text:
The lithium-ion battery is growing to power the electric car era, but solid-state batteries are incoming
Most of us are running on empty. Since the mobile phone spawned a smartphone-first world, we’ve all been tending to the needs of batteries.
The daily or nightly charge of the smartphone is the most prevalent, but laptops, tablets, drones, wireless headphones, smartwatches and other wearable devices are becoming more common.
We are constantly recharging batteries, there are some attempts to create fast-charging batteries and, of course, a new generation of wireless charging devices, but they’re just about convenience.
With the coming era of the electric car and more advanced robotics, a need to swap to renewable energy, and an ever-increasing (and more mobile gadget-hungry) global population, humanity’s capability of storing energy is going to become critical.
Either we innovate and create new and more powerful battery technology, or we enter a period of stasis where a lack of mobile power strangles new technology. Luckily, innovations are incoming.
The need for portable power
Electrical power, whether portable or not, is one of the cornerstones of life, and one that we all take for granted. And we are the problem.
“The human race has been so successful at population growth that we now have to worry about sustainability,” says Upal Sengupta, Applications Manager, Battery Management Solutions at Texas Instruments.
“The electrical power and technology that helped fuel our growth will need to be used and generated in ways that minimize their impact on our planet. If not, it could literally be a global disaster.”
Sengupta thinks we need to concentrate first on conservation and efficiency, and secondly on alternative sources for power generation, like solar panels. The latter requires huge batteries to store the Sun’s energy, so we can use it at night, or at a time when it suits us.
Thirdly, he thinks that makers of electronic products should make power-conversion circuitry as efficiently as possible. However, there are other portable devices coming that will bring massive challenges to battery technology; the electric car – and the electric everything.
The electric car
Creating smartphones that last for two days instead of one won’t change the world, but the spread of the electric car will change the battery industry massively.
It’s a huge challenge, with an expected 20 million electric vehicles to be selling each year by 2030, each using a massive lithium-ion battery.
Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) thinks there will be 530 million electric vehicles by 2040, and that their electricity consumption will grow to 1,800 terawatt hours in 2040 – or 5% of global power demand – from just 6 terawatt hours in 2016.
The batteries needed by an electric car are really big. The 2016 Nissan Leaf has a 30kWh battery capable of going for 172km/107 miles, while the upcoming Tesla Model 3 will have a 50kWh or optional 75kWh battery, which can go for 355km/220 miles and 500km/310 miles respectively. Is that your road-range-anxiety gone?
“The battery pack is likely to remain the single most expensive component in EVs for some time to come, and the costs are broadly proportional to capacity,” says Robin Shaw, Chief Technology Officer for battery and energy storage supplier Hyperdrive Innovation.
He thinks the crucial point will come when the cost of a battery pack with enough range makes an electric car cheaper than an equivalent petrol or diesel car. “Having said that, I think the 400 mile range on a single charge is just around the corner, certainly within the next three years,” he adds.
Tesla and Nissan are investing heavily in expanding production of lithium-ion batteries. The world produces about 90GWh (gigawatt hours) worth of electric vehicle lithium-ion battery now, and BNEF sees this rising to 270GWh by 2021
In Sparks, Nevada, is Tesla’s Gigafactory, where battery production capacity is 35GWh. Tesla wants to produce 500,000 cars in 2018, but to do so it needs to make its own batteries.
However, the main supplier of electric car batteries to Tesla is Panasonic, a company that now controls almost a third of the market. It’s just inked a deal with Toyota to jointly develop more batteries for electric vehicles.
What does that mean? More economies of scale, more batteries, and bigger batteries. The fact that a battery-maker and a car-maker are working together on this shows how critical the battery industry is about to become.
The electrification era and the micro-grid
For Tesla, it’s not just about electric cars, but electric everything. Tesla recently constructed the world’s largest lithium-ion battery to power 30,000 homes in South Australia during periods of blackout. What’s more, it did it in only 100 days.
“Increasing energy density for lithium-ion, coupled with falling costs per unit, is an exciting innovation in itself,” says Shaw, who thinks we’re on the cusp of everything becoming electric.
If renewable energy sources are generating more energy than a business uses at certain times, battery storage allows this excess energy to be stored and used when energy is not being generated. Using stored energy also reduces the load on the grid at peak times.
This is the micro-grid; huge batteries storing enough power to allow businesses to operate independently of the larger national grid. This is brilliant for reducing CO2 emissions simply because it means renewable energy isn’t wasted.
Towards solid-state batteries
Do we need to move beyond lithium-ion batteries? We definitely need to recycle them more because demand for lithium is predicted to increase four-fold by 2025 as electric vehicles catch on.
We’ll need new sources of pure lithium, and cobalt, also new ideas, because grid storage batteries on an industrial scale need to be emptied and recharged so often that lithium-ion batteries wear out relatively quickly.
Cue magnesium-ion batteries, which have a significant advantage over lithium-ion; they don’t wear out as quickly, and they don’t explode as easily. That’s an underrated problem for electric vehicles (when they crash, specifically), so magnesium-ion batteries are an attempt to make a much more stable solid-state battery.
“Magnesium is such a new technology, it doesn’t have any good liquid electrolytes,” said Gerbrand Ceder, a Berkeley Lab Senior Faculty Scientist. “We thought, why not leapfrog and make a solid-state electrolyte?” They managed it, too, discovering that magnesium scandium selenide spinel worked great.
It could have a transformative impact on energy storage. “There are enormous efforts in industry to make a solid-state battery,” said Ceder.
“It’s the holy grail because you would have the ultimate safe battery.” However, there is still work to do. “Technological advances such as solid-state electrolytes may be noteworthy, however, we’re several years from widespread application,” says Shaw.
The global shift toward electric vehicles will completely change the energy industry, but there’s a missing link.
The search for a solid-state battery that’s safe and can store more energy is what electric cars need, it’s what grids need, and it’s what the world needs if vehicles are to run on electric power rather than fossil fuels. The planet depends on it.
72% OF GLOBAL 5G SMARTPHONE REVENUE COMES FROM CHINA
Counterpoint Research reported that in the second quarter of 2020, 5G smartphone shipments increased, accounting for 10% of global smartphone shipments.
REVENUE AND ASP OF 5G SMARTPHONE
In the second quarter of this year, 5G smartphone revenue accounted for 20% of global smartphone revenue. Among them, China is the largest contributor to 5G smartphone sales. It is reported that 72% of global 5G smartphone revenue comes from China. Most of them comes from 5G smartphones released by Huawei. In addition, the average selling price of the Chinese smartphone market also increased by 12% year-on-year.
According to the report, the Asia-Pacific region, China, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, North America and other regions contributed 10% of the overall growth rate in the average sales price in the second quarter of 2020. However, Latin America is the only country where average sales prices have fallen 5% year-on-year. Although the new coronavirus has had an impact on the entire market, the high-end segment has not fallen sharply. Compared with the overall market decline, it only faces a year-on-year decline of 8%.
The report also shows that in the second quarter of 2020, the average selling price (ASP) of the global smartphone market increased by 10% year-on-year. With the exception of Latin America, average selling prices increased in all regions. This is because many 5G phones sold well in the second quarter. The increasing demand for education, work, games, and entertainment is also a factor in users’ preference for high-end smartphones.
Overall, due to the economic impact and the closure of offline retail stores, the market’s demand for low-priced devices has decreased. Coupled with the resilience of the high-end market and the growth of 5G smartphone sales (especially in China), this quarter’s increase in the average selling price of smartphones.
THE BOTTOM LINE
At the same time, smartphone shipments fell 23% year-on-year, reaching a record high. Although most OEM’s smartphone shipments declined in the second quarter of 2020, Apple’s shipments increased by 3% year-on-year, while iPhone revenue increased by 2% year-on-year. But we should also point out that Apple still has no 5G iPhone. The first models will come to the market only this year. Once this happens, and 5G appears on lower models, it will be quite interesting to see how the proportion changes.
Former Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime announces new game company
Two years after stepping down as CEO at Blizzard, the game company he co-founded in 1991, Mike Morhaime is back with his next venture. It’s called Dreamhaven, and it’s a combination of a publisher and developer, with “a common goal to empower creators, help bring their ideas to life, and create original gaming experiences that foster meaningful connections between players.”
As part of the announcement, Dreamhaven also revealed its first two internal studios: Moonshot Games and Secret Door. Moonshot is headed by a trio of Blizzard veterans, including former Hearthstone lead Jason Chayes, StarCraft II director Dustin Browder, and Hearthstone creative director Ben Thompson. “Though it’s very early days, when we think about Moonshot, we imagine a studio that celebrates curiosity and courage,” Chayes said in a statement. “We aspire to be bold in our approach, and we think the best way to do that is to create a culture centered around trust.”
Secret Door, meanwhile, is similarly led by a team of former Blizzard developers, including Chris Sigaty (executive producer on Hearthstone), Alan Dabiri (technical director on Warcraft III and StarCraft II), and Eric Dodds (designer on World of Warcraft and Starcraft). No projects have been announced for either studio.
Morhaime stepped down as CEO of Blizzard in 2018, though he stayed on in a consultancy role until last year. In an interview with The Washington Post, he said that one of the goals of the new company was to build an environment focused on creators — something that was likely a challenge under Activision, which became Blizzard’s parent company in 2008.
“We’ve learned a ton about what goes into creating an environment that allows creators to do their best work, and we were very successful doing that for many years at Blizzard,” Morhaime told the Post. “We reached a crossroads where we reassessed what we want to do with the rest of our lives.”
Apple Loop: Shock iPhone 12 Details, Massive iOS 14 Problems, Macbook Pro Delay
Taking a look back at another week of news and headlines from Cupertino, this week’s Apple Loop includes surprising iPhone 12 benchmarks, big problems with iOS 14, two new iPads, Apple ignores MacOS, the “good/better/best” of the Apple Watch, the controversy around Apple One, and the Macs’ never changing system System Preferences.
Apple Loop is here to remind you of a few of the very many discussions that have happened around Apple over the last seven days (and you can read my weekly digest of Android news here on Forbes).
Just How Fast Is Your Next iPhone?
We might not have seen the iPhone 12 family as part of Apple’s virtual September launch event this week, but we have seen the benchmarks pop up on the AnTuTu website. That gives us a raw comparison of the numbers from last year’s iPhone to this year’s. Philip Michaels reports some pretty shocking numbers:
“Leaked benchmarks from Antutu, purportedly showing off an iPhone 12 Pro Max’s performance, may help fill in some of the blanks. MySmartPrice spotted the leaked numbers, which claim to show off a device with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage running iOS 14.1.
“According to the leaks, the iPhone 12 Pro Max tallied a score of 572,333 on Antutu’s test, which is a 9% gain over the iPhone 11 Pro Max’s 524,436 result on the same test. MySmartPrice says the iPhone 12 Pro Max’s reported tally would be the highest score ever posted by an iPhone, which you’d hope given that it’s a new model.
The Big Problem With iOS 14
Apple may not have announced a release date for the iPhone, but it did announce the release date of iOS 14. And that has caused problems. Normally Apple will provide a week’s worth of ‘heads up’ time to Developers so they can ensure their apps are ready for the jump up to the next major version of iOS. Not this year… developers had less than a days notice, and they are not happy. Matt Binder reports:
““Gone are the hopes of being on the store by the time users install the new iOS 14 and are looking for new apps. Gone is the chance to get some last-minute fixes into your existing apps to make sure they don’t stop working outright by the time users get to upgrade their OS,” explained Steve [Troughton-Smith from High Caffeine Content.”
““There are some developers who have spent all summer working on something new, using the latest technologies, hoping to be there on day one and participate in the excitement (and press coverage) of the new iOS,” he continued. “For many of them, they’ll be incredibly upset to have it end like this instead of a triumphant launch, and it can dramatically decrease the amount of coverage or sales they receive.””
Take Two Tablets And Call Your iPhone In The Morning
Taking the flagship spot away from the ‘missing presumed having a good time’ iPhone 12 was Apple’s new iPad Air. Beating the smartphone as the first device with Apple’s new A14 ARM-based processor. Samuel Axon and Jim Salter report for Ars Technica:
“The iPad Air gets the new A14 Bionic CPU, built on 5nm process technology. It’s a six-core CPU with two high-performance cores and four lower-power, more efficient cores for simpler background tasks. The A14 Bionic offers a 30 percent GPU performance boost compared to previous generations, and Apple says it puts up double the graphics performance of typical laptops.”
As well as the increased power, 2020’s iPad Air has a new design; USB-C has been added, the bezels have been trimmed away, the home button has been removed, and TouchID has been integrated into the power button. It;s not the only new iPad, as the entry-level iPad moves up rom the A10 to the A12 Bionic processor. Benjamin Mayo reports:
“The jump from A10 to A12 means Apple’s cheapest iPad will feature the Neural Engine for the first time. Apple says the A12 chip offers more than twice the performance of the top selling Windows laptop, 6x faster than the top-selling Android tablet and 6x faster than the best-selling Chromebook.
“The 8th-generation iPad keeps the same price as the 7th-gen: that’s $329 for general sale and $299 for education.”
Will Mac Owners Be Satisfied With Safari After macOS Delay?
If you were waiting for MmcOS Big Sur to drop for your Mac or MacBook, then you are out of luck. Apple’s event saw updates to iOS, iPadOS, tvOS, and watchOS… but macOS has been delayed. The ‘Big Sur’ release is still in the future, but a small crumb (perhaps from a cookie) has been handed to Mac fans in the form of Safari 14, presumably to offer cross-OS support with other devices. Juli Clover reports:
“Safari 14 brings improved performance, customizable start pages, a Privacy Report to see which cross-site trackers are being blocked, and a new tab bar design that provides tab previews so you can see what you have open at a glance. Today’s update also removes Adobe Flash.”
The Apple Watch Strikes Three
Two new Apple Watch models were launched, and as the Apple Watch Series 3 remains, there is now a low-, a mid-, and a high-level smartwatch in the classic triplet that Apple was once famous for. Todd Haselton looks over the Series 6 Apple Watch for CNBC, including the headline ‘wellness’ features:
“The Series 6 also has Apple’s most advanced sensors. You can run the ECG app for an electrocardiogram, for example, a feature that’s not on the Apple Watch SE or Series 3. It’s also the only model with the new blood-oxygen app. I tried that and it told me my blood oxygen was 96%, which seems good.
“…Apple is careful to explain that this isn’t a medical device. You can use it if you’re curious about your blood oxygen when you’re hiking at high altitudes, but Apple isn’t making any promises about detecting low oxygen should you fall ill with coronavirus.”
Meanwhile, Apple has brought the ‘SE’ brand to the Apple Watch, again with the promise of a cheaper ‘mid-range’ slice of hardware that still delivers the core Apple experience. Chris Velazco has spent some time with the wearable to try and work out where it fits into the portfolio:
“For one, the SE uses the same S5 system-in-package (or SIP) that we got in last year’s Series 5, which in turn contains the same dual-core processor as the Series 4. Meanwhile, Apple has confirmed that the SE has the same compass and always-on altimeter as the Series 6, along with a very similar screen.
“From what I can tell, it’s the same bigger display we got in the Series 5, just without the always-on functionality enabled. And while the Series 4 was the first Apple Watch to come with heart-sensing ECG support, you simply don’t get that here. Ditto for the Series 6’s new blood oxygen measurement features.”
Bouquets and Brickbats For Apple One
Also announced alongside Apple’s hardware, and perhaps an indication of where Apple wishes to focus on the future, were new options for the various subscription services offered by Cupertino. Apple One takes the popular options and bundles them together while offering a discount. Brian Heater reports:
“It’s not quite mix and match yet, but there are three pricing tiers. Individual offers Apple Music, TV+, Arcade and iCloud for $15 a month. The Family version will get you those four services for $20 a month. For the hardcore, there’s the $30 a month Premier tier, which bundles iCloud, Music, TV+, Arcade, News+ and [the new service] Fitness+.“
“For those who have been putting off a given Apple subscription, such a bundle could certainly sweeten the pot — and make it even harder for users to escape the pull of the Apple software ecosystem.”
More at TechCrunch. Given Apple’s market position, using one service to pptentiallybolster another through a bundle has drawn the eye of the competition. Spotify – which has already filed an anti-trust complaint with the European Commission against Apple – drew attention to the issue shortly ager the end of the event.
“Once again, Apple is using its dominant position and unfair practices to disadvantage competitors and deprive consumers by favoring its own services. We call on competition authorities to act urgently to restrict Apple’s anti-competitive behavior, which if left unchecked, will cause irreparable harm to the developer community and threaten our collective freedoms to listen, learn, create, and connect.”
The look of the MacOS user interface has evolved since OSX was announced in 2000. One area has stayed relatively contestant, but the small changes highlight the thinking behind the OS over the years.
“The interface started glassy and skeuomorphic, mimicking the materials used on Macs. Over the decades, it went through significant revisions. One thing that seems to have remained relatively unchanged over the years is the System Preferences screen.
“But, at a closer glance, we’ll see that this mundane part of the operating system has changed quite a bit and hides some fun easter eggs and surprises.”
Apple Loop brings you seven days worth of highlights every weekend here on Forbes. Don’t forget to follow me so you don’t miss any coverage in the future. Last week’s Apple Loop can be read here, or this week’s edition of Loop’s sister column, Android Circuit, is also available on Forbes.
Tech News4 days ago
72% OF GLOBAL 5G SMARTPHONE REVENUE COMES FROM CHINA
Research4 days ago
Apple’s Stunning MacBook Design Looks Like Microsoft’s Surface Book
Security4 days ago
Companies See Work From Home As A Security Threat
The Future4 days ago
PS5 might get new PSVR motion controllers for next-gen virtual reality
The Future4 days ago
This PS5 upgrade will give gamers the ‘fastest data loading ever’
Security4 days ago
Google removes 17 Android apps caught engaging in WAP billing fraud
Research14 hours ago
iPhone 12 leak just confirmed key specs — this is insulting


