Posted by: ashmann on: 08 Oct, 2008
We are creating awareness on the concept of sustainability.
You are welcome to participate
1 | yllee
Sectoral industry agreements have received considerable attention for their potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. But developing countries remain wary
As talks between the 160 nations party to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change grind towards a finale in Copenhagen in December 2009, many heavy industries are keeping a close watch on what emission reduction schemes will emerge from the discussions.
Steel and aluminium producers, as well as the cement sector, are among the most fidgety, given the energy- and emissions-intensive nature of their businesses. In Europe, for example, these industries have banded together to call for exemptions to the European Union’s ever-tightening emissions trading scheme, due to be relaunched in 2013. Paying too much for emissions permits, they say, will drive factories, jobs and emissions out of Europe, especially to countries with less-stringent carbon regimes.
One way to prevent this so-called “carbon leakage”, say industries in European and other developed countries, would be to allow companies to obtain emission reduction credits within sector-specific agreements.
Such agreements would be international in scope, and include incentive mechanisms such as clean technology transfers to get producers from developing countries on board. The level of credits allocated for specific emission reductions would be based on clean technology benchmarks.
An initiative that has claimed moderate success in reducing emissions is the Cement Sustainability Initiative, coordinated by the Geneva-based World Business Council on Sustainable Development. The 18 major cement producers that signed up to the initiative reduced carbon dioxide emissions during cement production on average by 100kg of CO2 per tonne of production over the past eight years, says the WBCSD, though it remains unclear to what extent these emission reductions were a direct result of the CSI.
Claire Mathieu, from CSI member company Lafarge in Paris, says the initiative gave companies a framework for action and created an environment of peer pressure, where leading companies on emission reductions inspired others to follow suit.
While Mathieu admits that other factors beyond the CSI also influenced the decisions of firms to cut emissions, she remains convinced sectoral deals have value and potential. Nonetheless, to be truly effective in the long term, such initiatives “only make sense” if they are integrated into an international regulatory framework, she says.
Two camps
Giving existing voluntary sectoral agreements the status of internationally and potentially legally binding mechanisms will be difficult, however, at least in the context of the UNFCCC talks that were launched in Bali in December 2007. “That is certainly not going to happen,” said one UN official at the most recent round of discussions during an August UNFCCC meeting in Ghana.
The summary of the Ghana meeting says: “It was generally agreed that these approaches and actions should not replace emission reduction targets of developed countries nor form the basis of proposals for sectoral mitigation commitments or international technology benchmarks.”
Most members of the G77, a grouping of developing states that includes China, India and Brazil, are wary of international sectoral deals. They fear that industries from developed states will be at a natural advantage in setting clean technology benchmarks, particularly since those benchmarks are likely to be established against the backdrop of tightening carbon markets in rich countries or rich country groupings such as the EU.
Rich countries would also have an easier time achieving their emission reductions potentials, thus putting developing states at a competitive disadvantage, the argument goes. “We feel extremely uncomfortable with the kind of sectoral approaches that are being discussed,” Indian delegate Ajay Mathur told Reuters after the Ghana meeting.
Developed countries that are in favour of sectoral deals, notably Japan, the US and Canada, are trying to give poorer states assurances that any agreements would be fair. Clean technology transfer mechanisms and respect of the hallowed UNFCCC principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities” in tackling climate change would be upheld, they say.
But these assurances do not appear to be hitting home. Japan caused fury among G77 delegates and “almost wrecked the talks” when it tabled a proposal for a far-reaching international sectoral agreement during a UNFCCC meeting in Bangkok in April, according to the UN official quoted in Ghana.
Japan is pushing for specific emission reductions targets to be established from the bottom up, or according to what industries are able to achieve in their given circumstances and economies, rather than being established top down from governments at national level or in an international deal.
Europe divided, as usual
EU leaders, on the other hand, agree that emission reductions targets should be set from the top down by governments and not by industry. “Sectoral contributions towards emissions reductions can be useful towards meeting [national or international] targets, but cannot replace them,” a spokesman for the European commission in Brussels says.
But views diverge sharply within the union on the extent to which sectoral deals can help slash emissions.
Any international climate change deal that includes the EU “must have some sort of sectoral approach”, says Volker Franz, who deals with the issue for BusinessEurope, a major industry lobby in Brussels. To be fair to European industries that face tougher carbon restrictions, such an approach should include absolute reduction targets for advanced developing countries like China, Franz says.
