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UK supermarkets prepare for new cooling landscape
Andrew Gaved ManufacturingMajor supermarkets in the United Kingdom are calling upon the cooling industry to come up with solutions that will help them face a new landscape characterized by tight margins, smaller store footprints and new refrigerant choices imposed by the European F-gas regulations.
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Orion launch ushers in next generation of space travel
Ross Lancaster Science & TechnologyThe progression of space travel has taken the human race farther beyond Earth than previous generations could have possibly imagined. With technology also evolving, the outer limit of where humanity can potentially go has also been expanded.
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Tomorrow’s buildings may be built by robots
Michael J. Berens Construction & Building MaterialsImagine building an entire 30-story hotel from the ground up in just 15 days. Sounds like futuristic pie-in-the-sky? A private Chinese construction company, the Broad Group, did just that in 2012 using robotics to prefabricate entire floors, according to a new report from Robotic Business Review.
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Researchers use nanotechnology to enhance corrosion protection
Alan Kelsky EngineeringNanotechnology is one of the world's most rapidly growing fields across a wide swath of industries from pharmaceuticals to engineering. Within the material sciences, corrosion protection is an exciting area for the use and development of nanotechnology. Protecting materials from corrosion is a big challenge in the engineering and science world.
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Disruptive plastic products rapidly emerging in green building field
Don Rosato EngineeringGreen building technology redefines how we make and live in buildings. From a plastics material and processing perspective, we can both reduce a building's energy consumption and simultaneously provide for a building's energy production. These plastic material and process advances "disrupt" an existing market by displacing earlier technology. Let's delve into some emerging green building technologies that involve plastic material and processing aspects.
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US manufacturers in a ‘sweet spot’ heading into holiday season
Chelsea Adams ManufacturingU.S. manufacturing surged in October, marking the second month in 2014 it reached 59 on the Institute for Supply Management's PMI Composite index. Plus, production hit a 10-year high, and new orders rose 10 points. The index reading of 59 matched that of August and was the highest reading since March 2011.
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Solar roadways: Better for show than practicality?
Lauren Swan EngineeringWith the new solar road opening for cyclists in the Netherlands, a debate has been reignited that was initially begun by the Dutch's installation of solar panels into their roads. On the one hand, the government is trying to practice energy conservation and go "more green," while on the other hand, there are plenty of engineers who believe this is not a feasible option due to the mathematics supporting the installations.
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Green building regulatory trends drive plastics use
Don Rosato EngineeringThe construction and operation of buildings has a significant impact on the environment. In the U.S., buildings account for 39 percent of total energy consumption and 38 percent of carbon dioxide emissions. Buildings also use a tremendous amount of natural resources to construct and operate.
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European cooling industry pledges to take action on HFCs
Andrew Gaved ManufacturingYou may recall last month that I drew some comparisons between the work that was going on in Europe and the U.S. over getting to grips with high-GWP refrigerants. At the time, I praised the U.S. for the recent actions on cooling — both the government and agencies for "wielding the stick" in hastening the moves toward lower GWP, and the cooling industry for committing some serious investment to low-GWP projects.
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Construction industry building toward a strong finish for 2014
Michael J. Berens Construction & Building MaterialsAfter a disappointing third quarter, the construction industry regained momentum in October, with signs pointing to continued growth in the months ahead. Indicators were up across the board, including employment figures, with most areas of the industry reporting notable year-over-year increases. Early forecasts are that 2015 will look even better.
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