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Nearly one year after a near collapse of General Motors and subsequent Chapter 11 bankruptcy, Chevrolet is re-emerging as a major player in the law enforcement fleet market with the release of its all-new Chevrolet Caprice Police Patrol Vehicle (PPV).
The 2011 model offers a modern, full-size, rear-wheel drive vehicle option designed to meet the rugged needs of law enforcement officials throughout North America. The PPV sedan will offer both six- and eight-cylinder engines, as well as a host of specialized equipment and features.
Not Just a Badged-Over Civilian Model
Chevrolet made the announcement at the annual International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) convention in Denver in early October. The Caprice PPV will be available for ordering next year and will hit the streets in early 2011.
“The new Chevrolet Caprice police car is the right tool at the right time for law enforcement,” said Jim Campbell, general manager for GM Fleet and Commercial Operations. “We asked for a lot of feedback from our police customers, which helped us develop a vehicle superior to the Crown Victoria in key areas.”
The 2011 Caprice PPV will be available in two configurations: a 355-hp V-8 that generates an estimated 384 lb.-ft. of torque and a tamer V-6 model. An unmarked version will also be available.
Unlike other police cars on the market, the Caprice PPV is not based on a existing “civilian” passenger-car model sold in North America, according to GM. The vehicle has been developed in key areas specifically for police duty, containing modern equipment and features.
One of the most notable features is a 6.0L V-8 engine with GM’s Active Fuel Management technology. Capable of running on E-85, the vehicle also delivers 0-60 acceleration in less than six seconds. This technology improves gas mileage during “cruising” by dropping out four of the engine’s eight cylinders, making the car essentially a V-4, but functions as an eight-cylinder when needed, said Brian Goebel, Chevrolet communications manager. By 2012, a V-6 model will also be
Safety is a major emphasis of the 2011 Chevrolet Caprice patrol vehicle. It will offer law enforcement officials optional front-seat only side-curtain air bags. This will allow a full-width rear-seat barrier for greater officer safety. Two truck-mounted batteries will offer the availability to power various police equipment within the vehicle.
The Caprice is designed for five-passenger seating, meaning the upper-center section of the instrument panel can be used for equipment mounting without the concern of air bag deployment interference.
Designed for a Better ‘Fit’
“Along with Impala and Tahoe, the Caprice PPV gives agencies a greater range of choices for police and special service vehicles available from Chevrolet,” said GM’s Vice President of Global Chevrolet Brand Brent Dewar. “We recognize the unique needs of law enforcement agencies and feel we have developed a car that offers [those clients] the features they need.”
The V-8-equipped model will offer this “segment-leading top speed” and sports car-like performance, according to Chevrolet designers, because it is built on the same platform as the new Camaro. It uses the longest wheelbase of the architecture — 118.5 inches — in addition to a four-wheel independent suspension delivering responsive high-performance driving characteristics crucial in law enforcement scenarios.
While fuel economy has always been a concern of such high-performance law enforcement sedans in the past, GM believes the Caprice PPV will offer excellent fuel economy.
Designed specifically as a patrol car, the vehicle design includes substantial interior room. According to the manufacturer, the Caprice offers 112 cubic feet of interior volume.
The front seats are sculpted to “pocket” the equipment belt, which greatly increases comfort for a greater range of police officer sizes. The foam density of the seatback and cushion insert surfaces are designed to conform to the shape of an equipment belt’s various items, allowing the officer’s back to rest properly on the seat-back surface.
Police vehicles often serve as a remote office for many officials. Increased comfort has long been one of the most primary needs of officers based on customer feedback, Dewar said.
“The shape also enhances entry and egress, making it easier for officers to exit the vehicle quickly. The seat-back bolsters, for example, have been purposefully contoured to pocket equipment on an officer’s belt, including a gun, Taser, and handcuffs, which rest comfortably in the sculpted lower bolsters,” said Bob Demick, lead seat design manager. “That also increases the longevity of the trim cover surface.”
In addition to comfort considerations, seat construction materials were carefully selected by GM engineers, Demick said. The high-wear materials stand up to long hours of everyday use and provide long-term durability and ease of cleaning.
Engineers worked on several iterations of the seat, testing versions in the field for real-world feedback from police officers who used prototype seats in their cruisers for a month. Their input helped determine the final design, Demick said.
Police-Specific Options & Advantages Available
The Caprice PPV’s long wheelbase also contributes to spaciousness. Features include:
- 112 cubic feet interior volume.
- Repositioned barrier between the front and rear seat allowing for full front-seat travel and greater recline for officer comfort.
- 18 cubic feet trunk volume.
- 6.0L V-8 rated at an estimated 355 hp with an estimated 384 lb.-ft. of torque.
- Backed by a 6-speed automatic transmission, performance-calibrated for police duty.
A host of complementary features are also offered, including special equipment packages such as spotlights, lockouts for power windows and locks, and an unmarked street-appearance package, Dewar said.
To enable more room for interior equipment, the standard radio can be relocated to the trunk, allowing for an in-dash, touch-screen computer.
Chevrolet has provided law enforcement fleet vehicles since the late 1950s. In 1986, the Caprice name replaced the Impala. That first Caprice included a 5.7L small-block V-8. Eight years later, a 260-hp V-8 engine was offered in a new Caprice 9C1 model, making it one of the fastest full-size police cars ever offered.
Originally posted on Government Fleet


