International Launch Services (ILS) have launched their Proton-M rocket on Thursday, on a mission which is marking their first ILS launch since the Russian workhorse returned to flight. Launch was on schedule at 18:32 GMT from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, with the Proton tasked with deploying the QuetzSat-1 telecommunications satellite for SES, after what will be nine hours of flight.
The Proton booster is 4.1 m (13.5 ft) in diameter along its second and third stages, with a first stage diameter of 7.4 m (24.3 ft). Overall height of the three stages of the Proton booster is 42.3 m (138.8 ft).
The first stage consists of a central tank containing the oxidizer surrounded by six outboard fuel tanks. Each fuel tank also carries one of the six RD-276 engines that provide first stage power. Total first stage vacuum-rated level thrust is 11.0 MN (2,500,000 lbf).
Of conventional cylindrical design, the second stage is powered by three RD-0210 engines plus one RD-0211 engine and develops a vacuum thrust of 2.4 MN (540,000 lbf).
Powered by one RD-0213 engine, the third stage develops thrust of 583 kN (131,000 lbf), and a four-nozzle vernier engine that produces thrust of 31 kN (7,000 lbf). Guidance, navigation, and control of the Proton M during operation of the first three stages is carried out by a triple redundant closed-loop digital avionics system mounted in the Proton’s third stage.
The Breeze-M upper stage is the Phase III variant, a recent upgrade which utilizes two new high-pressure tanks (80 liters) to replace six smaller tanks, along with the relocation of command instruments towards the centre – in order to mitigate shock loads when the additional propellant tank is being jettisoned.
It was a problem with that upper stage which resulted in the loss of the Ekspress-AM4 communications satellite last month – which was not an ILS mission – when the stage, otherwise known as the Briz-M, failed to insert the satellite into the correct transfer orbit due to a problem with the last of the mission profile burns.
A Russian government launch using the Proton-M and Briz-M has since successfully returned the duo to launch action ahead of the ILS mission.
Once again, the mission will be utilizing a 5-burn Breeze M profile after lift-off from Pad 39 at Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan, with the QuetzSat-1 satellite on board.
The first three stages of the Proton will use a standard ascent profile to place the orbital unit (Breeze M upper stage and the QuetzSat-1 satellite) into a sub-orbital trajectory. From this point in the mission, the Breeze M will perform planned mission maneuvers to advance the orbital unit first to a circular parking orbit, then to an intermediate orbit, followed by a transfer orbit, and finally to a geosynchronous transfer orbit.
Separation of the QuetzSat-1 satellite is scheduled to occur approximately 9 hours, 13 minutes after liftoff.
QuetzSat-1, part of the 45+ satellite fleet of SES, will be located at the 77 degree west orbital location at which the Mexican Government has granted the DTH frequency rights to QuetzSat S. de R.L. de C.V., a Mexican-controlled company comprised of SES and Mexican investors.
The spacecraft will provide coverage over Mexico, North America and Central America. The spacecraft is fully contracted to EchoStar Corporation and will be used in part by Dish Mexico, an EchoStar joint venture, for DTH services in Mexico and to a subsidiary of DISH Network for use in connection with its U.S. DTH business.
Sporting 32 Ku-band transponders, the spacecraft is expected to conduct a 15 year tour of duty in its Geostationary orbit at 77 degrees West.
“ILS is dedicated to the success of SES and its customer, EchoStar, with the selection of ILS Proton to launch QuetzSat-1,” said Frank McKenna, President of ILS. “This is the fourth SES satellite entrusted to ILS this year, and we look forward to providing outstanding quality, service and schedule assurance to support the continued growth of the SES satellite fleet.”
“We are pleased that ILS is partnering with SES, Space Systems/Loral and EchoStar in the QuetzSat-1 mission and look forward to a flawless, on-time and on-spec launch for QuetzSat-1 with ILS Proton,” added Martin Halliwell, President of SES ENGINEERING, the procurement and operations division of SES.
2011年9月29日星期四
2011年9月28日星期三
Govt changes course on pool safety rule
Thousands of public pools in cities and towns nationwide will be taking a fresh look at their safety systems after federal regulators changed course Wednesday on measures required to keep swimmers, especially children, from getting trapped in pool drains.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission voted 3-2 to revoke guidance it provided pool operators nearly 18 months ago about how to comply with a sweeping 2008 law aimed at preventing drain suction from trapping swimmers under water. The law was passed in response to several horrific child entrapment deaths, including the 7-year-old granddaughter of former Secretary of State James A. Baker.
The new guidance requires public pools with a single main drain to have a back-up system that could shut the suction of the drain. Previously, they had been told they could use a new "unblockable" drain cover, usually a dome-shaped piece of equipment that covers the drain and prevents someone from getting trapped. The concern is that the "unblockable" drain cover could break, come loose or be improperly installed.
The move means public pools with those single-drain systems would have to buy new and costly back-up systems. Some pools may close if they don't have the new equipment by next May.
The new guidance comes after one of the five commissioners at the agency decided to change his earlier vote on how pools should interpret the law.
After siding last year with the two Republican commissioners, Democrat Bob Adler said Wednesday he has had a change of heart about what Congress intended when it wrote the law.
"My previous interpretation is wrong," Adler said, explaining that he has spent months talking to lawmakers who helped write the law and to industry officials, as well as hearing from parents who lost children in entrapment accidents.
The decision followed nearly two hours of contentious debate among the commissioners at a public meeting.
The overall impact on cities and states is not clear. Neither the CPSC nor the industry could provide figures on how many of the nation's estimated 300,000 public pools and spas have single-drain systems. Bigger pools with multiple drains are not affected by the vote.
Republicans on the commission said the unblockable drain option is safe. They fumed about cities and towns that have spent thousands of dollars re-fitting their pools with new drain covers, and questioned whether the seconds that pass before the back-up system kicks in would come too late to save a child.
They were also critical that the public — states and cities having to comply with the law — did not have a chance to weigh in before Wednesday's meeting.
In the end, public comment will be sought about whether the May 28, 2012, effective date for the changed policy is reasonable. But that did not satisfy Republican Commissioner Nancy Nord, who pressed for more facts before making changes to the agency's position.
"It's like saying we're going to guillotine you, now tell us what day would be convenient," said Nord.
Thomas Lachocki, who heads the National Swimming Pool Foundation, a nonprofit organization that offers safety and educational training for pool operators, says the new agency position will not make children safer and may close pools.
"It doesn't make sense to increase the financial hardship on pools in a very challenging economic time," Lachocki said in an interview. "That could result in a reduction of swim lessons, which results in an increase in drownings."
Between 1999 and 2010, there were about 80 injuries because of pool and hot tub drain entrapments, according to government figures. Twelve fatalities — most of them were children — were reported from 1999 to 2008. No fatalities have been reported in the last three years.
Nancy Baker, who lost her daughter Graeme in 2002 when the child was sucked onto a hot tub drain, says no parent should have to endure the loss and pain she and her family suffered.
Unblockable drains can fail, she said in a letter to the agency. "That is why the law included a provision requiring a back-up system regarding single drain pools, with an understanding that a drain cover would only prevent an accident were it in place and functioning properly."
The Consumer Product Safety Commission voted 3-2 to revoke guidance it provided pool operators nearly 18 months ago about how to comply with a sweeping 2008 law aimed at preventing drain suction from trapping swimmers under water. The law was passed in response to several horrific child entrapment deaths, including the 7-year-old granddaughter of former Secretary of State James A. Baker.
The new guidance requires public pools with a single main drain to have a back-up system that could shut the suction of the drain. Previously, they had been told they could use a new "unblockable" drain cover, usually a dome-shaped piece of equipment that covers the drain and prevents someone from getting trapped. The concern is that the "unblockable" drain cover could break, come loose or be improperly installed.
The move means public pools with those single-drain systems would have to buy new and costly back-up systems. Some pools may close if they don't have the new equipment by next May.
The new guidance comes after one of the five commissioners at the agency decided to change his earlier vote on how pools should interpret the law.
After siding last year with the two Republican commissioners, Democrat Bob Adler said Wednesday he has had a change of heart about what Congress intended when it wrote the law.
"My previous interpretation is wrong," Adler said, explaining that he has spent months talking to lawmakers who helped write the law and to industry officials, as well as hearing from parents who lost children in entrapment accidents.
The decision followed nearly two hours of contentious debate among the commissioners at a public meeting.
The overall impact on cities and states is not clear. Neither the CPSC nor the industry could provide figures on how many of the nation's estimated 300,000 public pools and spas have single-drain systems. Bigger pools with multiple drains are not affected by the vote.
Republicans on the commission said the unblockable drain option is safe. They fumed about cities and towns that have spent thousands of dollars re-fitting their pools with new drain covers, and questioned whether the seconds that pass before the back-up system kicks in would come too late to save a child.
They were also critical that the public — states and cities having to comply with the law — did not have a chance to weigh in before Wednesday's meeting.
In the end, public comment will be sought about whether the May 28, 2012, effective date for the changed policy is reasonable. But that did not satisfy Republican Commissioner Nancy Nord, who pressed for more facts before making changes to the agency's position.
"It's like saying we're going to guillotine you, now tell us what day would be convenient," said Nord.
Thomas Lachocki, who heads the National Swimming Pool Foundation, a nonprofit organization that offers safety and educational training for pool operators, says the new agency position will not make children safer and may close pools.
"It doesn't make sense to increase the financial hardship on pools in a very challenging economic time," Lachocki said in an interview. "That could result in a reduction of swim lessons, which results in an increase in drownings."
Between 1999 and 2010, there were about 80 injuries because of pool and hot tub drain entrapments, according to government figures. Twelve fatalities — most of them were children — were reported from 1999 to 2008. No fatalities have been reported in the last three years.
Nancy Baker, who lost her daughter Graeme in 2002 when the child was sucked onto a hot tub drain, says no parent should have to endure the loss and pain she and her family suffered.
Unblockable drains can fail, she said in a letter to the agency. "That is why the law included a provision requiring a back-up system regarding single drain pools, with an understanding that a drain cover would only prevent an accident were it in place and functioning properly."
2011年9月27日星期二
Airports adopt high tech parking system
Park Assist co chief executive Richard Joffe said its system was being installed at a new short-term car park at Brisbane's domestic airport, an existing long-term car park there, and at two car parks at Canberra airport
The parking guidance system is the brainchild of two young entrepreneurs and consists of hundreds of overhead cameras.
Each camera is attached to a small 400 megahertz computer, and focuses on one to four car spaces. The small computers feed information to a central computer that maintains tally boards that display the number of free spaces on each car park level.
In addition to tally boards, red and green overhead lights guide parkers to free spots.
Mr Joffe said he and business partner Daniel Cohen met in 2005 in Sydney when he was working at McKenzie Consulting and Cohen at Goldman Sachs. Each was interested in starting a business and their idea was to automate parking.
Their first installation was at Westfield Chatswood on Sydney's north shore in 2005. Back then, the set-up was simpler and Park Assist used ultrasonic sensors rather than cameras for its guidance system. The Queen Victoria Building followed with a similar system.
With Mr Joffe and Mr Cohen both in just their mid 20s, it took courage and some front to convince the likes of Westfield to shell out hundreds of thousands of dollars.
"The important ingredient is perseverance. Westfield is one of the most commercially savvy companies I have met,'' Mr Joffe said.
The first Australian site with camera guidance was Westfield at Bondi Junction. Last year Westfield adopted Park Assist, which also includes a facility for shoppers to locate their vehicle via computers in the centre.
Westfield itself then developed an iPhone app that leverages data from Park Assist, displays a photo of shoppers' cars, and guides them from the shopping plaza back to it.
Mr Joffe said Park Assist too had developed a "Find Your Car" app for Apple and Android devices.
The Westfield "Find My Car" feature came a cropper recently when blogger and software architect Troy Hunt discovered that URLs containing the number plates of all cars at Westfield's Bondi Junction in Sydney's east were publicly accessible to all - no hacking was required.
Sydney-based Hunt was able to develop software that could tell him the details of any car that arrived and left the shopping centre, and exactly where it was parked.
Mr Joffe said the security glitch was fixed "within 20 minutes", although, to date, Westfield has not reinstated the feature.
"Westfield is currently testing the 'Find My Car' functionality and will reinstate this service only when it's satisfied that it meets a premium standard," a spokeswoman said.
The Bondi Junction glitch has not quelled the resolve of Joffe and Cohen to continue to roll out their systems.
Mr Joffe said that in Australia, 11 Park Assist installations were in place, and another five were under construction. This year alone, the company is rolling out 17 camera sites globally.
Australian installations at Brisbane airport, Gold Coast's Jupiters Casino and Westfield Chermside in Brisbane's north would go live before year's end, while ones at Canberra airport and Westfield Carindale, also in Brisbane, would be online in the first quarter of next year.
Overseas installations were being built at Westfield Strathford in London, at the 2012 Olympic Village site, Westfield Garden State Plaza in New Jersey, and at 2 Macerich shopping malls. Mr Joffe said the system also had been rolled out at furniture chain Ikea's concept centre at Delft, in the Netherlands.
In 2010, the company also forged a $US780,000 contract with the City of Seattle for an electronic parking guidance system. Mr Joffe said it is finished and operating.
"Typical; customer pays anything from $1-2 million for a shopping centre installation,'' Mr Joffe said.
He cited security as a reason for airport car parks to adopt Park Assist.
"Security is a key issue at airports these days, and the opportunity to monitor each space with a camera can improve the security level of Australian airports,'' he said.
"A number of bombings have occurred at airport car parks in the past such as in Moscow in January 2011 and in Spain, Ireland and many others.''
He said customers chose whether to develop add ons such as a parking app for their Park Assist installation. In paid settings, there was an option to guide parkers to a preferred store depending on what they were prepared to spend for parking.
The parking guidance system is the brainchild of two young entrepreneurs and consists of hundreds of overhead cameras.
Each camera is attached to a small 400 megahertz computer, and focuses on one to four car spaces. The small computers feed information to a central computer that maintains tally boards that display the number of free spaces on each car park level.
In addition to tally boards, red and green overhead lights guide parkers to free spots.
Mr Joffe said he and business partner Daniel Cohen met in 2005 in Sydney when he was working at McKenzie Consulting and Cohen at Goldman Sachs. Each was interested in starting a business and their idea was to automate parking.
Their first installation was at Westfield Chatswood on Sydney's north shore in 2005. Back then, the set-up was simpler and Park Assist used ultrasonic sensors rather than cameras for its guidance system. The Queen Victoria Building followed with a similar system.
With Mr Joffe and Mr Cohen both in just their mid 20s, it took courage and some front to convince the likes of Westfield to shell out hundreds of thousands of dollars.