This argument infuriates some of Europe’s green activists. “The real agenda of companies like ArcelorMittal and Lafarge is to get completely off the hook from EU climate change efforts,” says Claude Turmes, a Green and outspoken member of European parliament.
“This real agenda will be hidden behind some additional rhetoric – so-called benchmarking systems or global sector agreements,” Turmes says.
How these discussions play out and how industries will be treated under the EU’s internal emissions reduction regime is likely to be closely watched by other states and industries. Brussels is hoping to finalise proposals for a revised emissions trading scheme before European parliament elections in March 2009, so that the EU can flaunt its climate credentials at the Copenhagen meeting at the end of next year.
An open game?
In the meantime, most observers agree that the question of whether and how sectoral agreements will be included in any international climate change deal is still very much open. Powerful developed states and their industries are unlikely to drop the idea altogether, despite the wariness and opposition of developing states.
One possibility for preventing an impasse on the issue, says the UN official, would be to transform or expand the Kyoto protocol’s Clean Development Mechanism and Joint Implementation schemes, which allow rich country industries to obtain emissions offset credits in exchange for clean development projects in poorer countries.
The issue is being debated only occasionally by a UNFCCC working group on long-term climate solutions. Talks remain at an early stage. But the idea is potentially promising because developing states such as China have already obtained considerable clean technology transfers through the CDM and JI mechanisms, and because developing country industries are limited in how many emissions they are allowed to offset using the schemes.
With the Copenhagen summit still well over a year away, discussions remain at an early stage. A new US president in Washington next year will add greater urgency to global climate change talks, compared with the lack of interest shown by the Bush administration.
For now, one thing seems clear: given the interest in sectoral deals on the part of developed country governments and industries, and the resistance from developing states, enthusiasts of international talks on climate change can be assured of some good showdowns in the months to come.
Sector deal candidates
Energy-intensive industries that could be first in line for sector-based emissions reduction schemes are:
Steel:
* 5.22% world greenhouse gas emissions (2005).
* 10 biggest producers account for 26% of global output.
Cement:
* 4.6% world greenhouse gas emissions (2005).
* 10 biggest producers account for 25% of global output.
Aluminium:
* 0.9% world greenhouse gas emissions (2004).
* 10 biggest producers account for 54% of global output.
Source: Global sectoral industry approaches to climate change: the way forward, Centre for European Policy Studies, April 2008
3 | ashmann
SmartWave technology became part of the Bendix portfolio with the December 2008 select asset acquisition from SmarTire Systems Inc. Bendix incorporated select assets of the company, including SmartWave technology, into the company’s electronics business unit. The move complemented the other leading-edge safety technologies at Bendix, such as the Bendix® ESP® Electronic Stability Program and Bendix® Wingman™ Active Cruise with Braking (ACB).
“Tire pressure monitoring systems are both efficient and cost-effective in a wide variety of applications. This technology can help reduce wear and tear caused by under-inflation, especially on high-value off road tires,” said Greg Tooke, product manager for tire pressure monitoring systems at Bendix. “We are pleased that Caterpillar has forged a long-term relationship with us and that the strength of Bendix has helped facilitate this business win.”
SmartWave technology provides real-time tire pressure status and automatically warns the driver of an under-inflated tire. The SmartWave system is specifically designed to meet the harsh environments, both on- and off-the-road, experienced by commercial and vocational vehicles.
SmartWave technology enhances the evolving set of Bendix chassis-based safety components. Bendix believes TPMS – already mandatory on passenger vehicles in North America – are among the technologies that can help achieve comprehensive commercial vehicle advanced safety technology. TPMS is currently being reviewed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) as part of an investigation into the mitigation of tire failure in commercial vehicles. In the European Union, a current initiative aims to ensure a mandate requiring TPMS in passenger vehicles.
Caterpillar Inc. is the world’s leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, and industrial gas turbines. For more information visit http://www.cat.com.
