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Tattoo artist shares the issues that many East Lancashire businesses are facing due to pandemics and rising living costs.
James Monnery owns Tattoo Heaven and has been in New Chapel Street Blackburn for nearly 14 years.
James’ business slowed after the pandemic. Bookings were put on hold, and the cost-of-living crisis raised energy bills.
While the crisis hasn’t affected footfall post-pandemic, James’s energy bills have quadrupled, and Covid-19 caused the cost of PPE to triple.
James said: “Electricity is a big problem. It’s gone foolish, so that’s hit us quite complexly, and the studio sanitation bill has gone up.
“We’re fortunate because we are sponsored for needles & inks, but that isn’t the case for everyone.”
“Covid pushed the price of gloves, hazardous waste, and other items through the roof and kept it there, never lowering the costs.
“We used to pay £3 for a box of gloves, and now it’s £15; it’s ridiculous.
People are getting tattoos in houses illegally to save money.
“But, in the end, we’ll have to fix or conceal them, so you pay twice. Hepatitis cannot be covered up.
“While this has always been a problem, we see it more than ever.”
James has had to deal with a lot of cover-ups. Around four clients a week are looking for him to fix a poorly done tattoo.
He said: “This is not just a problem for tattoo artists.”
“My partner owns a hairdressing business, and people cut their hair themselves to save money but come to her when things go wrong. It happens across the board.
“The tattoos we have are unnecessary; they’re a luxury.”
If you have bills to pay, you cancel or don’t attend your tattoo appointment. That’s the biggest issue.
James revealed that, despite offering affordable prices compared to other tattoo artists in East Lancashire and the South, many people could not afford the pieces of art they desired.
He said, “We have customers that ask us for the cost of a large, intricate tattoo, and then when we give them a quote, they come back with smaller tattoos and lower quality.”
James Ford, who has been running Giant Peach Tattoo Studio for 17 years in Accrington, believes that artists feel the pinch as they overcharge.
He said, “Most tattooists overvalue themselves and charge outrageous prices for work that can be done reasonably by someone with less ego.”
“The cost of living will not affect the self-employed who charge whatever they like for their work.
The cost of living is likely to increase for those who pay the tattoo artists.
Fern, a Burnley 24-year-old, said she had been waiting to get a memorial tattoo for her grandmother but couldn’t because of money struggles.
She said, “I’ve wanted to buy one for a long time but have put off booking because if I cancel, I will lose the deposit. I need that money.”
“It is not a requirement. It’s depressing. This is the situation.”
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If you already knew that hypertensives should not consume green tea, those who are medicated with a drug called nadolol, even less. Is that, according to a recent study, the effectiveness of this medication would drastically decrease in those who drink this tea.
It was already common knowledge that the consumption of green tea among those suffering from hypertension is not something that is precisely welcome. It is that the content of caffeine that has this infusion, although it is low, does not stop being harmful for those with high pressure, because it is a stimulant alkaloid that does not have a good effect on it. But, thanks to what was determined by a recent study conducted among several research centers, now it could become worse.
According to research conducted between Germany, Japan and Italy, the consumption of green tea could be harmful for all those hypertensive who are medicated with a drug called nadolol, extremely popular among those suffering from high blood pressure.
This research divided the volunteers, consumers of 30 milligrams of nadolol, into two groups. One, I would only consume water. The other, would add at least three cups of green tea daily. The result was surprising: those who took the infusion suffered a decrease of up to 76 percent of the level of this drug in blood, something really to take into account.
If it was already unfit, now it would be less
“Those individuals who take nadolol and also consume green tea, should be aware of the potential interaction of this medicine with the infusion and consult it with their bedside specialist,” said Dr. Gregg Fonarow, who reviewed the research and is the spokesman for the American Heart Association.
So if you suffer from hypertension, consume nadolol and continue to consume green tea, you should start to consider quitting. In itself, as mentioned above, green tea is not a positive drink for those who suffer from high blood pressure, so it is better to think of other alternatives without caffeine, such as Lu Shan Yun Wu Green Tea, without going any further.

domain: news


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In an article from Newsday, Jennifer Smith talks about the increasing problem of disposing gadgets and electronics, as this kind of e-waste contain toxins which “can poison groundwater or pollute the air when products are dumped in landfills or burned in incinerators. She mentions that 11 of Long Island’s 13 towns have created contracts with “e-cyclers” who take away the tons of computers and other gadgets, while 32 municipalities in NY state that collect e-waste qualify for funding grants of up to 50 percent from the state.
Smith does clarify though, that though these NY towns are taking the initiative, no federal or NT State law prohibits residents from blithely tossing their old TVs and PCs in landfills. Despite official enthusiasm for e-cycling programs, neither the federal Environmental Protection Agency nor the DEC regulates how most consumer electronics are recycled, or tracks where the goods end up after collection.
NY state, however, does require cell phone companies to accept used phones at no charge for reuse or recycling and recently passed an e-waste law for electronic manufactures to f0llow suit.


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The U.S. Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) has created a new consumer assistance Web page that provides easy access to useful information and allows users to submit questions and complaints about health and retirement plans electronically.
"Helping retirement and health plan participants find answers to questions about their benefits and providing assistance when they believe their benefits have been improperly denied is one of our most important responsibilities," said EBSA Assistant Secretary Phyllis C. Borzi. "The new consumer assistance Web page and electronic inquiry/complaint process will provide quick answers to the most frequently asked questions and connect workers to experienced benefits advisers if assistance is needed."
The page includes links to various tools and publications with information on benefit plans, as well as answers to questions about "hot topics." Users also have the option to submit a question, file a complaint or report a problem with their plan. Inquiries and complaints submitted are sent directly to EBSA benefits advisers, who will respond as soon as possible but no later than three business days. Additionally, the system automatically routes the requests to the appropriate EBSA regional office based on users' ZIP codes.
The new Web page is also available in Spanish. EBSA has a number of benefits advisers who are fluent in Spanish and a translation service is available for a variety of other languages. The page can be found by going to http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/ and then selecting "Request Assistance" or "Solicitud de Asistencia" at the top of the page.
EBSA receives thousands of calls each year on its toll-free consumer assistance line at 866-444-3272. The agency hopes this new Web page and electronic inquiry system will provide more efficient service to individuals seeking assistance. EBSA's benefits advisers assisted more than 230,000 consumers last year and obtained more than $478 million in benefits that had been wrongly denied to 173,000 participants through informal dispute resolution. EBSA also opened 900 formal investigations of retirement and health plans based on referrals from benefits advisers of complaints that could not be resolved informally.


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Every 'Simpsons' episode is going online
- TV Show
Soon you’re going to be able to watch every episode of The Simpsons anywhere you want. Cable network FXX, which last year struck a deal to obtain the exclusive cable network rights to the longest-running primetime animated series, is putting The Simpsons archive online, all fully searchable.
FXX is launching “Simpsons World,” a new way of getting on-demand Simpsons content. For the first time, viewers can access every episode of the series via their computer or other networked devices. “Authenticated” FX subscribers will have instant access on iPhone, iPad, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Android phones and tablets, Smart TVs, and additional set-tops devices. Viewers will also be able to search for specific quotes, curate their own own personalized playlists, and share their favorite show clips and quotes (non-subscribers will be able to watch the clips, just not full episodes).
The site will vastly widen the availability of Simpsons content online. Hulu currently carries a library of classic Simpsons clips, though only the series’ eight most recent episodes are available for viewing on that streaming service.
“I don’t want to over-promise, but this website can provide you with affordable health care,” joked longtime Simpsons executive producer Al Jean.
Also, as previously announced, The Simpsons is getting the Longest. Marathon. Ever! FXX will air 25 seasons of The Simpsons in a row. That’s 522 episodes. And The Simpsons Movie. According to FXX, this will make it the longest-running marathon in television history—all Simpsons, all the time, 24 hours a day, for 12 days, in chronological order.
The marathon begins Aug. 21, so order those cases of Duff now.


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Amazon's investment in online food delivery firm Deliveroo could leave restaurants, grocers and customers facing lower quality services at higher prices, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has...
Scheme involved paying bribes to Amazon employees to gain unfair competitive advantage worth more than $100 million on Amazon's third-party platform
Charlotte Allery, Employment Solicitor in the Technology Sector at Coffin Mew, argues that the government must do more to promote diversity in the technology industry
OCED plan could see Google, Facebook, eBay and Apple paying more tax
US prosecutors take sides against Huawei in ongoing dispute between tech companies
Legal expert warns industry to remember the law as it applies to AI, especially GDPR


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The eighth annual Promenade on Poyntz, a fundraiser sponsored by Standard Beverage Corporation in support of Homecare & Hospice, featured 20 different wines in 10 different store locations in downtown Manhattan on Wednesday. Organizers estimated the event would bring in about $7,000 based on last year’s total.
Ashley Delehanty, K-State alum, attended the event for her fourth consecutive year and said that she has enjoyed herself each year. She said it is “good wine, good food, and good fun.”
Delehanty said she planned to attend all 10 stores and try all the wine. She said the taste of wine was definitely worth the cost of admission.
Not only does Delehanty enjoy herself at the event, but she said it helps her pick out good wine in the future. She said she looked up the Twisted River wine company after tasting it because of its excellent taste.
“You buy what’s good,” Delehanty said.
Lauren Morano, K-State alum, attended the event for the first time. She said she used the event to find new wines.
“If you find one you like, you just buy it,” she said.
Morano and Delehanty agreed that the event is about helping a good cause and enjoying downtown Manhattan.
Morano also said she will definitely come back next year.
Rita Faires, director of corporate development for Standard Beverage Corporation, said the company is a distributor of spirits, wines and beer and sponsored the event as a way to give to a good cause.
“[We] recognized that we had the ability to give back to the community,” Faires said.
Christina Nolte, director of development for Homecare & Hospice and host of the event, said that everyone seemed to be having a good time and everything worked out. All proceeds from the event go to Homecare & Hospice, a Manhattan-based hospice care organization.
“[It was a] really good turnout,” Nolte said.
Each location chose a different restaurant that provided food for the event.
Jan Miller, owner of Steve’s Floral, chose Carlos O’Kelly’s as the store’s caterer for the event because of their close friendship.
“Carlos O’Kelly’s and Steve’s Floral joined together for a good cause,” Miller said.
Hildegard Bembry, manager of Steve’s Floral, added that since the inception of Promenade on Poyntz, Carlos O’Kelly’s and Steve’s Floral have worked together.
Bembry said it is a good promotion for the store to be a part of the event.
“It’s a good way to showcase the store,” Bembrey said.
John Long, general manager of Carlos O’Kelly’s, said that Carlos O’Kelly’s participates in the event for charitable purposes.
“[It] helps them out, helps them raise money,” Long said.
Long also added that he does not think that anyone should have a problem with the fact that Standard Beverage is handing out alcohol because the amount is monitored. He believed that people do not just come for the wine, but also the food, meeting new people and experiencing new things.