"The important ingredient is perseverance. Westfield is one of the most commercially savvy companies I have met,'' Mr Joffe said.
The first Australian site with camera guidance was Westfield at Bondi Junction. Last year Westfield adopted Park Assist, which also includes a facility for shoppers to locate their vehicle via computers in the centre.
Westfield itself then developed an iPhone app that leverages data from Park Assist, displays a photo of shoppers' cars, and guides them from the shopping plaza back to it.
Mr Joffe said Park Assist too had developed a "Find Your Car" app for Apple and Android devices.
The Westfield "Find My Car" feature came a cropper recently when blogger and software architect Troy Hunt discovered that URLs containing the number plates of all cars at Westfield's Bondi Junction in Sydney's east were publicly accessible to all - no hacking was required.
Sydney-based Hunt was able to develop software that could tell him the details of any car that arrived and left the shopping centre, and exactly where it was parked.
Mr Joffe said the security glitch was fixed "within 20 minutes", although, to date, Westfield has not reinstated the feature.
"Westfield is currently testing the 'Find My Car' functionality and will reinstate this service only when it's satisfied that it meets a premium standard," a spokeswoman said.
The Bondi Junction glitch has not quelled the resolve of Joffe and Cohen to continue to roll out their systems.
Mr Joffe said that in Australia, 11 Park Assist installations were in place, and another five were under construction. This year alone, the company is rolling out 17 camera sites globally.
Australian installations at Brisbane airport, Gold Coast's Jupiters Casino and Westfield Chermside in Brisbane's north would go live before year's end, while ones at Canberra airport and Westfield Carindale, also in Brisbane, would be online in the first quarter of next year.
Overseas installations were being built at Westfield Strathford in London, at the 2012 Olympic Village site, Westfield Garden State Plaza in New Jersey, and at 2 Macerich shopping malls. Mr Joffe said the system also had been rolled out at furniture chain Ikea's concept centre at Delft, in the Netherlands.
In 2010, the company also forged a $US780,000 contract with the City of Seattle for an electronic parking guidance system. Mr Joffe said it is finished and operating.
"Typical; customer pays anything from $1-2 million for a shopping centre installation,'' Mr Joffe said.
He cited security as a reason for airport car parks to adopt Park Assist.
"Security is a key issue at airports these days, and the opportunity to monitor each space with a camera can improve the security level of Australian airports,'' he said.
"A number of bombings have occurred at airport car parks in the past such as in Moscow in January 2011 and in Spain, Ireland and many others.''
He said customers chose whether to develop add ons such as a parking app for their Park Assist installation. In paid settings, there was an option to guide parkers to a preferred store depending on what they were prepared to spend for parking.
2011年9月26日星期一
Parents React to Bus Driver's DWI Arrest
Early this morning, a Windham Middle School bus driver was charged with driving while intoxicated during her morning route.
Kimberly Hooley, 50, of Londonderry was arrested in the parking lot of the school after her driving was described as "erratic" by several parents and students on the bus.
One of those parents was Jenn Cavers, whose son Michael was on that bus this morning. Cavers was in the parking lot of the school to pick her son up this afternoon, which she plans on doing for the foreseeable future.
"I got calls and emails from other parents whose children were on the bus expressing their concern about seeing the bus driver drive up on the lawn and drive down the wrong side of the road and almost hit a child," said Cavers.
According to Cavers, parents of children on the bus knew something was wrong right away.
"Immediately, before the school was alerted or the police, there was concern amongst the parents," said Cavers. "It was observed by several parents that something was just not right with this woman."
Cavers plans on driving her son to school until there is more clarification on what will be done to ensure a repeat incident doesn't occur. She also said that the guidance counselor at the school met with the students who were on the bus today to talk about the incident, but didn't have any details of the discussion.
Also in the queue to pick his children up was Troy Heath, who has a seventh-grader and a fourth-grader in the school system. He normally picks up his children, but does allow his daughter to take the bus to school. He will not change that routine at all.
"We fortunately have a bus driver that we know and have had her for years," said Heath. "I trust her."
Heath did explain how he would react had his children been on that bus.
"I'd want some assurance from the school district or whoever is responsible for hiring the drivers that these people are screened better," said Heath. "Obviously this person has a real problem."
Jim Kauhl hasn't allowed his children on the bus for nearly eight years. He is a parent of a child at the middle school as well as a high-schooler. He disagreed with the harsh way the bus drivers would discipline the kids and make their own rules for each bus.
"We decided as parents it's best for us to pick up and drop off," said Kauhl. "This puts the nail on the coffin for me. This proves my point."
Kauhl did mention that there has been a vast reduction in parents picking up their children from the school.
"If you look at this line here this year versus last year, it has dropped over 50 percent," said Kauhl.
Kim Marotta also takes Kaul's approach, citing that she has had too many problems in the past. It's all about her children's safety.
I know a lot of people can't, but this validates why I pick up my children and drive them to school everyday," said Marotta.
Carmen Vallejo was also waiting in line for her son, who is in seventh grade, to get out of his last class. She questioned if all of the query checks are being done.
"Are they really looking into the past history and asking people if they have a drug history or an alcohol history?," said Vallejo. "If they need help can they come and say I need help and have a problem without being afraid of losing their job?"
Vallejo always picks her son up, the worry being that buses are simply unsafe environments for many reasons.
"You worry about your child being bullied on the bus, you worry that there's no seatbelt on the bus and now you've got to worry that there's something wrong with the bus driver," said Vallejo. "You always hope that the bus driver is going to be the responsible person. If they're not responsible and something bad happens they're the only adult. It's just little kids on the bus. They're all alone."
Kimberly Hooley, 50, of Londonderry was arrested in the parking lot of the school after her driving was described as "erratic" by several parents and students on the bus.
One of those parents was Jenn Cavers, whose son Michael was on that bus this morning. Cavers was in the parking lot of the school to pick her son up this afternoon, which she plans on doing for the foreseeable future.
"I got calls and emails from other parents whose children were on the bus expressing their concern about seeing the bus driver drive up on the lawn and drive down the wrong side of the road and almost hit a child," said Cavers.
According to Cavers, parents of children on the bus knew something was wrong right away.
"Immediately, before the school was alerted or the police, there was concern amongst the parents," said Cavers. "It was observed by several parents that something was just not right with this woman."
Cavers plans on driving her son to school until there is more clarification on what will be done to ensure a repeat incident doesn't occur. She also said that the guidance counselor at the school met with the students who were on the bus today to talk about the incident, but didn't have any details of the discussion.
Also in the queue to pick his children up was Troy Heath, who has a seventh-grader and a fourth-grader in the school system. He normally picks up his children, but does allow his daughter to take the bus to school. He will not change that routine at all.
"We fortunately have a bus driver that we know and have had her for years," said Heath. "I trust her."
Heath did explain how he would react had his children been on that bus.
"I'd want some assurance from the school district or whoever is responsible for hiring the drivers that these people are screened better," said Heath. "Obviously this person has a real problem."
Jim Kauhl hasn't allowed his children on the bus for nearly eight years. He is a parent of a child at the middle school as well as a high-schooler. He disagreed with the harsh way the bus drivers would discipline the kids and make their own rules for each bus.
"We decided as parents it's best for us to pick up and drop off," said Kauhl. "This puts the nail on the coffin for me. This proves my point."
Kauhl did mention that there has been a vast reduction in parents picking up their children from the school.
"If you look at this line here this year versus last year, it has dropped over 50 percent," said Kauhl.
Kim Marotta also takes Kaul's approach, citing that she has had too many problems in the past. It's all about her children's safety.
I know a lot of people can't, but this validates why I pick up my children and drive them to school everyday," said Marotta.
Carmen Vallejo was also waiting in line for her son, who is in seventh grade, to get out of his last class. She questioned if all of the query checks are being done.
"Are they really looking into the past history and asking people if they have a drug history or an alcohol history?," said Vallejo. "If they need help can they come and say I need help and have a problem without being afraid of losing their job?"
Vallejo always picks her son up, the worry being that buses are simply unsafe environments for many reasons.
"You worry about your child being bullied on the bus, you worry that there's no seatbelt on the bus and now you've got to worry that there's something wrong with the bus driver," said Vallejo. "You always hope that the bus driver is going to be the responsible person. If they're not responsible and something bad happens they're the only adult. It's just little kids on the bus. They're all alone."
2011年9月25日星期日
Prius wagon ready to take on rivals
Toyota's first Prius-branded hybrid wagon — the 2012 Prius V — begins arriving at dealerships in late October with a starting price of $26,400 (plus $760 freight), the automaker says.
Three models will be offered. Besides the base V Two model at the $26,400 price, there will be the midlevel V Three ($27,165) and the V Five ($29,990).
This is the first of a variety of new models that will carry the Prius name as Toyota expands a brand that has become synonymous with “hybrid” since it was introduced in the U.S. market in mid-2000.
Toyota says the Prius V is designed for “young, active families.” The “V” stands for “versatility.” It's essentially a crossover version of the third-generation midsize Prius hatchback that arrived for 2010.
It is intended for people who like the idea of the gas-sipping hybrid, but need a bigger, roomier vehicle.
The Prius V seats five, just as its hatchback sibling, but has 58 percent more cargo space — 34.3 cubic feet — which Toyota says is more than that of “80 percent of the small SUVs on the road today.”
Its EPA classification is “midsize station wagon.” The overall look is quite similar to that of the current Prius, but the rear end is squared off like a wagon or SUV.
There is already a midsize hybrid crossover in the Toyota lineup, the Highlander, which can carry up to seven passengers. The Prius V will compete in the compact crossover class, where the only hybrid models offered now are the Ford Escape and its clone, the Mazda Tribute.
Although it has the same gasoline-electric drive system as the Prius hatchback, the heavier V model won't be as fuel-efficient. EPA ratings are 44 mpg city/40 highway, compared with 51 city/48 highway for the regular Prius. Still, that is the best mileage of any crossover, SUV or wagon, Toyota says.
There is a rear roof spoiler designed to improve airflow, reduce drag and help save fuel. The car has a 0.29 coefficient of drag, which is on par with many sports cars.
Standard on all three Prius V models will be an audio system with a 6.1-inch display screen and back-up camera system; Bluetooth phone connection and audio streaming; USB port for connecting external audio players; 16-inch alloy wheels with wheel covers; single-dial climate control; a driver's door Smart Key system; 60/40 split sliding/reclining back seat; and power lumbar support for the driver's seat.
Also included are electric air conditioning, keyless push-button start, an electronic transmission shift lever and power windows/mirrors/door locks with remote.
Moving up to the V Three model adds navigation and the Entune multimedia system with satellite and HD radio features, along with iTunes tagging. Entune includes Bing and Pandora, as well as real-time traffic, weather, fuel prices, sports and stocks. It also has text-to-speech capabilities.
The V Five comes with most of the V Three features, along with heated front seats, premium SofTex upholstery, a three-door Smart Key system, 17-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights and fog lights.
SofTex, a new plastic material that weighs half as much as leather, is designed to resist stains and spills and to take the kind of heavy wear that comes from having kids in the car. It's also easier to clean, Toyota says.
Cargo space can be expanded substantially by folding the rear seatback, and the front seatback can be leaned forward to accommodate longer items, such as snow skis.
Under the hood is the same 1.8-liter, four-cylinder, 98-horsepower Atkinson-cycle gasoline engine used in the regular Prius. There also are two high-output electric motors — including an 80-horsepower unit that helps drive the car, and a separate, smaller one that starts the engine and also serves as a generator to recharge the nickel-metal-hydride battery pack.
Three models will be offered. Besides the base V Two model at the $26,400 price, there will be the midlevel V Three ($27,165) and the V Five ($29,990).
This is the first of a variety of new models that will carry the Prius name as Toyota expands a brand that has become synonymous with “hybrid” since it was introduced in the U.S. market in mid-2000.
Toyota says the Prius V is designed for “young, active families.” The “V” stands for “versatility.” It's essentially a crossover version of the third-generation midsize Prius hatchback that arrived for 2010.
It is intended for people who like the idea of the gas-sipping hybrid, but need a bigger, roomier vehicle.
The Prius V seats five, just as its hatchback sibling, but has 58 percent more cargo space — 34.3 cubic feet — which Toyota says is more than that of “80 percent of the small SUVs on the road today.”
Its EPA classification is “midsize station wagon.” The overall look is quite similar to that of the current Prius, but the rear end is squared off like a wagon or SUV.
There is already a midsize hybrid crossover in the Toyota lineup, the Highlander, which can carry up to seven passengers. The Prius V will compete in the compact crossover class, where the only hybrid models offered now are the Ford Escape and its clone, the Mazda Tribute.
Although it has the same gasoline-electric drive system as the Prius hatchback, the heavier V model won't be as fuel-efficient. EPA ratings are 44 mpg city/40 highway, compared with 51 city/48 highway for the regular Prius. Still, that is the best mileage of any crossover, SUV or wagon, Toyota says.
There is a rear roof spoiler designed to improve airflow, reduce drag and help save fuel. The car has a 0.29 coefficient of drag, which is on par with many sports cars.
Standard on all three Prius V models will be an audio system with a 6.1-inch display screen and back-up camera system; Bluetooth phone connection and audio streaming; USB port for connecting external audio players; 16-inch alloy wheels with wheel covers; single-dial climate control; a driver's door Smart Key system; 60/40 split sliding/reclining back seat; and power lumbar support for the driver's seat.
Also included are electric air conditioning, keyless push-button start, an electronic transmission shift lever and power windows/mirrors/door locks with remote.
Moving up to the V Three model adds navigation and the Entune multimedia system with satellite and HD radio features, along with iTunes tagging. Entune includes Bing and Pandora, as well as real-time traffic, weather, fuel prices, sports and stocks. It also has text-to-speech capabilities.
The V Five comes with most of the V Three features, along with heated front seats, premium SofTex upholstery, a three-door Smart Key system, 17-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights and fog lights.
SofTex, a new plastic material that weighs half as much as leather, is designed to resist stains and spills and to take the kind of heavy wear that comes from having kids in the car. It's also easier to clean, Toyota says.
Cargo space can be expanded substantially by folding the rear seatback, and the front seatback can be leaned forward to accommodate longer items, such as snow skis.
Under the hood is the same 1.8-liter, four-cylinder, 98-horsepower Atkinson-cycle gasoline engine used in the regular Prius. There also are two high-output electric motors — including an 80-horsepower unit that helps drive the car, and a separate, smaller one that starts the engine and also serves as a generator to recharge the nickel-metal-hydride battery pack.