4 | ashmann
1. Americans recycle or compost about 30% of their trash. Of the remaining 70%, fifteen percent is incinerated and 55% landfilled. Environmental Protection Agency
2. Glass takes more than one million years to decompose in our landfills. California Department of Conservation
3. Each American throws away an average of 100 polystyrene cups each year, and the expected lifetime of each cup is over 500 years. Green Seal’s Choose Green Report, 1999
4. If every household in the U.S. replaced just one roll of 1,000 sheet virgin fiber bathroom tissues with 100% recycled ones, we could save: 373,000 trees, 1.48 million cubic feet of landfill space, and 155 million gallons of water. Seventh Generation Co.
5. Within three years, Americans will be throwing away 130 million mobile phones per year, amounting to 65,000 tons of waste. This waste contains toxic chemicals such as arsenic, beryllium, copper, lead, cadmium, nickel, and zinc. These chemicals have been linked to cancer and neurological disorders. University of Colorado Recycling, 2003
6. The average U.S. household uses over 22,000 gallons of water per year just for showers and baths. Center for a New American Dream, 2003
7. A faucet that drips once each second can waste over 8 gallons of water per day and over 3150 gallons per year. American Water Works Association, 2003
8. Daily indoor per capita water use in the typical single-family home with no water-conserving fixtures is 74 gallons. American Water Works Association, 2003
9. Americans throw away enough aluminum to rebuild our entire commercial fleet of airplanes every 3 months. Environmental Defense Fund
10. About 80% of what Americans throw away is recyclable, yet our recycling rate is just 30%. Environmental Protection Agency
11. The energy saved from recycling one aluminum can will operate a TV set for three hours. Tree People
12. The U.S. is 5% of the world’s population but uses 25% of its natural resources. Environmental Protection Agency
13. Recycling creates 6 times as many jobs as landfilling. Colorado Recycles
14. Recycling glass instead of making it from silica sand reduces mining waste by 70%, water use by 50%, and air pollution by 20%. Environmental Defense Fund
15. Recycling just one aluminum can saves enough energy to operate a TV for 3 hours. Eco-Cycle
16. If we recycled all of the newspapers printed in the U.S. on a typical Sunday, we would save 550,000 trees–or about 26 million trees per year. California Department of Conservation
17. The energy saved each year by steel recycling is equal to the electrical power used by 18 million homes each year – or enough energy to last Los Angeles residents for eight years. Steel Recycling Institute
18. There are 4-8 pounds of lead in every CRT computer monitor, and there is lead in most of the solder points in electronic product circuit boards. Between 1997 and 2004, 315 million computers became obsolete, along with millions of other electronic products. Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, 2004
19. A 150 watt personal computer system, (CPU, monitor, and printer) uses 1314kwh per year if left on continuously. To generate that much electricity, it takes the energy equivalent of more than 1000 pounds of coal or 100 gallons of oil. Planning for Higher Education Journal, 2003
20. The average American home contain more synthetic chemicals today than the average chemical plant 100 years ago. Windstar Foundation,
21. 70,000 synthetic chemicals are in production today. Many are suspected to cause cause or other health effects, but only 600 have been adequately tested. City of Boulder Office of Environmental Affairs, 2003
5 | ashmann
Over the last few years, the concept of having many small-scale energy sources or microsources, dispersed over a grid has gained a considerable interest. Innovations in the technology and changing economic and regulatory environment have been the main driver behind this growing interest in new distributed generation technologies. In many liberalized energy markets, distributed generation has offered a variety of benefits to market participants and has given the customers a choice for the electricity services best suited for them. Many distributed generation technologies like micro-turbines and fuel cell are quite well known and being developed all across the world. However, there is another technology that has become feasible only in last few years and is being developed to improve voltage control as well as the power quality. It is microgrid technology.
A microgrid is a small-scale power supply network, designed to provide power to few
building or a small community. Microgrids bear the promise of substantial environmental benefits, brought about by higher energy efficiency and by facilitating the integration of renewable sources such as photovoltaic arrays or wind turbines. By virtue of good match between generation and load, microgrids have a low impact on the electricity network, despite a potentially significant level of generation by intermittent energy sources. Although the ownership and operation issues for the microgrid concept have yet to be addressed, one possible way forward might be for a microgrid as intrinsically a local “cooperative” venture. In such systems, the consumers may be also the suppliers and so a more imaginative approach to load control may be possible in the joint interests of cost and efficiency.
Experiences in the last decade have shown that in order to accelerate the connection rate of distributed generation, be it conventional or renewable, it is necessary to either provide incentives to microgrid developers and network operators or alternatively to mandate the connection of microgrid under a regime of preferential feed in tariffs. In the long term, there is no doubt that microgrid technology will become competitive as the price of fossil fuels rise due to their ever growing demand worldwide.