text:
P&O has announced that a new television advert, “What a night,” has premiered on Sept. 13, 2021, across national broadcasting channels as P&O Cruises celebrates international holidays resuming on Sept. 25, 2021.
The experiences which can be found on a P&O Cruises voyage and the memories endured after are the themes covered in the new campaign, according to the cruise line. The advert was developed in conjunction with creative agency Snap and production company Some Such.
The 40-second version of “What a night” features a couple recounting holiday memories from P&O Cruises’ new ship Iona and will run until November, according to a press release. Filming for further iterations, focused on the Mediterranean and Caribbean, is already underway, P&O said.
Each film will feature “authentic, real-life relationships” and will build on P&O Cruises print and multi-channel campaign of “Holidays as varied as you,” the cruise line explained. They will showcase different people enjoying their cruising experiences.
“A P&O Cruises holiday is all about variety of experiences which we were keen to convey in our latest TV advertising concept. We also wanted to capture the special, intangible aspects of a holiday and the way so many of us replay memories from our holidays for many years afterward… The past 18 months have highlighted that we need pivotal, vital moments to create memories that are full of joy. This film, featuring a real-life couple, captures that joy with an authentic and heartfelt spirit,” said P&O Cruises President Paul Ludlow.
“We’re proud to be launching this new campaign, and ‘What a night’ celebrates and embodies these themes. We will be sharing future versions, each revealing more about the choices to be found on a P&O Cruises holiday, in the coming months and we hope that they will have wide appeal,” Ludlow added.
The advert’s launch coincides with P&O Cruises’ return to international travel later this month as new ship Iona begins holidays to Spain, Portugal and the Canary Islands on Sept. 25, 2021, and the company looks ahead to the forthcoming launch of new ship Arvia in December 2022.

