov. 19, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Law Offices of Howard G. Smith announces that it is investigating potential claims against PharmaNet Development Group, Inc. ("PharmaNet" or the "Company") (Nasdaq:PDGI), concerning possible securities violations in relation to certain public statements made by the Company between November 1, 2007 and April 30, 2008. The investigation focuses on allegations that the public statements made by PharmaNet during that period failed to disclose or indicate, among other things: (1) that certain drugs were showing a lack of efficacy in companion studies; (2) that biotech and pharmaceutical companies were increasingly deciding to cancel studies; and (3) that as a result, statements made by the Company and management during that period about the Company's business, operations, and prospects lacked a reasonable basis.
Threshold Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Threshold Pharmaceuticals Appoints Dr. Jeffrey W. Bird to Board of Directors
REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Nov. 19, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Threshold Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq:THLD) today announced that the Company has appointed Dr. Jeffrey W. Bird to its board of directors. Dr. Bird will fill the seat held by Dr. Powell, a board member since 2001. Dr. Bird will serve as a member of both the Audit Committee and the Nominating and Governance Committee. Dr. Bird was a co-founder of Threshold, led the Company's Series A financing in 2001, and was formerly a Threshold Board member from 2001 to 2004.
VistaPrint Announces Investor Day
HAMILTON, Bermuda, Nov. 19, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- VistaPrint Limited (Nasdaq:VPRT), the small business marketing company, today announced it will host an Investor Day on December 10, 2008 in New York City, from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. EST. The day's agenda includes presentations by Robert Keane, VistaPrint's president and chief executive officer, Michael Giannetto, VistaPrint's executive vice president and chief financial officer, and other senior executives. A live webcast of the event will be available on the Investor Relations section of the company's web site at www.vistaprint.com and an audio replay will be available until January 9, 2009. Investors interested in attending should contact Angela White at firstname.lastname@example.org.
Frozen Food Express Industries, Inc.
Frozen Food Express Industries, Inc. Announces Cash Dividend
DALLAS, Nov. 19, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Frozen Food Express Industries, Inc. (Nasdaq:FFEX) announced today that its Board of Directors declared a cash dividend of $0.03 per share of its common stock. The dividend will be paid on December 16, 2008 to shareholders of record as of December 1, 2008.
Occidental Petroleum Corp.
Occidental Petroleum Supports American Red Cross Relief for Southern California Wildfire Victims
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 19, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) announced today that it is donating $50,000 to the American Red Cross in support of relief efforts for victims of the Southern California wildfires. The American Red Cross is providing shelter, clothing and other essentials for people displaced by the fires in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Orange and Riverside counties.
Ticketmaster Entertainment, Inc.
Ticketmaster Opens New Ticket Centers in Five Publix Supermarkets Locations in Georgia
ATLANTA, Nov. 19, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ticketmaster, the world's leading live entertainment ticketing and marketing company, today announced the opening of five new Ticket Center locations in Publix Super Markets. The new Ticketmaster Ticket Centers will provide fans in Georgia with convenient access to live entertainment events.


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Canada is the 11th country with the best economic state in the world. It still has the largest economy in the world, which is why it seems a little strange to hear that the economy is slowing quickly with the increase in inflation. It is not happening in Canada only, but in 2022, this is every country’s biggest problem. For the last five years, it has been visible that the economic condition of Canada has been decelerated. However, the financial state isn’t stable yet. It has been recorded that the economic situation of Canada has decreased 1.9% overall from 2017, which is a lot for an economically sound country.
Canada’s economy seems to decrease daily as the state’s inflation rate increases. The economy of Canada was supposed to be stable at the start of 2022, but it feels like it started to decrease from the beginning of May. As we know, inflation begins when a country increases its production costs of raw materials and other wages & their product needs increase. The inflation in Canada started with the first domestic causes and the second international causes. The domestic cause of the economic issue cannot be decreased since they cannot control the price of imported goods increase. Overall, we can say that inflation in Canada is occurring due to the international market.
The central bank of Canada had said that the inflation in Canada started with a push from the international economy. At the same time, we cannot control the domestic economy because the goods used are imported from other countries. According to the central bank of Canada, inflation is just for the time being and can be controlled in some time which is also one of the reasons why they aren’t reacting too much to its increase.
If you are a Canadian resident and you wish to fight against the growing inflation you have come to the right place. We offer a wide range of Gold & Silver bullion products to help you invest in precious metals. Check out our precious metals page to see what we have to offer!