2011年9月22日星期四
Driving Ireland in Ford Focus diesel
One of many pleasant little villages you pass through along this road, "it could be missed with the blink of an eye", as they say in Ireland, unless you spot an unusual monument. It's a full-sized stainless-steel replica of a Model-T Ford. Yes, you are on the ancestral home turf of Henry Ford, of Ford Motor Company fame. Erected as a new millennium project, the site has been visited by a number of Ford family members, the most recent being William Clay "Bill" Ford Jr. and family.
Bill is a great-grandson of Henry Ford and currently serves as the Executive Chairman of Ford Motor Company. A commemorative plaque at the site was dated August 3, 2011. That was only a couple of weeks prior to my visit with the latest product from the Dearborn, Michiganbased company, a 2012 model year Ford Focus.
The new Focus was redesigned mainly in Germany and is built on a new C-car platform that will underpin a number of other Ford products. It's a global car in every other sense and is produced in Ford plants in Spain, Russia, China and, as well as Germany and North America (Michigan).
In Canada, Ford sells Focus in both 5-door hatchback and 4-door sedan body styles. And in Ireland it's also offered in a wagon version, called an "Estate". Although different descriptive names are used, both countries also offer Focus models in four prepackaged equipment and trim levels.
Sticker shock, however, is a highvoltage jolt when you do a euro-todollar conversion on the asking prices on an Irish Focus - it's almost double the Canadian price. Our proximity to the largest and most lucrative car market in the world certainly helps keep Canadian auto prices low when compared with most other countries in the world.
Even though diesel models are priced higher (about $700 more) they tend to be more popular with Irish buyers. It's mainly because diesel fuel is cheaper and these engines provide considerable better fuel economy. You pay a bit more, but get more for the car when you trade it in, I was told.
My test Focus came with Active Park Assist, which automatically pilots the Focus into a parallel roadside parking space. A salesperson at the dealership sheepishly described it as a "lady park system" and could only recall ever selling one vehicle with it.
Apparently I'm more in touch with my feminine side than I ever realized - okay, call me a sissy - but I do like Active Park Assist. It first measures a parking space as you drive by and tells you if the car will fit in it. You can then choose to let it do the steering or just use it as a guidance system - so parking is a much easier task.
On a side note, Ford is planning to build (in Detroit) a full electric version of the Focus and it's expected to be released next year. A full recharge, with a 240-volt charging station is reported to take less than four hours, which would be best in the industry.
The Healy Pass spans Ireland's spectacular Beara Peninsula. It connects the counties of Cork and Kerry and it's a very special driving experience. The road is long, winding and narrow, but the valley views on either side of the mountain ridge can be absolutely stunning when the weather cooperates - and it did.
The Focus also proved to be a highly enjoyable driving experience as it danced back and forth along the winding mountain road with Michael Flatley-like agility. Some credit must go to the new, and standard Dynamic Cornering Control system that uses "torque vectoring" techniques. It enhances cornering ability by lightly applying the brakes to an inside front wheel.
Bill is a great-grandson of Henry Ford and currently serves as the Executive Chairman of Ford Motor Company. A commemorative plaque at the site was dated August 3, 2011. That was only a couple of weeks prior to my visit with the latest product from the Dearborn, Michiganbased company, a 2012 model year Ford Focus.
The new Focus was redesigned mainly in Germany and is built on a new C-car platform that will underpin a number of other Ford products. It's a global car in every other sense and is produced in Ford plants in Spain, Russia, China and, as well as Germany and North America (Michigan).
In Canada, Ford sells Focus in both 5-door hatchback and 4-door sedan body styles. And in Ireland it's also offered in a wagon version, called an "Estate". Although different descriptive names are used, both countries also offer Focus models in four prepackaged equipment and trim levels.
Sticker shock, however, is a highvoltage jolt when you do a euro-todollar conversion on the asking prices on an Irish Focus - it's almost double the Canadian price. Our proximity to the largest and most lucrative car market in the world certainly helps keep Canadian auto prices low when compared with most other countries in the world.
Even though diesel models are priced higher (about $700 more) they tend to be more popular with Irish buyers. It's mainly because diesel fuel is cheaper and these engines provide considerable better fuel economy. You pay a bit more, but get more for the car when you trade it in, I was told.
My test Focus came with Active Park Assist, which automatically pilots the Focus into a parallel roadside parking space. A salesperson at the dealership sheepishly described it as a "lady park system" and could only recall ever selling one vehicle with it.
Apparently I'm more in touch with my feminine side than I ever realized - okay, call me a sissy - but I do like Active Park Assist. It first measures a parking space as you drive by and tells you if the car will fit in it. You can then choose to let it do the steering or just use it as a guidance system - so parking is a much easier task.
On a side note, Ford is planning to build (in Detroit) a full electric version of the Focus and it's expected to be released next year. A full recharge, with a 240-volt charging station is reported to take less than four hours, which would be best in the industry.
The Healy Pass spans Ireland's spectacular Beara Peninsula. It connects the counties of Cork and Kerry and it's a very special driving experience. The road is long, winding and narrow, but the valley views on either side of the mountain ridge can be absolutely stunning when the weather cooperates - and it did.
The Focus also proved to be a highly enjoyable driving experience as it danced back and forth along the winding mountain road with Michael Flatley-like agility. Some credit must go to the new, and standard Dynamic Cornering Control system that uses "torque vectoring" techniques. It enhances cornering ability by lightly applying the brakes to an inside front wheel.
2011年9月21日星期三
2012 Ford Focus Energy in motion and frugal too
One of many pleasant little villages you pass through along this road, "it could be missed with the blink of an eye", as they say in Ireland, unless you spot an unusual monument. It's a full-sized stainless-steel replica of a Model-T Ford. Yes, you are on the ancestral home turf of Henry Ford, of Ford Motor Company fame. Erected as a new millennium project, the site has been visited by a number of Ford family members, the most recent being William Clay "Bill" Ford Jr. and family.
Bill is a great-grandson of Henry Ford and currently serves as the Executive Chairman of Ford Motor Company. A commemorative plaque at the site was dated August 3, 2011. That was only a couple of weeks prior to my visit with the latest product from the Dearborn, Michiganbased company, a 2012 model year Ford Focus.
The new Focus was redesigned mainly in Germany and is built on a new C-car platform that will underpin a number of other Ford products. It's a global car in every other sense and is produced in Ford plants in Spain, Russia, China and, as well as Germany and North America (Michigan).
In Canada, Ford sells Focus in both 5-door hatchback and 4-door sedan body styles. And in Ireland it's also offered in a wagon version, called an "Estate". Although different descriptive names are used, both countries also offer Focus models in four prepackaged equipment and trim levels.
Sticker shock, however, is a highvoltage jolt when you do a euro-todollar conversion on the asking prices on an Irish Focus - it's almost double the Canadian price. Our proximity to the largest and most lucrative car market in the world certainly helps keep Canadian auto prices low when compared with most other countries in the world.
Besides having the steering wheel on the right side of the passenger cabin, my test Focus also came with a diesel engine, which is not available in Canada. In fact, two sizes of diesel engine (1.6-and 2.0-litre) are offered, and only one gasoline (or petrol) engine (1.6-litre) is available.
Even though diesel models are priced higher (about $700 more) they tend to be more popular with Irish buyers. It's mainly because diesel fuel is cheaper and these engines provide considerable better fuel economy. You pay a bit more, but get more for the car when you trade it in, I was told.
My test Focus came with Active Park Assist, which automatically pilots the Focus into a parallel roadside parking space. A salesperson at the dealership sheepishly described it as a "lady park system" and could only recall ever selling one vehicle with it.
Apparently I'm more in touch with my feminine side than I ever realized - okay, call me a sissy - but I do like Active Park Assist. It first measures a parking space as you drive by and tells you if the car will fit in it. You can then choose to let it do the steering or just use it as a guidance system - so parking is a much easier task.
On a side note, Ford is planning to build (in Detroit) a full electric version of the Focus and it's expected to be released next year. A full recharge, with a 240-volt charging station is reported to take less than four hours, which would be best in the industry.
Ford describes the "Kinetic Design" styling theme used to create the Focus as "a visual representation of energy in motion." Sounds great and it is a good looking car, especially the 5-door hatchback. Soft, flowing curves allow Focus to slip through air with a very low 0.295 coefficient of drag, which is an eight per cent improvement over the previous generation car. Underneath it has 25 per cent more torsional rigidity, with 55 per cent more highstrength steel, plus more than 26 per cent of that is ultra-highstrength or Boron steel (in the B-pillars). That's a higher ratio than any other Ford product.
The upfront space provided is excellent and there's an impressive range of seat adjustments to accommodate an above-average height driver, like myself. Legroom in the rear, however, is a bit limited and taller occupants may need to seek a compromise with frontseat users.
In addition to the strong body structure, a new generation driver's airbag uses a tether system that when deployed pulls in the lower section and creates a "pocket" that lessens its impact on the driver's chest and ribs. Smaller occupants also benefit from unique side airbags with shoulder vents that stay open, to reduce pressure quicker.
The Healy Pass spans Ireland's spectacular Beara Peninsula. It connects the counties of Cork and Kerry and it's a very special driving experience. The road is long, winding and narrow, but the valley views on either side of the mountain ridge can be absolutely stunning when the weather cooperates - and it did.
The Focus also proved to be a highly enjoyable driving experience as it danced back and forth along the winding mountain road with Michael Flatley-like agility. Some credit must go to the new, and standard Dynamic Cornering Control system that uses "torque vectoring" techniques. It enhances cornering ability by lightly applying the brakes to an inside front wheel.
The diesel engine was another revelation. It had gobs of great pulling power and ran so quietly that passengers questioned, "is it really a diesel?" Our total average fuel economy was a very frugal 5.3 L-100km (about 53 mpg), with roughly a 60/40 mix of highway and city driving.
A feature associated with hybrid drivetrains that I've never come across in a diesel-powered car, called Active City Stop, was also interesting. It saves fuel normally wasted while idling by automatically turning the engine off and restarting. It worked like a charm, even with the manual transmission in my test Focus.
Hopefully, at some point, Ford will offer this engine to Canada. Some competitors have already announced their intention to add diesel engine models, so it's a real possibility.
Bill is a great-grandson of Henry Ford and currently serves as the Executive Chairman of Ford Motor Company. A commemorative plaque at the site was dated August 3, 2011. That was only a couple of weeks prior to my visit with the latest product from the Dearborn, Michiganbased company, a 2012 model year Ford Focus.
The new Focus was redesigned mainly in Germany and is built on a new C-car platform that will underpin a number of other Ford products. It's a global car in every other sense and is produced in Ford plants in Spain, Russia, China and, as well as Germany and North America (Michigan).
In Canada, Ford sells Focus in both 5-door hatchback and 4-door sedan body styles. And in Ireland it's also offered in a wagon version, called an "Estate". Although different descriptive names are used, both countries also offer Focus models in four prepackaged equipment and trim levels.
Sticker shock, however, is a highvoltage jolt when you do a euro-todollar conversion on the asking prices on an Irish Focus - it's almost double the Canadian price. Our proximity to the largest and most lucrative car market in the world certainly helps keep Canadian auto prices low when compared with most other countries in the world.
Besides having the steering wheel on the right side of the passenger cabin, my test Focus also came with a diesel engine, which is not available in Canada. In fact, two sizes of diesel engine (1.6-and 2.0-litre) are offered, and only one gasoline (or petrol) engine (1.6-litre) is available.
Even though diesel models are priced higher (about $700 more) they tend to be more popular with Irish buyers. It's mainly because diesel fuel is cheaper and these engines provide considerable better fuel economy. You pay a bit more, but get more for the car when you trade it in, I was told.
My test Focus came with Active Park Assist, which automatically pilots the Focus into a parallel roadside parking space. A salesperson at the dealership sheepishly described it as a "lady park system" and could only recall ever selling one vehicle with it.
Apparently I'm more in touch with my feminine side than I ever realized - okay, call me a sissy - but I do like Active Park Assist. It first measures a parking space as you drive by and tells you if the car will fit in it. You can then choose to let it do the steering or just use it as a guidance system - so parking is a much easier task.
On a side note, Ford is planning to build (in Detroit) a full electric version of the Focus and it's expected to be released next year. A full recharge, with a 240-volt charging station is reported to take less than four hours, which would be best in the industry.
Ford describes the "Kinetic Design" styling theme used to create the Focus as "a visual representation of energy in motion." Sounds great and it is a good looking car, especially the 5-door hatchback. Soft, flowing curves allow Focus to slip through air with a very low 0.295 coefficient of drag, which is an eight per cent improvement over the previous generation car. Underneath it has 25 per cent more torsional rigidity, with 55 per cent more highstrength steel, plus more than 26 per cent of that is ultra-highstrength or Boron steel (in the B-pillars). That's a higher ratio than any other Ford product.
The upfront space provided is excellent and there's an impressive range of seat adjustments to accommodate an above-average height driver, like myself. Legroom in the rear, however, is a bit limited and taller occupants may need to seek a compromise with frontseat users.
In addition to the strong body structure, a new generation driver's airbag uses a tether system that when deployed pulls in the lower section and creates a "pocket" that lessens its impact on the driver's chest and ribs. Smaller occupants also benefit from unique side airbags with shoulder vents that stay open, to reduce pressure quicker.
The Healy Pass spans Ireland's spectacular Beara Peninsula. It connects the counties of Cork and Kerry and it's a very special driving experience. The road is long, winding and narrow, but the valley views on either side of the mountain ridge can be absolutely stunning when the weather cooperates - and it did.
The Focus also proved to be a highly enjoyable driving experience as it danced back and forth along the winding mountain road with Michael Flatley-like agility. Some credit must go to the new, and standard Dynamic Cornering Control system that uses "torque vectoring" techniques. It enhances cornering ability by lightly applying the brakes to an inside front wheel.
The diesel engine was another revelation. It had gobs of great pulling power and ran so quietly that passengers questioned, "is it really a diesel?" Our total average fuel economy was a very frugal 5.3 L-100km (about 53 mpg), with roughly a 60/40 mix of highway and city driving.
A feature associated with hybrid drivetrains that I've never come across in a diesel-powered car, called Active City Stop, was also interesting. It saves fuel normally wasted while idling by automatically turning the engine off and restarting. It worked like a charm, even with the manual transmission in my test Focus.
Hopefully, at some point, Ford will offer this engine to Canada. Some competitors have already announced their intention to add diesel engine models, so it's a real possibility.
2011年9月20日星期二
Cambridge Airport 24/7 for Olympics as business booms
As one of only five civilian airports with a 24/7 capability Cambridge Airport has the capacity to accept aircraft throughout the day and permit the airport to take up to 30 per cent of regional slot controlled airport traffic during the early morning and late evenings.
Cambridge already boasts an established 24/7 operating capability with no noise restrictions and this status was recognised by Airport Co-ordination Limited (ACL), which manages the slot allocationsystem . ACL has created a booking system , which has now gone live, introduced to ensure UK airport capacity meets the expected increase in demand.