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Trinity County is moving to protect one cannabis industry by shutting out another, at least for now.
A temporary moratorium on industrial hemp cultivation in the county may become a years-long ban, at the urging of Trinity County cannabis farmers and the county’s agricultural commissioner who argue it could devastate the existing cannabis industry through inadvertent cross-pollination.
On Tuesday the board voted 4-0, with board Chairman Jeremy Brown recused, to implement the industrial hemp ban. The ordinance is to come back before the board April 20 for second reading.
Trinity County supervisors have discussed the issue multiple times, minus Brown, who recuses himself because he has a commercial cannabis license.
Ironically, hemp is the same plant as that they seek to protect. However, they’ve been cultivated for different purposes. Hemp has only a miniscule content of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis. By state definition, it contains no more than three-tenths of one percent THC.
Hemp has traditionally been grown for seed and fiber, but is now being grown for its CBD content (cannabidiol) for use in products intended for human consumption.
Trinity hemp hold
A law to authorize commercial production of industrial hemp in California went into effect in January 2017. On the federal level, hemp was removed from the Drug Enforcement Agency’s list of controlled substances by the 2018 Farm Bill.
On April 30, 2019, the state Department of Food and Agriculture opened registration for its industrial hemp cultivation program. The department’s website currently shows approximately 450 businesses registered to grow industrial hemp in the state. None are in Trinity County.
Trinity County Agricultural Commissioner Joseph Moreo and local cannabis growers have pushed to keep it that way. So far they’ve been successful. In June 2019, the supervisors adopted a 45-day urgency ordinance imposing a temporary moratorium on industrial hemp. There have been two longer extensions since then, with the current urgency ordinance set to expire May 19.
Supervisors discussed a permanent ban by ordinance during both their regular meetings in March, providing Moreo guidance on what to consider in drafting it. The issue was on the agenda again Tuesday for introduction of the proposed ordinance, which would ban industrial hemp and set up fines for violations consistent with current cannabis regulations. If adopted, the ordinance will sunset in five years.
If industrial hemp were to take root in Trinity County, the fear is that hemp pollen carried by wind, vehicle or people will cause cross-pollination of neighbors’ cannabis crops. Not just close neighbors — the wind-carried pollen can go miles, Moreo said at the March 2 Board of Supervisors meeting.
He added his counterparts in counties that allowed industrial hemp regret it. Industrial hemp is considered an agricultural commodity, and it’s not regulated like commercial cannabis is. No Environmental Impact Statement is required, Moreo said. All that would be needed is an annual $900 registration fee from his office.
That revenue wouldn’t come close to the cost to the department, which would be responsible for activities such as testing THC levels, he said.
Without testing, the plants can’t be distinguished, so compounding the work could be abuse by growers claiming to grow hemp in order to benefit from less regulation and fees, when really they’re growing “something else,” he said.
To hear Moreo talk, the ban comes off as a favor to potential industrial hemp growers.
“The moratorium has worked rather well for the last two years,” he said. “We haven’t had any complaints, and we probably saved somebody some money trying to grow hemp for profit.”
Moreo said so far there has been little interest in industrial hemp growing in Trinity County, although he noted there was a recent ad in the paper by a person seeking to lease ground to grow hemp, and he informed a person who inquired about growing hemp that there was a ban in the works.
In further discussion at the March 2 board meeting, Sup. Liam Gogan asked, “Is this not a good area to grow hemp?” and Moreo responded that the experience in Oregon was that many people growing hemp “lost their shirts.”
Flat, available land is in short supply in Trinity County, he said, and “our distance is an additional cost for someone trying to grow this for profit.”
There’s now competition for hemp growers from other states, Canada and Mexico, he said.