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Volkswagen reportedly has cut its 2004 profit forecast after taking a second-quarter beating in the key North American market even though its overall earnings beat stock market expectations.
That was, however, still a sharp improvement over the first quarter’s profit of €26 million ($32 million) and beat the average estimate for a second-quarter profit of €163 million ($202 million) by nine analysts surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires.
Sales reportedly rose 8.4% to €23.99 billion ($29.74 billion) from €22.13 billion in the same quarter a year ago, but stiff price competition from General Motors, Ford and DaimlerChrysler helped push Volkswagen to an operating loss of €503 million ($623 million) in North America where sales dropped.
The Associated Press noted that VW has been reluctant to match competitors’ profit-draining incentives such as interest-free financing and rebates totalling several thousand dollars per vehicle, saying it undermines resale value for consumers – sales in the region fell to €6.56 billion ($8.13 billion) from €7.03 billion a year ago, in part because the stronger euro shrinks US earnings when translated from dollars to euros.
Like Ford and GM, AP added, Volkswagen earned more from its auto financing arm than from making and selling cars, with operating profit of €279 million ($346 million) from financial services compared to €243 million ($301 million) from its automobile division.
In its profit warning, Volkswagen reportedly cited lagging demand in important markets, high oil prices and the stronger euro as reasons for cutting its 2004 forecast for operating profit before special items to €1.9 billion euros ($2.4 billion) from €2.5 billion ($3.1 billion).
“Despite these difficult conditions, we will continue to pursue our global model initiative in order to establish a leadership position in the key vehicle segments,” the company said, according to the report.
AP noted that operating earnings give an incomplete view of a company’s finances because they exclude financial items such as interest and taxes, but Volkswagen and many other companies use them as their yardstick.
The euro’s rise over the past two years has squeezed profit margins for European products by making them more expensive abroad, the report added.
The Associated Press said Volkswagen’s other woes include increasing competition from Japanese automakers in Europe and an aging product line in the United States, where the new version of its mainstay Golf hatchback [launched in Europe late in 2003] won’t go on sale until next year.
The company is pursuing a cost-cutting program, dubbed “ForMotion,” to eliminate some €4 billion ($5 billion) in costs, the news agency noted.
VW reportedly added that it expects “no letup in competitive pressure in key car markets, such as the USA, Europe, and China” – in addition to price wars in the United States, Volkswagen had to cut prices in China to match General Motors.
For the first half of the year, net profit fell 36% to €383 million ($475 million) from €596 million in the same period a year ago, while first-half sales rose 7.3% to €45.94 billion ($56.96 billion) from €42.83 billion a year ago, the Associated Press said.


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Virgin Media today unveiled SmartCall, an app which lets customers use unlimited minutes from their landline talk plans on smartphones through a Wi-Fi connection.
SmartCall automatically detects when such a service is possible and whether it would be included in a Virgin landline customer's talk plan. Subscribers with international call packages can also make use of it.
As the app runs over Wi-Fi it can be utilised worldwide, allowing access to inclusive minutes users would have otherwise left at home - provided you're calling from a wireless hotspot, of course.
The service, which the company claims is a UK first, gives a fresh burst of life to the landline telephone, which Ofcom says has been abandoned by more than 200,000 homes in the last year alone.
Virgin Media's SmartCall will be rolled out in the coming weeks on Android and iOS.
To complement the new service, Virgin unveiled fresh call plans, including an unlimited UK mobiles option for £15 a month. ®


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As the end of the year approaches, more and more experts publish their vision of the development of hospitality industry in 2017. This time, Muriel Muirden, forecaster for architectural company WATG, presented her list.
Simplicity may become the main trend next year. Modern lifestyle with its increasingly growing speed makes people feel more pressure and, thus, search “simple life”. The hospitality industry feels that and offers various “less is more” options such as menu free dining, emerging destinations, authentic and wild nature experiences, and even digital disconnection. Next year, we might see more summer camps and vacations that offer a break from reality.
Deeper integration: science and latest technologies come to all spheres of modern life, and hospitality industry is no exception. In 2017, the development of travel apps and various electronic services will continue. New generation of apps will allow not only digital check-in and out, but will also ensure pleasant experience. The apps are expected to monitor the queue at the buffet, adjust lightning in guestrooms, control sound and devices, and many more.
Wellness on the rise is not a new trend, but obsession with health continues. Hotels maintain the trend by offering locally sourced food and adding more workout programs. Hotels with own micro gardens, vineyards or olive groves are expected to be on the rise.
Finally, the US may benefit from its new cannabis law. As recreational marijuana is now permitted in some states, cannabis tourism is expected to grow in coming years.