The airport recently announced an initiative to attract business aviation operators to the airport throughout next summer. The scheme offers charter operators, government fleets and private owners the opportunity to pre-purchase guaranteedparking slots with a one time fee that also includes all landing and take off costs.
Richard Knight, Airport manager at Cambridge said: “The 24/7 capacity, combined with our special events offering, gives our customers exceptional flexibility, particularly as we have a generous allocation of early morning and late evening slots. With hotels fully booked and events running into the evening, a day trip to the Olympics becomes a viable option.”
The airport reports significant growth in business since the start of 2011 when it implemented its new commercial strategy. The new dedicated airport management team, led by airport director Archie Garden has grown its business aviation movements year on year by 15 per cent, fuel sales are up by 37 per cent and it has seen a jump inparking fee revenue of 90 per cent. Instrument approach training flights have also grown – now currently showing a five per cent rise year on year.
Currently operators and private owners are driving the new business movements and many charters are originating in France and Germany. A growth in air ambulance flights with patients heading to renowned local hospitals, Addenbrooke’s which recently opened a new trauma unit, and Papworth has also been seen.
It is anticipated that within the first 18 months of operation the Airport will have added another 100 jobs to the area through the addition of companies like the Pilot Training Company and other various aviation brokers and managed aircraft companies that are in the pipeline to move to Cambridge.
Training figures are expected to continue to rise following the anticipated implementation of the new GPSsystem by year end. The new instrument guidance system will offer additional training capability and will allow adjustment to the Precision Approach Path Indicators (PAPIs) enabling the same high approach angle descent as London City Airport.
Once the GPS is installed Cambridge will be one of the few airports which can readily accept training flights for these specific requirements. The airport has already spoken to a number of companies keen to make use of the new capability.
Pilot Training College (PTC) chose Cambridge Airport as the location for its new professional flight training academy in June and in preparation for their inaugural training courses two simulator rooms are being constructed at the airport.
The rooms will accommodate a new Boeing 737 simulator and an FNPTII procedures trainer. Along with state of the art classrooms PTC will utilise the simulators to support pilot training for the likes of Flybe, Qatar Airways, Turkish Airlines and Air Astana.
Cambridge already boasts an established 24/7 operating capability with no noise restrictions and this status was recognised by Airport Co-ordination Limited (ACL), which manages the slot allocation
The airport recently announced an initiative to attract business aviation operators to the airport throughout next summer. The scheme offers charter operators, government fleets and private owners the opportunity to pre-purchase guaranteed
Richard Knight, Airport manager at Cambridge said: “The 24/7 capacity, combined with our special events offering, gives our customers exceptional flexibility, particularly as we have a generous allocation of early morning and late evening slots. With hotels fully booked and events running into the evening, a day trip to the Olympics becomes a viable option.”
The airport reports significant growth in business since the start of 2011 when it implemented its new commercial strategy. The new dedicated airport management team, led by airport director Archie Garden has grown its business aviation movements year on year by 15 per cent, fuel sales are up by 37 per cent and it has seen a jump in
Currently operators and private owners are driving the new business movements and many charters are originating in France and Germany. A growth in air ambulance flights with patients heading to renowned local hospitals, Addenbrooke’s which recently opened a new trauma unit, and Papworth has also been seen.
It is anticipated that within the first 18 months of operation the Airport will have added another 100 jobs to the area through the addition of companies like the Pilot Training Company and other various aviation brokers and managed aircraft companies that are in the pipeline to move to Cambridge.
Training figures are expected to continue to rise following the anticipated implementation of the new GPS
Once the GPS is installed Cambridge will be one of the few airports which can readily accept training flights for these specific requirements. The airport has already spoken to a number of companies keen to make use of the new capability.
Pilot Training College (PTC) chose Cambridge Airport as the location for its new professional flight training academy in June and in preparation for their inaugural training courses two simulator rooms are being constructed at the airport.
The rooms will accommodate a new Boeing 737 simulator and an FNPTII procedures trainer. Along with state of the art classrooms PTC will utilise the simulators to support pilot training for the likes of Flybe, Qatar Airways, Turkish Airlines and Air Astana.
2011年9月19日星期一
Stellar Startups: IBM’s happy (smart) campers
Camp is usually a rewarding experience, a nice break from the humdrum of school and work. And the companies attending IBM SmartCamp Israel (ibmsmartcamp.wordpress.com) may have a rewarding experience all their own – a prize package designed to bump up the startup that wins the contest, and a chance to compete in the worldwide SmartCamp competition that could bring a very bright future to the winning company.
It’s a long and exhausting process, picking the companies that are good enough to wear the IBM “winner’s medal.” When the call for participants in the contest first went out several months ago, over 70 Israeli companies answered and presented their ideas and projects to impress IBM Israel executives. At the end, only five remained – and those five will go head-to-head in the Israel finals of IBM SmartCamp this week.
The winner will receive all sorts of goodies – a mentoring and guidance package from IBM, help with patents and presentations, a free year’s membership in the High-Tech Industry Association – and a plane ticket to the finals of SmartCamp, to be held at the beginning of 2012 in the US (final venue still pending). If IBM is one of the top tech companies in the world, the company that wins SmartCamp could be considered one of the top startups in the world. Quite an honor!
Israel is one of nine hi-tech hot spots that IBM is trawling for the “next big thing.” Events have already been held in Bangalore, Austin, Barcelona, and New York City, and will also be held in Istanbul, China, Rio, and London. Each location supplies five finalists, with one selected by a panel of local IBM executives, as well as top managers. Companies need to be five years old or younger (early stage), with a maximum turnover of $1,000,000 in the last 12 months.
So what does it take to get into a contest like this – let alone win it?
“Obviously we want the best of the best startups,” says Ahuva Kamar, organizer of the Israel event. “We are looking for companies that will enhance IBM’s vision of a smarter planet. The startups we are looking for are more likely to be working in enterprise, as opposed to the consumer space, and they will answer to one of our ‘three I’s’ – with products or services that are more instrumented, intelligent, and/or interconnected. The five finalists certainly meet these criteria.”
Those three I’s says Kamar, will be driving the smarter computer systems of the future that IBM is developing. “Instrumented” means capturing or integrating data using devices like sensors, kiosk, meters, PDAs, appliances, cameras (still and video), smart phones, implanted medical devices, or the web – anything that captures reliable digital information and feeds into a system is eligible, as long as it uses an instrument to do so. “Interconnected” means integrating data in order to enhance the data’s value – like a better way to connect people using Web 2.0 technologies. And “intelligent” means just what it says – a better, smarter way to do things that makes life easier or better for users.
The five finalists certainly answer to these criteria. C-B4 Predictive Analytics, for example, developed a system for identifying and analyzing hidden data patterns in large scale data warehouses, something that can make things more efficient – and more profitable – for retailers and corporate sales managers.
Mintigo offers a solution that enables businesses in various industries to intelligently leverage internal and external data, turning it into customer insights and new sales opportunities, doubling sales conversion rates.
FST21, founded by former Military Intelligence head Aharon Zeevi Farkash, developed an access management system, called SafeRise, designed to enhance security levels at residential and office buildings. Seculert’s novel cybersecurity system enables early-detection and blocking of cyberborne threats targeted at the organization’s network. And Wave Guard Technologies offers an efficient and inexpensive solution for monitoring and controlling cellular radiation emanating from cell towers and antennas.
Last year’s Israel winner was Panoramic Power, which provides on-line monitoring of energy use and power flow, allowing managers to more easily figure out how to save energy – and money. The worldwide winner was a Silicon Valley company, Streetline, which uses sensors to determine where there are available parking spaces in a city, and a cellphone app that directs drivers to those spots.
Ultimately, SmartCamp, and IBM’s “smarter planet” strategy, is about using more computing power to use resources – environmental, business, government, security, etc. – more efficiently. In a “smart city,” you would have a system that would save drivers’ time and frustration, using the Internet to supply real-time information on where parking spots were available, instead of forcing them to endlessly drive around looking for a spot. And in a smart city, you would have an office building or mall where a computerized system would tell you where electricity is being wasted, as Panoramic Power’s solution does, so you could save energy – and of course, money.
Ditto for the other finalists, including last year’s and the ones chosen so far this year. There are lots of great ideas out there – so what are Israel’s chances?
It’s a long and exhausting process, picking the companies that are good enough to wear the IBM “winner’s medal.” When the call for participants in the contest first went out several months ago, over 70 Israeli companies answered and presented their ideas and projects to impress IBM Israel executives. At the end, only five remained – and those five will go head-to-head in the Israel finals of IBM SmartCamp this week.
The winner will receive all sorts of goodies – a mentoring and guidance package from IBM, help with patents and presentations, a free year’s membership in the High-Tech Industry Association – and a plane ticket to the finals of SmartCamp, to be held at the beginning of 2012 in the US (final venue still pending). If IBM is one of the top tech companies in the world, the company that wins SmartCamp could be considered one of the top startups in the world. Quite an honor!
Israel is one of nine hi-tech hot spots that IBM is trawling for the “next big thing.” Events have already been held in Bangalore, Austin, Barcelona, and New York City, and will also be held in Istanbul, China, Rio, and London. Each location supplies five finalists, with one selected by a panel of local IBM executives, as well as top managers. Companies need to be five years old or younger (early stage), with a maximum turnover of $1,000,000 in the last 12 months.
So what does it take to get into a contest like this – let alone win it?
“Obviously we want the best of the best startups,” says Ahuva Kamar, organizer of the Israel event. “We are looking for companies that will enhance IBM’s vision of a smarter planet. The startups we are looking for are more likely to be working in enterprise, as opposed to the consumer space, and they will answer to one of our ‘three I’s’ – with products or services that are more instrumented, intelligent, and/or interconnected. The five finalists certainly meet these criteria.”
Those three I’s says Kamar, will be driving the smarter computer systems of the future that IBM is developing. “Instrumented” means capturing or integrating data using devices like sensors, kiosk, meters, PDAs, appliances, cameras (still and video), smart phones, implanted medical devices, or the web – anything that captures reliable digital information and feeds into a system is eligible, as long as it uses an instrument to do so. “Interconnected” means integrating data in order to enhance the data’s value – like a better way to connect people using Web 2.0 technologies. And “intelligent” means just what it says – a better, smarter way to do things that makes life easier or better for users.
The five finalists certainly answer to these criteria. C-B4 Predictive Analytics, for example, developed a system for identifying and analyzing hidden data patterns in large scale data warehouses, something that can make things more efficient – and more profitable – for retailers and corporate sales managers.
Mintigo offers a solution that enables businesses in various industries to intelligently leverage internal and external data, turning it into customer insights and new sales opportunities, doubling sales conversion rates.
FST21, founded by former Military Intelligence head Aharon Zeevi Farkash, developed an access management system, called SafeRise, designed to enhance security levels at residential and office buildings. Seculert’s novel cybersecurity system enables early-detection and blocking of cyberborne threats targeted at the organization’s network. And Wave Guard Technologies offers an efficient and inexpensive solution for monitoring and controlling cellular radiation emanating from cell towers and antennas.
Last year’s Israel winner was Panoramic Power, which provides on-line monitoring of energy use and power flow, allowing managers to more easily figure out how to save energy – and money. The worldwide winner was a Silicon Valley company, Streetline, which uses sensors to determine where there are available parking spaces in a city, and a cellphone app that directs drivers to those spots.
Ultimately, SmartCamp, and IBM’s “smarter planet” strategy, is about using more computing power to use resources – environmental, business, government, security, etc. – more efficiently. In a “smart city,” you would have a system that would save drivers’ time and frustration, using the Internet to supply real-time information on where parking spots were available, instead of forcing them to endlessly drive around looking for a spot. And in a smart city, you would have an office building or mall where a computerized system would tell you where electricity is being wasted, as Panoramic Power’s solution does, so you could save energy – and of course, money.
Ditto for the other finalists, including last year’s and the ones chosen so far this year. There are lots of great ideas out there – so what are Israel’s chances?
2012 Hyundai Veloster
To hear John Krafcik tell it, the 2012 Veloster is just another Hyundai. Allow us to rephrase that. According to the company's North American CEO, the searing Vitamin C orange coupe shown here is something we should've seen coming, the predictable end result of the relentless innovators at his Korean employer.
Yet to be fair, even now, "innovation" isn't exactly the first thing that comes to mind when we think of Hyundai. But perhaps it should be. After all, this is the same company that's led the way with radical customer relations plans like Hyundai Assurance (income loss payment coverage and buy-back, guaranteed trade-in values, etc.) and brash products like the 2011 Sonata, which passed on cylinders five and six in favor of forced induction – to say nothing of its unique hybrid variant and brave aesthetics. From marketing to product, Hyundai has rather quietly built a solid case for itself as an innovator.
And yet... even though we knew it was coming, we still weren't prepared for the Veloster. Aggressive family sedan styling aside, we haven't seen Hyundai allow its design team to so comprehensively stretch its creative legs as we have in this little four-door coupe. Did we say four-door? Indeed we did. Following hatchback naming conventions of three- and five-door bodystyles, this tangerine bolide is actually a four-door. It's got a conventional, longish driver's side door and a traditional lift-up hatchback. But stroll over to the passenger's side, and things get deeply funky – there's a second aperture behind a subtly shorter front door. We've seen similar setups like this in the past, a rear-hinged demi-door to ease access to a tight back seat, but this isn't a suicide solution. The Veloster employs a normal front-hinged rear door, albeit one with the handle hiding in the gloss black C-pillar.
The Veloster's styling is as idiosyncratic as its door configuration – there's just a lot going on. That's thanks to front lights shaped like Parasaurolophus heads and a gaping lower air intake and fascia whose gloss black elements look like they're trying to push their way out from inside the engine compartment. We could do without the faux hood vents, but presumably these are placeholders for the still-unconfirmed turbo model.
Prominent fender blisters shroud standard 17-inch wheels (18s are optional, including one design with unique body-color spoke inserts), and gloss black A-pillars combined with a tapering fixed quarterlight give the greenhouse a racy 'helmet visor' look. The beltline is high, with visual bulk curbed somewhat by a lilting cutline down by the rocker panel.
The heart of the interior is the seven-inch LG touchscreen, which comes standard whether you pony up for navigation or not. The display governs everything from the base six-speaker audio system (which itself includes standard satellite radio, iPod input and Gracenote music identification) to vehicle settings and Bluetooth telephony. What's more, Hyundai has included an RCA cable so you can play videos from your smartphone or hook up a video game console when parked (a 115-volt outlet is optional). You can diddle with personalization settings like wallpaper, color schemes and varying welcome chimes, or opt-in to play fuel economy games that let you see how your performance stacks up against other Veloster drivers. No, we're not kidding.