Sup. Keith Groves noted that normally it’s not the role of county supervisors to decide if someone wants to lose money in agriculture.
However, Groves said, “This is not a consistent or compatible crop to our other cannabis industry.”
He asked what distance would be needed between crops to prevent cross-pollination, and Moreo noted that there isn’t much non-federal land in the county on which to grow crops and “precious little flat ground” with the largest area being Hayfork Valley.
There are examples where the pollen has traveled miles he said, but “trying to predict where the drift would be becomes complicated.”
He added that vehicles and people can also be vectors.
Growers see threat
Many cannabis farmers and advocates in Trinity County spoke in favor of the hemp ban.
Adrien Keys of Hayfork pointed out that the ordinance could be changed later if circumstances warrant and expressed concern not only with pollen drift but also spread of pesticides and disease.
“We need to get our taxpaying, licensed cannabis businesses up and running, and that’s I believe where agriculture and planning staff should be putting their attention and effort,” Keys said.
A cannabis farmer from Zenia questioned why anyone would want to get involved with hemp now, saying that three years ago it was profitable, but the price has collapsed.
“I think people’s reasoning for wanting to do this is to weaponize it against us,” he said.
And John Brower of Junction City said the “Oregon experiment” with hemp has “gutted” the value of the emerging cannabis industry there. “They’ve lost lots and lots of genetics, forever.”
He described the prospect of industrial hemp in Trinity County as “a threat to the livelihood of thousands of Trinity County families.”
Among the cannabis advocates, Thomas Ballanco of Douglas City stood apart, saying he’s worked many years for hemp legalization. Ballanco said he believes the issue of pollen drift could be addressed.
“I certainly cannot support a ban on industrial hemp,” he said. “That said, I don’t think Trinity County is a good location to grow industrial hemp.”
Responding to more questions from supervisors, Moreo said hemp has similar issues to other cannabis regarding water usage and odor, and pressed for the ban to continue.
Given the limited availability of suitable land, he said Hayfork Valley where cannabis is already located would see a lot of the hemp growing as well.
“If you had hemp production in the middle of Hayfork Valley, I would predict a range war,” Moreo said. (In a subsequent meeting he said “range war” isn’t the term to use, but the point is to avoid conflict).
Asked by Sup. Groves what would qualify as industrial vs. non-industrial hemp, Moreo said the law is you can have six plants, and he wouldn’t get involved unless it were over that amount.
Noting that the price per pound for hemp is drastically lower than cannabis, Sup. Gogan asked if that meant industrial hemp growers would likely have larger operations, and Moreo responded, “Yes, you would grow it in much larger quantities, much larger acreages.”
That takes more water, Gogan noted, saying, “It just doesn’t seem like it would be productive here.”
Sup. Jill Cox said she got a lot of response to a poll of her district over the hemp ban, some who felt it’s wrong to put cannabis above other crops and wanted to know if both can be accommodated.
She suggested if there is a ban it sunset in three years to be on the same timeline as the county’s General Plan update.
Groves said he also got some emails from people not understanding why a legal crop would be banned, but he feels it’s a safety concern.
“With all due respect to those people,” he said, “from my standpoint at this time the only thing we can do is move forward.”
“When Joe says ‘range war’ he's talking an 1880s range war,” Groves said. “You will see some really bad things happening if these two things spot.”
Sup. Dan Frasier said his biggest issue would be the same as it is for cannabis, the smell, and said he would support the ban, “more to protect our sensitive receptors than to protect our legal cannabis industry.”
He also cited a “major drain” on planning staff if they had to craft an ordinance to accommodate both hemp and cannabis.
The county supervisors discussed the industrial hemp ban again during their March 16 meeting. Moreo said he continued to hear support of the ban from cannabis growers but received no input on the industrial hemp side of the issue.
Without the ban, he said, “we will be placed in the position of being the middle man between these two groups, which is a place we don’t particularly want to be.”