domain: news


text:
|Day Low/High||47.62 / 48.72|
|52 Wk Low/High||25.00 / 54.98|
Shares of Berry Plastics (BERY) rose 13% in 2015 and the company should stay hot in the coming year due to its new Versalite line of cups.
Losing Larry, Option Outage, Not Berry Smart, Joe's Junk Sale and Howard Holsters Mouth highlight Gregg Greenberg's dumbest list this week.
IPO Desktop Francis Gaskins questions how Berry can pay off the debt load that Apollo has


text:
Philippine-based developer Revolution Precrafted, a unicorn startup that provides prefabricated properties around the world, has sealed a landmark $3.2-billion deal to build luxury apartments and hotel villas in Dubai’s The World Islands.
Start your deal-making journey now!
Subscribe now to enjoy unlimited access at just $52.
Premium coverage on private equity, venture capital, and startups in Asia.
Exclusive scoops from our reporters in nine key markets.
In-depth interviews with industry leaders shaping the ecosystem.
Already a Subscriber? Log in
Contact us for corporate subscriptions at firstname.lastname@example.org


text:
Speakers from Nissan Europe, Seat, Airbus and EY will take part in a panel discussion on current and future mobility June 6 at the Automotive News Europe Congress in Turin.
Panelists include Ponz Pandikuthira, vice president for product planning at Nissan Europe; Arantxa Alonso Fernandez, head of business development at Seat; and Mark Cousin, head of flight demonstrators at Airbus.
Pandikuthira is responsible for the development of the full Nissan product lineup in Europe and Russia. Prior to joining Nissan in 2012, he worked for Chrysler Corp., DaimlerChrysler, Cerberus-owned Chrysler, Fiat Chrysler and Kia.
Fernandez has worked at Seat since 2005, in infotainment and as a product manager for the Seat Leon and compact cars. She started in her business development post in 2016Cousin began his current job in 2016 at Airbus, which has developed several autonomous transport
ation concepts, including the Pop.Up collaboration with Audi and Italdesign. He has also worked in systems testing and as a technical director at the aeronautics company.


text:
Are Your Trucks Ready for Last-Mile Logistics?
You’ve thought of everything, but what about the last-mile logistics? Consider this.
According to Work Truck Online:
“A recent study by BigCommerce.com revealed that 51% of Americans prefer online shopping, with e-commerce growing by 23% every year. The research predicts this trend will pick up its pace as brands increasingly embrace omnichannel and voice platforms to simplify customers’ digital shopping experiences.
“As e-commerce escalates, so will last-mile logistics, defined as the final step in the delivery process from a distribution center or brick-and-mortar store to the shipment’s destination, be it a smaller regional store, office building, or even a customer’s residence. Though this last mile often involves the transport of smaller-sized packages by parcel or small package carriers, more and more shipments include larger items, such as furniture or appliances, that are ordered online and delivered directly to the customer.
“The e-commerce explosion has presented both opportunities and challenges to retailers, as well as regional fleets, LTL and truckload carriers. One headache is getting products into areas that were never designed for Class 8 rigs. Once carriers successfully navigate narrow streets fraught with obstacles such as mailboxes, low power lines, trees and people, drivers then must move products off trailers, many of which have been spec’d to deliver shipments directly to docks rather than unloaded on city streets or in residential driveways.
“Companies such as XPO Logistics have responded to these new demands by adding smaller straight trucks and updating their fleets with new technologies designed to meet the unique challenges of last mile logistics. XPO Logistics Chief Operating Officer Troy Cooper explains in a press release that as the shipper works to grow its last-mile footprint to 85 service hubs, it also has had to “make significant investments in facilities, technology, staffing and training.”
“One technology being added by companies such as XPO isn’t new, but is gaining in popularity.
“The explosion of last-mile deliveries in the last couple of years has resulted in more liftgates being put on trucks than ever before,” says Anton Griessner, vice president of marketing and business development at Maxon Lift, a Santa Fe Springs, California-based liftgate manufacturer celebrating its 60th anniversary this year.
“He explains, “Liftgates allow deliveries in areas that do not have a dock. If you’re going from dock to dock, you can drive a forklift in and carry the cargo right out. But if you’re delivering an appliance to someone’s house, and you need to get it onto the ground, a liftgate can help you do that.”
Look for liftgate innovations
“Kurt Walker, director of sales and marketing at Anthony Liftgates, a Pontiac, Illinois-based company that has been in the liftgate business since 1941, agrees that e-commerce is the driving force behind the rapid expansion in liftgate use across the trucking industry. In fact, he says in 2017, Anthony Liftgates sold more liftgates in a calendar year than ever before.
“Liftgate manufacturers are responding in kind to this increased demand with innovations designed to help move product from the truck to the street to the customer’s doorstep with ease. Griessner categorizes these innovations into three main buckets: reliability, performance, and safety.
“Reliability, because at the end of the day the liftgate is a work tool. The worst-case scenario for a fleet would be showing up to make a delivery and having the liftgate malfunction, making it impossible to deliver the shipment,” Griessner says. “Performance is also important because they need to make these deliveries as efficiently as possible. The third bucket is safety, because operators and bystanders need to be kept safe as these deliveries are made. A liftgate is a device sitting on the back of a truck that goes up and down, so safety must be considered.”
Expand liftgate longevity
“One of the top considerations when spec’ing a liftgate is lifecycle. Where in the past, a delivery truck might remain in use for five to seven years, Walker says that number has been trending upward over the last decade. “Five to seven years was also the expectation customers once had for liftgates,” he says. “But today, the average truck is on the road for 10-12 years, so customers want a liftgate that lasts equally as long.”
“To extend the lifecycle and eliminate maintenance, manufacturers have begun galvanizing the steel used in these products. This reduces the use of paint-covered steel, which can corrode quickly and chip off as a liftgate scrapes the ground. Galvanized steel is simply steel that has been covered in a thin coating of zinc oxide, which protects the metal from corrosion, oxidation, and other elements that can weaken it.
“Griessner points out painted steel begins to corrode in two years, and within five years, it can weaken a liftgate to a point where it’s unusable. Galvanizing, he says, can protect steel for up to 70 years. In the case of liftgates, it can keep them structurally sound for up to 20 years. “There are bearings, bushings, and other components that will not endure this timeframe,” he says. “But galvanizing steel has provided a tremendous improvement in performance and reliability.”
“Though Walker agrees galvanizing has been a great alternative to paint, he identifies the use of aluminum as another trend that is also adding longevity to these products.
“Fleets increasingly see aluminum as an attractive material as they move toward lightweighting to increase fuel economy and gain in freight efficiency. Liftgates are no exception to this trend, and a liftgate with aluminum platforms, structural components, and columns can weigh one-third less than its steel counterparts.
“Ten years ago, everything was painted steel, but now 30% or more liftgates are aluminum. The primary benefit is that it’s lightweight, but it’s also easier to operate and corrosion resistant,” Walker says. “It is more expensive than steel, but it’s definitely an option to consider.”
Solve power problems
“Rundown batteries are a common problem on trailers spec’d with liftgates — an unacceptable scenario when timely deliveries are the name of today’s e-commerce game.
“This is a pet peeve of mine; liftgates killing batteries because customers are either powering it from the chassis battery or they’re powering it from their own set of dedicated batteries,” says Walker. “They don’t realize how much power a liftgate can consume, especially when it’s lifting. If a driver is delivering cargo in areas where no-idle laws are in place, a liftgate will quickly drain the batteries on a chassis. You can easily wind up with your chassis stranded because you’re running your batteries down too low and you can’t start your truck. A smart control system is a good way to ensure a constant power supply.”
“Anthony Liftgates’ Smart Control puts a control switch, cutoff switch, a battery gauge, and a cycle counter into a single liftgate control unit. It offers a low battery light to alert users when batteries are running low.
“While a smart control helps control battery drain, Walker says fleets also need to pay attention to how many cycles they are doing during a delivery day and how the system is being charged. (One cycle is equivalent to a single up-and-down action of the liftgate.) “If you’re doing 30 cycles a day on chassis batteries, you’re going to blow through batteries quickly,” he says. “That’s where you’re going to need to start looking at dedicated batteries and possibly a boosting charge system to be sure you do not kill your chassis batteries too quickly.”
“Remember that a liftgate will consume more power when it’s lifting weight than when it’s running up and down empty. “If you’re doing mostly drop offs, the liftgate is going to use very little power,” he says. “But if you’re dropping a cart off and picking up another one that weighs 2,000 to 3,000 pounds in a single cycle, that will add a lot to power consumption.”
“Some fleets have been experimenting with solar power as a viable solution to liftgate power problems, adds Griessner, who notes that solar power is a “great supplemental charging system, especially for trailers sitting in a yard for weeks. Solar power can keep the batteries charged, even when the trailer is disconnected from the truck.”
“Though it once was acceptable to use simple power systems — basically a single cable running from the truck to batteries that power the liftgate — this is not an option in the more robust and frequent delivery applications of an e-commerce world. “Solar power and DC/DC converters can boost the charge voltage for the batteries running the gate,” Walker says.
“Power connections also warrant a closer look, notes Griessner, who says liftgates should meet IP67, IP68 standards. This ensures sealed connections that keep both dust and water out. Arc suppression also can be added to shield the solenoids operating a liftgate’s pump and motor.
“This makes this technology more reliable, less prone to wear and tear and less prone to corrosion,” he says.
Keep an eye on safety
“In 2011, a worker lost a toe after his foot was caught in a pinch point between a liftgate and the body of the truck while loading for delivery. In 2013, a truck driver sustained serious personal injuries when the truck’s liftgate malfunctioned. In recent months, a driver was hurt after striking a trailer with its liftgate deployed. Safety must be top of mind whenever liftgates are used, particularly in last-mile deliveries in residential neighborhoods or busy urban areas.
“Walker encourages fleets to put flashing LED lights and signage on liftgates to make them more visible. Adding traction to the liftgate platform can provide grip that prevents slips and falls as the trailer is loaded and unloaded. Platforms with ridges and knurling provide grip in both directions. Adding grip handles can further boost worker stability on the platform.
“Finally, Griessner points out it behooves fleet operators to ensure they do as much as possible to prevent the possibility of a hand, finger or foot getting caught in a liftgate’s hydraulic components. He recommends barriers over any moving points in the hydraulic system and safety railings to prevent falls.
“We offer a technology called Smartspace, where the lifting platform stops 1/8 of an inch before it hits the floor, so if someone’s hand was on the threshold of the truck, their fingers would not get pinched,” he says.
“With the right liftgate on a truck, fleets can meet the challenges presented by last-mile logistics head on, and deliver products reliably, efficiently and safely to city streets and residential driveways.”