That last bit is made possible by Blue Link, Hyundai's new embedded telematics system that doesn't require a tethered mobile phone. Like General Motors' OnStar, it's a subscription-based setup with tiered services. The most basic level, Blue Link Assurance ($79/year), bundles features like monthly vehicle reports with an SOS assistance button and automatic crash notification. The next Blue Link package up, Essentials ($179/year), keeps the aforementioned functions but adds services like remote door unlocking, advanced vehicle diagnostics, voice text messaging and location sharing through Facebook(!), along with a brace of safeguards like stolen vehicle slowdown, location and immobilization. There are even parental-minded items like speed alert, curfew alert and "geo-fencing," which will automatically text, email, or call when your little snowflake takes the car to a friend's house that they're not allowed to visit. If you pony up for the full-house Blue Link Guidance package ($279/year), it adds on services like traffic and weather, voice activated point-of-interest searches, restaurant ratings, and so on.
We simply didn't have time on our first drive to test – let alone master – all of Blue Link's capabilities, but what we did use was both self-explanatory and effective. We even called and used the turn-by-turn directions feature with on-screen instruction, and it almost makes the optional navigation system seem superfluous. Blue Link comes standard on all Velosters, and there's a free trial period so you can tinker around and see if you want to become a subscriber.
All of Blue Link's whizbangery would be for naught if the rest of the Veloster's cabin was a hateful place in which to spend time, but it's anything but. Controls are easy-to-reach, the steering wheel tilts and telescopes, gauges are clear, and we like the big, Honda Ridgeline-like grab handles on the doors. Overall, materials and switchgear are class appropriate or better and fit-and-finish is excellent. Our test cars issued nary a squeak or rattle – even over suburban Portland's ubiquitous neighborhood speed bumps. An optional panoramic moonroof floods the interior with light, and the standard all-cloth seats are comfy. (Leatherette accents in the buyer's choice of three colors are bundled with available tech and style packages).
That bonus rear door opens up to an unexpectedly usable rear seat, with plenty of knee and legroom, and enough headroom for sub-six-foot passengers to avoid claustrophobia, though taller friends will likely balk. The split-fold seatback isn't even overly vertical, and the bottom squab doesn't leave you eating your knees. The rear door is admittedly a bit on the smallish side, but it's certainly preferable to an even smaller rear-hinged door, as on the Mazda RX-8 – and not just because you won't get trapped in a parking space between two open doors. Negotiate the trunk's high liftover height, and there's even a surprisingly generous 15.5 cubic-feet of cargo space. How the hell did they cram all that in such a tiny footprint?
Yet to be fair, even now, "innovation" isn't exactly the first thing that comes to mind when we think of Hyundai. But perhaps it should be. After all, this is the same company that's led the way with radical customer relations plans like Hyundai Assurance (income loss payment coverage and buy-back, guaranteed trade-in values, etc.) and brash products like the 2011 Sonata, which passed on cylinders five and six in favor of forced induction – to say nothing of its unique hybrid variant and brave aesthetics. From marketing to product, Hyundai has rather quietly built a solid case for itself as an innovator.
And yet... even though we knew it was coming, we still weren't prepared for the Veloster. Aggressive family sedan styling aside, we haven't seen Hyundai allow its design team to so comprehensively stretch its creative legs as we have in this little four-door coupe. Did we say four-door? Indeed we did. Following hatchback naming conventions of three- and five-door bodystyles, this tangerine bolide is actually a four-door. It's got a conventional, longish driver's side door and a traditional lift-up hatchback. But stroll over to the passenger's side, and things get deeply funky – there's a second aperture behind a subtly shorter front door. We've seen similar setups like this in the past, a rear-hinged demi-door to ease access to a tight back seat, but this isn't a suicide solution. The Veloster employs a normal front-hinged rear door, albeit one with the handle hiding in the gloss black C-pillar.
The Veloster's styling is as idiosyncratic as its door configuration – there's just a lot going on. That's thanks to front lights shaped like Parasaurolophus heads and a gaping lower air intake and fascia whose gloss black elements look like they're trying to push their way out from inside the engine compartment. We could do without the faux hood vents, but presumably these are placeholders for the still-unconfirmed turbo model.
Prominent fender blisters shroud standard 17-inch wheels (18s are optional, including one design with unique body-color spoke inserts), and gloss black A-pillars combined with a tapering fixed quarterlight give the greenhouse a racy 'helmet visor' look. The beltline is high, with visual bulk curbed somewhat by a lilting cutline down by the rocker panel.
The heart of the interior is the seven-inch LG touchscreen, which comes standard whether you pony up for navigation or not. The display governs everything from the base six-speaker audio system (which itself includes standard satellite radio, iPod input and Gracenote music identification) to vehicle settings and Bluetooth telephony. What's more, Hyundai has included an RCA cable so you can play videos from your smartphone or hook up a video game console when parked (a 115-volt outlet is optional). You can diddle with personalization settings like wallpaper, color schemes and varying welcome chimes, or opt-in to play fuel economy games that let you see how your performance stacks up against other Veloster drivers. No, we're not kidding.
That last bit is made possible by Blue Link, Hyundai's new embedded telematics system that doesn't require a tethered mobile phone. Like General Motors' OnStar, it's a subscription-based setup with tiered services. The most basic level, Blue Link Assurance ($79/year), bundles features like monthly vehicle reports with an SOS assistance button and automatic crash notification. The next Blue Link package up, Essentials ($179/year), keeps the aforementioned functions but adds services like remote door unlocking, advanced vehicle diagnostics, voice text messaging and location sharing through Facebook(!), along with a brace of safeguards like stolen vehicle slowdown, location and immobilization. There are even parental-minded items like speed alert, curfew alert and "geo-fencing," which will automatically text, email, or call when your little snowflake takes the car to a friend's house that they're not allowed to visit. If you pony up for the full-house Blue Link Guidance package ($279/year), it adds on services like traffic and weather, voice activated point-of-interest searches, restaurant ratings, and so on.
We simply didn't have time on our first drive to test – let alone master – all of Blue Link's capabilities, but what we did use was both self-explanatory and effective. We even called and used the turn-by-turn directions feature with on-screen instruction, and it almost makes the optional navigation system seem superfluous. Blue Link comes standard on all Velosters, and there's a free trial period so you can tinker around and see if you want to become a subscriber.
All of Blue Link's whizbangery would be for naught if the rest of the Veloster's cabin was a hateful place in which to spend time, but it's anything but. Controls are easy-to-reach, the steering wheel tilts and telescopes, gauges are clear, and we like the big, Honda Ridgeline-like grab handles on the doors. Overall, materials and switchgear are class appropriate or better and fit-and-finish is excellent. Our test cars issued nary a squeak or rattle – even over suburban Portland's ubiquitous neighborhood speed bumps. An optional panoramic moonroof floods the interior with light, and the standard all-cloth seats are comfy. (Leatherette accents in the buyer's choice of three colors are bundled with available tech and style packages).
That bonus rear door opens up to an unexpectedly usable rear seat, with plenty of knee and legroom, and enough headroom for sub-six-foot passengers to avoid claustrophobia, though taller friends will likely balk. The split-fold seatback isn't even overly vertical, and the bottom squab doesn't leave you eating your knees. The rear door is admittedly a bit on the smallish side, but it's certainly preferable to an even smaller rear-hinged door, as on the Mazda RX-8 – and not just because you won't get trapped in a parking space between two open doors. Negotiate the trunk's high liftover height, and there's even a surprisingly generous 15.5 cubic-feet of cargo space. How the hell did they cram all that in such a tiny footprint?
2011年9月18日星期日
1.3m tourists expected to flood into Xiamen during National Day Holiday
It’s estimated that 1.3 million tourists will flood into Xiamen during this year’s National Day holidays, an increase of 23% compared to the same period last year, reports Xiamen Economic Newspaper, and 90% of the tourists will travel by driving their own car.
During the National Day holiday, Xiamen will organize festival activities with highlighted cultural connotations. For example, the Botanical Garden will hold a sunflower arrangement competition and sunflower exhibition; Guanyinshan Fantasy Water World will hold a music & dance party and parent-child funfest.
From September 16th to October 10th, 11 inspection teams will launch comprehensive inspection of tourist markets in order to check tourist safety, focusing on guidance and readjustment on traffic in main roads and parking problems in major scenic spots.
A complaint system will be set up for 24 hours during the National Day holidays , according to the Xiamen tourism complaint institution.
During the National Day holiday, Xiamen will organize festival activities with highlighted cultural connotations. For example, the Botanical Garden will hold a sunflower arrangement competition and sunflower exhibition; Guanyinshan Fantasy Water World will hold a music & dance party and parent-child funfest.
From September 16th to October 10th, 11 inspection teams will launch comprehensive inspection of tourist markets in order to check tourist safety, focusing on guidance and readjustment on traffic in main roads and parking problems in major scenic spots.
A complaint system will be set up for 24 hours during the National Day holidays , according to the Xiamen tourism complaint institution.
2011年9月15日星期四
Westfield iPhone app in privacy fiasco
The retail giant’s action follows a blog by software architect Troy Hunt who found URLs containing the number plates of all cars at Westfield’s Bondi Junction centre were publicly accessible – no hacking was required.
The app lets a shopper enter their number plate and, after choosing a photo of their car from four displayed vehicles, seeks to guide the shopper back to their parking bay.
Sydney-based Hunt was able to develop software that could inform him of when all cars arrived and left the shopping centre, and exactly where they were parked.
Hundreds of small high-resolution cameras placed about two parking bays apart snap car images and numberplate details, which are then made available to shoppers via the app when they want to relocate their car and leave.
However Hunt found that the transmissions of details within the Park Assist system were not encrypted and could be intercepted by surveillance software searching URLs in the public domain.
“Think about the potential malicious uses if you’re able to write a simple bit of software,” Hunt says on his blog.
“A stalker receives a notification when their victim enters the car park (and they’ll know exactly where the victim is parked).
“A suspicious husband tracks when his wife arrives and then leaves the car park; an aggrieved driver holding a grudge from a nearby road rage incident monitors for the arrival of the other party; a car thief with their eye on a particular vehicle could be notified once it is left unattended in the car park.”
In a statement this afternoon, Westfield said the Find My Car functionality had been pulled.
“Park Assist, which provides the camera technology to capture the number plate, yesterday advised there was an issue with the authentication of their data feed to the iPhone which resulted in number plate data being publicly accessible via the internet,” Westfield said.
“This issue has been addressed immediately by Park Assist, and the Find My Car functionality will not be available for approximately one week until the app has been modified to ensure that data cannot be accessed online.”
Westfield said it did not believe the app had breached personal privacy as number plates were not personal information.
“In terms of privacy, the application does not contravene the Privacy Act in so far as numbers plates are not ‘personal information’, and are therefore not subject to that Act,” it said.
“Having said that, the application theoretically could be used for purposes other than its original intention; however, it does not facilitate any activity that couldn’t already happen otherwise.
“For example, a member of the general public may try to use the application to find a car that is not theirs.
“On the other hand, at the request of police, the application might also be used to assist in their enquiries into a given situation.
“However, Westfield would not expect either of these situations to be typical.”
Westfield said its Find My Car app service had been developed to offer a service to the average shopper, by making it easier to find their car.
During a recent test by The Australian, the app failed to show a direct route to the car as some shopping centre infrastructure was missing from the mapping database.
Westfield management had to personally assist with relocating the car.
The app, which connects to the centre's Park Assist guidance system, also helps shoppers find a vacant car space.
It displays the number of free parking bays in the two main Westfield car parks, and allows a shopper to select from a dozen large stores and discover which parking areas offer closest access.
The Park Assist guidance system has already been rolled out at Westfield centres in Hornsby, Chatswood, Parramatta and Kotara in NSW, and in the Melbourne suburb of Doncaster. It will be available in Queensland at Westfield Chermside in Brisbane from October.
The app lets a shopper enter their number plate and, after choosing a photo of their car from four displayed vehicles, seeks to guide the shopper back to their parking bay.
Sydney-based Hunt was able to develop software that could inform him of when all cars arrived and left the shopping centre, and exactly where they were parked.
Hundreds of small high-resolution cameras placed about two parking bays apart snap car images and numberplate details, which are then made available to shoppers via the app when they want to relocate their car and leave.
However Hunt found that the transmissions of details within the Park Assist system were not encrypted and could be intercepted by surveillance software searching URLs in the public domain.
“Think about the potential malicious uses if you’re able to write a simple bit of software,” Hunt says on his blog.
“A stalker receives a notification when their victim enters the car park (and they’ll know exactly where the victim is parked).
“A suspicious husband tracks when his wife arrives and then leaves the car park; an aggrieved driver holding a grudge from a nearby road rage incident monitors for the arrival of the other party; a car thief with their eye on a particular vehicle could be notified once it is left unattended in the car park.”
In a statement this afternoon, Westfield said the Find My Car functionality had been pulled.
“Park Assist, which provides the camera technology to capture the number plate, yesterday advised there was an issue with the authentication of their data feed to the iPhone which resulted in number plate data being publicly accessible via the internet,” Westfield said.
“This issue has been addressed immediately by Park Assist, and the Find My Car functionality will not be available for approximately one week until the app has been modified to ensure that data cannot be accessed online.”
Westfield said it did not believe the app had breached personal privacy as number plates were not personal information.
“In terms of privacy, the application does not contravene the Privacy Act in so far as numbers plates are not ‘personal information’, and are therefore not subject to that Act,” it said.
“Having said that, the application theoretically could be used for purposes other than its original intention; however, it does not facilitate any activity that couldn’t already happen otherwise.
“For example, a member of the general public may try to use the application to find a car that is not theirs.
“On the other hand, at the request of police, the application might also be used to assist in their enquiries into a given situation.
“However, Westfield would not expect either of these situations to be typical.”
Westfield said its Find My Car app service had been developed to offer a service to the average shopper, by making it easier to find their car.
During a recent test by The Australian, the app failed to show a direct route to the car as some shopping centre infrastructure was missing from the mapping database.
Westfield management had to personally assist with relocating the car.
The app, which connects to the centre's Park Assist guidance system, also helps shoppers find a vacant car space.
It displays the number of free parking bays in the two main Westfield car parks, and allows a shopper to select from a dozen large stores and discover which parking areas offer closest access.
The Park Assist guidance system has already been rolled out at Westfield centres in Hornsby, Chatswood, Parramatta and Kotara in NSW, and in the Melbourne suburb of Doncaster. It will be available in Queensland at Westfield Chermside in Brisbane from October.