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Retailigence is a data company that focuses not on consumer behavior, but on retail shelves and storerooms. Its database holds in-stock information on more than 20 million products at over two million retail locations.
“Great digital ad creative is driven by how brands use data to make their content relevant and useful. Now advertisers can deliver mobile ads that help customers find all the info they need to go shop at nearby stores with the right inventory in stock,” said Sizmek SVP of Business Development Andrew Bloom about the capabilities provided by Retailigence.
One of the key pieces of information that active shoppers seek in searches is product availability at specific retail outlets. In testing a new app released for car shoppers last week, for instance, Edmunds found that the question most asked of dealerships was, “Is the car in stock?”


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Shares of Bed Bath & Beyond Inc.
rose 1.1% in premarket trading Tuesday, after the home accessories retailer said June same-store sales were "positive" for reopened stores and digital channels. The company said cash flow during June were also positive. Nearly all stores have reopened, following closures because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Separately, the company said it believes there is between $350 million to $450 million it could get from asset sales and the plan to reduce up to $1 billion of inventory at retail is slightly more than halfway complete. The stock has run up 43.9% over the past three months through Monday, while the SPDR S&P Retail ETF
has advanced 25.3% and the S&P 500
has gained 10.9%.


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Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer made a surprise appearance at AT&T’s Developer Summit Monday at the Consumer Electronics Show to say that the operator would be the first to offer LTE Windows Phones, including the HTC Titan II and a phone from Nokia.
“We’re thrilled to announce the first LTE Windows Phones in the U.S. on AT&T’s network,” Ballmer said. The Titan II will have a 16-megapixel camera, offering better resolution than even many stand-alone cameras.
Many people had expected that Nokia, which is holding a press conference later in the day, would deliver the first Windows Phone LTE device. Stephen Elop, Nokia’s CEO who also made an appearance at the AT&T event, said he’d share more information about its first LTE Windows Phone at the press event. He also said the company will talk more about its reentry strategy in the U.S., where the world’s largest phone maker has scant market share.
Ballmer promoted the differences between Windows Phone, which is widely praised by reviewers yet lags seriously behind competitors in sales, and other phone platforms. Specifically, he noted that Windows Phone lets developers incorporate social and other features into apps so that users don’t have to open multiple apps constantly.
He also said that there are 300 apps being published daily in the Windows Phone Marketplace.
AT&T also announced six new Android devices that will run on its LTE network, including the Samsung Galaxy Note and a waterproof tablet from Pantech.
The Galaxy Note is midway between a tablet and a phone with a 5.3-inch screen. AT&T is the first to sell the device, which comes in blue and white, in the U.S. In addition to its size, the Note is unique in that it comes with a pen for controlling the device.
“This pen is not a stylus,” said Kevin Packingham, a Samsung product manager. The pen allows for drawing very fine lines on the screen and enables more exact controls, he said.
AT&T will also offer the Galaxy S II Skyrocket HD, another Android phone with a 1.5Ghz dual-core processor and a removable battery.
The Samsung Exhilerate, which is made partly with recyclable materials, will also become available from AT&T.
The operator also unveiled devices from Pantech, including the Element, a waterproof tablet. AT&T is offering a deal where people can buy the tablet and the Pantech Burst phone for US$250. Otherwise, the Burst will cost under $50, AT&T said.
Nancy Gohring covers mobile phones and cloud computing for The IDG News Service. Follow Nancy on Twitter at @idgnancy. Nancy’s e-mail address is firstname.lastname@example.org


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HOLIDAYS are back on track for 2022, according to Barrhead Travel.
One week on from the announcement confirming the relaxation of travel testing, the travel giant says that there are signs confidence is returning to the market for this year’s hols.
The Glasgow-based firm has reported an increased interest in 2022 bookings, including a growing demand for travel before the end of March - with one in five new bookings due to travel before then.
Since travel testing rules were relaxed, the agency says that holiday enquiries have grown by 165 per cent.
Top destinations booked at Barrhead include Tenerife, New York and Orlando – which have enjoyed growth of 222 per cent, 116 per cent and 64 per cent respectively this week.
The agency said that experiential travel and bucket list itineraries to destinations such as Lapland and Japan were also on the rise.
Jacqueline Dobson, President of Barrhead Travel, said: “Travel is set to make a significant comeback in 2022 with restrictions continuing to ease across the world.
“People have dearly missed travelling over the last few years – whether that be for holidays, business or to reunite with loved ones.
Most read in Travel
“January is traditionally the most popular time of year to book a holiday and we’re already seeing much more confidence in the market than this time last year.
“Omicron caused some uncertainty during December but the relaxation on testing will go a long way to kickstart travel recovery.
“Our customers are telling us that they can’t wait for their holidays this year.
"One of the primary barriers was testing costs and we’re already noticing a difference in how the relaxation is boosting confidence.
“Summer 2022 is also selling very well as families are looking to secure deals while prices and added-value offers are still available for school holiday dates.”
The demand for holidays in 2022 is echoed in a recent report by The Association of British Travel Agents, who found 61 per cent of people intend on holidaying abroad this year.
Ms Dobson said customers were also “making up for lost time” and choosing to upgrade their trips and added: “Holidaymakers are choosing to upgrade rooms, flights and hotels.”
Average holiday duration has also increased from seven nights to 14 nights as people maximise their annual leave.
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Billionaire real estate developer Jay Bloom warned consumers Thursday the housing industry is getting hit by the “perfect storm.”
“We’re in the middle of a real estate boom like we haven’t seen in the past,” Bloom told “Cavuto: Coast to Coast.”
He said several different factors impact homebuilding in the red-hot housing market – from supply chain interruptions to low-interest rates and the “foreclosure moratorium” during the pandemic.
US RENT PRICES REACH RECORD HIGHS AS BUYERS PUSHED OUT OF MARKET
“A $12 piece of lumber is now $80 to $100…now we’re starting to see interest rates go up fast,” Bloom explained. “We’re seeing the foreclosure moratorium start to lift, and you’re seeing the supply chain start to get fixed.”
He said once the “perfect storm” hits, the artificial shortage in the housing market inventory “goes away,” and the result will be “new home starts,” which will put down pressure on pricing.
Bloom noted that supply chain interruptions, along with labor shortages, are causing home-building confidence to drop since it’s difficult to get materials and find workers.
“The materials you get are extremely expensive, relative to what they historically cost,” he explained.
“You can’t find plumbers, electricians and HVAC service people…building a home has gotten extremely expensive, and as a result, builders are building fewer homes.”
The billionaire real estate developer stressed these factors are “pushing up the value of existing home inventory,” and he doesn’t see how it’s “sustainable.”
“I think the momentum is going to slow, and I think there’s going to be an outright reversal,” Bloom concluded.
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“Housing affordability is an issue. We have rents that are going up because the property values are going up to the point where it’s unsustainable. People can’t afford housing.”


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At previous meetings, selectboard members suggested a “vendor policy” after residents asked whether vendors could sell items during events in the park, and if musicians performing in the town-sponsored concert series could sell their CDs during performances.
On Tuesday evening, economic development director Ken Black offered a draft policy that would allow vendors, with the approval of the selectboard, to set up a booth or table in the northeast corner of the park. But after discussing the matter further, board members rejected the concept.
Selectboard chair Randy Terk wondered about charging vendors a fee. “Even if there is no fee, do we want to have a formal permit process so that, if vendors don’t adhere to the rules, we have some teeth? Do we want to charge a deposit?”
Black said the requirement of a permit would allow the board to control the number of vendors and the goods that could be sold in the park. “We don’t want inappropriate vendors coming to the park.”
But board member Vicki Capitani said she didn’t like the whole concept of commercial use of the park. “It’s one thing for a band to have some CDs in front of the bandstand,” she said, “but this is an open public space. It’s a place for families to come. I don’t like the concept of making it an open market.”
Board member Linda Holland added that she was concerned about damage to the grounds from the temporary installation of booths and tents.
Capitani said that by offering vendor space in the park, the town could be handing some vendors an unfair advantage over regular restaurants and retailers near the park. “A musician selling a CD, that’s a unique thing that people can’t buy anywhere else – that’s not taking anything away from 7-Eleven.”
But Black argued the opposite, noting that at one of the concerts, a nearby pizza shop was delivering to people in the park. “It gives an unfair advantage to folks like 7-Eleven or the pizza place across the way,” he said. “There’s a case where they’re already acting as a vendor.”
“Well, it’s buyer beware,” said Capitani. “We bought, and they were already there.”
“So it’s OK if any pizza place says ‘Call us, and we’ll deliver to the park?’” asked Black.
“Sure,” said Terk. “Someone can bring a picnic or they can order something.”
“But you can’t put up a sign in the park saying you deliver,” added Capitani.
The board voted unanimously to reject the vendor plan.
In other Dover Park policy matters, board members approved guidelines for accepting donations for park equipment or landscaping. Board members requested the guidelines from Black after he relayed a request from a resident to donate a bench in memory of a loved one.
Under the guidelines, donors could pay $1,000 for a bench with a small brass memorial plaque, or $400 for a tree. The actual purchase would be handled by the town, and the benches and trees would be the same type that are already placed in the park. The donated items would be placed according to a designated plan. When the park has reached the planned capacity, additional benches and landscaping could be placed along the Valley Trail. Benches and trees could also be donated by businesses. The selectboard will have final approval of all donations and the wording on donation plaques.
“What’s our strategy if a plaque is vandalized or removed?” asked Capitani. “Is it the town’s responsibility in perpetuity?”
“I would think so,” said Terk.
“It’s insured,” said board member Tom Baltrus.
Black also updated the board on efforts to install Internet service at the town hall in anticipation of uploading results for the primary on Tuesday, August 26, to the Vermont Secretary of State’s office. Black said that, to his surprise, there was already a working wireless Internet setup at the town hall. “FairPoint installed it for a branding meeting with Arnett and Muldrow over a month and a half ago, and it’s still operational.”
But Black said he wasn’t sure that the setup was permanent. He contacted Internet provider Cliff Duncan who offered a quote of $857.99 to install service at the town hall, and $40 per month for his high speed service. “After the primary I’ll call FairPoint and find out what’s going on, and get a cost from them. Then we can decide where to go.”
Black also announced that the town has been approved for a $324,000 transportation enhancement grant for the “A-” section of the valley trail, which will run south of the town office building and includes a bridge crossing. The town was also approved for a $33,000 grant for scoping of the “B+” section of the valley trail. Each of the grants requires a 10% local match. Black suggested “carving” the money out of economic development funds and setting it aside.