text:
Vita Mojo Co-Founders Nick Popovici (left) and Stefan Catoiu
“The headwinds and opportunities facing restaurants today are enormous. Operators are adapting to changing customer preferences around dining and ordering as well as monumental market disruptions – first the pandemic, then supply-chain disruptions and a labour shortage. This has dramatically changed how restaurants operate and shrunk profit margins for those not able to adapt,” said Vita Mojo CEO Nick Popovici, who originally founded the company as a healthy-restaurant chain and then pivoted to restaurant software.
Recent research from Vita Mojo shows over four-fifths (84%) of Generation Z and millennials (82%) would rather visit a restaurant with self-serve kiosks than a restaurant without. According to Popovici, “Digital transformation is essential for the hospitality sector today, and our technology helps companies move forward.”
Vita Mojo also announced new technology that empowers restaurant customers to make better food choices when dining out. A new, integrated feature in the company’s technology lets restaurants accurately and seamlessly display nutrition and allergen information across their menus by pulling the data directly from recipe-management software. A U.K.-wide survey conducted by Vita Mojo earlier this spring found that 43% of customers would be more likely to eat at a restaurant with calorie labelling on the menu.
Vita Mojo is based in London and serves over 130 operators across the U.K. and Europe. The company’s platform enables restaurants to manage their core operations in one integrated system, from digital ordering via their own channels and third-party delivery platforms – such as Just Eat, Deliveroo and Uber Eats – to smarter kitchen and back-of-house management. Unlike most hospitality tech providers who specialise in one element of the restaurant tech stack, Vita Mojo is a powerful, full-suite platform that brings together both customer ordering and kitchen operations.
For customers, Vita Mojo enables self-service ordering from kiosks and customers’ own devices, as well as a more-efficient takeaway experience. On the restaurant-management side, it empowers operators to seamlessly integrate all ordering channels into one system. Vita Mojo clients see an increase of 35% in average order value and an average reduction in labour costs of up to 40%.
“With the funding round complete, now is the time for action,” said Vita Mojo Co-founder and COO Stefan Catoiu. "This investment will accelerate our product roadmap, as well as help upgrade our data and insights features and grow our client success, product and engineering teams. We’re on track to double our headcount over the next year, with the majority of our recruitment focused on taking our client support to the next level.”
Restaurants now realise they can see a significant revenue boost from an integrated, multi-channel ordering system, given the rise in delivery and takeaway orders that has outlasted the pandemic. The vast amounts of data generated by Vita Mojo’s technology, from order to bill, helps restaurants serve customers better and build loyalty by personalising their experience and offering customised marketing based on previous order activity.
“Vita Mojo has a bold vision for the restaurant industry,” said Battery’s Morad Elhafed. “Offering one platform that combines digital ordering with kitchen operations is a valuable proposition that solves the headaches of managing multiple point solutions and systems. Our experience with restaurant tech in the U.S. makes us excited about Vita Mojo’s opportunity in Europe – and its overall mission of taking restaurants to the next level by simplifying their operations and delivering a remarkable experience for customers.”
*For a full list of all Battery investments and exits, click here.


text:
With prices doubling every few days, Zimbabweans now spend huge amounts of time and energy preventing their meagre cash resources from completely evaporating. Trying to catch up with galloping hyperinflation, now officially running at 2.2m per cent a year and at least four times faster in reality, the central bank has been printing ever bigger denominations. But it is outrun by galloping prices. Zimbabweans spend their local dollars as fast as possible or change them into hard currency on the black market. With a strict daily limit (currently less than $1.40) on bank withdrawals, people shun banks as much as possible and are returning to a cash economy. Petrol and rents are now charged mainly in American dollars or South African rand, but since some landlords have been taken to court, rents are increasingly often paid for in groceries. John Robertson, a local economist, reckons that the informal economy has probably become larger than the formal one. Zimbabwe holds the dubious distinction of being the only country in the world today that is suffering from hyperinflation: that is, prices are increasing by more than 50% a month.
Larmer, B. (2018, November 4). What 52,000 Percent Inflation Can Do to a Country. The New York Times Magazine, 20(L). Retrieved from http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A560972055/SUIC?u=morenetsccol&sid=SUIC&xid=bd4f3ce9
In 1956 Phillip Cagan, an economist working at America’s National Bureau of Economic Research, published a seminal study of hyperinflation, which he defined as a period in which prices rise by more than 50% a month. [...]what accelerates this process, turning a jump in prices into hyperinflation, is the impact of inflation on government revenue. Because taxes on income or sales are typically paid after they accrue, a period of high inflation leads to a fall in their real value. The ascent of inflation quickly becomes explosive, especially in countries where wages and price rises are indexed.
Vyas, K. (2018, Feb 06). World news: Yoke of hyperinflation grips venezuela --- skyrocketing prices flummox government, squeeze consumers; some pay with eggs. Wall Street Journal Retrieved from http://ezproxy.stlcc.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/1994262473?accountid=14081
The government stopped releasing official statistics on consumer prices in 2016, but anecdotal news reports and the black-market exchange rate for the country’s currency lend credence to the opposition’s claims. [...]Nicolás Maduro, the country’s autocratic president, has proven himself willing to squelch street protests by force, and has already remained in office far longer than many observers thought possible. [...]the one price Mr Maduro wants to see go up—that of crude oil—has moved in his favour of late. [...]the largest denomination is already 100,000 bolívares.


text:
Baidu, China’s leading search engine, is investing an unspecified amount of money in U.S. online transportation service Uber.
Technology geeks do not have the reputation of being the people you turn to in a crisis, but travelers in Chicago’s O’Hare Airport who experience difficulty with their electronic devices just may find a geek is what they need.
Things are hopping at convenience store/gas station chain The Pantry Inc.
Starbucks Corp. anticipates record purchases of Starbucks gift cards on Dec. 24, citing the trend for customers to push their gift card purchases later and later.
Hudson’s Bay Co. has named Gerald Storch, the former CEO of Toys “R” Us, as its new CEO, effective January 6.
In a long-awaited decision handed down late Monday, Dov Charney, the controversial founder of American Apparel, has been fired "for cause" as CEO.
Consumers weren’t the only ones who were busy browsing gifts during Cyber Week 2014.
Three out of four (76%) online buyers are dissatisfied with the strength of credit card and personal information security among retailers.
Wal-Mart Stores on Tuesday said that it might appeal the decision of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, which ordered the discounter to pay $188 million to settle a class-action suit over worker pay.
bebe stores announded that Jim Wiggett has been named CEO and appointed to the company’s board of directors, effective immediately.


text:
Lucy Walters the founder of Stratford-upon-Avon-based Hiorns Hats has made the finals of the Midland Fashion Awards, which are to be held at the CBSO Centre in Birmingham.
This is an amazing achievement for Lucy, who first got a taste for millinery doing a Groupon course with a friend. She now has a wide client base making bespoke hats and fascinators for weddings, race days and is gradually branching out into other fields with more commissions as her popularity and appeal spreads.
The Midlands Fashion Awards has become synonymous with fashion, style and an exciting mix of live entertainment. Previous winners have showcased their collections at London, Los Angeles and Miami Fashion Weeks, been approached by high-end retail buyers and gained prestigious press coverage, having their work featured in British and Italian Vogue.
For more information, visit www.hiornshats.co.uk
To help you find inspiration for your big day, take a look at what's caught the eye of our editors.
There are literally hundreds of ideas, products and services from wedding suppliers across the UK along with links to their web sites as pointed out by our ever resourceful team.
Take a look at what our Editors Love!