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Tesla will have its domination of the electric car industry tested, as major car manufacturers start releasing their own electric car models. Audi, Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar, Volkswagen, Hyundai, Nissan, Volvo, and Chevrolet go full swing in their efforts to take a piece of the electric car market. This makes the competition even tougher for all the carmakers who want to be the best in creating electric cars.
The battle continues as car manufacturers look for ways to outsmart their competition. They invest in innovative technologies and add attractive and functional features to win the hearts of their target market and those who will choose the “best electric car in 2019.” Using every advantage is important in this saturated and complex market. With carmakers taking their game to the next level, even the smallest advantage matters.
Find out what’s in store for you and the many other electric car enthusiasts in 2019.
Longer Drives, Shorter Charge Time
With so many brands competing, technology has advanced by leaps and bounds. Manufacturers are finding ways to improve the capabilities and performance of their electric car models. For example, an can now power a vehicle up to 200 miles or more with a single charge.
Advances in charging technology also led to more efficient energy transfer, which means shorter charging times and more miles per charge. Some models can run for 90 miles on a mere 30-minute charge. That is so efficient and convenient for the owners.
Performance Beyond Expectations
Modern electric cars are a long way from even those from 5-10 years ago. Electric cars beat almost every standard production car when it comes to acceleration. Porsche, Lamborghini, and Ferrari have cars that accelerate faster — but some of those cars have an electric drivetrain.
Electric cars are also faster, with some models pushing 150 miles per hour. You get the speed you want without the accompanying roar of the engine. That means your car will not sound like it’s having a hard time accelerating. It will still be less noisy, but more speedy.
The Future is Electric
Fossil fuels can’t last forever and sooner or later the world will need to switch to electric cars. Of course, that future is a long time coming — but it clearly shows that switching to electric cars is inevitable. Lithium batteries are getting cheaper and advances in research have made car batteries more efficient, as well as more powerful.
Even now, electric cars can match the performance of standard cars in everything but mileage. Gas prices continue to go up while the cost of electricity stays remarkably stable — making electric cars an even more attractive option. Of course, we can’t dismiss the possibility of energy prices going up once electric cars become more popular and standard.
More car manufacturers are going electric. With these giants of industry pouring their resources into electric vehicle models, we can expect big changes in terms of mileage and performance. Competition drives technology and you can expect big things in the near future.


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Rebecca Sellors will create a collection of Blue John jewellery for the British jewellery channel
India’s most wanted man appeared in Westminster Magistrates Court yesterday and must stay in London until March 29 after being denied bail
The social media site has introduced a ‘checkout’ button which will transform the way consumers buy online.
New collection takes inspiration from different aspects of history and architecture.
Jewellery industry professionals have just two days to put names forward.
British police have arrested India’s most wanted man – Nirav Modi.
Monthly stats reveal omnichannel retailers recorded a rate of online sales growth almost three-times greater than their online-only counterparts in February.
F.Hinds valuation service shows Brits may have on average £1,000 worth of jewellery in their possession
Independent jeweller partners with Social Bit to help end homelessness in Scotland.
Reports filed with Companies House reveal sales dipped during the year ending June 2018, and the jeweller now needs to prepare for a future without one of its bestselling online brands