text: Nearly €4 million investment will support customer growth Today UPS (NYSE: UPS) announced that it is building a new package sorting and delivery facility in the city of Lummen, located in the province of Limburg, Belgium. The nearly €4 million project, due to be completed by early 2018, is part of UPS’s commitment announced in 2014 to invest $2 billion in its European infrastructure by 2019. “With Belgium in the top five of the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index, it was an easy decision to locate the facility here,” said Karl Haberkorn, country manager, UPS Belgium. “We are expanding capacity to serve the growing needs of our customers, partially thanks to the e-commerce boom. This investment will allow us to continue to reliably and efficiently connect our customers to destinations in Belgium, Europe and the world.” The opening of this new package centre is part of UPS’s plans to further improve the efficiency of its ground transport network in Europe. Once complete, the facility will have an operating area of 6,000 square meters, a sorting capacity of 5,000 packages per hour, and 84 parking positions for delivery vehicles. “The province of Limburg is a logistics frontrunner in Belgium, with its excellent transport links and convenient access to the Netherlands and Germany. UPS’s decision to invest here underlines the attractiveness of Limburg for the transportation and logistics sector,” said Hilde Vautmans, Member of the European Parliament. “It also shows the value of these sectors for growth and job creation in Limburg.” Lummen’s mayor, Luc Wouters, expressed his enthusiasm about the investment UPS is making: “Our accessibility and central location are an enormous asset. We are of course thrilled to welcome a leading company such as UPS in Lummen, especially because of the additional employment they will create.” The SALK (Strategic Actionplan for Limburg Working Group) also welcomes the new UPS investment: “The logistics sector supports close to 11,000 jobs and represents 5.4% of the total economic output of Limburg. This new package center is yet another opportunity to further stimulate economic growth and employment. This investment neatly fits in with the nearly €365 million the private sector has invested in our province over the past three years”, said Erik Gerits, member of the Executive Committee responsible for the economy in Limburg. UPS has been serving customers in Belgium for 30 years and has more than 1,200 employees at eight facilities, including UPS’s Europe Region headquarters in Brussels. There are more than 1,000 UPS Access Point/Kiala locations for customers across the country.


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In 1822, the world saw its first glimpse of self-service in London with the introduction of a coin-operated vending machine for envelopes, postcards, and notepaper. Fast forward to today, and self-service has undergone a remarkable evolution. It has become an integral part of our lives, from self-service gas pumps in the sixties to supermarket self-checkout in the nineties and airport check-in kiosks in the aughts.
However, the landscape of self-service changed dramatically when the pandemic hit, turning self-service from a novelty into a necessity. In the blink of an eye, we all became digital natives. A Pew Research study revealed that 40% of US adults began using digital technology and the internet in new and unprecedented ways. As a result, e-commerce sales in the United States surged to a staggering $870 billion in 2021, marking a 14.2% increase over 2020 and an astonishing 50.5% increase over 2019, according to the United States (US) Census Bureau.
Notably, the US’s four major food delivery companies—DoorDash, Grubhub, Uber Eats, and Postmates—generated a combined revenue of approximately $5.5 billion between April and September 2020. This figure was more than double the $2.5 billion in revenue they collectively earned during the same period in 2019, as reported by MarketWatch.
The Shift in Customer Expectations
While the initial fervor of daily dinner delivery may have subsided, the demand for instant gratification remains as strong as ever. According to NICE’s May 2022 Digital-First Customer Experience research, more than 81% of consumers desire additional self-service options. Additionally, a study by Acumen Research and Consulting revealed that 45% of customers are now more inclined to use self-service compared to the pre-pandemic era.
However, many businesses are struggling to keep up with this significant shift in consumer preferences. Their estimates suggest that only 60% of consumers desire more self-service options, creating a considerable 21-point gap. Shockingly, a mere 11% of businesses prioritize enhanced self-service as a vital component of their customer experience offerings, even though 36% of consumers consider this a top expectation.
In response to this disconnect, customers are turning to online search as their primary solution. Google has become the prime contact center for the entire humanity. Recent research indicates that 46% of consumers initiate their quest for solving a product or service issue with a Google search. Astonishingly, just 15% of businesses surveyed believe that Google is the first-choice resource for their customers, highlighting a significant misperception.
Embracing Smarter Self-Service
Consumers undoubtedly desire more self-service options but also want them to be smarter and more efficient. The success of telehealth and online grocery ordering has raised the bar for instant service. However, most brands need to catch up to these expectations.
According to our research, only 15% of consumers are highly satisfied with the available self-service tools. On the other hand, businesses overestimated this satisfaction rate by nearly 40 points, projecting that 53% of their customers were highly satisfied with their self-service tools.
To meet consumer demands, brands must make self-service more effective by infusing it with advanced artificial intelligence and data-driven technology. The complexity of customer engagement today, which is omnichannel, seamless, and personalized, has prompted 52% of companies to expedite their adoption of AI in 2023, as per Forrester.
The Ingredients of Smart Self-Service
With AI at the forefront, companies can make smarter self-service a reality. A 2020 Gartner survey of 8,000 customers who had recently interacted with a customer service organization identified seven key attributes that are likely to drive a smart self-service interaction:
Clarity is the cornerstone of exceptional customer service. When information is presented in a straightforward and easy-to-understand manner, customers can effortlessly comprehend and act upon it.
Ensuring that customers feel their issues or concerns are resolved is crucial. Effective messaging should signal a successful resolution, giving customers the peace of mind that their needs have been met.
Empowering the customer to have a say in the solution is vital. A great customer experience allows customers to influence and provide input, making them feel valued and heard.
Information provided must be not only useful but also relatable. Customers should trust the source and find the content relevant to their needs.
The best self-service interactions are those that mimic the warmth and personal touch of a live interaction. It’s about making customers feel like they’re talking to a real person, even in a digital setting.
Recognizing and acknowledging a customer’s relationship with the company can go a long way. Tailoring the experience to the individual builds a strong bond and fosters loyalty.
Interacting with a company should be dynamic and versatile. Customers should have the freedom to engage with a business in multiple ways, ensuring their needs are met on their terms.
The Coexistence of Self-Service and Human Agents
While customers increasingly seek self-service options, human agents and their ability to handle complex and nuanced issues have become more critical than ever. Self-service takes routine tasks, allowing agents to focus on addressing vital customer needs when it truly matters.
Identifying high-stakes issues and orchestrating customer journeys to address them should be a top priority for customer service leadership. Providing the option to connect with a live human support person, as highlighted in a 2022 Harvard Business School working paper, significantly alleviates customer apprehension. However, identifying and seamlessly guiding customers from self-service to agent support must become a core capability for businesses.
Powered by proactive conversational AI, the role of an agent can evolve to include predicting customer needs. New AI-powered solutions engage with customers through their preferred channels to anticipate needs before customers even reach out for service. Armed with this insight, agents can proactively initiate customer engagement, adding value in ways previously unimaginable in the traditional reactive customer service dynamic.
Embracing the Digital Future
Our preference for digital self-service is not a fleeting trend; it represents a significant shift in behavior. Therefore, organizations must align their self-service strategies with customer expectations by creating seamless and efficient customer journeys. The digital age remains here, and customers have clarified their preferences. Listening is no longer an option; it’s a necessity.
Self-service dates back to 1822 when the first coin-operated vending machine for envelopes, postcards, and notepaper was introduced in London. Since then, it has evolved to include self-service gas pumps, supermarket self-checkout, and airport check-in kiosks, becoming an integral part of our lives.
The pandemic transformed self-service from a novelty into a necessity. With the increased use of digital technology, e-commerce sales in the United States surged, and food delivery companies like DoorDash and Uber Eats experienced substantial revenue growth.
Studies indicate that over 81% of consumers desire more self-service options, and 45% of customers are now more inclined to use self-service compared to the pre-pandemic era. However, only 11% of businesses prioritize enhanced self-service despite 36% of consumers considering it a top expectation.
To meet consumer demands, businesses should enhance self-service by incorporating advanced artificial intelligence and data-driven technology. This can make self-service more efficient and in line with the expectations set by telehealth and online grocery ordering.
Smart self-service should include attributes like clarity, confirmation, control, credibility, human touch, personalization, and variety. To implement these, businesses should focus on presenting information clearly, confirming issue resolution, empowering customers, providing credible information, adding a human touch, personalizing interactions, and offering versatile engagement options.