text:
The provincial government wants to do something about ticket sales for concerts, to keep computer ‘bots’ from snapping up a good portion of the tickets before fans have a chance to buy them. It’s been an issue for a long time, but became pronounced last summer when fans of the Tragically Hip had trouble getting their hands on tickets for the band’s cross-country tour. Concert promoter Live Nation figures bots snatched up about a third of tickets and broker’s grabbed another third, leaving just a third for fans to fight over. Ticketmaster says it uses security measures to try to keep the bots at bay, but admits even if it was 99 per cent effective a hundred bots a minute are getting through the system. And then there’s this, industry insiders telling CBC’s Marketplace most of the best tickets to shows are never offered up to the public; that by the time tickets go on sale 90 er cent might already be gone through various promotions.
photo: Bradley Fortner via Flickr


text:
AUSTIN, Texas – April 15, 2015 – Seton Healthcare Family and RediClinic LLC, the leading operator of retail-based clinics in Central Texas, have announced three new RediClinic openings.
The new Seton-affiliated RediClinics are located in H-E-B stores in Cedar Park, Dripping Springs and Round Rock. This increases the total number of Austin-area RediClinics to nine. The other six are located in three Austin H-E-Bs and stores in Kyle, Leander and Round Rock.
“From a consumer perspective, a RediClinic in your local grocery store is convenient and connects you to Seton medical specialists if you need them,” said Tom Gallagher, executive vice president of Seton Healthcare Family and president of Seton Ventures. “From a mission perspective, the Seton/RediClinic partnership helps integrate the healthcare delivery system so it better caters to Central Texans’ needs and ensures the best patient care – personalized care.”
In recent years, walk-in clinics have grown in popularity as they provide more flexible hours and lower cost options for medical care – particularly for minor illnesses and preventative treatments. Locations of the new clinic openings are:
- Dripping Springs ( 598 Hwy 290, Dripping Springs): Opened Thursday, April 2
- Cedar Park ( 170 E. Whitestone, Cedar Park): Opening Thursday, April 30
- Round Rock ( 250 University Blvd., Round Rock): Opens Thursday, April 16
All three clinics will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday-Saturday and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays.
“The addition of three new RediClinics in Central Texas is consistent with our mission to provide local residents with easier access to high-quality, affordable healthcare,” said RediClinic CEO Web Golinkin. “The partnership we forged with Seton last year is beginning to bear fruit in many ways, and we are excited to be expanding our service to these communities.”
RediClinic has given consumers easy access to high-quality, affordable healthcare since 1989. The company currently operates 33 clinics inside H-E-B grocery stores in Houston, Austin and San Antonio, as well as 24 clinics inside select Rite Aid pharmacies in the greater Baltimore/Washington D.C. and Philadelphia. Since opening its first in-store clinic in 2005, RediClinic has successfully treated 1.6 million patients. In addition to treating common medical conditions and providing preventive care, the company’s acclaimed Weigh Forward® weight/lifestyle management program is offered in the company’s clinics and licensed to other providers. RediClinic is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Rite Aid Corporation. For more information about clinic locations, hours of operation, services and prices, visit www.rediclinic.com.


text:
Pakistan is the fourth largest producer of milk with volumes cumulated across formal and informal sectors. At present, the rate of urbanization in Pakistan is on the rise and lifestyles are also changing accordingly. However, according to market sources when it comes to milk consumption, most Pakistanis still prefer loose milk which is available largely through the informal sector of the dairy industry.
According to a latest Gallup Pakistan and Business Recorder Research survey, most Pakistanis prefer pasteurized milk compared to other options. Before sharing the findings further, let’s just first looks at the current milk availability in Pakistan.
Based on some sources, Pakistan is the fourth largest producer of milk with volumes cumulated across formal and informal sectors.
At present, the rate of urbanization in Pakistan is on the rise and lifestyles are also changing accordingly.
However, according to market sources when it comes to milk consumption, most Pakistanis still prefer loose milk which is available largely through the informal sector of the dairy industry.
With that said, things are changing. Health conscious customers worry about the hygiene of loose milk and general perception is that the level of adulteration has increased quite significantly over the years.
The higher demand for UHT milk has also brought significant investment to the dairy sector in the recent years although at the same time its mind blowing that as the formal sector become active, the prices of milk are also on the rise.
Those days are long gone when only water was added to the milk, which was quite easy for the consumer to find out.
These days, adulteration is done by adding Urea, cooking oil and the list goes on. These issues have forced many to opt for processed milk.
Still, processed milk is still at its fledgling stage, although it is quickly growing. The market share of this type of milk has increased by 5-7 percent compared to mere 2-3 percent, a decade back.
In Pakistan, Ultra High Temperature (UHT) treated milk rules the processed milk market, however, pasteurized milk is quickly catching up.
Now, let’s look at the findings of the Gallup Pakistan’s (GP) survey in detail which was based on question formulated by BR Research.
According to the results of the nationally representative poll of 1,887 households, 42 percent of Pakistanis prefer pasteurized milk. 35 percent have a preference for loose milk; while 18 percent said they like UHT-packaged milk and five percent showed no preference. T
hese poll findings have a confidence level of 95 percent with error margin of under five percent.
The second problem is that both retailers and consumers need to chill the milk before use and due to the energy crisis, and high load shedding, wastage is quite high.
Nestlé Pakistan, which is a giant in the local milk market, states that it is monitoring developments in this area. The company has run pilot projects and contends that it has the capability to produce and distribute pasteurized milk.
However, it is quite evident that there is a strong correlation between better and cheaper power supply and demand for pasteurized milk.
Experts assert that once Pakistan can overcome its energy crisis, the demand for pasteurized milk will increase quite significantly in the country.
Consumer preference for pasteurized milk shows that Pakistanis have a clear idea that pasteurized milk has better nutritional value than UHT.
It is also the preferred choice of milk in developed countries. So, why is pasteurization not being promoted in Pakistan as an alternative to UHT milk?
UHT milk, which has a shelve life of 6-9 months and does not need chilling during the supply process can easily be scaled up to the whole country with one or two plants.
Pasteurized milk has a relatively short shelve life of three to five days, and needs refrigeration during transportation and storage.
The requisite investment makes it a comparatively lofty alternative. On the other hand, the country lacks chilled distribution network which also creates distribution issues.


text:
Pennsylvania casinos reported that revenue returned to pre-pandemic levels in July, but the numbers also show how dramatically legal gambling has shifted from brick-and-mortar casinos to the internet in the era of COVID-19.
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board on Monday reported total gaming revenue of $283 million in July, up from $281.5 million a year ago, a 0.5% year-on-year increase that would be nothing to crow about during normal times. But it is remarkable because July was the first time since the coronavirus lockdown that most casinos were operating.
A significant amount of business has shifted from casinos to online platforms in the last year. Online slots, table games, and poker generated $54.4 million in July. Along with online sports betting, internet gaming generated $61.2 million in revenue in July, or nearly 22% of all casino gaming revenue.
Internet gaming generated less than $4 million statewide a year ago in July, just two months after Rivers Casino Philadelphia, then called the SugarHouse Casino, was the first casino in Pennsylvania to launch I-gaming. The timing of I-gaming’s launch was auspicious because online platforms provided the only gaming revenue for casinos during several months of lockdown.
The boom in online gambling offset substantial year-on-year declines in retail betting, as some customers remained at home even after most casinos reopened in June. Retail slots revenue, which accounts for more revenue than all other types of games combined, was down 17% from a year ago. Revenue from casino-based table games was down 32% from a year ago.
Online slots play has quadrupled since February, but growth seems to be slowing now that the casinos have reopened, said Max Bichsel, vice president of U.S. business for Gambling.com Group.
“While online casino activity approached an all-time high in July with $54 million in revenue, growth for that sector of gaming in Pennsylvania seems to be flattening after a big surge during lockdown,” Bichsel said in a statement.
Sports betting, which was in its infancy when the coronavirus shut down most professional and collegiate competition, was up 22% from June as major-league baseball and the NBA resumed games in late July. But it is still not up to pre-pandemic levels. About 84% of sports-betting revenue was generated online.
Among the state’s 12 operating casinos, there were winners and losers.
Parx Casino in Bensalem generated $59.9 million in revenue, up 14.4% from a year ago — it was one of only three casinos to report increases in retail slots revenue. Total revenue at Parx was more than double the next closest Pennsylvania casino, the Wind Creek Bethlehem, where revenue was off 38% from last year. The Bethlehem casino launched I-gaming only on July 24, so it has missed out on the online gaming boom.
Rivers Casino Philadelphia, which did not reopen until July 17 following four months of coronavirus lockdown, experienced big declines in retail slots and table games revenue since it was open only half the month. But the Philadelphia casino was the statewide leader in internet casino-type gaming revenue, pulling in $15.5 million in revenue, making up for much of its decline in retail business.
Valley Forge Casino Resort, acquired in 2018 by Boyd Gaming of Nevada, reported a 57.7% increase in revenue over last year, largely because of its successful association with FanDuel for online sports wagering and casino games.
Online gaming has become so alluring that the state’s 13th casino, the Live! Casino & Hotel Philadelphia, announced on Monday that it has already launched its internet gaming platform, even though the physical casino is still under construction in South Philadelphia and will not open until 2021. The new gaming application can be accessed at www.playlive.com.
Revenue from gambling, either online or in the casino, tells only part of the story about the financial health of the state’s casinos.
Casinos do not report nongaming revenue to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, but earnings from the sales of food, beverage, and entertainment went to zero during the lockdown. Even though live customers have returned to casinos, most venues are limited by health department regulations and offer only limited food and beverage service, curtailing cash flow and inflicting continued workforce reductions.


text:
Press mentions with Sharing economy tag
Firms try to mimic Uber for Freight Shipments; Analysts See Both Opportunities and Pitfalls
Cargomatic President Brett Parker told TT that his app is “a viable model” to connect with small owner-operators and fleet owners. “The timing is right,” he said. “It’s about bringing the best of technology and applying it to logistics to make the [trucking] industry better.”
Startups de transporte de carga son las de mayor potencial
El objetivo de Cargomatic Inc., con sede en Los Ángeles, es llenar el espacio vacío en los camiones contactando a empresas que desean enviar su mercadería a determinado lugar con camioneros que estén viajando en esa dirección.
Startups Accelerate Efforts to Reinvent Trucking Industry
Mr. Kessler said Cargomatic aims to apply principles from the “sharing economy” pioneered by Uber and Airbnb to local trucking. “That means trucks are fuller more of the time and are taking shorter routes to pick up shipments,”
9 supply chain tech companies you should know
Melding logistics with the sharing economy. At the end of the supply chain lies the storage and transportation of finished products.
Warehouses and trucking aren’t usually all that glamorous, but the logistics tech sector has gotten a boost from startups looking to apply sharing economy models to commercial supply chains.
Branding Magazine: How The Sharing Economy Bolsters Any Brand
If there is unused cargo space, can that be shared? Companies such as Cargomatic are enabling companies like Williams-Sonoma to more efficiently manage their supply chain by means of finding out which trucks within a local route have available capacity, managing on-demand planning, and reducing waste.