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CHALK IT UP as another first for Amazon.com: The company has beat its competitors to the punch in becoming the first to offer free digital downloads of songs by a multiplatinum Canadian songstress who has written a cookbook. Or something like that.
In the cataclysmic world of Internet music, announcements of exclusive deals greet each new day, and they're becoming more and more nuanced. In the early days—just two months ago, really—the agreements would often be as simple as an artist of note putting a few tracks on a site in the form of downloadable MP3 files. Now, sponsorships and exclusives are all the rage.
The landscape is moving by so fast that many dealmakers are forgetting germane legal issues and ethical complications.
Alanis Morissette last week alarmed attorneys and executives at her record label when news leaked that the controversial free-music Web site MP3.com would sponsor her summer tour and feature exclusive live tracks for downloading. This raises questions about the nature of her contract with Warner Bros.distributed Maverick Records. The New York Post reported that to ink the deal, MP3.com president Michael Robertson offered the multiplatinum Morissette equity in his potentially lucrative company. Details were to be announced April 27. His site, however, was not the first to gain an exclusive with a popular Canadian chanteuse.
That's where Amazon struck first. It announced April 20 that Sarah McLachlan would place two downloadable tracks from her forthcoming live album on the music retailer's site as a promotion to help spur advance sales of the disc, which will be released on Amazon and in retail stores June 15. To avoid provoking the ire of record industry executives who've complained that MP3s are easily bootlegged, Amazon and McLachlan invited her record companies, Nettwerk and Arista, into the fold, and agreed to use the supposedly more secure Liquid Audio. Pre-orders made the record, Mirrorball, the first in Amazon's history to rocket to no. 1 on its sales chart the first day it was available, though spokesperson Paul Capelli says there's no way to translate this figure to actual sales.
He does say that the promotion has helped propel sales of McLachlan's other records, increased bidding for 10 signed McLachlan lithographs on Amazon.com Auctions, and has made the cookbook, Plenty: A Collection of Sarah McLachlan's Favourite Recipes, hotter than back-bacon sandwiches on Canada Day.
"What makes this interesting," Capelli says, "is that only at Amazon could you put all this together."
"All this" includes an exclusive interview with McLachlan and fresh-off-the- digital-presses reviews of the live album and cookbook that extol her musical and culinary work in unwaveringly positive terms. Capelli insists that these critiques are generated from Amazon's editorial staff, rather than as part of the co-op program that attracted media scrutiny earlier this year. But there's room for doubt.
"If I were a critical consumer and I saw a positive review on the Amazon Web site, I'd be suspicious at first," says Kevin Kawamoto, assistant professor of communications at the University of Washington.
Amazon's bad editorial rap comes less from the fact that it's a retail site than it does from the damaging reports about its co-op advertising program. But when The New York Times broke that story, it failed to disclose its own online partnership with Amazon's main competitor, Barnesandnoble.com, further highlighting the murkiness of deals between companies, artists, and media organizations in the digital age.
While some are left to ponder all these developments, the music exclusives keep coming. Barnesandnoble.com had better move fast: Celine Dion awaits.


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Santa Monica Bike Share Program Sponsored By Hulu
Santa Monica’s city council voted on the evening of October 13 to approve Hulu as the official sponsor for the Santa Monica Bike Share program. Hulu will be contributing $675,000.00 to the program, which will be used largely to fund deficits in the buildup of the program and bike helmet kiosks.
The program is set to launch in November with 500 bikes, with the green bikes displaying Hulu’s logo on their baskets and skirt guards. The bikes will be available to the public at 75 stations through Santa Monica, and several locations near Venice. A website and app will be available to allow users to locate hubs with available bikes as well as bikes that are currently in use.
The program will be supported by a pay-as-you-go option of $1.00 for every ten minutes, or monthly and yearly membership rates. Until December 31, anyone can become a Founding Member, which enables users to get a full year of bike share usage at $99. Founding members will also have the opportunity to have 60 minutes of daily riding time, a limited edition Founding Member card and a special prize offer. Details can be found at the Santa Monica Bike Share website here.
The program is part of an initiative by the City of Santa Monica to reduce emissions and also promote a “a fun, healthy and environmentally-friendly” environment. Along with the expansion of the Exposition Line, it will also contribute to efforts to reduce traffic congestion within the city, a problem that has recently magnified due to increased constructive and development.
For more information on how Esquire Real Estate Brokerage, Inc. can help you in the Los Angeles real estate market, feel free to give us a call at 213-973-9439 or send us an email at email@example.com.


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Images of Hender Scheme‘s and adidas Originals‘ follow up to 2017’s collaboration recently emerged — first with teaser images before campaign imagery was released — and the two labels have now given a closer look at the three-silhouette pack. The new collection features the same three sneakers as last year, with the artisanal Japanese label taking on the Superstar, Micropacer and NMD R1.
One of the key features of this pack is the use of color, as Hender Scheme moves beyond the signature tanned leather tone of previous releases. This new colorful element sees the Micropacer silhouette given a metallic silver upper with red and blue accents, while the NMD R1 comes with blue and red plugs. The new colorways will be released alongside sneakers in the classic Hender Scheme color palette. As always, all of the silhouettes are handmade in Tokyo and come with a replaceable hammer-in sole. Japanese fans can register to purchase the shoes from Hender Scheme’s lottery application between March 3 and March 11, before the capsule drops at retailers including HBX on March 16.
In other adidas Originals news, the latest Spezial collection is inspired by Ibiza and the “Second Summer of Love.”