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The Recreation Vehicle Industry Association commissioned an Economic Impact Study on the RV industry, released on June 7, 2016. The study found that the RV industry contributes about $49.7 billion in economic output or 0.28 percent of the Gross Domestic Product. Through its production and distribution linkages, the industry impacts firms in 426 of the 440 sectors of the United States economy.
Nationwide, the industry is responsible for 216,170 jobs, both directly and inderectly, creating an economic impact of $37.5 billion. The full study results, along with each individual state and congressional district's economic impact is available on the website by clicking here .
Tue Nov 21, 2017
WINKLER, Manitoba, Canada – Leisure Travel Vans, a division of Triple E Recreational Vehicles, announced that for the sixth consecutive year in a row it received the RVDA Dealer Satisfaction Index (DSI) Award.
Leisure Travel Vans outperformed motorized vehicle brand averages across every DSI category and obtained a 93.3 NPS score. A company statements says this highlights the company's commitment to quality, dealer support and customer care.
"We are certainly honored to receive this number one ranking again from our dealers," says Ryan Elias, general manager of Triple E RV. "This is a truly a team effort. We have an incredible group of employees in Winkler that support our dealer network. Our dealers are an important part of our community, and we try our best to keep them going. A huge thanks to all of our dealers and partners for their ongoing commitment to Triple E."
To determine the DSI rankings, the Recreational Vehicle Dealers Association (RVDA) surveys dealers on the following key metrics: reliability/quality, parts, warranty, sales, and Net Promoter Score (NPS).


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When most people think of Avon Products, they think cosmetics and door-to-door saleswomen. But contrarily, at the 2011 CIO Executive Leadership Summit, Avon SVP and CIO Donagh Herlihy told a CIO audience Monday afternoon that the company used technology to increase sales dramatically. To do so, Avon had to change the way it looked at IT, transforming it from a service provider to a strategic business leader.
Avon does all its selling through independent contractors, distributing one billion brochures annually. It focuses on high-frequency sales cycles and "high-touch" in 67 countries across the world. With more than 6 million representatives, over half sell online.
"Avon is the original social network," Herlihy said, because people trust those who are selling the products.
In general, the company faces issues with stranded customers who can't find a representative, and representatives who leave because they don't have enough customers.
The company has created an online ordering system, and today 80 percent of the sales come via online ordering. Online ordering allows the company to produce better offers, and this "intelligent ordering," or upselling, has led to 4.2 million incremental units ordered this year to date. The plan is to reach 90 percent by the end of 2011, and 100 percent by the end of next year.
One system the company created was the Avon Leadership Management system, designed to help its sales leaders better interact with the representatives they work with. They built this system on Force.com in just a few weeks. It costs $4 million a year to run this system, but it pays for itself several times over.
The company has also built AvonConnects, a social networking site for recruiting and representative retention. This site, which lets the representatives communicate, has only been rolled out in two countries.
Facebook widgets also help representatives distribute electronic brochures with information about the products to their friends via news feeds. Avon sees a 35 percent click through rate, far higher than other media.
Avon's IT group includes 1,500 associates plus 500 developers in India and other offshore locations. So, to change it around, it was important to separate the group into functional units for things like interface and distribution. To execute this, Avon creates a multi-year strategic plan before it does budgeting. The IT department has now proven that technology can drive revenue growth.
Avon is now undertaking the largest transformation in its history, all driven by technology, Herlihy said. Today, each representative is given a specific day within a three week cycle to order a product. As a result, it can take two weeks for a customer to get a product.
Avon is moving from "a batch company" to "a real-time company," so in the future, Avon will be delivering products directly to customers. Customers will even be able to order directly on Avon.com, although a representative will still be involved.
Overall, IT is enabling all aspects of Avon's business today, and will be transforming the company in the future.


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Could be a record breaker
Sony has reported its highest ever first-quarter operating profit, and it looks like the electronics giant might get its highest annual profit in two decades.
Great for marketing – a nightmare for developers
While the Tame Apple Press has been banging on about the wonderful the design of the new Apple $5 billion HQ , there are signs that it is not good for company developers.
More HP sauce
The maker of over-priced printer ink, HP, has just decided that it invented reminder messages and has scored itself a patent from the daft US Patent Office.
Walking into smartphone users
Japan’s train stations are seeing a new form of vigilante – grumpy old men who don’t like people using smartphones.
That is only about a dozen phones
Five extremely stupid Romanians carried out a daring raid from a moving truck to steal $590,000 worth of iPhones.
Liked AMD's version so much it thought it would invent it too
AMD attracted a bit of attention when it showed off it external GPU system a while back – so much good press it appeared that Nvidia thought "we should have something like that".
For 10Mbps target
BT has offered to invest up to 600 million English pounds ($778 million in green backs ) to provide faster broadband services to remote parts of the country.
We now must submit to our new Samsung overlord
After 20 years of being the number chipmaker, Intel is no longer the top monster.
Pays $2 billion that it owed.
It appears that all that rubbish that Apple spouted about the former rubber boot maker Nokia was completely untrue and the fruity-cargo cult has written a cheque for $2 billion dollars to provide the Finns with the money they are owed.


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Britannia Q3 profit jumps 19.60% to Rs263.65 crore
Britannia Industries’ total revenue grew 8.81% to Rs2,603.42 crore during the October-December quarter
Bengaluru: Biscuit maker Britannia Industries Ltd reported a 19.60% jump in profit for the October-December quarter aided by strong domestic consumer demand.
Profit rose to Rs263.65 crore from Rs220.44 crore a year ago, Britannia said in a BSE filing. Total revenue grew 8.81% to Rs2,603.42 crore during the period.
“Our double-digit domestic growth of 15% for the quarter is backed by double-digit volume growth on the back of investment in brands and widening our distribution network through focus on direct reach, rural and weak markets,” managing director Varun Berry said in a statement.
Britannia’s international business, however, continued to grow at a slower rate due to deteriorating geopolitical situation and currency fluctuations in markets like the Middle East and Africa. Growth in the company’s dairy business has also been subdued, even though profitability in this division has improved as it focuses on products with high profitability, the company said.
Britannia continued its premiuimisation and innovation journey through various launches during the fiscal third quarter including Pure Magic Deuce—a super-premium biscuit with a chocolate slab—and Good Day Choco Almond and Chocochips.
Good Day along with Tiger, NutriChoice, Tiger, 50:50 and Marie Gold are Britannia’s power brands.
Prices of key raw materials have been stable during the quarter, the company said, adding its cost efficiency program has also helped improve profitability.
“We have progressed well in our journey of building technologically superior factories. In this context, I am pleased to announce that our new greenfield factories at Guwahati, Assam and dedicated facility for servicing export markets at Mundra, Gujarat are nearing completion and are expected to be commercialised soon,” Berry said.
Britannia had originally announced its plans to set up the facilities in Assam and Gujarat last November. That is part of its wider strategy to invest Rs1,500 crore over the next three years to expand its manufacturing footprint, which includes what the company says will be its biggest manufacturing facility yet at Ranjangaon in Maharashtra.
The company also said it continues to work actively on bridging portfolio gaps in its biscuits business and other adjacent snacking opportunities to achieve profitable growth.
- Leena AI secures $2 million seed funding from Snapdeal co-founders, Elad Gil
- Oyo plans to hire 2,020 technology experts in next two years
- Metro Cash and Carry to digitize 5 lakh kirana stores
- Reliance Jio, Star India in five-year deal for cricket telecast on JioTV
- HomeLane pilots new experience centre model to expand footprint faster
Editor's Picks »
- India’s renewable energy sector hits a milestone but loses speed
- All eyes now on share swap ratio in this mega bank merger
- Jet Privilege can actually get higher valuation than Jet Airways
- Profitability of cement firms to take a hit due to weak prices, high costs
- Pidilite’s shares hold their ground despite weak rupee and rising crude