text:
The International Organisation for Standardisation has promoted a new standard for biometric banking technologies
GENEVA – The International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) has released a new standard for the implementation and management of security for using biometric authentication technology.
The new standard – ISO 19092 – outlines a security template for the integration of biometric signatures being used as personal identification by the financial services industry, including iris scans, fingerprints, speaker verification, and facial scans.
“ISO 19092 offers a valuable international consensus-based tool to the financial industry that will encourage the secure implementation of biometrics as an authentication method within this sector,” said Mark Lundin, chair of the ISO’s subcommittee that produced the standard.
“This standard is one step ahead, paving the way for the next generation of safer and more reliable financial transactions, increasingly important in today’s electronic era,” said Lundin.
Banks have been hesitant to adopt biometric technologies, partly due to doubts over acceptable security standards and consumer confidence.
More on Operational Risk
Risk managers urged to focus on group dynamics
News from the leading event for op risk professionals
A selection of free-to-view photos from the leading op risk event
Advantages include lower costs and capital
Sign up for Risk.net email alerts
Oxford professor David Vines argues that the carrot is as important as the stick
Sponsored webinar: IBM
Watch highlights of this year's London conference
Operational risk and the challenges of defining and dealing with conduct risk
There are no comments submitted yet. Do you have an interesting opinion? Then be the first to post a comment.


text:
SEOUL, Jan. 6 (Korea Bizwire) — An increasing number of newlyweds are giving wedding guests thank-you gifts instead of tickets to a buffet meal as the coronavirus pandemic drags on.
Lotte Department Store said that the price of wedding gifts sold at its wedding center cost between 20,000-50,000 won (US$18-$46).
Following COVID-19 pandemic, prices jumped to as high as 100,000 won as restrictions were imposed on the number of guests allowed to attend weddings and bans on buffets.
“Inquiries about thank-you gifts more than doubled between November and December following introduction of stricter social distancing measures,” the company said.
The department store sold 400 packages of ‘noodle sets,’ priced at 90,000 won, and ‘dessert sets,’ priced at 50,000 won in December as a pilot project to meet increasing demand.
Image Credit: Lotte Department Store / firstname.lastname@example.org


text:
Los Angeles –
‘s third annual online “viral video” promotion campaign
captured 2.5 million views in its first three weeks on the web, and boosted
combined page views of the company’s viral video series by almost 15 percent
during that time, the company said.
multi-platinum selling recording artists The All-American Rejects, whereas the
first two viral videos featured less-well-known bands, The Darling Stilettos
and Charm City Devils.
JVC called the three-week page-view count
“staggering” because the campaign hasn’t been advertised yet. The company plans
online banner ads and radio promotions, and it will place the video on JVC’s
video billboard in New York’s Times Square.
Before the third video went
online, the first two videos had already enjoyed more than 21 million views,
The third video features such
mobile entertainment products as the KW-NT3HDT in-dash navigation receiver,
, and the El Kameleon KD-AVX77
CD/DVD receiver, which also appeared in the first two videos.


text:
TOKYO — Matsushita Electric Industrial said Tuesday it had begun recalling 6,000 lithium-ion batteries used in Panasonic-brand notebook computers in Japan on concerns they might overheat.
The recall of the batteries for Let's Note CF-W4G notebook PCs only affects Japan, said Akira Kadota, a company spokesman.
Kadota said the batteries had not been made by Sony, whose faulty batteries were involved in far larger recalls by Dell and Apple Computer last month. But he declined to say who had made the batteries, citing an agreement with the manufacturer.
Dell asked customers to return 4.1 million faulty laptop batteries, while Apple recalled 1.8 million batteries worldwide. In both those cases, the problematic lithium-ion batteries had been made by Sony Energy Devices, a Japan-based subsidiary of Sony.
"Matsushita should disclose the maker of its batteries," said Wakami Yamazaki, a spokesman for Shodanren, an association of Japanese consumer organizations. "The consumer protection system needs to be strengthened, and companies that are lax in reporting trouble should be taken to court."Continue reading the main story
Matsushita has started replacing batteries from the initial shipments of its Let's Note CF-W4G notebook PCs produced in April and May 2005 after two reported cases of trouble this year, Kadota said.
He said the problem stemmed from the battery cover, which could become loose. The batteries could produce heat and change shape if the battery cover is damaged because of the poor strength of the latch, he said.
"The problem with our batteries is completely unrelated to the recent trouble with Dell's PCs," Kadota said. The company initiated the recall after reports from users, he said.
The lithium-ion products used in the Dell PCs were made in Japan and assembled in China by Sony workers. The batteries contain sheets of rolled up metal, which sometimes contain loose particles that may cause them to short circuit, Sony said.
The recalls of the lithium-ion batteries may push up costs for makers of mobile phones, notebook computers and digital cameras that use cells that are smaller and lighter and last longer than those based on rival technologies. Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, which oversees safety regulations for consumer products, is ordering electronics makers in Japan to investigate their notebook computers and rechargeable batteries. Sony said Friday that it had appointed an engineer to oversee quality control because of the recalls.
The deputy director of product safety at the ministry, Hideyuki Fujisawa, said the Matsushita case was "completely different" from the problems that Dell and Sony faced.
"The battery doesn't malfunction unless the PC is dropped from a considerable height," Fujisawa said, "and even when broken, the battery has to be significantly deformed to cause overheating."
Hewlett-Packard, the second- largest maker of PCs, uses Sony batteries, not its battery packs which include circuitry, cover and connectors to the computer, the company has said. Gateway, the third-largest U.S. PC maker, said its systems were not at risk.
Sony, which uses its own power cells for its Vaio laptops, said the overheating problem would not occur with those computers. The company said last month the Dell recall was due to the specific combination of a Sony battery with a Dell charger.
"The battery cell alone will not cause a similar problem; we believe it will not affect our other customers," Yoshikazu Ochiai, a Sony spokesman in Tokyo, said at the time. $@Continue reading the main story


text:
BYD, a major Chinese electric vehicle company, wanted to be a player in electric buses, but its position is in doubt.
Frank Girardot, a BYD spokesman, described the company as a global business with American investors that happens to be headquartered in China — and that is being unfairly targeted in the United States.
“We’re not China,” he said. “We’re a private company. We’re a union company.” The company’s experience reflects the broad economic competition between China and the United States. It also demonstrates how the two nations’ contentious relationship is shaping efforts to deploy emissions-cutting technologies, with American leaders showing increasing willingness to bolster domestic companies.
© Copyright LaPresse


text:
Ye Olde Hock Shoppe
This new pawn shop will have their grand opening on 7/21 from 7-7. They will be open to buy, sell and loan. They are located at 9315 E. Trent in Spokane Valley
It's finally time, Friday 7/20 will be opening day for the new Costco at 12020 N. Newport Hwy in North Spokane. This new store replaces a smaller Costco store which had been on N. Division and will soon be renovated to suit a handful of new tenants.
The new Costco on Newport Hwy. opens at 8am and will be 167,000 square feet which is over 30,000 square feet larger then the former location on Division. They also have about 50 more employees now with the larger store.
Wheel Sport Bicycles
Not too far South of the new Costco is another new business that will also open this Friday 7/20. The Wheel Sport Bicycle shop chain will have a grand opening celebration for their new store at 9501 N. Newport Hwy. The business has extensively renovated what once was an auto repair shop into a cool new bicycle sales and service place.
They will open for business at 11am and both Friday and Saturday they will have discounts, give aways, group rides , fix a flat clinics and more. Additional info can be found on the Wheel Sport Facebook page.
Altitude Trampoline Park- Spokane Valley
Although they are actually already open this Saturday 07/21 will be the official grand opening for the new Altitude Trampoline Park at 1441 N. Argonne Rd in Spokane Valley. This new trampoline park is quite large and located in a former Safeway store.
Altitude will open at 10am on the 21st with giveaways, discounts, live radio remotes, a dodgeball tournament and much more.


text:
Amazon’s same-day-or-sooner fulfillment pledge doesn’t come cheap. The company has invested $33 billion in recent years on the purchase of trucks (19,000), delivery vans (30,000), cargo planes (50) and drones. Lots of fully autonomous drones.
These UAVs won’t just be powered by propellers and motors, but by machine learning, Amazon chief technology officer Werner Vogels explained Thursday in a keynote presentation at World Summit A.I. in Amsterdam.
“Safety is the most important thing. We use many different sensors to ensure it doesn’t crash into anything, or that any other bad things will happen,” he says. The e-commerce giant will equip the drones with its computer vision algorithms so that when it finally gets the regulatory green-light to launch the service, the winged machines will be able to land at the correct door step without bumping into anything.
That’s no small feat.
Vogels shared a number of examples of what the drone could encounter en-route: all manner of flying objects, clothes lines and power lines, and, closer to the ground, humans and their pets. Its eyes will be cameras and sensors built with a combination of stereoscopic, image segmentation and heat-mapping technologies that ensure it avoids trouble on the way to the landing zone outside your front door
The drones can carry packages weighing up to five to seven pounds. That turns out to be convenient as more than 70% of Amazon deliveries weigh in at about that payload, he said. Delivery is expected to take no more than 30 minutes.
When will the skies fill up with delivery drones?
Amazon delivered its first package by drone in the United Kingdom in 2016, the symbolic launch of Amazon Prime Air. Regulatory approval is still needed to scale that service in most countries, including the United States.
“Soon” was the only hint Vogels gave on Thursday for the wider launch date.
The company wants to corner the market on the kind of machine-learning technologies it’s developed for its drones—as well as for its Amazon Go retail format and on its shopping site.
It’s aggressively marketing its SageMaker suite of machine learning through its AWS platform as it sees a lucrative market beyond its traditional retail business. Tens of thousands of customers now use AWS machine learning services, the company says. Early adopters include the National Football League, which uses the machine-learning APIs for the Next Gen Stats feature on its broadcasts, plus Duke University, which uses the computer vision capabilities to test for early warning signs of autism in children.
For much of the first day of the conference, the talk around A.I. take-up was met with caution about concerns around bias and a lack of fairness creeping into these systems that promise to automate workflows.
Amazon and event sponsor Huawei though took a decidedly more bullish view in their pronouncements.
At the Huawei booth, the Chinese telecoms giant showed a video of a robot-dominated workplace of the future. It predicts that more than 80% of all business processes can be automated through the deployment of A.I. in the coming years.
More must-read stories from Fortune:
—How the man who nailed Madoff got GE wrong
—Most Powerful Women 2019: See who made the list
—Meet the women leading Netflix into the streaming wars
—Why the next recession may feel very different than 2008
—Old Navy is about to sail away from Gap Inc.—and into some choppy waters
Subscribe to Fortune’s The Loop newsletter for the latest on the revolutions in energy, technology, and sustainability.