domain: news


text: A couple of days back, Mahindra opened bookings for its new Scorpio. Now, the carmaker has also started taking bookings through the e-commerce website, Snapdeal. The booking amount is Rs. 20,000 and customers can pay the rest of the amount at any Mahindra dealership when the car goes on sale, and take delivery. The new Scorpio will be launched on September 25.


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- by Jacob Coakley
USITT has released news that their 2013 Stage Expo, set to take place March 21-23 in Milwaukee, Wisc., will have more exhibitors and more attendees than ever. To make space for the extra companies, the expanded floor layout means that more spots are still available to companies looking to bolster their presence and USITT’s record year. They have released on online map and a list of current exhibitors on their website.
USITT: 2013 Stage Expo Expected to Set Records
USITT, the US Institute for Theatre Technology anticipates a bigger, better Annual Conference & Stage Expo than ever in 2013, with more exhibitors and excitement.
USITT already has surpassed last year’s 30,000 square feet of exhibit space sold for the 2013 Stage Expo, according to Stage Expo Manager Ron Procopio. The event will be held at the Delta Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, March 21-23.
“With four months until the doors open, we anticipate even more companies will decide to participate,” Procopio said. Stage Expo 2012 in Long Beach, California, drew 197 exhibitors and set an attendance record of over 5,000 people from every segment of the entertainment industry, all 50 states and 26 countries.
To make more room, USITT has reconfigured the Stage Expo space so there are still choice spots available, and USITT can already say it will have more on the floor than ever in 2013. Besides industry giants such as ETC and Wenger, many new companies will be showing off their products, including Clear Wing, Studio Gear, Adaptive Technologies and Dazian. Returning companies such as Chauvet will be showcasing new LED fixtures specifically geared for theatre, including an LED ellipsoidal spot and an LED Fresnel-style fixture. USITT expects the 2013 Stage Expo to feature 25 percent more audio and 15 percent more scenic providers than last year.
New exhibitor venues for Stage Expo 2013 include the Innovation Gallery, a 20- by 20-foot space for companies to display new wares; Innovation Stage, featuring 20-minute demonstrations by participating companies; and Light Lab, focusing on new technologies and uses from lighting designers and manufacturers.
As the Annual Conference & Stage Expo grows, so does its audience. It attracts a wide range of designers, stage managers, owners, and academics looking for products, services and ideas for staging world-class productions. Registration to date boasts a 5% increase over last year’s record breaking show. More of the directors, production managers and theatre consultants that guide the industry will be in Milwaukee.


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BISSELL Pet Foundation welcomed nearly 700 pet owners, animal enthusiasts, celebrities and sponsors at the 13th annual BISSELL Blocktail Party last Tuesday. This year, hundreds of pets strutted down the red carpet to interview with Larissa Wohl from Hallmark Channel’s Home and Family, while Instagram celebrity “The Dogist” snapped furry photos throughout the evening.
2018: Year of the Dog
According to Chinese astrology, 2018 is the Year of the Dog. Playing off this insight, Blocktail offered fortune cookies, tarot card readings, and utilized red and purple in design to represent the Year of the Dog’s auspicious colors.
While gathered on the lawn of Paddock Place to eat, drink, sit, and stay awhile, Blocktail guests participated in several other tail-waggin’ activities to support animal shelters and rescues in West Michigan and beyond.
New to Blocktail this year, North Channel Brewing Co. created a one-of-a-kind Blocktail IPA, “I Prefer Adoption,” for guests to enjoy. Several additional special guests were in attendance, including America’s Veterinarian: Dr. Marty Becker and former ArtPrize winner, Chris LaPorte, who spent the night drawing caricatures of our four-legged guests.
We are humbled by the this year’s turnout and the generous response from the community! Blocktail proceeds play a vital role in the work we do to save thousands of pets in shelters and rescues. We are also grateful for our friends at Harbor Humane Society and Humane Society of West Michigan who came out with some adorable, adoptable dogs to truly capitalize on the reason for our gathering.
Thank You For Your Support
Between the perfect weather, fantastic auction items, and enthusiastic guests, we’d say the 13th annual BISSELL Blocktail Party was the best yet! The funds raised at Blocktail will support our 3700 partner shelters and rescues across the country.
BISSELL Pet Foundation thanks everyone who volunteered, sponsored, purchased tickets, donated auction items and supported Blocktail. You play an integral role in carrying out our mission to reduce the number of animals in shelters and rescues and we’re so grateful you chose Blocktail to make a difference. We hope to see you at next year’s Blocktail Party! Stay tuned to find out who our next “Blockstar” dog will be.