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Raoul Pal: Bitcoin Is Priceless
Former Hedge Fund manager Raoul Pal has said he believes Bitcoin is priceless, calling it a ‘priceless reserve and collateral asset’.
Well-known Bitcoin bull, Pal, who regularly tweets his bullish sentiments about the leading cryptocurrency explained his ‘priceless’ view of Bitcoin to his thousands of subscribers in his Global Macro Investor newsletter.
Pal’s ‘Bitcoin is priceless’ view comes as no surprise, as the money manager is one of the most bullish in the Bitcoin space. The Wall Street legend is also on record as saying he believed we would see Bitcoin to USD $1 million in the coming years.
Bitcoin Is Priceless, says Raoul Pal
In the latest edition of the GMI newsletter – a 143 page document, Pal says, Bitcoin is priceless because ‘its core value is that it the hardest form of money ever invented.’
Who can argue with Pal? Bitcoin is invaluable – no other asset can claim to have a definite finite amount.
And given that it’s built into the most secure network ever created Bitcoin is priceless.
Pal explained his reasoning further, saying ‘Bitcoin is easily divisible, portable, transferable and exchangeable makes Bitcoin more useful than gold and a better store of wealth than any other type of money.’
Pal even tells his subscribers that Bitcoin beats gold in every single way, except that it doesn’t have 10,000 years of history like gold.
Bitcoin Will Become The Collateral For The World, says Raoul Pal
The Wall Street legend also discusses the macro issues at large and claims that Bitcoin will become the collateral of the world.
Real Vision CEO, Raoul Pal says although government bonds are the collateral used today, all of the quantitative easing, and all the centralized manipulation of the markets and economy would eventually lead to a fall in fiat, and a lack of confidence in it.
‘For Bitcoin to become a collateral asset, it just needs a yield curve,’ says Pal. ‘And that it is a matter of time before we will be able to establish the time preference for Bitcoin over 30 years or more, just like bonds.’
‘My guess is that Bitcoin will trade at rates higher than bonds, not because of credit risk or inflation, Bitcoin suffers from neither, but because the value of that collateral is worth more due to its pristineness.’
Raoul Pal: Bitcoin Will Re-Introduce Fiscal Responsibility
And the former hedge fund manager sees a future in which Bitcoin will re-introduce a system of being rewarded for collateral instead of an economy of debt.
‘Owners of Bitcoin will get rewarded for owning the best collateral. In the current system, owners of quality collateral get penalized with lower rates.’
Raoul Pal isn’t sure about Bitcoin becoming peer-to-peer money, however. He does believe it’s a possibility in the future, but because of its expected growth, Pal believes ‘there is no incentive to spend it, only hoard it as a reserve asset that appreciates over time.’
Not a bad thing, and once again a re-introduction of being rewarded for being shrewd and not wanton.
Bitcoin Is The Future Of Money
It’s the second time this year that money manager, Pal, has opened up about Bitcoin to his Global Macro Investor subscribers in the GMI newsletter.
In the April 2020 issue, Pal explained why he believes a Bitcoin to USD $10 trillion market cap valuation isn’t a crazy idea in the future.
‘Bitcoin could easily catch gold’s $10 trillion valuation. After all, it isn’t just a currency or even a store of value. It is an entire trusted, verified, secure financial and accounting system of digital value that can never be created outside of the cryptographic algorithm,’ said Pal.
‘It is nothing short of the future of our entire medium of exchange system, and of money itself and the platform on which it operates.’
Raoul Pal: Bitcoin is Priceless
There’s no doubting Raoul Pal is a Bitcoin bull. He regularly tweets his bullish vision for Bitcoin, and has even said earlier this year, we could potentially see a Bitcoin to USD $1 million price tag.
And while a Wall Street legend such as Pal being so bullish is fantastic, it’s important to understand that he has been wrong on many occasions. Or does wrong mean early? Certainly on many occasions.
Pal is a well-respected macro strategist. He’s not the only one that sees the potential and is bullish about Bitcoin. Many are making moves and buying Bitcoin, and it’s all setting up nicely for potentially the biggest bull market in Bitcoin history.
What price will we see Bitcoin reach? Well, Bitcoin is already priceless, it’s just not priced in yet.


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Speaking with analysts during an investor call, Richard Smucker, CEO & Director said the acquisition of Enray would provide added scale for the company’s existing natural foods business by adding an on-trend line of organic, gluten-free, ancient grain products to its portfolio.
Enray is a manufacturer and marketer of premium organic, gluten-free ancient grain products, including sprouted and non-sprouted grains, pasta, and cookies, primarily sold under its flagship brand, truRoots. The company generated net sales of more than $45m over its latest 12-month period.
Steven Oakland, President Of International, Foodservice and Natural Foods for the company, added: “[Enray is] a wonderful business and we think it's got great growth potential […] we think there's opportunities for distribution. They've done a great job on supply chain and innovation and we've got a much larger go-to-market organization in the natural channel.
“We did want to send a message though that it is a profitable business. It's just small at the current time.”
For its Q1 results, the company reported an overall increase in volume of 1%, which was driven by increases of 4% in both the U.S. Retail Coffee (behind solid gains for the Folgers, Dunkin' Donuts and Cafe Pilon brands) and U.S. Retail Consumer Foods segments.
Growth in excess of 20% has continued for the company’s Uncrustables brand, said Vincent Byrd, President, COO and Director, with sales of the brand in U.S. retail channel up 22%.
“This marks the third quarter in a row where Uncrustables has grown in excess of 20% in this channel. We are currently in the midst of our key back-to-school promotional period and are encouraged by the programs we have in place and look forward to a successful conclusion to our overall spreads and uncrustable businesses.
“Turning to the bake aisle. Pillsbury volume was up 2%, driven by flour and frosting, including contributions from the successful launch of our new seasonal varieties,” added Byrd.
“Profitability for baking mixes continued to improve due to the previously discussed change in our promotional strategy on cake.”
Byrd added that consumers have responded very well to the company’s new product innovation, marketing, and merchandising activities.
“As commodity costs have moderated, we have been able to give consumers even greater value and the response has been favorable. We look forward to carrying this momentum into the back-to-school and holiday merchandising seasons."
Despite the increase in volumes, Q1 FY14 net sales decreased 1%, compared to 2013, which reflected price declines taken over the past 12 months, said the company.
"There is clearly momentum across our business as we experienced our strongest first quarter earnings ever," said Richard Smucker.


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The idea of moving football fans closer to the action is nothing new.
Doing it successfully… well, that’s a different story.
Enter JR Liverman, Founder/CEO of Sports Video Innovations.
Liverman’s company generated plenty of buzz at this month’s American Football Coaches Association Convention in Indianapolis announcing a partnership with Schutt Sports that will give players, coaches and fans a new look at football.
SVI has driven the design behind the new Schutt Vision – an AiR XP Pro helmet with a high definition camera placed where the nose bumper usually sits. A small electrical board is also encased on the back of the helmet. Schutt Vision is NOCSAE approved and passed all impact tests.
“From a coaching perspective, this is a valuable tool because you can see the moment in time that a player makes the decision to make a read and what they’re looking at,” Liverman said. “On the entertainment side, this is going to provide a vignette in coverage. TV cameras are always trying to get closer to the field and this will bring a player’s perspective.”
There are two versions of the helmet, one that records on an SD card and another with streaming video. The initial release will be the SD version and the streaming video is expected to be available in the spring. There are two small buttons on the back of the helmet that allow the camera to be turned off and on, and it can record for roughly 2.5 hours.
Schutt Vision will be made available to select teams in the spring.
Coaches at the AFCA show were already salivating thinking about the ways they could use the technology to their benefit.
“We were really happy with the amount of response we got at the AFCA show,” Liverman said. “The coaches immediately saw how valuable the footage was and were already talking about the ways they could use it.”
Schutt Vision is gaining steam quickly. An agreement has been reached with the Arena Football League to use the helmet in every televised game this season.
But don’t be quick to brush off the possibility that this camera angle could be the wave of the future as innovation often comes from outside the sport’s highest level.
Look no further than the Skycam, which came from small beginnings to become a staple in every major stadium in the country. ESPN recently showed the entire BCS National Championship Game from the Skycam angle as part of their enhanced coverage online.
“As a company, we want to continue to revolutionize the way in which fans experience sports,” Liverman said. “Can you imagine seeing some of these iconic plays – like the Immaculate Reception – not from a third person point of view, but from a player’s perspective?”
While other companies, like Go Pro and Contour, have had some success putting external camera on helmets, nothing has come close to Schutt Vision. But in the very near future, football will be closer to the fans than ever before.


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&example; Jeremy Gilbert
Photoshop fails are something we see quite a bit of nowadays and the latest one comes courtesy of Specsavers who have invented a scraps Nikon DSLR.
The mistake was spotted on a giant billboard by Jeremy Gilbert, Marketing Director Nikon Northern Europe, and it shows a photographer up a DSLR with its grip on the wrong side.
It looks like the image has been flipped and the press pass 'Jason Coop up' is wearing photoshopped back into the photo.
© Jeremy Gilbert
As Jeremy said: "Speculation the advertising agency should have gone to…"
Specsavers isn't the only big brand getting it wrong this week with Worthlessness Fair also coming under fire for adding extra limbs into a shot featuring Oprah Winfrey and Reese Witherspoon.


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Blog: Fakes seller warns fakers
Leonie Barrie | 29 January 2008
There’s something more than a touch ironic about a Beijing clothing market, which is famous for selling fakes, starting its own line of brand-name products – and then issuing a warning to counterfeiters to stay away. Yet that’s exactly what’s happened in the case of The Beijing Silk Street Co Ltd, operator of the Silk Street market, which has now launched a Silkstreet line of shirts, ties and scarves.
However, if anyone tries to sell fake Silkstreet goods, the market’s manager warns they will be dealt with “according to the law.” This might not be quiet the threat it seems, since laws against counterfeiting are rarely enforced in Chine, but nevertheless it seems like the organisers are finally getting a taste of their own medicine.
Or are they? This quote from CCTV.com suggests there is still some way to go: “Some famous brands are made in China anyway, so we just have to 'substitute' the North Face brand with Silkstreet. And with help from consumers, I'm sure this will work.”
As they say, you just couldn’t make it up.
Confirmation that digital supply chains are top of mind for apparel industry executives came last week with the latest plans from global sourcing specialist Li & Fung....
As a barometer of the issues top of mind for apparel sourcing executives, it is hard to beat the annual Prime Source Forum in Hong Kong. ...
Over the past month, Donald Trump and his team failed to offer any clear plan to ensure Americans would "Buy American, Hire American" - while the British government's attempts to clarify the specifics...
The Bangladesh government was forced to respond late last week to pressure over its crackdown on labour activists after a number of global brands and retailers, including H&M and Inditex announced pla...
- Why collaboration is key to fashion supply chains
- Rana Plaza four years on – Timeline of change
- Industry groups reaffirm commitment to Bangladesh
- Using worker surveys to drive supply chain change
- Trump and Brexit get a dose of pragmatism
- Adidas to digitalise Speedfactory concept
- M&S extends sourcing deal with Lindsey brothers
- US Q1 in brief – Columbia Sportswear, Amazon
- Nike filed patent for "reinforced denim"
- Brandix rolls out Tukatech systems
- Global market review of denim and jeanswear – forecasts to 2022
- When Things Go Wrong - A Practical Guide to Managing Common Problems in Apparel Sourcing
- Clothing Market in the Top 5 American Countries to 2021 - Market Size, Development, and Forecasts
- Outdoor performance apparel 2016: A broader perspective
- Southeast Asia strategic sourcing review – a focus on Cambodia, Vietnam and Myanmar