text:
FunnelAI, a San Antonio startup that uses artificial intelligence to help car dealerships find potential customers, has raised $1.5 million in seed funding.
The business uses an algorithm to find posts on online forums and social media groups by people interested in buying a car or looking for auto services, parts or financing. FunnelAI shows dealerships the posts in real time through the startup’s platform, and the car dealers reach out to the people posting.
“We want to create an ecosystem of leads based on an industry,” said Suja Kamma, who co-founded the business with her brother, Sridhar Kamma, in 2017. “It creates an efficient way for businesses to find customers.”
Last year, FunnelAI hit $1 million in annual recurring revenue from subscriptions for its platform, Suja Kamma said.
The company has eight employees, and the co-founders plan to use the new funds to hire more engineers and marketing, operations and customer service professionals.
County leaders also approved the startup’s application for a Skills Development Grant this week. The grant of up to $31,000 is based on the creation of 31 new technology jobs paying $50,000 at minimum before benefits, bonuses and commissions, with $1,000 for each position that’s filled within two years.
Along with new staff, FunnelAI also hopes to add more large customers, such as General Motors, on top of the more than 70 dealerships it works with.
“We’ve found that FunnelAI’s powerful yet easy to use software allows us to stay connected with our current customers and seek out prospective customers on all of the various avenues of social platforms,” Chris Markey, director at BMW of Austin, said in a news release.
San Antonio-based Active Capital led the seed round, which also included Geekdom Fund, European investment group True and angel investors in San Antonio and Houston. Active Capital invests in business-to-business software as a service (SaaS) companies locally and nationwide, and FunnelAI fits that focus, founder Pat Matthews said.
On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio’s venture-capital investments lag, but ‘climate here is changing’
The startup’s “scrappy, humble and hard-working” founders appealed to the firm, Matthews said. Nowadays, it takes less money to start a SaaS business, he added, and “entrepreneurs who can make things happen without raising a ton of money to do so” are attractive.
Active Capital also invested in FunnelAI’s pre-seed round last year, Matthews said. The startup raised about $500,000 through that early round and by participating in RealCo, a local accelerator program.
The product FunnelAI built also is versatile, Matthews added.
“They can sell to all kinds of businesses across the world,” he said.
The Kamma siblings said they’re focusing on the auto industry because of how much time and money dealerships spend on marketing. Sridhar Kamma also is a car enthusiast who reads auto forums himself, and his familiarity with how people talk about cars helped them train the AI model to “think like a human being,” the pair said.
The startup is looking to expand into fitness, medical, human resources and retail businesses, Sridhar Kamma said. It expects to start working on another model for the real estate industry in the fourth quarter.
“We want to be like the Google for real-time prospects,” he said.


text:
Delivered weekly to your inbox, the most recent digital healthcare news, including trends, investment, and companies.
The most widely read health-tech newsletter. Sign up with your 50K+ digital health pals.
- Keep up with the most recent and exciting developments in digital health, as well as healthcare news and technology.
- Get great rewards like free access to the finest digital health events and product flash discounts.
- Get the latest Rock Health news first.
- For the most up-to-date information about healthcare and technology, visit our website.


text:
The orange peels are rich in fiber, vitamin C, folate, vitamin B6, calcium and other essential nutrients but have you ever thought orange peels can be used to produce a luxury handbag? No? One such video showing a handbag made with orange peels has gone viral on social media.
The handbag designed by the Jordanian food artist Omar Sartawi Omar Sartawi left people amazed with his unique creation using a technique he calls “digital fabrication”.
He used fruit peels and laser to make the material for creating the luxury bag. Omar took to Instagram to share video and pictures of the luxury handbag.
View this post on Instagram
The bag was made in collaboration with Bahraini designer Noof AlShekar.
The post WATCH: Designer makes luxury handbag with orange peels appeared first on ARY NEWS.
from ARY NEWS https://ift.tt/34oJjZW


text:
By Seth Daniel
Jennifer LaSala’s donuts have been known to make people whole.
But it’s not just her donuts, it’s all of her baked goods, and the budding baker said her specialty allergy-free company – which now has a permanent spot in the Boston Public Market – has brought tears to the eyes of parents who have never been able to give their kids simple things like a cookie or a donut.
“They always ask me what’s in my items and I say it’s magic,” said LaSala, 22, who lives in Revere, grew up in Revere and graduated from Chelsea High School. “One family I met during an allergy awareness event had never been able to give their daughter a donut. She could not go to a bakery because of her numerous allergies and it made her parents sad. They were so happy to see that there was a bakery their daughter could go to. Some parents have never been able to give their child a treat. Some parents cry when they find out my bakery is safe for them. If you don’t have allergies, you don’t think of the struggles people have who do have allergies. It is often an emotional experience for parents.”
LaSala runs Jennifer Lee’s Gourmet Bakery and she has decided to tap into the market of children and adults who are limited by allergies. She recently was the first short-term pop up vendor at the Market to move into a permanent vendor space, and she’s been enjoying a brisk business every since.
“I am gluten free, egg free, dairy free and nut free,” she said recently while staffing her booth in Boston’s popular new marketplace. “I decided I’m going to be gluten free and be the best at it. Now, you can’t taste the difference between my gluten-free and my regular bakery items. The next thing that’s coming is sesame and coconut and I’m working on being sesame free and coconut free as well. By the end of April, I want to be soy free.”
Since March 6, LaSala has offered Maple Bacon Bourbon donuts and cookies and muffins and cupcakes – all of which are safe to eat for those with food allergies who are perusing the aisles of the Public Market. The Market opened last summer and those accepted into the bustling space have to source ingredients locally and have to have a unique business – as LaSala does.
“We’re excited to welcome Jennifer Lee’s Gourmet Bakery back to the Boston Public Market after an outstanding January pop-up,” said Tiffani Emig, director of Market Operations for the Boston Public Market. “Since our opening last July, we’ve heard many customer requests for gluten-free and allergy-friendly foods, and we are delighted to be able to expand those offerings.”
LaSala produces all of her products in a commercial kitchen in Malden and sources ingredients such as jams, maple syrup, apple cider syrup, fruits, vegetables, and alcohol from local farms such as Carr’s Ciderhouse in Hadley, Silverbrook Farm in Dartmouth (another Boston Public Market vendor), Brooksby Farm in Peabody, and Russell’s Orchards in Ipswich.
“There really is no one who has done what I do,” she said. “It took a little bit of trial and error, but now I’m fine. In the beginning, it didn’t taste right, so there was a lot of trial and error. That’s what it takes, though.”
LaSala doesn’t have allergies.
In recovering from a car accident, LaSala grew slightly sensitive to gluten and her body reacted. She thought it was going to be permanent, and though it wasn’t, she developed a real appreciation for those who couldn’t eat the foods she commonly enjoyed.
LaSala had always baked, taking on her mother’s recipes often, and attended Johnson & Wales in Providence – graduating last November with an Entrepreneurship degree.
LaSala grew up in Revere, going to the McKinley, the Garfield Middle and to Revere High for two years. In her junior year, her family moved to Chelsea and she had to finish her last two years at Chelsea High.
While in high school, she began her first business called ‘Sugar Coated Heaven,’ which debuted at the Revere Farmer’s Market on the Beach.
“I started that because I always thought about making candy,” she said. “I used to sit on my front steps and sell candy to the neighborhood kids. I knew I wanted to have my own bakery or candy company even as a child.”
That was almost derailed though when she moved to Chelsea High.
“It was rough,” said LaSala. “I was ready to quit school and leave and I had a 3.8 GPA. I was being bullied and harassed. I was ready to get out of there. My teachers came to me and convinced me to stay. I got involved in the Future Entrepreneurs class with Ms. Gail Trainor and it made me stay. I began to get involved in that class and focused in on it. I loved that class. It was so good.”
After winning 1st place at the Chelsea High Business Plan Competition, she went on to win 3rd place out of 1,100 students at the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship’s Regional Business Plan Competition. LaSala then put herself through business courses at Johnson & Wales by selling her baked goods at local farmers markets. In 2013, she was named Global Entrepreneur of the Year for all of New England by Goldman Sachs.
Still today, she relies upon what she learned in the innovative class at Chelsea High for things such as writing her business plan. She also hasn’t given up on the Farmer’s Markets either, planning to be at the Revere, Winthrop Stoneham and SoWa (South End Boston) markets this summer.
In the future, she said she’d like to establish a presence on the North Shore and to do more commercial baking.
“It’s weird right now not to have goals because my goal was to open up a store and now I have that here at the Market Thursday through Sunday,” she said. “I do want to open up a store on the North Shore because that’s where I’m from. After that, it will be getting into the wholesale market.”
LaSala currently lives in Revere and her parents, Pat and Irene LaSala, reside in Chelsea.