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Hearing the phrase ‘Thailand’s reds,’ especially after last month’s crisis in Bangkok, would probably lead most of us to think politics. But I’m happy to leave that to Filipino lawmaker and writer Mong Palatino, who’s today written an interesting feature story that suggests there may be more similarities than usually assumed between Thailand’s Red and Yellow shirts.
It turns out that another of Thailand’s reds—and whites—have according to a recently published news piece, been gaining quite some ground internationally over the past few years. Surprisingly, Thai wines have even been making appearances at events like the prestigious London's International Wine & Spirits Competition and Australia's International Wine Challenge. And last year, a Thai-produced wine, Monsoon Valley's Colombard vintage 2009, won an award at the Hong Kong's International Wine & Spirits Competition. The Monsoon Valley winery is also a ‘popular tourist attraction’ with a tasting bar, restaurants and elephants available for rides, and therefore according to the article, a perfect example of ‘the business model that works best in Thailand.’ That is, one for which you ‘turn your vineyard and winery into a tourist attraction and live off the on-site sales.’
And the trend seems to be helping. Thailand’s vineyards welcomed 56,000 domestic and foreign visitors last year alone, with doubled profits, and they project more in 2010.
Clearly though, the industry will not be able to compete with other booming Asian markets like China, as one Thai wine industry figure, Visooth Lohitnavy, managing director of GranMonte Company, noted and put into a practical perspective: ‘I don't think we can be a major force in the world wine industry…We are a small producing country, but the main thing is we should have good-quality wine for local consumption and for foreigners who like to taste Thai wines.’
Where are these Thai wines being produced? According to InfoHub, an online ‘specialty travel guide’ that offers two-day tours through the region, they are made in ‘the stunning Asoke Valley’ at an elevation of 350 metres above sea level. The website also points out that ‘Thailand's vineyards are cool and dry, perfect for nurturing wine grapes.’
Further making winery visits a desirable tourist activity in Thailand is that most of the country’s vineyards are based in the area that’s also home to Khao Yai National Park, the country’s ‘oldest and best known nature sanctuary’ and a UNESCO world heritage site.
InfoHub’s ‘Khao Yai Wine Trails’ tour includes sightseeing in the famous park, bike riding through the countryside with stops at two local wineries, Gran Monte Winery Khao Yai Winery, and a stay at the Cabbages & Condoms Resort—which is a story on its own.
Image: Palio Khao Yai, Thailand
by snck / Flickr.


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Shown, from left to right, are Jeff Bridgman, First Volunteer commercial banker; Greg Haskew, First Volunteer Credit administration; Walter Perry, SBA Tennessee district director; and Steve Bullard, First Volunteer commercial banker.
First Volunteer Bank was awarded the 2012 Tennessee SBA First Mortgage Lender of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration.
“In an environment when many banks are not lending, this confirms that First Volunteer is not only lending; but is finding ways to help business consumers with their credit needs,” said Patti W. Steele, president and CEO for First Volunteer.
First Volunteer ranked first in number of 504 First Mortgage Loans for Tennessee by the Small Business Administration.
“These award winners represent the many excellent small businesses that we have in the Volunteer State,” said Walter Perry, district director of SBA’s Tennessee District Office. “All across Tennessee, our hard working award winners are the very best at what they do,” said Perry. “SBA is proud of our partnership and pleased to honor these award winners for their role in helping small businesses start up, grow and succeed.”
“We are so excited to be able to work with our customers and offer the great products that the Small Business Administration provides. In the economy we are in, we are always looking at opportunities to help our customers with their credit needs,” Ms. Steele said.
Gregory K. Haskew, senior vice president of Credit Administration, accepted the award on behalf of the Bank at an SBA awards meeting in Chattanooga.