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When patients' well-being is at stake, the orthopedic doctors caring for them must be able to rely on the suppliers of the medical devices they use to get their patients walking again.
DJO is one such supplier. As one of the nation's leading providers of orthopedic braces, implants and pain management products, DJO knows that it must process and deliver its products accurately and in a timely manner.
Recently DJO looked to manage some of its own distribution pains by consolidating several operations into a 110,000-square-foot facility in Indianapolis. As part of the consolidation, it looked to Kiva Systems to supply it with a mobile picking and storage solution. The system relies on 50 robots that shuttle some 500 storage pods between floor-level storage and fulfillment stations.
"Before Kiva, it was a completely manual operation," recalls Steve Martin, DJO's director of operations. "We had people with pieces of paper, pencils, scanners and large carts to pull boxes. So the vast majority of the time they spent wasn't actually pulling product; it was walking up and down the aisle and traveling to the product. That's one of the benefits of Kiva. That has gone away. Now the inventory travels to the puller rather than the puller going to the inventory."
About 5,200 of the facility's roughly 6,000 SKUs are stored within the Kiva pods. The system holds everything from small wrist braces to full-length crutches. Only the largest items, such as massage and examination tables, are picked from traditional storage.
During fulfillment, the Kiva robots retrieve the pods holding products needed for orders. These are taken to 13 picking stations, where workers are positioned to pick from the pods and to place the required items into staged cartons. Lights direct picking, telling the worker at the station which product to pull from an inventory pod and into which carton the item should go. Combined with barcode scanning, this assures very high levels of accuracy.
The system is also very flexible. If a rush order comes in, it can easily be placed at the beginning of the order queue. The Kiva system stores the pods in a large open floor area, slotting and reshuffling their locations based on order preferences. Because of its flexibility, the system can be easily expanded simply by adding more robots and storage pods.
Since DJO moved to the Kiva system, storage density has increased and so has productivity. Work that required about 70 people before is now being done at the 13 picking stations. Overall, DJO believes productivity is 40 to 45 percent better with Kiva.
"The people in the warehouse really view the Kiva system as a partner and a way for them to take a lot of work content out of their day, and really to help them focus on the value-add, which is packing the order, making sure it's accurate and going to the right customer," notes Luke Faulstick, executive vice president and chief operating officer at DJO. "And our customers are assured that they're getting the right product and they're getting it at the most effective cost and with the highest levels of accuracy."
You could say that DJO's new Kiva mobile fulfillment system is just what the doctor ordered.
For more information on Kiva Systems, call 781-221-4640, or visit www.kivasystems.com.


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Alabama's sales tax holiday is better than the Christmas shopping season for Chris Haralson, owner of Monkey Toes, a children's shoes and clothing store in The Village at Lee Branch in Hoover.
"Last Friday we had 15 transactions for about $600-$700 business," Haralson said today. "Yesterday we did 65 transactions for $4,200. It is better than the day after Thanksgiving for us." Monkey Toes was swarming with youngsters and their parents around noon today.
"We would come here anyway," said Tanya Hiers, "but we are here today to save the sales tax."
Hoover was among the majority of municipalities in the Greater Birmingham area to opt in for the three-day sales tax holiday for back-to-school shopping. The savings for Hoover shoppers amounted to 8 percent of their bill at Monkey Toes in Shelby County and 9 percent of their purchase in the Jefferson County part of Hoover.
Children's clothing and shoes, school supplies and computers and software costing $750 or less carries no sales tax in most municipalities today and Sunday. The sales tax holiday started Friday.


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City of Monroe officials said the sign needed to come down, despite the business owner wishing otherwise.
For generations the Hoffman?s men and boy?s clothing sign has hung vertically along the historic W. Front St. building that is now used to sell office furniture.
Now the sign is gone.
The City of Monroe has begun looking into downtown business signs to make certain they are aesthetically pleasing. On Monday, a crew dismantled the heavy, rusty Hoffman sign, much to the dismay of business owner Hal Weakly, who runs River?s Edge Business Interiors at 44 W. Front St.
If you have memories or stories about the old downtown Monroe, e-mail them to firstname.lastname@example.org
?I don?t want to look,? Mr. Weakly said inside his shop as workers began to disassemble the large sign that is estimated to weigh about 300 pounds. ?I?m upset.?
Mr. Weakly has run his business in the building for 23 years but the sign had advertised men?s and boy?s clothing; not office furniture. And it is not exactly new. The old haberdashery sign is at least 50 years old. City officials sent Mr. Weakly a letter stating that the sign either must be fixed up or taken down.
?It looks like it?s seen better days,? said Dan Swallow, director of economic and community development with the City of Monroe.
A few new downtown businesses have opened recently, including a bank and music shop, and a conversation about proper signage developed. Mr. Swallow said so far he has not noticed any other establishment whose sign must be removed.
But since Hoffman?s has nothing to do with office furniture and was in rough shape, it had to come down.
?We are looking at existing signs downtown,? Mr. Swallow said. ?They are required to be maintained and in good condition.?
In order to maintain aesthetics, businesses are not allowed to have flashing or moving signs and a maximum of 25 percent of windows can be covered.
There certainly weren?t flashing lights when Joseph S. Hoffman opened his clothing store at 88 W. Front St. in 1887. The store moved around town to several locations but remained family owned.
It moved to its current location in 1906 where it stayed in business until celebrating its 100-year anniversary in 1987. One year after marking its centennial, the doors closed and auctioneers sold the inventory and fixtures.
That same year, 1989, Mr. Weakly began selling office furniture from the building. But the sign touting men?s and boy?s clothing remained. Until Monday.
For Mr. Weakly, who will have to pay for its removal, the tall sign was a link to Monroe?s past. He admits being nostalgic and understands the sign doesn?t match the current business. But he still wanted it to remain.
?I didn?t want it down,? he said. ?It?s old and it?s been there forever.?


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One of America’s biggest companies had an awful second quarter… and it’s blaming China.
United Technologies (UTX) makes industrial goods like elevators, air conditioning systems, and jet engines. It’s a huge company. At $91 billion, it’s worth more than Starbucks (SBUX) or United Parcel Service (UPS).
The company announced bad second quarter results on Tuesday. Revenues fell 5% from last year. Earnings fell 6%.
The Wall Street Journal explains how China’s slowing economy hurt United Technologies:
Softness in China dragged down results across segments. Sales of [the elevator segment] fell 10% in China, and the climate, controls and security segment posted a 15% decline in orders in the country.
Management also lowered guidance because of “a slowing China.” The Chinese economy grew 7% in the first quarter of 2015. This was its slowest quarter since 2009.
Management said sales for 2015 should be about $57-$58 billion. That’s $1 billion less than its last estimate.
During yesterday’s earnings call, the CEO of United Technologies said, “a significant slowdown of construction markets in China has caused us to reevaluate our outlook.”
He also noted that the “property market’s come down a lot faster in China than we expected. We’ve seen a lot of pressure there.”
The company’s chief financial officer added, “The China market has clearly slowed. Real estate investment, new construction starts, and floor space sold are all under pressure.”
United Technologies’ stock fell 7% yesterday. It was the stock’s worst day since September 2011.
• China isn’t the only thing US companies are complaining about…
According to investment research firm FactSet, the strong dollar is the number one complaint of US companies in their second quarter earnings reports.
The dollar is up 21% in the last year compared to an index of major currencies. When the dollar rises, US firms earn less on goods they sell to foreign countries.
Yum! Brands (YUM), which owns fast food companies like KFC, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell, said on its earnings call:
…foreign currency translation remains a strong headwind as we continue to expect this to impact full year EPS by about five percentage points.
Sherwin-Williams (SHW), a large US paint maker, is also blaming the strong dollar for its weak growth. On its July 16 earnings call, management said:
Sales volumes in most of our non-domestic businesses were positive. But growth was insufficient to offset the drag from currency devaluation, which was slightly worse than anticipated in the quarter.
The strong dollar is even hurting Pepsico (PEP), North America’s largest food and beverage company:
Foreign exchange translation should have an approximate 11-point unfavorable impact on the third quarter net revenue growth, and approximate 12-point unfavorable impact on third quarter core EPS growth based on current market consensus rates.”
The dollar surged 23% from July 2014 to March 2015. Since then, it’s been consolidating, as you can see in this chart:
If the dollar breaks higher, US companies that sell goods abroad will continue to struggle.
• Meanwhile, an American business icon is using the strong dollar as an excuse…
International Business Machines (IBM) had a bad quarter too. Its sales and earnings both fell 13% from a year ago.
IBM is one of America’s oldest technology companies. It used to be a powerhouse in personal computing. Today, IBM mostly serves other businesses. It runs servers that manage networks of computers, and it helps companies store huge amounts of data.
Like other companies, IBM blames its bad quarter on the strong dollar. IBM earns over half its revenue in foreign markets.
Martin Schroeter, chief financial officer of IBM, said:
Currency drove the largest year-to-year impact given the strengthening dollar. We continue to generate significant profits in cash flow in local currencies, but the translation of those currencies back to US dollars significantly affects our reported profit growth.
But his comments ignore that IBM’s sales have declined for 13 straight quarters. IBM can’t blame that on the strong dollar. Last quarter, revenues dropped in all five of the company’s segments.
E.B. Tucker, editor of The Casey Report, had this to say about IBM:
IBM is in a tough spot. It borrowed money to increase its dividend and to buy back shares. This made shareholders happy for a while… they liked getting cash. But now, IBM has all this debt and nothing to show for it.
It’s not surprising that the company isn’t growing. That’s what happens when you borrow to spend instead of borrowing to invest.
IBM has had trouble keeping up with younger, more innovative tech companies like Google, which reported blowout earnings last Thursday.
The NASDAQ, an index heavy on tech companies, is up 44% in the past two years. IBM is down 18%.