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China and Poland set solid foundations to forge a synergy between the Belt and Road Initiative and the 2030 development strategy, as this Central European country is actively pushing economic diplomacy, said a senior Chinese official. Li Wei, ...CHINAdaily.com.cn, 4 days ago Xi urges China, Poland to set up paradigm of Belt and Road cooperation Ecns.cn, 4 days ago
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The Cosmoprof fair in Bologna – the most important exhibition event for the cosmetics industry in the world – came to an end yesterday. It lasted from the 4th to the 7th of April, 2014. The Polish cosmetics industry presented its offer at the fair very noticeably and in great style.
Over a hundred Polish companies took part in the fair this year. Almost half of them displayed their offer in the national pavilion hall, creating a large, conspicuous representation of Poland.
Such a grouping of the Polish stands in one place is an excellent way to show the strength of our branch. We stood out favourably from the background of the neighbouring pavilions – the French and German ones – claimed Marek Chotkowski, Export Manager at Oceanic SA.
Beata Jastrzębska, Export Business Development Manager at Floslek Cosmetics Laboratory added that: This year, we moved our stand from the theme hall to the National Pavilion. That has been a hit in the bull’s-eye. The Pavilion, large, aesthetic and modern, has been catching attention and drawing many important clients from all over the world to the Polish stands. We have spoken to commercial chains from the US, Lithuania and even Poland, to distributors from different regions of Russia, Latvia, Canada, the United Arabic Emirates and Iraq.
On the second day of the fair, the Polish producers presented their products at a multi-media show with live music, organised in a prestigious, central place of the fair, the so-called International Forum, inaugurating at the same time the presentations of the different countries. About a 100 people watched the show – business people, journalists and the representatives of branch organisations from all over the world (the latter were invited by the Polish Cosmetics Industry Union).
The show consisted of a survey of the newly launched products, prepared by the Polish producers especially for Cosmoprof. The products could also be viewed throughout the fair in a special showroom, situated at the Polish cafe in the centre of the Polish National Pavilion, where a printed catalogue of the products was also being distributed. At the cafe, free coffee was served and one could obtain more information about the Polish cosmetics branch and the exhibitors from Poland.
The Cosmoprof fair is a place where trends in cosmetics are dictated for all of the coming year. Hence, the new products being launched were shown in the showroom and opulently displayed on the stands of the Polish companies.
Cosmoprof is not only an excellent platform for business meetings, but it also offers the best source of inspiration for the following season. Colour cosmetics undoubtedly remain to be the most dynamic category, and we shall include all the observed trends in our three brands – Ingrid, Vollare and Butterfly. We have contained a complete product offer under those three brands, having thoroughly rebranded them first. We have extremely successfully presented their new range on our stand not only by displaying the new products and cosmetic showcases, but also by conducting a professional visage presentation – said Katarzyna Olędzka, Marketing Manager at Verona Products Professional.
Olimpia Romanik, Marketing Export Manager at Dr Irena Eris Cosmetics Laboratory added that: We are very satisfied with what we have managed to achieve during this year’s Cosmoprof. Our stand was distinguishable on account of the multi-media technologies we employed and its interesting graphic design, allowing for a consistent and clear presentation of the vision of a holistic approach to beauty by Dr Irena Eris. As we expected, the launching of our new products raised great interest, particularly the addition of the Provoke colour cosmetics line to the Dr Irena Eris Premium brand. That confirms the potential contained in the development of selective products and the growing trust our cosmetics enjoy among demanding clients. In line with our company philosophy, we have been attempting to set new trends in the development of new products and the ways of marketing those brands by ourselves. Our main aims have undoubtedly been attained, we have conducted a series of planned meetings and have made promising new business contacts.
Marek Chotkowski also confirms the clients’ interest in the advanced products from Poland: Clients were interested in dermocosmetic lines, particularly in the Oillan line, in selective cosmetics from the Prestige series and in novelties in the facial care segment. We have gained many new contacts in Arabic countries, in Asia, America and of course Europe. Looking at the number of the contacts and the quality of the meetings conducted, we are looking forward to the next awaiting us fair in Dubai with great optimism..
The fair turned out to be a success also for the companies that are making a debut on the beauty market and are just embarking on their adventure with exports.
We are very satisfied with our debut at the fair. We have displayed our new product, only just being introduced onto the market: bionanocellulose, for whose production our company holds the licence. It is a product that is completely natural, hipoallergic, has soothing effects, is an excellent aid in all sorts of burns: sunburns or those following laser interventions. It also has strong moisturising, revitalising and refreshing properties. We are addressing it to professional clients, to aesthetic medicine clinics and SPAs. We have managed to find such clients from all over the world at the fair. We have also noted great interest on the part of Asian countries, as well as big cosmetics concerns – said Anna Łuba, Chief Production Engineer at Bowil Biotech.
Edyta Jamrozik, Sales Manager at the Rabka Spa Resort, which was also making its debut at the fair, is equally optimistic: We decided to participate in Cosmoprof in order to make our clients realise that the Rabka spa resort does not offer solely spa treatments. The Rabka salt brine, rich in minerals, is also an excellent base for skin care cosmetics. The world is turning its trends over to natural products and that is where we believe our opportunity lies. We can confidently declare already today that the fair has been an inspiration for future undertakings and that we are looking forward to taking part in it again.
The Polish cosmetics industry drew the general attention of the visitors to this year’s fair. Armando Campagnoli, the President of the Bologna fair, stressed that when visiting the Polish stands during the inauguration ceremony. Michał Górski, director of Trade and Investment Promotion Department at the Polish Embassy in Rome, present at the fair, added that: We have been observing the growing importance of our cosmetic companies at such an important commercial event as the international Cosmoprof fair with great satisfaction.
Clients’ interest was translated into media interest. Corriere Della Sera, the Italian daily with the greatest circulation in that country, devoted a full-page article to the Polish cosmetics industry, titled „Polonia – e’ rinata una stella della cosmetica” („Poland – the Renaissance of a Cosmetics Star”) in its April 4th number.
The Polish national Pavilion and the PR events accompanying it have been organised as part of the Branch Promotion Programme, ordered by the Polish Ministry of Economy and carried out by SPC House of Media. There are several dozen Polish companies taking part in it, ranging from the most well-known ones to such that are only taking their first steps in the trade. Apart from the Pavilion, SPC House of Media has also been organizing PR activities for the companies representing that branch, trade missions, trainings and the visits of journalists and trade partners to Poland.
The work of SPC House of Media is supported by Trade and Investments Department at the Polish Embassies all over the world. The Trade and Investment Promotion Department at the Polish Embassy in Rome was very strongly and effectively involved in the Cosmoprof fair.
Post show press release
Introductory press release
Plan of the Polish National Pavilion
Full list of Polish Exhibitors
Poland’s Novelties Catalogue
Poland’s Novelties presentation: Overview
Poland’s Novelties presentation: Skin
Poland’s Novelties presentation: Colour
Poland’s Novelties presentation: Hair