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Teva Outsources Manufacturing in Anticipation of Israeli Plant Closure
The debt-laden drugmaker announced an aggressive reorganization plan in December, consisting of wide-spread asset divestments and layoffs, including in its home country of Israel
Israel-headquartered Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. is moving ahead with its reorganization plan, announced December 2017, and outsourcing some of its in-house manufacturing to Israel-based Rekah Pharmaceutical Industry Ltd. Tel Aviv-listed Rekah announced the 10-year agreement with the debt-laden generic drugmaker in a filing to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange Monday.
For daily updates, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here.In December, after two years of diminishing revenues and plummeting shares, and with a multi-billion debt load, Teva's then newly appointed CEO Kåre Schultz announced an aggressive reorganization plan that includes wide-spread asset divestments and the layoffs of 25% of Teva's employees. The announcement caused widespread though short-lived protests in Israel.
Employees protesting Teva's layoff plan in Ashdod, December 2017. Photo: Avi Rokach
One the Israeli assets slated for closure in the first quarter of 2019 is Teva's facility in Israeli port town Ashdod. The facility manufactures products for medical processes such as dialysis and Intravenous therapy, pain medication like Paracetamol, and anti-cancer medication. Teva has previously attempted to find a buyer for the facility but failed.
According to Rekah's announcement, Teva will transfer the technical know-how for some of the products currently manufactured in Ashdod to Vitamed Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Rekah. The company will manufacture the products in its Israeli facility, and Teva will continue to sell them exclusively under its own brand.
The manufacturing activity of Teva's Jerusalem facility, also slated for closure, will be relocated overseas.
The deal with Rekah is subject to regulatory approval.


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By Chang May Choon
The Straits Times, Singapore / Asia News Network
WWR Article Summary (tl;dr) In Singapore, several major corporations are creating charitable projects to complement their brands.
Singaporean banking officer Susan Moh, 44, has a necklace made of gold threads and white lace which always gets her friends talking.
She bought it during a vacation in Seoul last year from a non-profit clothing and lifestyle store called Heartist House.
“The price is on the high side but I don’t feel the pinch as I think my purchase is for a good cause,” said Moh, who was there with her sister. Her sister had read about the shop online.
Heartist House is a corporate social responsibility (CSR) project by South Korean conglomerate Samsung Group’s fashion arm, Samsung C&T Fashion.
Opened in September 2014 to mark the subsidiary’s 60th anniversary, it sells clothing donated by Samsung’s own fashion labels, like Bean Pole and Rogatis, and bags and accessories by young designers. It donates most of its proceeds to charity.
In Asia’s fourth-largest economy, conglomerates, known as chaebols, are no longer content with bankrolling good causes; they are also creating projects to complement their brands.
Chaebols are also spending more on charitable causes. A total of 255 companies spent 2.92 trillion won (S$3.6 billion) on CSR projects in 2015, up from 2.71 trillion won in 2014, according to a report by the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI).
About 30 per cent of the funds went into helping the underprivileged and the rest was devoted to academic research, disaster relief and environmental conservation, among other things.
Today’s CSR is more about “individuality”, said the FKI report. Instead of volunteering or making corporate donations, there is now a greater focus on utilising a company’s business strengths to give back to society.


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SYDNEY, Jan. 25 (Xinhua) -- Huawei Technologies, on Monday asked a U.S. District Court to prevent Motorola from illegally transferring Huawei's intellectual property (IP) to Nokia Siemens Networks ("NSN"), officials of Huawei told Xinhua in Sydney, Australia on Tuesday.
As a leading player in providing next generation telecommunications network solutions, Huawei took this action as NSN seeks to complete its 1.2 billion U.S. dollars acquisition of Motorola's wireless network business.
Since 2000, Huawei and Motorola have had a cooperative relationship in the radio access network and core network businesses, where Motorola has resold Huawei wireless network products to customers under the Motorola name. During this period, Motorola was provided with products and confidential Huawei IP developed by Huawei's team of more than 10,000 engineers.
Since the July 2010 announcement by NSN of its purchase of Motorola's wireless network business, Huawei has tried to ensure that Motorola does not transfer this confidential information to NSN.
According to officials of Huawei, Motorola's failure to adopt measures sufficient to ensure that Huawei's proprietary information remains confidential has compelled the company to file for the appropriate legal protection of its rights.
The officials said Huawei respects the rights of intellectual property holders and is equally committed to the protection of its own innovations and intellectual property.
Nearly half of Huawei's 100,000 plus employees are engaged in research and development and Huawei allocates an average of 10 percent of all revenues to R&D annually. By the end of 2010, Huawei had applied for 49,040 essential patents on a global basis.