2011年9月14日星期三
Westfield Stratford City opens in East London
The Westfield Group launched its most iconic and ambitious project to date in East London. The £1.8 billion Westfield Stratford City retail project will be the gateway to the London 2012 Olympic Park and is the largest urban shopping centre in Europe. This landmark 1.9 million square feet development marks the next chapter in retail and leisure development in the United Kingdom, serving a catchment area of over 4 million people.
The retail development will be owned in a partnership between Westfield, who will own 50%, and APG of the Netherlands and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board jointly owning the other 50%. Westfield Stratford City is anchored by flagship John Lewis, Marks & Spencer and Waitrose stores, a 17-screen Vue cinema, and the UK’s largest casino operated by Aspers. With 250 shops plus 70 places to dine, it will create a new lifestyle destination for East London. Stratford City also includes three hotels and 130,000 square feet of office space which is the first phase of a total of 1.1 million square feet office precinct and 1,200 residential dwellings which are expected to be developed after the 2012 Olympic Games.
As part of one of the largest urban regeneration projects ever undertaken in the UK, Westfield Stratford City is located on the doorstep to the Olympic Park and threequarters of all spectators are expected to walk directly through the centre on their way from the transport hubs to the Park. The Chairman of Westfield Group said: “We are immensely proud of this world-class shopping centre which is the culmination of over 50 years’ experience and firmly cements our position in the UK market which we entered just over 10 years ago. The project has been delivered on time, on budget and over 95% leased at opening.”
Jeremy Hunt said: “This is a hugely significant day for East London. Europe’s biggest urban shopping centre opening beside the Olympic Park is a massive vote of confidence in the area and proof of the powerful effect London 2012 is having on this part of the city. It will be a fabulous showcase for some of the best British retail businesses and brands, especially during the Games. And as a significant new local employer it is a fundamental part of the lasting legacy of London’s Games.”
Boris Johnson said: „Westfield Stratford City has already played, and will continue to play, a crucial role in the remarkable regeneration of East London. Thousands of jobs for Londoners, millions in investment and one of the bestshopping destinations in the world are a fantastic legacy which has been delivered years earlier than would have been possible without the 2012 Games. The Westfield Group has helped secure a bright future for this long-neglected corner of the capital.“
Co-CEO of Westfield Group Steven Lowy AM said: “Westfield Stratford City represents the latest evolution of our thinking and skills in design, retail and leisure mix, technology and sustainability. We have been delighted with the performance of Westfield London in the 3 years since opening and that centre is expected to shortly reach £1 billion in annual retail sales. We would expect that in time, our two London centres will be the 2 top performing urban centres in Europe, have retail sales of over £2 billion, attract over 50 million consumer visits per annum and create over 25,000 permanent jobs in London.
“We hope to build on our learnings and relationships from our recent iconic projects at Sydney, San Francisco, Los Angeles and London and take these forward into many more of the world’s great cities, a process we have already begun with our recent announcements in Milan, New York World Trade Centre and Brazil.”
Mr. Michael Gutman, Westfield Group Managing Director UK/Europe and New Markets said: “The retail and leisure mix that our team has delivered at Westfield Stratford City has exceeded all our expectations particularly as it was delivered through the global financial crisis and was clearly assisted by the strong focus on London by many international brands from the US and elsewhere.
“The range of large global specialty stores is the most extensive to date on a Westfield project and includes: from the US; Apple, Forever 21, GAP, Hollister, Gilly Hicks and Urban Outfitters, from the UK; All Saints, Boots, Monsoon, New Look, Primark, River Island, Superdry and Topshop, and from Europe; Cos, H+M, Hugo Boss, Prada, The Sting, and Zara.”
Public transport connectivity to the centre is unparalleled with a new station entrance hall for Stratford Regional station, one of London’s busiest transport hubs, built directly underneath the centre with direct connection to the London network. The centre has direct access into Stratford International station and has parking spaces for 5,000 cars.
The centre incorporates the latest evolution of Westfield’s focus on enhancing the consumer experience by the use of technology, including advanced car park payment and guidance system, find your car service, digital media streaming and new spectacular screen formats, free wi-fi throughout and the latest in mobile applications for retailers and consumers.
The retail development will be owned in a partnership between Westfield, who will own 50%, and APG of the Netherlands and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board jointly owning the other 50%. Westfield Stratford City is anchored by flagship John Lewis, Marks & Spencer and Waitrose stores, a 17-screen Vue cinema, and the UK’s largest casino operated by Aspers. With 250 shops plus 70 places to dine, it will create a new lifestyle destination for East London. Stratford City also includes three hotels and 130,000 square feet of office space which is the first phase of a total of 1.1 million square feet office precinct and 1,200 residential dwellings which are expected to be developed after the 2012 Olympic Games.
As part of one of the largest urban regeneration projects ever undertaken in the UK, Westfield Stratford City is located on the doorstep to the Olympic Park and threequarters of all spectators are expected to walk directly through the centre on their way from the transport hubs to the Park. The Chairman of Westfield Group said: “We are immensely proud of this world-class shopping centre which is the culmination of over 50 years’ experience and firmly cements our position in the UK market which we entered just over 10 years ago. The project has been delivered on time, on budget and over 95% leased at opening.”
Jeremy Hunt said: “This is a hugely significant day for East London. Europe’s biggest urban shopping centre opening beside the Olympic Park is a massive vote of confidence in the area and proof of the powerful effect London 2012 is having on this part of the city. It will be a fabulous showcase for some of the best British retail businesses and brands, especially during the Games. And as a significant new local employer it is a fundamental part of the lasting legacy of London’s Games.”
Boris Johnson said: „Westfield Stratford City has already played, and will continue to play, a crucial role in the remarkable regeneration of East London. Thousands of jobs for Londoners, millions in investment and one of the bestshopping destinations in the world are a fantastic legacy which has been delivered years earlier than would have been possible without the 2012 Games. The Westfield Group has helped secure a bright future for this long-neglected corner of the capital.“
Co-CEO of Westfield Group Steven Lowy AM said: “Westfield Stratford City represents the latest evolution of our thinking and skills in design, retail and leisure mix, technology and sustainability. We have been delighted with the performance of Westfield London in the 3 years since opening and that centre is expected to shortly reach £1 billion in annual retail sales. We would expect that in time, our two London centres will be the 2 top performing urban centres in Europe, have retail sales of over £2 billion, attract over 50 million consumer visits per annum and create over 25,000 permanent jobs in London.
“We hope to build on our learnings and relationships from our recent iconic projects at Sydney, San Francisco, Los Angeles and London and take these forward into many more of the world’s great cities, a process we have already begun with our recent announcements in Milan, New York World Trade Centre and Brazil.”
Mr. Michael Gutman, Westfield Group Managing Director UK/Europe and New Markets said: “The retail and leisure mix that our team has delivered at Westfield Stratford City has exceeded all our expectations particularly as it was delivered through the global financial crisis and was clearly assisted by the strong focus on London by many international brands from the US and elsewhere.
“The range of large global specialty stores is the most extensive to date on a Westfield project and includes: from the US; Apple, Forever 21, GAP, Hollister, Gilly Hicks and Urban Outfitters, from the UK; All Saints, Boots, Monsoon, New Look, Primark, River Island, Superdry and Topshop, and from Europe; Cos, H+M, Hugo Boss, Prada, The Sting, and Zara.”
Public transport connectivity to the centre is unparalleled with a new station entrance hall for Stratford Regional station, one of London’s busiest transport hubs, built directly underneath the centre with direct connection to the London network. The centre has direct access into Stratford International station and has parking spaces for 5,000 cars.
The centre incorporates the latest evolution of Westfield’s focus on enhancing the consumer experience by the use of technology, including advanced car park payment and guidance system, find your car service, digital media streaming and new spectacular screen formats, free wi-fi throughout and the latest in mobile applications for retailers and consumers.
2011年9月13日星期二
Seeking the parking truth in Bunbury
BUSINESSES and consumers will be given a voice on the contentious topic of parking meters when surveys are handed out across the CBD.
The Bunbury Chamber of Commerce and Industries will kick off the feedback process by distributing surveys to businesses by the end of next week.
Chamber chief executive officer Andrew Horan said this was a vital step in working towards a solution that suited everyone.
“It is critically important that we gather information from all the businesses across the CBD to get a really good understanding of how paid parking affects businesses and consumers,” Mr Horan said.
“Then we can provide guidance to the City of Bunbury of the changes that are needed.”
Mr Horan said the survey would ask questions about how parking relates to the business and its staff in terms of convenience and availability.
It would also include questions which related to the consumers of the business, for example where they park and how long they need to stay in one bay.
An investigation into paid parking by the Bunbury Mail showed that Bunbury was a more expensive place to park than seven out of 10 cities surveyed.
Mr Horan said there were massive differences across Australia from city to city.
“The question is whether the particular situations are working in that city or is there congestion.”
Eyeswest optometrist Janelle Coates opened her business in Victoria Street three weeks ago and said she was pleased to have the opportunity to provide feedback.
“It’s a very positive move for Bunbury, it’s an inclusive way to let us have our say and then we can move forward together as a business community,” Mrs Coates said.
The business survey will be followed by a street survey of consumers.
Mayor David Smith said the information would be collected by the Chamber before being forwarded to council’s parking committee to make recommendations for change.
Mayor Smith said he opposed extending paid parking to Thursday nights and said providing one hour free on-street parking would destroy the churn of customers that the system was designed to create.
The Bunbury Chamber of Commerce and Industries will kick off the feedback process by distributing surveys to businesses by the end of next week.
Chamber chief executive officer Andrew Horan said this was a vital step in working towards a solution that suited everyone.
“It is critically important that we gather information from all the businesses across the CBD to get a really good understanding of how paid parking affects businesses and consumers,” Mr Horan said.
“Then we can provide guidance to the City of Bunbury of the changes that are needed.”
Mr Horan said the survey would ask questions about how parking relates to the business and its staff in terms of convenience and availability.
It would also include questions which related to the consumers of the business, for example where they park and how long they need to stay in one bay.
An investigation into paid parking by the Bunbury Mail showed that Bunbury was a more expensive place to park than seven out of 10 cities surveyed.
Mr Horan said there were massive differences across Australia from city to city.
“The question is whether the particular situations are working in that city or is there congestion.”
Eyeswest optometrist Janelle Coates opened her business in Victoria Street three weeks ago and said she was pleased to have the opportunity to provide feedback.
“It’s a very positive move for Bunbury, it’s an inclusive way to let us have our say and then we can move forward together as a business community,” Mrs Coates said.
The business survey will be followed by a street survey of consumers.
Mayor David Smith said the information would be collected by the Chamber before being forwarded to council’s parking committee to make recommendations for change.
Mayor Smith said he opposed extending paid parking to Thursday nights and said providing one hour free on-street parking would destroy the churn of customers that the system was designed to create.
2011年9月12日星期一
Union declares 'war' on paid parking plan
A retail union is leading the fight against plans by Westfield to charge customers and staff to park at Brisbane's Chermside Shopping Centre from next month.
The shopping centre's management confirmed today retail staff would be charged a daily fee to park at a designated roof top car park, as well as shoppers who would be charged to park at the northside centre for more than three hours.
"Retailers will pay a small daily flat fee which will cover the security and management of the dedicated roof top car park," a Westfield Chermside spokeswoman said.
"This dedicated roof top car park will ensure that the most convenient car spots are available for our shoppers.
"Parking rates for retailers will be confirmed by the end of September and controlled parking will be introduced in October."
On the weekend, more than 1000 people signed a Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees' Association's petition condemning the impending charges.
Members of the association mounted a small protest outside the centre on Saturday, where they garnered 150 signatures from shoppers in 15 minutes.
Chris Ketter, the secretary of the union's Queensland branch, said he understood staff would be charged about $3 per day to park at the centre.
He said staff would also be charged about $10 for a swipe card to access the designated parking area, although the fee would be refunded when their employment at the centre ended.
“We've declared war on Westfield Chermside's push to introduce paid parking for both staff and customers," Mr Ketter said.
“Making staff to pay to work is unfair and unAustralian and I imagine shoppers are against the move as well.
“This money grabbing push could see thousands of Queenslanders forced to pay a daily toll just to do their jobs," Mr Ketter said.
“Many of these staff are young people and parents already doing it tough in today's economic climate. It's unfair for them to have to pay up to $15 per week to park at work.
“The suggestion they should pay to work is an outrage and we want it wiped out."
Mr Ketter said the union intended to present the petition to Lord Mayor Graham Quirk.
In 2008, Westfield sought council approval to install boom gates and charge anyone using its carparks for more than three hours.
But the council rejected the proposal 12 months later.
As owner of the land at Chermside, Westfield can introduce paid parking on its site without the green light from council.
According to Westfield, the introduction of "controlled parking" is necessary to stop commuters who use the bus interchange outside the shopping centre taking shoppers' car spaces.
"The primary objective of introducing controlled parking is to ensure maximum car spaces are available for shoppers," the spokeswoman said.
"Currently up to 25 per cent of car spaces are taken up by commuters which reduces valuable sales and traffic for our retailers."
Westfield estimates that 96 per cent of shoppers spend no longer than three hours at the centre and would therefore not have to pay for parking.
Westfield has not commented on suggestions it is planning to introduce paid parking at Carindale Shopping Centre once a parking guidance system, which would direct customers to vacant car spaces, is installed.
The shopping centre's management confirmed today retail staff would be charged a daily fee to park at a designated roof top car park, as well as shoppers who would be charged to park at the northside centre for more than three hours.
"Retailers will pay a small daily flat fee which will cover the security and management of the dedicated roof top car park," a Westfield Chermside spokeswoman said.
"This dedicated roof top car park will ensure that the most convenient car spots are available for our shoppers.
"Parking rates for retailers will be confirmed by the end of September and controlled parking will be introduced in October."
On the weekend, more than 1000 people signed a Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees' Association's petition condemning the impending charges.
Members of the association mounted a small protest outside the centre on Saturday, where they garnered 150 signatures from shoppers in 15 minutes.
Chris Ketter, the secretary of the union's Queensland branch, said he understood staff would be charged about $3 per day to park at the centre.
He said staff would also be charged about $10 for a swipe card to access the designated parking area, although the fee would be refunded when their employment at the centre ended.
“We've declared war on Westfield Chermside's push to introduce paid parking for both staff and customers," Mr Ketter said.
“Making staff to pay to work is unfair and unAustralian and I imagine shoppers are against the move as well.
“This money grabbing push could see thousands of Queenslanders forced to pay a daily toll just to do their jobs," Mr Ketter said.
“Many of these staff are young people and parents already doing it tough in today's economic climate. It's unfair for them to have to pay up to $15 per week to park at work.
“The suggestion they should pay to work is an outrage and we want it wiped out."