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Britain worked itself up into a lather last week when it was announced that, under new EU legislation, the makers of Fairy Liquid would have to print a GHS harmful/irritant warning on all bottles starting from June 2017. News outlets like the Daily Mail were quick to paint this story as yet another example of Brussels bureaucrats terrorising the British way of life - here's the headline from www.dailymail.co.uk:
Procter and Gamble, the manufacturers of Fairy Liquid, have expressed their anger at this ruling, which they worry will discourage people from using their product and contradict the brand's long-established 'soft on skin' image.
However, it should be pointed out that washing-up liquid (including "beloved and quintessentially British brand" Fairy Liquid) is, in fact, hazardous if misused. As the Mail themselves point out, the required GHS label (a black exclamation mark inside a red border) will warn consumers that Fairy Liquid may cause "eye irritation, respiratory tract irritation, and have narcotic effects". All of which is true - even soft, kind Fairy Liquid should not be ingested, inhaled, or allowed to make contact with the eyes.
The potential hazards of washing-up liquid need to be clearly marked on the products to promote safe use, and this is all that the new EU legislation aims to achieve. Instead of criticising the move, news outlets would do better to educate their readers as to the exact meaning of GHS labels and the ways in which labelled products can and can't be safely used. It's time to stop criticising health and safety culture and start helping to keep people safe!


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In August, the company announced Pixel smartphones on its own Tensor chip.
The company plans to release processors for laptops and tablets running on the Chrome operating system in 2023, Nikkei Asia writes, citing sources familiar with the matter.
The company’s new processors and chips are designed on the circuits of the British company Arm.
Google is also going to develop the production of chips for its smartphones and other devices. In August, it introduced new Pixel smartphones on its own Tensor chip.
Nikkei Asia sources said that the company has high hopes for the Pixel 6, so it asked suppliers to prepare 50% more production capacity for phones compared to 2019.
Experts interviewed by the publication note that this is a logical step by Google, but the production of processors requires large investments and competition for production capacity with leading chip developers Intel, Nvidia, Qualcomm and others.


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HTC's One X smartphone is the most well-received handset among UK consumers, according to a report.
The Android device edged out market leaders the iPhone 5 and the Samsung Galaxy S3 in a recent customer satisfaction survey by ondevice research.
The market research firm asked 52,140 Britons to assign their smartphone a score out of 10, with the HTC device earning an average of 8.47.
Apple's iPhone 5 came in second with an average score of 8.21, marginally ahead of Samsung's Galaxy Note 2 and S3 Mini, which were both rated at 8.18. The full-sized Galaxy S3 came in fifth with 8.09.
The news comes as HTC prepares to launch a new flagship smartphone in the shape of the much-rumoured HTC M7, a device that was originally tipped for unveiling at the Mobile World Congress.
HTC released the HTC One X+ smartphone last October, a refreshed version of the handset with better battery life and Android Jelly Bean on board.


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The goal is to ensure that the quality of its service to UK customers continues to match the quality of its systems.
The ‘Schüco Means Business’ initiative is being rolled out right across the company and represents a major investment in both people and operating systems. The company has recruited more staff and strengthened its service offering especially in its sales, sales administration and estimating teams. The aim is to make certain that team members have the time to deal fully with the needs of their increasing customer base.
In addition, the company is substantially increasing the volume of stock held in its modern central warehouse in Milton Keynes. This facility now holds 800 tonnes of systems-components so ensuring even faster and more efficient deliveries. Schüco is expanding its fleet of lorries and trailers to cope with the increased demand.
Schüco has also just completed the Network Centre, a huge new permanent exhibition facility at its Milton Keynes HQ. Believed to be the biggest exhibition of curtain walling and window systems in the UK, the Network Centre also showcases the company’s range of aluminium louvre blades and its rapidly expanding portfolio of solar products.
It is envisaged that the Centre will additionally be used for seminars and presentations both by Schüco and by the network of clients and customers, such as fabricators, architects and specifiers, with whom it does business.
On the façade system side, the company has also expanded its range in order to compete effectively in the more cost-driven end of the market and the work of its technical advisory team in Milton Keynes is now being mirrored by a newly-established project office in London. This effectively doubles Schüco’s national technical support capacity and will help to reinforce its market dominance.
All in all, ‘Schüco Means Business’ demonstrates Schüco’s very positive attitude to its UK customers and its faith in the continued resilience of the UK market.


