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Trees and power lines

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Trees are an important part of our lives; they add aesthetic value to the surrounding environment, improve air and water quality, reduce soil erosion, and provide shade during the scorching summer months.

Likewise, power lines serve the machinery and equipment we interact with every day, adding luxury and efficacy to our lives.

While these two provide amazing benefits, when trees and power lines are in close proximity to roads, they become a potential hazard to motorists and can cause extreme vehicle damages and bodily injuries if they fall over or motorists accidentally run into them.

Read on to find out how to stay safe while driving on roads with trees and power lines. [Read more…] about Trees and power lines

Daimler and Volvo launch €1.2 billion venture to develop hydrogen fuel-cell technology for trucks

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Volvo Group and Daimler Trucks have entered into a joint venture to develop, produce and commercialize hydrogen fuel-cell systems for use in heavy-duty trucks as the primary focus, as well as other applications.

The ambition of both partners is to make the new company a leading global manufacturer of fuel cells, and thus help the world take a major step towards climate-neutral and sustainable transportation by 2050.

Volvo will acquire 50 percent of the partnership interests in Daimler Truck Fuel Cell for approximately €600 million on a cash and debt-free basis. Closing of the transaction is expected during the first half of 2021. [Read more…] about Daimler and Volvo launch €1.2 billion venture to develop hydrogen fuel-cell technology for trucks

Japanese infrastructure company selects ABB’s Terra 184 electric vehicle chargers

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ABB’s newly launched Terra 184 electric vehicle chargers have been selected by Japan’s e-Mobility Power (eMP) to modernize the infrastructure for the country’s electric vehicle market and accelerate the nation’s shift towards sustainable mobility.

Financial details of the order were not disclosed.

The project is part of a broader push in Japan to increase the share of electric and plug-in hybrids to between 20-30 percent by 2030, from just 1 percent in 2018. [Read more…] about Japanese infrastructure company selects ABB’s Terra 184 electric vehicle chargers

Hanwha Energy celebrates completion of ‘world’s first and largest’ hydrogen fuel cell power plant

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Hanwha Energy hosted an event at its Daesan Industrial Complex in Seosan, Korea to celebrated the completion of a hydrogen-fuel-cell power plant that only uses recycled hydrogen.

At the event, Hanwha Energy CEO In-Sub Jung was joined by South Korea’s Prime Minister Sye-kyun Chung, Vice Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Seung-il Chung, Chungcheongnam-do Governor Seung-jo Yang, Member of the National Assembly Myung-sun Kim, and Seosan Mayor Jeong-ho Maeng.

Built by Hanwha Engineering & Construction, the new byproduct-hydrogen-fuel-cell power plant cost $212 million. It occupies 20,000 sq m of the Daesan Industrial Complex. [Read more…] about Hanwha Energy celebrates completion of ‘world’s first and largest’ hydrogen fuel cell power plant

Michigan university scientists’ new solar panels could eventually lead to self-powering skyscrapers

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Imagine if all the glass we see on the sides of skyscrapers and other buildings were actually solar cells in disguise, collecting energy from the sun and helping to power the building and reducing our reliance on fossil fuels. 

That is the dream of many scientists who are working on the technology. Essentially, they want to replace the silicon material that glass is made out of with material that is more suitable for capturing solar energy.

While green energy has made great strides in recent years – with Germans as a nation recently using more electricity from alternative sources than traditional gas- and oil-based power – there’s still a long way to go. [Read more…] about Michigan university scientists’ new solar panels could eventually lead to self-powering skyscrapers

Continental building supercomputer on Nvidia platform to use for vehicle AI

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Continental is building a supercomputer based on the Nvidia computing platform. The system is intended for vehicle artificial intelligence system training.

The two companies say they are building the high-performance cluster based on Nvidia DGX AI systems, adding that this will “boost autonomous driving development performance”.

The new cluster reduces development time from weeks to hours, say the companies and among its main uses are deep learning, simulation and virtual data generation. [Read more…] about Continental building supercomputer on Nvidia platform to use for vehicle AI

Mitsubishi Electric to acquire Sharp factory to expand power device business

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Mitsubishi Electric has agreed to acquire buildings and land from Sharp Fukuyama Semiconductor, a wholly owned subsidiary of Sharp Corporation located in Fukuyama, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan.

The acquired properties will serve as a new site where Mitsubishi Electric’s Power Device Works will process wafers for the manufacture of power semiconductors.

New production facilities scheduled to start up in November of next year will enable Mitsubishi Electric to expand its power device business. [Read more…] about Mitsubishi Electric to acquire Sharp factory to expand power device business

JTEKT subsidiary Koyo acquires Canadian assets of KSR International

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Acquisition ‘strengthens JTEKT’s global ECU development capabilities’, says company

Koyo Canada, a subsidiary of automotive technology company JTEKT, has acquired the assets of a Halifax, Nova Scotia research and development facility previously owned by KSR International, a Canadian company.

The acquisition strengthens JTEKT global engine control unit (ECU) development for vehicle steering and driveline products, and will set the foundation for further expansion of its global electrification capabilities and plans.

The new KCI Halifax R&D facility allows JTEKT to more efficiently respond to the expanding demands of autonomous driving support, steer-by-wire and high voltage systems. [Read more…] about JTEKT subsidiary Koyo acquires Canadian assets of KSR International

9,000 elephants: Heaviest things ever moved on land

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People travel all over the globe to see the many great wonders of our world, but does it ever cross your mind of how they got there in the first place?

Transporting impossibly large items has been a mechanical and logistical challenge for thousands of years, becoming even more tricky when shifting things overseas with ships.

Famous sites such as the Statue of Liberty were disassembled in Paris and then packed into 214 wooden crates and shipped across the Atlantic in 1885. [Read more…] about 9,000 elephants: Heaviest things ever moved on land

Heraeus Electronics unveils new copper wire encased in aluminium

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Heraeus Electronics, a provider of material solutions for electronics packaging, has launched what it describes as a “next-generation wire for power applications”.

The product, named CucorAl Plus, renews Heraeus’ existing CucorAl product and offers “superior electrical and mechanical properties combined with a better processability”, according to the company.

Dr Klemens Brunner, president of Heraeus Electronics, says: “By replacing aluminum wire with CucorAl Plus, our customers can extend module lifetime by a factor of five without changing the module design. [Read more…] about Heraeus Electronics unveils new copper wire encased in aluminium