Mr Ketter said the union intended to present the petition to Lord Mayor Graham Quirk.
In 2008, Westfield sought council approval to install boom gates and charge anyone using its carparks for more than three hours.
But the council rejected the proposal 12 months later.
As owner of the land at Chermside, Westfield can introduce paid parking on its site without the green light from council.
According to Westfield, the introduction of "controlled parking" is necessary to stop commuters who use the bus interchange outside the shopping centre taking shoppers' car spaces.
"The primary objective of introducing controlled parking is to ensure maximum car spaces are available for shoppers," the spokeswoman said.
"Currently up to 25 per cent of car spaces are taken up by commuters which reduces valuable sales and traffic for our retailers."
Westfield estimates that 96 per cent of shoppers spend no longer than three hours at the centre and would therefore not have to pay for parking.
Westfield has not commented on suggestions it is planning to introduce paid parking at Carindale Shopping Centre once a parking guidance system, which would direct customers to vacant car spaces, is installed.
2011年9月8日星期四
Buyer’s Guide: 2012 Mercedes-Benz CL-Class
19-inch five-triple-spoke AMG wheel replaces five-spoke AMG wheel on CL550 4MATIC and CL600 as standard equipment
- Exterior colours: Andorite Grey and Cavansite Blue added; Flint Grey and Tanzanite Blue discontinued
Having undergone several revisions for 2011, the Mercedes-Benz CL-Class is unchanged for 2012, except for wheel and colour changes.
The CL-Class comes in four models. The CL550 4MATIC uses a 4.6-litre bi-turbo V8 with seven-speed automatic; the CL600 uses a 5.5-litre bi-turbo V12 with five-speed automatic; the CL63 AMG uses a 5.5-litre bi-turbo V8 with seven-speed AMG Speedshift automatic; and the CL65 AMG uses a 6.-litre bi-turbo V12 with five-speed AMG Speedshift automatic transmission. The CL550 4MATIC is all-wheel drive; all others are rear-wheel drive.
Features on the CL550 4Matic include 19-inch alloy wheels, automatic climate control, adaptive brake system with hill start assist, navigation system, voice control, Harman/Kardon Logic7 surround sound system, Sirius satellite radio, Bluetooth connectivity, active bi-xenon headlamps with washers, cornering lights and Adaptive Highbeam Assist, electronic parking brake with convenience release function, power-assisted soft-close trunk, power-folding heated mirrors with integrated turn signals, rain-sensing wipers, heated washer system, 14-way power-adjustable heated seats with three-position memory and Passion leather upholstery, high-gloss Burl Walnut trim, heated wood and leather steering wheel, steering wheel-mounted shifter buttons, power sunroof, auto-dimming rearview and driver’s side mirror, ambient lighting, pneumatic rear head restraints, power tilt and telescopic steering column, auto up/down windows, power rear sunshade, Keyless Go, LED exterior lighting package, Parktronic with parking guidance, Attention Assist, garage door opener, continuously variable door hold system, cruise control, TeleAid emergency calling, tire pressure monitoring system, and rearview camera.
The CL63 AMG adds 20-inch alloy wheels, steering wheel-mounted shifter paddles, Active Body Control, heated and cooled Drive-Dynamic multi-contour seats with massage function, Active Blind Spot Assist, Active Lane Keeping Assist, and Alcantara headliner.
The CL600 builds on the CL550 4Matic and adds Active Body Control, heated and cooled Drive-Dynamic multi-contour seats with massage function, exclusive Passion leather upholstery, Poplar wood trim, Alcantara headliner, adaptive cruise control, Night View Assist, and blind spot monitoring system.
The CL65 AMG builds on the CL63 AMG and adds exclusive Passion leather upholstery, heated wood and leather steering wheel, adaptive cruise control, Night View Assist, Active Blind Spot Assist, and Active Lane Keeping Assist.
- Exterior colours: Andorite Grey and Cavansite Blue added; Flint Grey and Tanzanite Blue discontinued
Having undergone several revisions for 2011, the Mercedes-Benz CL-Class is unchanged for 2012, except for wheel and colour changes.
The CL-Class comes in four models. The CL550 4MATIC uses a 4.6-litre bi-turbo V8 with seven-speed automatic; the CL600 uses a 5.5-litre bi-turbo V12 with five-speed automatic; the CL63 AMG uses a 5.5-litre bi-turbo V8 with seven-speed AMG Speedshift automatic; and the CL65 AMG uses a 6.-litre bi-turbo V12 with five-speed AMG Speedshift automatic transmission. The CL550 4MATIC is all-wheel drive; all others are rear-wheel drive.
Features on the CL550 4Matic include 19-inch alloy wheels, automatic climate control, adaptive brake system with hill start assist, navigation system, voice control, Harman/Kardon Logic7 surround sound system, Sirius satellite radio, Bluetooth connectivity, active bi-xenon headlamps with washers, cornering lights and Adaptive Highbeam Assist, electronic parking brake with convenience release function, power-assisted soft-close trunk, power-folding heated mirrors with integrated turn signals, rain-sensing wipers, heated washer system, 14-way power-adjustable heated seats with three-position memory and Passion leather upholstery, high-gloss Burl Walnut trim, heated wood and leather steering wheel, steering wheel-mounted shifter buttons, power sunroof, auto-dimming rearview and driver’s side mirror, ambient lighting, pneumatic rear head restraints, power tilt and telescopic steering column, auto up/down windows, power rear sunshade, Keyless Go, LED exterior lighting package, Parktronic with parking guidance, Attention Assist, garage door opener, continuously variable door hold system, cruise control, TeleAid emergency calling, tire pressure monitoring system, and rearview camera.
The CL63 AMG adds 20-inch alloy wheels, steering wheel-mounted shifter paddles, Active Body Control, heated and cooled Drive-Dynamic multi-contour seats with massage function, Active Blind Spot Assist, Active Lane Keeping Assist, and Alcantara headliner.
The CL600 builds on the CL550 4Matic and adds Active Body Control, heated and cooled Drive-Dynamic multi-contour seats with massage function, exclusive Passion leather upholstery, Poplar wood trim, Alcantara headliner, adaptive cruise control, Night View Assist, and blind spot monitoring system.
The CL65 AMG builds on the CL63 AMG and adds exclusive Passion leather upholstery, heated wood and leather steering wheel, adaptive cruise control, Night View Assist, Active Blind Spot Assist, and Active Lane Keeping Assist.
2011年9月7日星期三
Plan to Reduce F.C. Voting Wards From 5 to 3 Set for Vote Monday
The Falls Church City Council determined at its work session Tuesday that it will put it to a vote on next Monday night to reduce the number of voting precincts in the City of Falls Church from five to three.
The number has been five for as long as anyone can remember, but following the guidance of the City's new voter registrar David Bjerke and with the backing of the citizen-volunteer Electoral Board, the move to three would serve to better enable the smooth conduct of elections in the City, the Council was told.
The primary reasons were given as reducing the number of polling place officials required and eliminating at least one voter location -- the Boy Scout House on S. Spring St. -- that has inadequate heating and air conditioning and its Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance is questionable. The American Legion Hall on N. Oak would also be eliminated, although maintained as a backup if needed.
The locations to be retained under the plan will be the Thomas Jefferson School, the Community Center and the Oakwood Apartments.
If approved by the Council with two votes, one Monday and another on Sept. 19, the plan would go to the U.S. Department of Justice for review, and would not be completed in time to change anything for this coming November 8 election. It should be in place in time for the March 6, 2012 presidential primary election, however.
Speaking to the Council Tuesday, Bjerke laid out six reasons for the consolidation, including (1) budget factors, that would save a modest amount (about $1,500 per election), (2) current precincts do not have uniform population sizes, (3) temperature and other problems with the Scout House site, (4) efficiencies important to a small staff, (5) reducing the requirement for election officers, and (6) Virginia election law's preference for using government buildings (Thomas Jefferson School and the Community Center) when possible, the exception being the Oakwood Apartments as the only option east of Washington St. (Rt. 29) with adequate size, parking and ADA compliance.
Renee Andrews, chair of the City's Electoral Board, told the Council that the level of service to voters will not change
She said that in the case of the Scout House location, it is very difficult for election workers to be there from before 6 a.m. when polls open to after 7 p.m., when they close, up to 16 hours, when it is either sweltering heat or bone-chilling cold.
Council member Robin Gardner concurred, as one who votes at that location, adding that elderly or disabled voters have to be escorted around the back of the building to make their way in.
"The Scout House is also the only polling place that charges the City for use on Election Day, has the smallest amount of usable space, and the ramp used for compliance with ADA requirements leads to a back door, rather than the front door that is the entrance to the polling place," the City staff report noted.
On the issue of ward size, Virginia election law allows for up to 5,000 registered voters in a ward, but "best practices" in Virginia are aimed at holding ward sizes to about 3,500 registered voters. In the proposed plan for Falls Church, the three precincts (instead of five) would all still have less than 3,500 registered voters.
Ellen Salsbury of the Falls Church League of Women Voters, asked to comment by the Council, said that while her organization does not have a position on the matter, one way or the other, "We will be watching, and will help get the word out."
Mayor Nader Baroukh was luke warm about the proposal, saying the upsides a "marginal," and suggesting that "if the current system is not broke, why fix it?" He was concerned about confusion among voters about where to vote, and that some close-knit neighborhoods might get split into different precincts.
Some tweaking on the boundaries of the proposed three wards will be made at City Hall prior to Monday's Council meeting.
The number has been five for as long as anyone can remember, but following the guidance of the City's new voter registrar David Bjerke and with the backing of the citizen-volunteer Electoral Board, the move to three would serve to better enable the smooth conduct of elections in the City, the Council was told.
The primary reasons were given as reducing the number of polling place officials required and eliminating at least one voter location -- the Boy Scout House on S. Spring St. -- that has inadequate heating and air conditioning and its Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance is questionable. The American Legion Hall on N. Oak would also be eliminated, although maintained as a backup if needed.
The locations to be retained under the plan will be the Thomas Jefferson School, the Community Center and the Oakwood Apartments.
If approved by the Council with two votes, one Monday and another on Sept. 19, the plan would go to the U.S. Department of Justice for review, and would not be completed in time to change anything for this coming November 8 election. It should be in place in time for the March 6, 2012 presidential primary election, however.
Speaking to the Council Tuesday, Bjerke laid out six reasons for the consolidation, including (1) budget factors, that would save a modest amount (about $1,500 per election), (2) current precincts do not have uniform population sizes, (3) temperature and other problems with the Scout House site, (4) efficiencies important to a small staff, (5) reducing the requirement for election officers, and (6) Virginia election law's preference for using government buildings (Thomas Jefferson School and the Community Center) when possible, the exception being the Oakwood Apartments as the only option east of Washington St. (Rt. 29) with adequate size, parking and ADA compliance.
Renee Andrews, chair of the City's Electoral Board, told the Council that the level of service to voters will not change
She said that in the case of the Scout House location, it is very difficult for election workers to be there from before 6 a.m. when polls open to after 7 p.m., when they close, up to 16 hours, when it is either sweltering heat or bone-chilling cold.
Council member Robin Gardner concurred, as one who votes at that location, adding that elderly or disabled voters have to be escorted around the back of the building to make their way in.
"The Scout House is also the only polling place that charges the City for use on Election Day, has the smallest amount of usable space, and the ramp used for compliance with ADA requirements leads to a back door, rather than the front door that is the entrance to the polling place," the City staff report noted.
On the issue of ward size, Virginia election law allows for up to 5,000 registered voters in a ward, but "best practices" in Virginia are aimed at holding ward sizes to about 3,500 registered voters. In the proposed plan for Falls Church, the three precincts (instead of five) would all still have less than 3,500 registered voters.
Ellen Salsbury of the Falls Church League of Women Voters, asked to comment by the Council, said that while her organization does not have a position on the matter, one way or the other, "We will be watching, and will help get the word out."
Mayor Nader Baroukh was luke warm about the proposal, saying the upsides a "marginal," and suggesting that "if the current system is not broke, why fix it?" He was concerned about confusion among voters about where to vote, and that some close-knit neighborhoods might get split into different precincts.
Some tweaking on the boundaries of the proposed three wards will be made at City Hall prior to Monday's Council meeting.
2011年9月6日星期二
‘We Were All in It Together’
The late Sen. Edward Kennedy’s former press secretary, Jim Manley, had an inside view on how the attacks immediately diminished the importance of politics on the Hill. Then-first lady Laura Bush was scheduled to testify in front of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee that morning. It was one of her first policy-related appearances, and preparation for the event had consumed her in recent weeks.
“I spent most of the morning going over the briefing I was supposed to give,” she said in a Smithsonian Channel documentary. “It was about nine months into George being president, and I was really just hitting my stride as first lady.”
An equal amount of preparation went into the event on the Democratic side.
“We had an ongoing skirmish with the White House about what to call it,” Manley said. “They didn’t want us to call it a hearing, so there was a lot of back-and-forth before we agreed to call it a roundtable discussion. Regardless, it was going to be a high-profile thing.”
The second plane struck the World Trade Center just before the first lady arrived, and she was escorted into Kennedy’s inner office as the chaos around them unfolded.
“It was just me, Sen. Kennedy, the first lady and Kennedy’s Portuguese water dog, Splash,” Manley said. “It was this calm space in contrast to what was going on with the staff in the conference room next door. Outside the office there were televisions blaring, the chief of staff was trying to get everyone on the phone, people were shouting and running around. But in there it was quiet. I will never forget it.”
The emotional intensity of that day, and sharing it in such a personal setting, created an unlikely but lasting connection between the first lady and the Senator.
“She was in there with Sen. Kennedy, amidst all of the Senator’s stuff — his dog tags, his personal memorabilia, the pictures on the wall,” Manley said. “She later praised the Senator for his calm demeanor and level head. It probably bonded them for the rest of their lives.”
Jeff Donahue
“The news reported that there had been explosions down at the Mall.”
There have been so many changes in disaster response on the Hill in the 10 years since the attacks that the pre-9/11 Capitol would scarcely be recognizable to an incoming Member today. Jeff Donahue was an electrician working for the Architect of the Capitol, and he remembered how quaint the response systems were back then.
“When news came that the Pentagon had been hit, there was a big rush to evacuate,” he said. “But the fire alarm system wasn’t set to go off for something like that, and the emergency broadcast system wasn’t prepared for something of that scale either — all of that came later. We just knew that we had to get out of the building, so that’s what we did.”
The confusion surrounding the evacuation continued on the streets outside.
“The news reported that there had been explosions down at the Mall,” Donahue said. “As soon as I hit the parking lot I heard it, too — there was this loud boom, and I saw the Capitol Hill police hit the deck, that’s how loud it was. Turns out it was just a sonic boom from the jets overhead.”