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Forbes has just released its annual ranking of the top billionaires in the world. Bill Gates defeating Mexican telecom magnate Carlos Slim, tops the list again.
Unsurprisingly, a lot of tech billionaires made it to the list. Despite the vast loads of cash flying around in the tech industry, however, no one came significantly close to Gates.
Here’s how the top ten tech billionaires compare to Gates, via a visualization from Dadaviz:
(image source: Dadaviz)


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Enlarge (credit: Aurich Lawson)
Video game enthusiasts worldwide are looking forward to Sony’s PlayStation 5 launch this fall, but a new report says challenges in sourcing affordable parts may mean that the console comes with a higher price tag than players want to pay.
Sony so far is unable to get the manufacturing cost for a PlayStation 5 below $450, Bloomberg reports, which may result in difficulty for the company.
The consoles are slated to hit shelves within the next ten months, but apparently a few parts for it are not yet finalized. “We must keep PlayStation 5’s bill of materials under our control, and we need to make the correct number of units in the initial production,” Sony Chief Financial Officer Hiroki Totoki said in a recent earnings call.
Read 11 remaining paragraphs | Comments
Source:: Ars Technica


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EXCLUSIVE: Seven Tides to build and operate new hotel in Dubai's JLT
Seven Tides currently operates Dukes Dubai and Dukes London hotels
Seven Tides is currently working on a new hotel plan that will be launched at Dubai's Jumeirah Lake Towers.
The company's CEO Abdulla Bin Sulayem revealed in an interview with Hotelier Middle East that Seven Tides will manage the property itself and is close to announcing a contractor for the project.
The company currently owns four hotels in the region: Dukes Dubai; Anantara The Palm Dubai Resort; Mövenpick Hotel Ibn Battuta Gate and Avani Hotel in Deira.
With the latter three, the management contracts to operate those properties have been given to Minor Hotels, in the case of Anantara and the Avani; and Mövenpick Hotels and Resorts, for Mövenpick Ibn Battuta. Seven Tides currently operates the Dukes Dubai hotel, as well as the Dukes London (which it also owns).
"The four-star hotel will be a part of a cluster of three towers, two of which will be residential. The hotel will be a new concept and brand and the target market will be a more casual-clientele," Bin Sulayem revealed to Hotelier.
The complex will also feature a retail area for residents and hotel guests.


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GPS on mobile phones was supposed to liberate millions of users, by letting people in unfamiliar surroundings figure out where they are and enabling location-aware services for restaurants, shops, and other services.
But many Verizon customers have been unable to find GPS nirvana, thanks to the fact that most GPS-equipped Verizon smartphones don't work with widely available GPS software and systems. Customers have accused the telecommunications giant of locking out the competition, but Verizon insists there are valid technical reasons.
Consider the GPS-equipped Samsung Omnia. The Verizon-branded version of this phone could save your life if you make a 911 call, and it could give you directions if you're willing to pay $10 per month using Verizon's VZ Navigator service. But download the mobile version of Google Maps and it won't find a satellite. Verizon has disabled the GPS feature's ability to work with most programs, such as the popular Google service.
People who have bought the Omnia and other Verizon smartphones smell a rat. Way back in 2007, Adam, working in BlackBerry Customer Support for RIM, felt this was "no doubt to push their own VZNavigator service...No VZNavigator service, no GPS." In January, an anonymous user reviewing the HTC Touch Pro CDMA at phoneArena.com asked "Why does Verizon feel such a deep need to strip features out of manufactures phones?...HTC designed a feature that works great with Google maps but Verizon cant [sic] make money off that. So what do they do? LOCK IT!"
A Verizon spokesperson told the Industry Standard that "We're not disabling GPS. We use Assisted GPS [that can be used by] any third party that have gone through our developer program." Assisted GPS uses the cellular network as well as satellites to determine a user's location.
Although the spokesperson stated that "we do not intend to have a monopoly on GPS with Navigator for our devices," she admitted that Verizon generally disables support for plain, old, standalone GPS in the smartphones that it uses. That effectively locks out GPS programs created without Verizon's participation.
But Verizon is rethinking that policy. The company recently unlocked standalone GPS on the Blackberry Storm. According to the spokesperson, the Omnia "will support standalone GPS in the future." However, the company could not say when this would happen.
This story, "Verizon Locks Out GPS Competition, Customers Complain" was originally published by thestandard.com.