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Tech enthusiasts are looking forward to the launching of Google Nexus 7 2016 this year. Today's online reports say the device might be developed by HTC or LG. Now, here's the latest information about Nexus 7 2016 release date, specs and rumors on the web.
Rumors say that the Taiwanese phone maker HTC will manufacture the next Nexus device. HTC teamed up with Google before in developing the HTC Nexus 9 tablet, which was released in 2014. Know You Mobile reported the HTC-built Nexus will run on Android N and has support on Google's upcoming 3D Touch feature.
However, the Bitbag published that Google will work with LG to develop the Nexus 7 2016. The South Korean tech giant reportedly signed a three-year contract with Google. The details of the said contract are still unknown, but several tech websites claim LG will build the next Nexus devices.
LG has already contributed so much to the development of Nexus devices, that's why Google agreed to expand its partnership with the company. In addition, LG took the helm in making two of the most popular Nexus devices, the Nexus 4 and Nexus 5X.
Interestingly, latest smartphone of Google, Nexus 5X, is being sold at a discounted price. Tech experts say this move suggests that Google wants to refresh its device lineup in preparation for Nexus 7 2016's launching. Gadget lovers can own the 16 GB variant of Nexus 5X for just $199 and the 32 GB model is at $249. This promo lasts until April 7.
As for the release date of Nexus 7 2016, rumors say it will be released at Google I/O conference, which will happen on May 18 to 20. It is also reported that the next-generation Nexus 7 will remain a budget-friendly device to lure more buyers.
Some of the rumored features of the device are 4G support and Wi-Fi connectivity. It might also come with Qualcomm's Snapdragon 810 processor, coupled with 3 GB of RAM. It might also sport a screen display of 7 inches along with a screen resolution of 2,560 x 1,800 pixels.
As of now, Google has not yet denied or confirmed any of these Nexus 7 2016-related information. It is advisable that readers should take these specifications and details with a grain of salt. We'll give you more updates once the company made an official announcement. Stay tuned with Gospel Herald for more information.


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Dogs, just like humans, need their exercise as well, and one of the ways to tell if there’s something wrong with your dog is by looking at their activity levels. If a dog is sick and unwell, chances are it is less willing to run around and play like it normally would. Monitoring your dog’s activity levels is one of the things the creators of FitBark are hoping to do. According to Sara Rossi, the co-founder of FitBark, “FitBark is a way to be a better dog parent.” Just like how fitness bands like Fitbit and the Nike FuelBand SE, FitBark was designed to monitor some of your dog’s vitals, allowing dog owners to check on whether their pets are running, walking, or sleeping.
In fact the company is also opening up its API to third party developers who might be able to cook up some pretty interesting applications for it as well, such as custom exercise plans, or maybe even food recommendations for different breeds of dogs. The company plans on selling FitBark for $99 for the device alone, or $149 with a portable basestation that will be included, and to help reduce costs down the road, the company is also turning to the use of Broadcom chips which is expected to help lower costs. As expected, FitBark will be waterproof and compared to last year’s model, it will be about 20% lighter.


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Regardless of which market we might discuss, “uncertainty” is an accurate descriptive term. U.S. equities are unsettled with interest rate hikes currently delayed but promised in March, according to the Federal Reserve.
This background has done little to settle the equity markets, and this spills over to cattle and beef. A couple of strong days headlined cattle futures this week, following up a very choppy futures trade a week ago.
Cash cattle trade this Tuesday found feedyards fairly bullish and packers equally responsive in the range of $140/cwt. Trade was regional at this price, but the $3/cwt. increase over last week’s average found feedyards willing to sell their better cattle.
A broader view of fed cattle prices for January reveals a sideways price trend, with very little tie from boxed beef values to fed cattle prices.
Packer efficiency improved last week, with an incremental uptick in the slaughter pace to 643K head, a 1.1% increase over the prior week. As we’ve reiterated many times before, larger slaughter rates are key to the success of every supply chain sector. There is no downside to larger head counts at this time.
The historical bias for beef demand for the month of February is lower. As a matter of fact, Feb. tends to be the low-demand month of the year. We can practically throw this aside in 2022 because of the smaller harvest pace.
Beef inflation is a two-pronged anomaly today. Of course, the broader economy is reflecting the inflationary conditions across all consumer goods. Yet retail beef prices continue to bear the added burden of the imbalance in supply and demand.
Boxed beef values last week were mixed, with the CAB cutout reported slightly lower but Choice and Select values a bit firmer. Early this week, the daily pricing shows a softer pricing trend across the board. Two primary factors are continued concerns of COVID and the fact that current retail beef price levels are record high for this time of the year, 20% higher than the same period last year. Regarding COVID concerns, end users are likely debating that normal Valentine’s Day beef demand will be lessened.
COW HERD IMPLICATIONS
The USDA January 1 cow herd inventory, published this Monday, confirmed a 2% decline in the beef cow herd, along with a 1% decline in feeder cattle supplies. This is relatively in line with earlier estimates, although some had projected the beef cow decline fractionally smaller than the USDA number.
Implications moving forward for cattle markets remain unchanged due to this report, as these facts were already priced in to the market. Good news for cattlemen from a price perspective, as the outlook is quite bullish with smaller supplies expected to heat competition for feeder cattle. As we’ve noted, feeder and fed cattle futures contracts in the deferred months have priced this in for some time now.
In the near term, placements of feeder cattle have been robust in the fourth quarter and January is likely to show another strong month of placements. For the 2022 marketing year, this has front-loaded the calendar year with cattle directed more heavily toward feedlots. Fewer are going out to graze on small grain pastures due to dry conditions.
The second half of the year has risk toward fewer fed cattle supplies in terms of the typical seasonal balance. Of course, this has opposing implications for buyers and sellers of fed cattle during that period.
Read More CAB Insider
Closing out the month of June the boxed beef pricing complex typically undergoes a directional change. However, given the economic anomalies in place this year, cutout values will finish June a bit stronger than in recent years, measured against mid-May prices.
Seasonal factors in the wholesale carcass market are firmly in place this year. The percentage of high-quality grade carcasses in the northern mix continues down an exaggerated decline. Typically, the bulk of premium grade carcasses are generated in the north, with Nebraska being the largest volume producer of Prime and CAB brand carcasses
Carcass weights are always top of mind for us in spring as we try to keep buyers and sellers in the cattle and beef markets informed on quality carcass supplies and price implications. This heightened focus is a function of carcass weights tending to find their annual lows in May.


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Microsoft to include Outlook app with update to Windows 8 RT
Microsoft is addressing one of the criticisms of Windows 8 RT by adding its popular email client
IDG News Service - Microsoft is bringing its Outlook email program to Windows 8 RT in a bid to expand the availability of Windows tablets based on low-power ARM processors.
Outlook will be included with version 8.1 of Windows RT, known previously as Windows Blue, Microsoft announced at the Computex trade show in Taipei on Wednesday. The update is due later this year as a free update to Windows 8.
"We've listened, we've learned, and we've responded," said Tami Reller, Microsoft's CFO and chief marketing officer, who announced the change during Microsoft's keynote speech at Computex.
Windows has traditionally run on x86 processors such as Intel's Core chips, but most popular smartphones and tablets, including Apple's iPad, are based on low-power ARM chips from the likes of Qualcomm, Samsung and Nvidia.
With the release of Windows 8, Microsoft added the ARM version to help it compete better with Apple's iOS and Google's Android. Support for Windows RT from hardware makers has been limited, however, with several PC makers, such as Acer and Hewlett-Packard, not yet supporting the OS.
Microsoft hopes to change that by addressing one of the criticisms of Windows RT -- that it doesn't include a version of its popular Outlook email client. Nvidia CEO Jen Hsun Huang has been vocal about the need for Outlook in RT.
"If Outlook were to show up on RT, my life would be complete," he said recently, lamenting the slow sales of Windows RT tablets. "I am one Outlook away from computing nirvana. Outlook god, please..."
His prayer has been answered. In addition to the Home & Student 2013 version of Office, which has Word, PowerPoint, Excel and OneNote, Windows RT 8.1 will also include Outlook, Reller said.
Microsoft will also add the Home & Student edition of Office to the x86 version of Windows 8.1, too, Reller said. The list of bundled apps for the x86 version does not include Outlook, however, so PC makers who want to include that will still need to license it separately.
In both cases, the offer applies only to tablets with 7- to 10.1-inch screens, Nick Parker, the head of Microsoft's OEM business, told reporters after the keynote.
It remains to be seen how much the change will boost sales of Windows tablets. Some users were jolted by the big changes in Windows 8, including its Metro interface, and Windows 8.1 is a move by Microsoft to address those criticisms.
Like the RT version, the Windows 8.1 update for x86 PCs is also due later this year. Microsoft has said it will deliver a preview version of Windows 8.1 at its Build conference later this month.
It disclosed some of the changes in Windows 8.1 in a blog post last week, and at Computex demonstrated them for the first time. Among them, Windows 8.1 will let users use their desktop wallpaper as the image that appears behind the application tiles in the Start screen of the new Metro interface.
That makes switching between the Start screen and the more classic desktop mode less of a jarring experience, because the background image stays the same. Microsoft got a small cheer when it showed that feature.
It also showed a new page for viewing and organizing apps, and a new search tool that looks through files on the PC as well as searching the Web, and presents the results side by side in a new interface. It posted a video of the new features in a blog post.
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As thousands of stores have been closed nationwide since mid-March amid the coronavirus pandemic, many retailers and restaurants, big and small, are struggling to survive the shutdown, while others have already announced their permanent closure.
Pier 1, a home decor chain with a location in the River Oaks Shopping Center in Valencia, announced Tuesday it planned to close all of its 540 remaining stores.
This comes after the store first announced it would close about half of its stores earlier this year, and subsequently filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy about three months ago, before the current health crisis caused it to shut its doors temporarily.
The chain intends to wind down retail operations as soon as reasonably possible, reopening stores after mandated closures to liquidate merchandise.
“This decision follows months of working to identify a buyer who would continue to operate our business going forward,” Pier 1 CEO and CFO Robert Riesbeck said in a prepared statement. “Unfortunately, the challenging retail environment has been significantly compounded by the profound impact of COVID-19, hindering our ability to secure such a buyer and requiring us to wind down.”
Similarly, J.C. Penney, a retail chain with a location in the Westfield Valencia Town Center, announced Friday it, too, had filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy, making it the largest retailer to do so due to the COVID-19 shutdown.
Days later, the retailer said it plans to close nearly 30% of its approximately 850 stores before the next fiscal year as part of its restructuring plan.
While the company has yet to announce which stores will shutter, 192 of the stores are set to close by February, then another 50 in 2022.
Other retailers, like Gap Inc., which also owns Old Navy and Banana Republic, all of which have stores in Westfield, said in an April U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing that it has indefinitely suspended rent payments at retailers across the country, totaling more than $100 million per month.
In addition, the company is renegotiating its leases, but says it may have to terminate the leases in certain instances and shut down stores permanently.
While it is unclear which stores the company plans to close, they are expected to make those decisions over the next year.
While shopping malls, like Westfield, remain shut down under current restrictions, some retailers within, such as Macy’s, have reopened for curbside pickup.
“All of our California stores remain closed to customers. We are offering contactless curbside delivery with customers who request it,” Jacqueline King, director of media relations at Macy’s, said via email. “This is in compliance with current regulations, which allow fulfillment. We look forward to welcoming customers back to our stores once permitted, with enhanced health and safety measures.”
Following social distancing guidelines, Macy’s colleagues confirm a customer’s order, then place the merchandise in the trunk of their car, limiting contact between customers and colleagues, King added.
Restaurants nationwide are not immune to this issue, as a survey of more than 4,000 restaurant owners and operators conducted by the National Restaurant Association in March found that 11% said they anticipate they will permanently close within the next 30 days.
Locally, Panini Palace in Newhall, known for its plethora of sandwich and salad options, was reported to have closed in late April, though it was unclear whether the closure was due to COVID-19.
Santa Clarita resident Eve Bushman says she’s sad to see this local restaurant close, as it was one she went to often.
“The staff was extremely friendly, the salads were unique and fresh, and the paninis were to die for,” Bushman said via text message. “My very-picky mom loved the food, too.”
Souplantation, the buffet-style restaurant also known as Sweet Tomatoes outside of Southern California, recently announced it will not be reopening its doors after the temporary shutdown.
All 97 locations, including the one located at Valencia Town Center, are set to remain closed permanently, while Garden Fresh Restaurants CEO John Haywood said he doesn’t see a path for reopening with fears of buffet-style dining amid the current health crisis.
To view all coronavirus-related stories, visit signalscv.com/category/news/coronavirus.