Despite the panic and uncertainty, Donahue said the masses of people evacuating the District acted selflessly throughout.
“I live in Maryland about 30 miles south of the Potomac, and I remember thinking about what a long drive it was going to be,” he said. “I thought for sure it would be every man for himself on the roads — at the time we thought Washington was under attack. But I’ll never forget how people were letting others into the traffic; all the way out of town people were letting people in or letting them across lanes so they could exit. People had their windows open and everyone had the news on, and even though everyone wanted out of the city as quickly as possible, everyone was calm and there was this feeling that we were all in it together.”
This is perhaps even more remarkable considering that the devastation at the Pentagon was visible from the Capitol.
“I was going down [Interstate] 295 south of Washington,” Donahue said. “When you cross over the hill you can see the Pentagon off in the distance. There was smoke coming across, and it was really low, going from the west to the east. You had to drive through that smoke, smelling the debris from the plane crash and knowing in your mind that people had died in it.”
“I spent most of the morning going over the briefing I was supposed to give,” she said in a Smithsonian Channel documentary. “It was about nine months into George being president, and I was really just hitting my stride as first lady.”
An equal amount of preparation went into the event on the Democratic side.
“We had an ongoing skirmish with the White House about what to call it,” Manley said. “They didn’t want us to call it a hearing, so there was a lot of back-and-forth before we agreed to call it a roundtable discussion. Regardless, it was going to be a high-profile thing.”
The second plane struck the World Trade Center just before the first lady arrived, and she was escorted into Kennedy’s inner office as the chaos around them unfolded.
“It was just me, Sen. Kennedy, the first lady and Kennedy’s Portuguese water dog, Splash,” Manley said. “It was this calm space in contrast to what was going on with the staff in the conference room next door. Outside the office there were televisions blaring, the chief of staff was trying to get everyone on the phone, people were shouting and running around. But in there it was quiet. I will never forget it.”
The emotional intensity of that day, and sharing it in such a personal setting, created an unlikely but lasting connection between the first lady and the Senator.
“She was in there with Sen. Kennedy, amidst all of the Senator’s stuff — his dog tags, his personal memorabilia, the pictures on the wall,” Manley said. “She later praised the Senator for his calm demeanor and level head. It probably bonded them for the rest of their lives.”
Jeff Donahue
“The news reported that there had been explosions down at the Mall.”
There have been so many changes in disaster response on the Hill in the 10 years since the attacks that the pre-9/11 Capitol would scarcely be recognizable to an incoming Member today. Jeff Donahue was an electrician working for the Architect of the Capitol, and he remembered how quaint the response systems were back then.
“When news came that the Pentagon had been hit, there was a big rush to evacuate,” he said. “But the fire alarm system wasn’t set to go off for something like that, and the emergency broadcast system wasn’t prepared for something of that scale either — all of that came later. We just knew that we had to get out of the building, so that’s what we did.”
The confusion surrounding the evacuation continued on the streets outside.
“The news reported that there had been explosions down at the Mall,” Donahue said. “As soon as I hit the parking lot I heard it, too — there was this loud boom, and I saw the Capitol Hill police hit the deck, that’s how loud it was. Turns out it was just a sonic boom from the jets overhead.”
Despite the panic and uncertainty, Donahue said the masses of people evacuating the District acted selflessly throughout.
“I live in Maryland about 30 miles south of the Potomac, and I remember thinking about what a long drive it was going to be,” he said. “I thought for sure it would be every man for himself on the roads — at the time we thought Washington was under attack. But I’ll never forget how people were letting others into the traffic; all the way out of town people were letting people in or letting them across lanes so they could exit. People had their windows open and everyone had the news on, and even though everyone wanted out of the city as quickly as possible, everyone was calm and there was this feeling that we were all in it together.”
This is perhaps even more remarkable considering that the devastation at the Pentagon was visible from the Capitol.
“I was going down [Interstate] 295 south of Washington,” Donahue said. “When you cross over the hill you can see the Pentagon off in the distance. There was smoke coming across, and it was really low, going from the west to the east. You had to drive through that smoke, smelling the debris from the plane crash and knowing in your mind that people had died in it.”
2011年9月5日星期一
The New advanced C-Class at the Old Price
Mercedes Benz, the German luxury car manufacturer, has launched a new and advanced edition of its C-Class sedan. The company also has plans to present 3-4 new products within the next few months. These would include upgrades as well as entirely new variants of its existing product range.
Speaking at the launch, Debashis Mitra, Director (Sales and Marketing), Mercedes-Benz India, said “The C-Class is our flagship model and we are the market leader in this segment. The new C-Class will further strengthen our position in the market.” He further added, “Setting new standards in its segment, this new C-Class will occupy an excellent position in the competitive line-up.”
The high point of this new C-Class is that it is priced between Rs. 29.75 and Rs. 32.30 lacs. It is an interesting fact that the outgoing model of the C-Class was also sold for around the same price tag, ranging from Rs. 29.75 to 32.80 lacs. Consequently, luxury car buyers can now purchase the new advanced version of the C-Class at a price similar to the older one. This strategically done pricing will help the cause of Mercedes-Benz India in achieving an even higher number of sales.
During the launch event, Mitra also said that “We are mainly targeting the youth in the age group of 25-30 years for this new car, and to attract them, we have added many advanced technical features in the car". As per market experts, it is a smart move as the youth, who upon being well settled in their careers, are increasingly opting for luxury cars.
This new C-Class model has several advanced features that take care of various aspects, including comfort, convenience, safety and luxury. The new Panoramic Sunroof gives the car a stylish appearance and the large glass windows help in providing ample of natural light. The 'Parktronic', including parking guidance, is aimed at minimising the stress that many face while parking the car. This system warns the driver automatically, when the space in front or rear is not enough for parking or manoeuvring. Parktronic works on the echo sounder principle, in which, sensors located on the rear as well as front bumpers emit ultrasound signals that are reflected back by other vehicle or any other obstruction.
A first-in-its-class innovation, Attention Assist, comes as standard in the new-generation C-Class. This revolutionary safety feature detects sign of drowsiness and alerts the driver well in time to prevent occurrence of unfortunate events like collision that can even be fatal. The new Intelligent Light System that the car is equipped with boasts of as many as 6 different functions which help the driver in almost any and every driving condition. This system aids the driver in an ideal manner, be it automatically increasing the headlight intensity on highways or illuminating turns according to the steering movement. Apart from this, the LED daytime running lights enhance the car's stylish appearance. Having so many features, the stylish new C-Class is expected to give even tougher competition to its arch rivals, BMW 3-series and Audi A4.
Speaking at the launch, Debashis Mitra, Director (Sales and Marketing), Mercedes-Benz India, said “The C-Class is our flagship model and we are the market leader in this segment. The new C-Class will further strengthen our position in the market.” He further added, “Setting new standards in its segment, this new C-Class will occupy an excellent position in the competitive line-up.”
The high point of this new C-Class is that it is priced between Rs. 29.75 and Rs. 32.30 lacs. It is an interesting fact that the outgoing model of the C-Class was also sold for around the same price tag, ranging from Rs. 29.75 to 32.80 lacs. Consequently, luxury car buyers can now purchase the new advanced version of the C-Class at a price similar to the older one. This strategically done pricing will help the cause of Mercedes-Benz India in achieving an even higher number of sales.
During the launch event, Mitra also said that “We are mainly targeting the youth in the age group of 25-30 years for this new car, and to attract them, we have added many advanced technical features in the car". As per market experts, it is a smart move as the youth, who upon being well settled in their careers, are increasingly opting for luxury cars.
This new C-Class model has several advanced features that take care of various aspects, including comfort, convenience, safety and luxury. The new Panoramic Sunroof gives the car a stylish appearance and the large glass windows help in providing ample of natural light. The 'Parktronic', including parking guidance, is aimed at minimising the stress that many face while parking the car. This system warns the driver automatically, when the space in front or rear is not enough for parking or manoeuvring. Parktronic works on the echo sounder principle, in which, sensors located on the rear as well as front bumpers emit ultrasound signals that are reflected back by other vehicle or any other obstruction.
A first-in-its-class innovation, Attention Assist, comes as standard in the new-generation C-Class. This revolutionary safety feature detects sign of drowsiness and alerts the driver well in time to prevent occurrence of unfortunate events like collision that can even be fatal. The new Intelligent Light System that the car is equipped with boasts of as many as 6 different functions which help the driver in almost any and every driving condition. This system aids the driver in an ideal manner, be it automatically increasing the headlight intensity on highways or illuminating turns according to the steering movement. Apart from this, the LED daytime running lights enhance the car's stylish appearance. Having so many features, the stylish new C-Class is expected to give even tougher competition to its arch rivals, BMW 3-series and Audi A4.
2011年9月4日星期日
Ohio prison chief plans changes to system
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio’s prison chief has sweeping changes in mind for the state’s correctional institutions.
Prisons director Gary Mohr told The Columbus Dispatch that the sale last week of one of Ohio’s correctional facilities to a private buyer doesn’t change his plans to reorganize the system to make it easier for inmates to re-enter society.
Mohr’s plan would create a three-tier system of prisons where, at the lowest-tier, low-risk inmates serving shorter sentences would work in jobs such as truck driving or light manufacturing.
"I want to put inmates to work," Mohr said. "We’re going to do a time sheet every day. He said prisoners wouldn’t be stealing jobs from the private sector.
The middle tier would be transitional facilities where inmates would be put in education, training and community re-entry programs.
The highest tier would house the most serious offenders, such as gang members and inmates serving life sentences. The Mansfield Correctional Institution will be the first to be transformed, with 80 prisoners having already been transferred there.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio is wary of having inmates work jobs. The group suggested that inmate workers could be exploited.
In addition to reshaping the prisons, Mohr wants the Ohio General Assembly to pass legislation that he said will make it easier to better-prepare inmates leaving prison for jobs and to adjust to living outside.
First, Mohr wants to expand a program that lets prisoners shave time off their sentences by participating in educational or job training programs. Currently, it is only available to new inmates, but Mohr wants to allow all prisoners to participate.
Another legislative option would increase "transitional control," which allows inmates to be transferred to community residential facilities during the last six months of their sentence.
The third part would be to reduce punishments, such as taking away a prisoner’s driver’s license, that hinder former inmates from effectively re-entering society.
The fourth leg would be to allow sentence reduction for offenders who work jobs in the low-risk prisons.
Mohr told The Dispatch that the plan would create a safer, more cost-effective, less-crowded system.
Prisons director Gary Mohr told The Columbus Dispatch that the sale last week of one of Ohio’s correctional facilities to a private buyer doesn’t change his plans to reorganize the system to make it easier for inmates to re-enter society.
Mohr’s plan would create a three-tier system of prisons where, at the lowest-tier, low-risk inmates serving shorter sentences would work in jobs such as truck driving or light manufacturing.
"I want to put inmates to work," Mohr said. "We’re going to do a time sheet every day. He said prisoners wouldn’t be stealing jobs from the private sector.
The middle tier would be transitional facilities where inmates would be put in education, training and community re-entry programs.
The highest tier would house the most serious offenders, such as gang members and inmates serving life sentences. The Mansfield Correctional Institution will be the first to be transformed, with 80 prisoners having already been transferred there.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio is wary of having inmates work jobs. The group suggested that inmate workers could be exploited.
In addition to reshaping the prisons, Mohr wants the Ohio General Assembly to pass legislation that he said will make it easier to better-prepare inmates leaving prison for jobs and to adjust to living outside.
First, Mohr wants to expand a program that lets prisoners shave time off their sentences by participating in educational or job training programs. Currently, it is only available to new inmates, but Mohr wants to allow all prisoners to participate.
Another legislative option would increase "transitional control," which allows inmates to be transferred to community residential facilities during the last six months of their sentence.
The third part would be to reduce punishments, such as taking away a prisoner’s driver’s license, that hinder former inmates from effectively re-entering society.
The fourth leg would be to allow sentence reduction for offenders who work jobs in the low-risk prisons.
Mohr told The Dispatch that the plan would create a safer, more cost-effective, less-crowded system.
2011年9月1日星期四
Class sedan facelift launched
Mercedes-Benz has launched the 2012 C-Class in India. The Mercedes-Benz C-Class range starts from Rs 29.79 lakh ex-showroom for the petrol version and Rs 32.30 lakh for the diesel variant. The new C-Class made its worldwide debut long back but its only now that Mercedes-Benz has brought the 2012 version to India. The car will be available with two engine options out of which the diesel would be the most preferred, without doubt.
On the exterior, the new Mercedes-Benz C-Class gets new set of headlights and a redesigned front bumper. The rear end has remained unchanged apart from the added LED treatment. On the inside, the car gets the latest dashboard design that has been the trademark of Mercedes cars for this generation. The four-spoke steering wheel feels nice and chunky and the edgy design does standout making the interior a nice place to be in.
The new C-Class get the latest from Mercedes’ closet including PARKTRONIC parking guidance system, Multi-functional steering wheel, Media Interface and ATTENTION ASSIST. Intelligent Headlights with washers are standard with LED daytime running lights and a panoramic sun-roof. New 17 inch alloys complete the exterior aesthetic package. Both diesel as well as petrol models come in the AVANTGARDE trim giving customers a choice of four different leathers and trim options.
Alongwith the mainstream models of the C-Class, Mercedes-Benz India will also offer the uber-hot, AMG tuned C-Class. The C63 AMG gets an aggressive styling package on the exterior and an equally sporty interior. The 6.2 litre V8 is the party piece though and churns out 457 thundering horsepowers and 600 torques via Mercedes’ 7G-Tronic automatic transmission.
On the exterior, the new Mercedes-Benz C-Class gets new set of headlights and a redesigned front bumper. The rear end has remained unchanged apart from the added LED treatment. On the inside, the car gets the latest dashboard design that has been the trademark of Mercedes cars for this generation. The four-spoke steering wheel feels nice and chunky and the edgy design does standout making the interior a nice place to be in.
The new C-Class get the latest from Mercedes’ closet including PARKTRONIC parking guidance system, Multi-functional steering wheel, Media Interface and ATTENTION ASSIST. Intelligent Headlights with washers are standard with LED daytime running lights and a panoramic sun-roof. New 17 inch alloys complete the exterior aesthetic package. Both diesel as well as petrol models come in the AVANTGARDE trim giving customers a choice of four different leathers and trim options.
Alongwith the mainstream models of the C-Class, Mercedes-Benz India will also offer the uber-hot, AMG tuned C-Class. The C63 AMG gets an aggressive styling package on the exterior and an equally sporty interior. The 6.2 litre V8 is the party piece though and churns out 457 thundering horsepowers and 600 torques via Mercedes’ 7G-Tronic automatic transmission.
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