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The US equities ended a three-week decline with all the major indexes posting gains for the week. Earnings season for the fourth quarter is largely over: Broadcom provided upbeat guidance, while Costco Wholesale reported mixed results. On the economic front, weaker-than-anticipated growth was reported in the services sector, but the economy as a whole showed signs of improvement.
Often referred to as the “century’s best-performing US stock,” Monster Beverage Corporation missed Wall Street expectations with its fourth quarter results. Today, we discuss how this energy drink company outperformed the likes of Apple and Amazon (see Figure 1) and their recent struggle with shrinking margins.
Since its debut in 2003, Monster’s stock has skyrocketed 60,000%, surpassing all other stocks in the S&P 500. The company has been able to boost revenues by 9% every year due to three primary reasons.
- High in Caffeine: Energy drinks tend to be addictive due to their caffeine content. Monster’s drinks double the caffeine amount of Monster’s largest competitor Red Bull (which has 2x the caffeine of Coca-Cola).
- Diverse Products: Despite spending almost $0 on research and development, Monster has introduced 34 different drinks to fend off competition. In 2019, the company introduced Reign – a workout performance drink with six zero-sugar and zero-calorie options. The company is expanding in India and other markets with its “Predator” brand and recently announced its new alcoholic beverage: The Beast Unleashed.
- Partnership with Coca-Cola: The two companies have a strategic alliance. Since Coca-Cola owns 20% of Monster, both companies have decided to avoid competing with each other.
Despite its popularity, the company has seen decreased sales since last year. Sales from outside the US and Canada were just 25.7% of the total in 2018. Despite maintaining revenue growth, net income in 2022 was down 13.5% compared to the prior year. The company spent an estimated $46 million as a result of operating inefficiencies, including an increase in
- Packaging Costs: Port congestion, a lack of shipping containers, and constraints in aluminium supply resulted in a 65% YoY increase in aluminium prices last year. This in turn increased packaging costs for beverage cans, which are primarily made of aluminium.
- Logistics Expense: Gasoline prices have increased since the pandemic and was exacerbated by the war in Ukraine. Disruptions in the supply chain forced the company to move ingredients via expensive air freight instead of traditional shipping containers. Coupled with increased warehousing expenses, the company finds itself spending more on distribution.
Monster has attempted to offset these higher costs by raising prices by 6% in the US and reducing expenditure on promotional allowances. Despite its recent setbacks, the company still controlled 36.4% of the total energy drink market last year, barely surpassing its competitor Red Bull (35.1%).


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- SpaceX is starting a program to take CO2 out of atmosphere & turn it into rocket fuel.
- Please join if interested
- Will also be important for Mars
Musk, the world’s richest man, tweeted about the SpaceX CO2-to-rocket fuel project just after he was named 2021 Person of the Year by TIME.
Capturing CO2 from the atmosphere and turning it into rocket fuel will need a lot of development as the direct air capture technology has not been fully developed and tested yet, Bloomberg notes.
Musk often tweets ideas, and at times trolls his followers and other celebrities or politicians on Twitter.
Just last week, Tesla and SpaceX’s founder tweeted, «thinking of quitting my jobs & becoming an influencer full-time.»
On Tuesday, Musk said that «Tesla will make some merch buyable with Doge & see how it goes.»
Meanwhile, he continues to sell shares in Tesla, the latest batch being 934,091 shares worth $906.5 million, according U.S. securities filings from Monday, cited by Reuters.
- Much is made lately of unrealized gains being a means of tax avoidance, so I propose selling 10% of my Tesla stock
- Do you support this?
10% of Tesla stock would be worth some $21 billion.


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Shares of Nutanix (NTNX 2.28%) jumped on Tuesday after the cloud computing company reported its fiscal first-quarter results. Nutanix beat analyst estimates across the board, and provided guidance that was in line with expectations. The stock was up 16.3% at noon EST today.
Nutanix reported first-quarter revenue of $314.8 million, up 0.5% year over year and about $8.4 million above the average analyst estimate. The company is transitioning to a subscription-based business model, which is putting pressure on sales. Hardware revenue was down significantly from the prior-year period.
"We continued to make progress toward our goal of more than 75% of billings coming from subscription by the end of the fiscal year, further demonstrating that customers want the freedom and flexibility that a subscription software model offers," CFO Duston Williams said.
Non-GAAP (adjusted) earnings per share came in at a loss of $0.71, versus a loss of $0.13 in the prior-year period, but $0.04 better than analysts were expecting. GAAP operating expenses soared 38%, despite the nearly flat revenue.
For the second fiscal quarter, Nutanix expects software and support revenue between $330 million and $335 million, along with an adjusted net loss per share of $0.70. For the full year, the company sees software and support revenue between $1.3 billion and $1.4 billion.
Eventually, Nutanix will complete its subscription transition, easing the pressure on its revenue and earnings. While the company posted a massive loss for the first quarter, investors found enough good news to propel the stock higher.