text:
Kindred SORT AI Robots Pick 100 Million Lifetime Units
Company Reports 50% Quarterly Pick-and-Place Increase Among E-Commerce Customer Base in 2020
Kindred reports that its installed fleet of its AI-powered SORT robots have picked a lifetime of 100 million retail units since market launch in 2017. Kindred also released information from its Q4 2020 AI data showing its e-commerce customers have increased the unit volume they process with SORT picking robots by 244% year-over-year.
“Global retailers are meeting increasing customer delivery expectations and consistent throughput by utilizing intelligent robotics. Kindred’s modularity, price-per-pick and quick implementation models help retailers big and small embrace robotic automation,” said Marin Tchakarov, CEO of Kindred.
Recommended AI News: The Future of Artificial Intelligence in Financial Markets
Throughout 2020, Kindred SORT pick-and-place robots have increased picked units by 50% quarter-over-quarter, demonstrating the substantial momentum e-commerce retailers have gained since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.
“Multiple analysts anticipate online sales to increase 20-to-30% year-over-year, creating monumental expectations for e-commerce operations,” added Tchakarov. “E-tailers with robotic and AI solutions like Kindred SORT in place for the holiday season are positioned to capitalize on this momentum in demand growth, while also keeping their employees safe. They will end the year on a high note.”
Recommended AI News: Nielsen To Measure Connected TV Campaigns On YouTube & YouTube TV For The First Time
“Applying automation and artificial intelligence-based solutions to e-commerce logistics and fulfillment, allows retailers to scale their operations predictability and efficiently,” said Pierre Lamond, Chairman of the Board for Kindred and Partner at Eclipse Ventures. “As we see in the current crisis, retailers with resilient operations outperform the competition in areas such as customer satisfaction, sales and margins. The industry has digitized the commerce side of the retail equation; now, it must modernize the rest of the value chain to meet increasing demand.”
SORT pick-and-place robots utilize AutoGrasp™, a robotics artificial intelligence platform that identifies items to pick, place and sort into complete end-customer orders. AutoGrasp™ combines AI-powered machine vision, grasping and manipulation algorithms that handle a range of merchandise, including deformables such as polybagged items.
Kindred uses cutting-edge AI research and human-in-the-loop data methodology to continuously improve robot capabilities so that picking becomes smarter, faster and more accurate over time. Kindred SORT robots have picked more than 100 million units in production to date.
Recommended AI News: US Department of VA Expands Telehealth Services Using Nuance Dragon Medical One


text:
Ford Motor Co.
) will recall 27,000 units of Windstar minivans from Virginia,
which is a part of the company's larger recall of more than 600,000
minivans in the U.S. and Canada in 23 states on August 2010. The
Windstars are either sold or registered in Virginia.
The vehicles belong to the model year 1998 through 2003 and were
manufactured at Ford's Oakville, Ontario plant from September 1,
1997 through July 3, 2003. The defect was caused by salt that can
cause the axles to rust, crack and even break, leading to loss of
Ford has decided to recall the additional Windstars after
receiving 11 reports of axle cracks from Virginia between October
2011 and March 2012. However, the Detroit automaker has not yet
received any reports of crashes or injuries in Virginia due to the
Ford will either replace the axles or install brackets to fix
them. The company will start sending letters to the vehicle owners
in Virginia starting the week of June 18.
According to Ford representative Daniel Pierce, about 60% of the
vans in the 2010 recall have been brought in for repairs.
Meanwhile, some vans have been scrapped and others were not
repaired. He also added that the company received reports of 8
crashes and 3 injuries related to the original recall.
Automotive safety recalls were brought into focus by media after
) announcement of the largest-ever global recall of 3.8 million
vehicles in September 2009, triggered by a high-speed crash that
killed 4 members of a family.
Later on, a string of recalls has led Toyota to face numerous
personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits in federal courts. The
Transportation Department of U.S. also imposed a fine of $48.4
million on the company due to late recall of millions of defective
Ford, a Zacks #3 Rank (Hold) stock, posted a sharp 20% fall in
profits to $1.6 billion in the first quarter of the year from $2.0
billion in the same quarter of 2011. On per share basis, profits
ebbed 17% to 39 cents from 47 cents in the first quarter of 2011.
Nevertheless, it was higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 35
The automaker has attributed the decrease in profits to higher
tax expense, lower operating results and higher charges emanating
from buyouts of hourly workers in the U.S. as part of its UAW
agreement in 2011.
The company's profits drastically fell in all its operating
regions, except North America. In fact, it recorded a loss in
Europe and Asia Pacific Africa compared with a profit in the
comparable quarter of 2011.
Total revenue in the quarter slipped 2% to $32.4 billion, barely
surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $32.0 billion. The fall
in revenues was attributable to lower wholesale volumes in Europe
and Asia, partially offset by higher volumes in North America and
FORD MOTOR CO (F): Free Stock Analysis Report
TOYOTA MOTOR CP (TM): Free Stock Analysis
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.


text:
Rumor: Switch overtakes Xbox One sales in Spain
Switch has been hitting all sorts of milestones as of late. As one example, the platform has become the fastest-selling home system in a number of countries, including Spain. Nintendo appears to have reached notable mark in Spain as well.
Gamereactor reports that, in Spain, more Switch units are out there than the Xbox One. If the site’s information is correct, Nintendo has sold more units in 10 months than Microsoft has in almost 50.
Gamereactor further adds that Switch has sold over 300,000 units in Spain. As for the Xbox One, it was hovering just below that number by the end of 2017.


text:
Container deposit schemes rorted: Xenophon
Independent Senator Nick Xenophon claims drink manufacturers are duping consumers in South Australia and the Northern Territory by taking advantage of their container deposit schemes to boost prices.
The schemes allow 10-cent refunds for each bottle or can returned to collection centres.
The environment lobby group Boomerang Alliance said its research showed SA and NT consumers were being charged up to 24 cents more per container by Coca Cola than in other states.
Senator Xenophon said companies were using the deposit schemes to justify price rises.
"Coke Zero should really be renamed Coke-plus-20-cents because South Australian consumers are being ripped off when it comes to the cost of the container deposit legislation," he said.
In a statement, Coca-Cola Amatil said it was not profiteering from deposit schemes.


text:
Islamabad: Pakistan stall with its henna tattoo and traditional glass bangle attractions remained in focus of visitors at the cultural festival being held here from 21-22 April to commemorate the 57th anniversary of the Asia-Africa conference. The event is being organized by the Asian-African conference Museum, Bandung with support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, says a press release received from Jakarta here today.
Pakistan mission, Jakarta set up stall at the two day festival, presenting a mix of cuisine, clothing and adornment. While a large number of women visitors availed the free henna tattoo offered at the stall, others had a fancy for the tasty chicken biryani.
Embroidered ladies apparel, trendy informal party wear and silk head scarfs were greatly liked by all visitors to the stall. Customers often desired to buy the dresses with matching bangles and a hand imprint of henna. Henna sachets were sold in large number.
Apart from Pakistan, Saudi and Thailand booths attracted visitors. Indonesian stalls, mostly set up by prominent companies hailing from the capital city Jakarta, offered food items. They also displayed very exquisite decoration pieces, items in which Indonesia really excells, Expats and diplomats avidly bought these expensive masterpieces.
Along with the cultural festival, other activities marking the 57th anniversary including seminars and conferences have also been scheduled from 18-24 April.
The week long commemorative activities shall conclude Sunday evening with a grand closing ceremony being held at the famous Gedung Merdeka Centre, Bandung.
Meanwhile Ambassador of Pakistan to Indonesia, Sanaullah told media that the Embassy participated in almost all the cultural events organized by the Indonesian side, particularly the Foreign Ministry with a view to projecting a positive image of Pakistan in Indonesia. The Embassy also regularly organized its own cultural events which received due attention from Indonesian friends, he added.
For more information, contact:
Haji Ahmed Malik
Principal Information Officer
Press Information Department (PID)
Tel: +9251 925 2323 and +9251 925 2324
Fax: +9251 925 2325 and +9251 925 2326


text:
MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Russia has developed a concept of "infantry fighting vehicle of the future," which will become a multirole digital unit, executive director of the Kurganmashzavod company said Tuesday.
"We have created a concept of 'infantry fighting vehicle of the future.' It will be specified on the results of design and experimental work on Kurganets-25 [modular tracked platform]. I can not reveal it for obvious reasons. I will only say that it will be highly mobile multirole digital unit," Aleksander Klyuzhev told RIA Novosti.
The Kurganets-25 modular tracked platform was developed by Kurganmashzavod for the needs of the Russian Armed Forces. Russia's new types of infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers, based on the Kurganets-25, are set to be introduced in 2020.


text:
Velocity has announced the expansion of its exhibitor network, as part of its previous agreement with Screenvision Media. Velocity also introduced its newest proprietary digital signage solution, a 7-foot-tall digital standee, at this year’s CinemaCon. Velocity’s digital poster and new digital standee are among the 4,000 digital displays set to be deployed to cinemas. The displays will promote exhibitor offerings and upcoming movies, as well as national, local, and regional advertising.
As part of Velocity’s Cinema Lobby Network, exhibitors receive full-service management of physical and digital marketing campaigns, gain access to advertising revenue, and keep customers informed of upcoming studio releases. 12 theater groups have signed to Velocity’s Cinema Lobby Network in the past six months, including Premiere Cinemas.
Premiere Cinemas Chief Operations Officer Joel Davis said, “We are excited to work with Velocity as their cinema lobby solutions elevate the lobby experience. In addition, it will allow us to communicate our offerings while providing an enormous opportunity for advertisers to connect with the valuable moviegoer audience.”
“This steadfast cinema lobby expansion, along with the announcement of the digital standee, is a true testament to Velocity’s longstanding reputation for delivering digital innovations and advertising accessibility for studios and exhibitors,” said Joe Ross, chief commercial officer for Velocity MSC.