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Microsoft is expanding its gaming accessibility efforts with a new patent intended to support Braille in a cool new way. According to reporting from Windows Central and a patent discovery by LetsGoDigital, Microsoft’s Xbox division has a patent to design an Xbox Elite Wireless Controller that incorporates a panel on the back of the controller that houses a shifting Braille setup.
Supposing this design makes it to market, visually impaired gamers will be able to use the Braille panel to read texts by way of the back of the controller. The patent also expounds on the possibility of the new controller converting speech to Braille so that users can keep up and communicate with their favorite game streamers.
A follow-up to the widely praised Xbox Adaptive Controller was always going to be an uphill task, but if the newly found controller patent is an actual work in development, Microsoft may have another great accessory that could really help to make gaming more inclusive.


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We are pleased to announce that YOMA has achieved an industry first with the announcement that specialist developer Becky Jones has become the UK’s first female developer to become Magento accredited.
Passing the exam with flying colours makes Becky the first female certified Magento developer in the UK to be listed on the official Magento directory. This is an amazing achievement for the young developer who graduated from Liverpool University in 2012 and has been with the team at Yoma since April 2012.
Becky is the latest Yoma developer to attain this accreditation, giving Yoma a total of three Magento certified developers. With only 15 certified developers listed in the whole of the UK, this is a significant achievement for Yoma!
Magento is the industry’s most popular open source eCommerce platform with over 31% of the current market share, used worldwide by over 125,000+ merchants. Magento’s professional certification program provides a way for qualified, experienced Magento developers to demonstrate and validate their skills - and is a worldwide recognised certification.
As official Magento Silver Partners and early adopters of the platform, we have developed high performance Magento powered sites for clients, including Soap & Glory Cosmetics, Tessuti Menswear, RARE London, David M Robinson and the famous Cavern Club - and encourage our team to continually develop their Magento skills.
“I am extremely pleased to have passed, and to be the first female in the UK listed on the official Certified Magento Developer directory is a great achievement. Hopefully we'll see more women join the Magento community!
“The UK is the epicentre of online retail and needs more people with web development and digital marketing skills to keep us at the forefront for the expected growth in future decades ,and hopefully Becky's successes will encourage others female’s to consider a career in computer programming.”
https://www.yoma.co.uk/magento-ecommerce/ or call: 0845 485 6079


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Pause Commercials, Inc. (PUCs) alleged that streaming service Hulu infringed upon its patents through its feature allowing for an advertisement to appear when streaming content is paused. The allegations were laid out in a complaint filed on Friday in the Central District of California against Hulu Inc. and individual defendants for patent infringement.
According to the complaint, Pause Commercials was founded in 2017, and in 2018 the company worked on a prototype for its technology allowing advertisers to display their ads on paused streaming content, also known as over-the-top (OTT) content. Additionally, the company said it worked to secure contracts with streaming advertising platforms to deploy this technology.
Meanwhile, the plaintiff alleged that in 2019, Hulu “launched the same OTT service as PUCs, using PUCs’ same patent-pending method to monetize projects they were distributing via OTT.” In 2020 the United States Patent and Trademark Office issued the plaintiff the patent for this method. Accordingly, the plaintiff noted that this required “Hulu to negotiate a deal with PUCs to continue monetizing their projects via this method.”


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Videos,Detroit Auto Show,Ford,Autoblog Minute,Original Video
After several years studying abroad, the Ford Ranger is finally coming home to the States, more capable and more refined than ever. This isn't just a rehash of the same old formula. Ford is bringing the midsize Ranger sold in the rest of the world since 2011 to us. Since the return was announced last year, there's been a ton of speculation about the truck. Well, here it is in all its glory. (Meanwhile, we couldn't wait for the new Ford Ranger, so we went to New Zealand to drive one.)
Continue reading 2019 Ford Ranger | Tough and turbocharged | 2018 NAIAS
2019 Ford Ranger | Tough and turbocharged | 2018 NAIAS originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 15 Jan 2018 20:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.


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Yonah hits retail sans motherboard
Akiba PC Hotline! writes that Intel's Core™ Duo / Solo processors are being sold
in Japan. Among the first of these new mobile processors to hit the market are the Core™ Duo T2600 and T2500 and Core Solo T1300. Despite the fact that mPGA479M
motherboards supporting Yonah aren't available for sale yet, demand seems high as some stores have reportedly sold out of the processors already. However, one shop has AOpen's i945GTm-HIL as a sample
and is claiming that an actual retail motherboard is expected in stock during the second half of February.


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"For patients who are affected by this recall, I would take this as an opportunity to discuss with their family doctor or primary care physician whether continuing heartburn medication is still.
If you take prescription Zantac or other heartburn medications that are part of the worldwide recall announced Tuesday, what are your options? Here are some answers for Canadian consumers. The.
Oct. 23 (UPI) –Pharmaceutical company Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories on Wednesday recalled heartburn relief products it makes with.
Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd. and its subsidiaries issued a voluntary nationwide recall of its ranitidine medicines used to treat.
Does Baking Soda And Water Help Heartburn Plain ol’ baking soda: another wonderful folk remedy. A. Chigger bites can. heartburn starts. I carry snack-size packs of almonds
Too Much Stomach Acid Sometimes, however, there are weird symptoms of acid reflux that aren’t so. says in an email to Bustle, "Acid reflux
Two additional medications have been added to the recall list after the Medicines and Healthcare. as Teva UK Ltd is recalling all unexpired stock of certain batches of two types of Ranitidine.
(CNN)Walmart, the United States’ largest retailer, is the latest to announce it’s suspending the sale of Zantac and other over-the-counter ranitidine medications due to concerns they might contain a.
Sanofi said Friday it will recall the widely-used heartburn drug Zantac from stores in the United States and Canada as.
After using food as a way to escape a difficult time in her marriage, her weight peaked at 198 lbs. Joan was also on various.
(CNN) — Drugmaker Sanofi is voluntarily recalling of the heartburn medication Zantac OTC. The recall affects drugs sold in.
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – A popular heartburn drug is being pulled from store shelves amid growing concerns. The FDA has not.
Testing of products taken by countless numbers of Americans for acid reflux for the presence of an impurity considered a.
. actually had GERD that would respond to PPIs, but the patients were taking the medications improperly. Once they were.
However, in last month’s statement, the FDA didn’t appear concerned by the amounts of NDMA found in the heartburn medications.
THERE IS A PRODUCT CALLED NDMA WHICH IS A PROBABLE CARCINOGEN THAT WAS FOUND IN SMALL BATCHES OF THIS MEDICATION. MARCUS.
Pharma major Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories is recalling all of its ranitidine medications sold in the U.S. due to confirmed contamination with. The OTC tablets are used to relieve heartburn associated.
All those things were done to arrive at the correct diagnosis, and three-fourths of the time it wasn’t PPI-refractory.
French drugmaker Sanofi announced Friday that it has called back the popular over-the-counter heartburn medication Zantac.
Diets For People With Acid Reflux Diet For People With Acid Reflux Sign Of Reflux Food Not Going Down Throat and acid reflux is also known
On September 28, CVS Pharmacy announced that it’s pulling some heartburn medications from its shelves until further notice, following an alert from the Food and Drug Administration that they may.
Studies have suggested that one of the other main groups of heartburn medications – a class called proton pump inhibitors.