There is clearly a lot more that must be done to support distributed generation in general especially from the perspective of integrating microgrid in the planning and operation of transmission and distribution networks.
This report examines the potential of microgrids, uncovers recent R&D activities, and offers case studies of successful microgrid programs around the world.
6 | ashmann
Coal-fired power generation remains competitive with the best renewable technologies, even after accounting for the costs of carbon capture technology.
Coal accounts for 40% of global electricity supply and the proportion is set to remain steady, even as global generating capacity rises. Coal-fired generating capacity may double by 2030, which would have a severe effect on carbon dioxide emissions unless new, cleaner technologies can be implemented.
The Future of Clean Coal examines the state of modern coal-fired power generation. This report analyzes the technologies, efficiency and economics of conventional coal-fired power generation, emission control systems and advanced/zero emission systems. It assesses the key drivers of the new technologies and forecasts the impact of clean coal technologies on the cost of power compared to both conventional coal-fired power generation and renewable energy.
Discover how new technologies will affect coal-fired power generation in the short, medium and long term with this report.
This report will enable you to:
- Benchmark new and conventional coal-fired power generation systems with this report’s detailed analysis of the comparative economics of coal-fired power generation technologies with and without carbon capture and by use of different types of coal in terms of capital costs and cost of electricity.
- Predict the size and type of future growth in coal-fired power generation with the forecasts for coal-fired generating capacity, the emergence of new markets and the comparative attractiveness of new and conventional technologies contained in this report.
- Understand how legislation governing emissions will impact on the market attractiveness of clean coal with this report’s examination of the economic impact of new legislation on emissions of carbon dioxide and other pollutants.
Some key questions answered by this report:
-What is the future timeline for commercial development of advanced and zero emission technologies?
-How do conventional and clean coal technologies compare in terms of capital costs and the cost of electricity?
-What impact do types of gasifier and type of coal have on plant efficiency?
-How will demand for coal change over the medium term and which countries will be driving increased consumption?
-What are the key regulations around emissions and what impact will they have on the economic competitiveness of coal-fired power generation?
-How do renewable technologies compare against new clean coal technologies and how does carbon capture affect their competitiveness?
7 | ashmann
Alfa Aesar, a Johnson Matthey Company, has published a new High Purity Materials for Photovoltaics brochure that highlights Alfa Aesar’s offering of chemicals and metals for use in the photovoltaic industry. Photovoltaic substances are used in the creation of solar cells to convert sunlight directly into electricity. The long-term goal of photovoltaic (PV) devices has been to reduce our dependency on fossil fuel generated electricity. The main benefits of PV’s are reliable operating systems, low operating costs, virtually zero environmental impact, and modular design.
The 8-page brochure lists over 150 products used in development of a variety of solar cells including crystalline silicon, CIGS (copper indium gallium selenide) and CdTe (cadmium telluride). Products listed include both compounds and pure metals in a variety of forms, purities and quantities. Additional specialized compounds and metals can be found at http://www.alfa.com.
8 | ashmann
Out on the edge of Tulsa, recycling is getting pretty hot — 3,400 degrees Fahrenheit to be precise.
At the Rogers County plant for Lafarge North America they’re burning all sorts of waste and making money in the process.
Lafarge’s business is cooking cement.
New landfill gas lines were installed at Lafarge North America Cement Plant in Rogers County.
The plant uses two 425-foot revolving kilns in its own culinary efforts. An industrial hot plate like that obviously burns a bunch of fuel.
Plant Manager Jim Bachmann says electricity and fuel — mostly coal — make up about 60 percent of his costs of operations.
So, to make his plant more profitable Bachmann is constantly looking for ways to cut the amount of fuel he has to pay for, and the company has found an intriguing method — using fuel someone else will pay them to burn, recyclable waste.
At the top of every rotation of that really hot revolving kiln, Lafarge tosses in an old tire. By the time the kiln has revolved back around, roughly 45 seconds, the tire is completely gone. The oil in the synthetic rubber has burned away as fuel — accounting for about 16 percent of the plant’s fuel — and the steel belts have upped the metal content of the factory’s cement.
“I like to say we turn tires into sidewalks,” Bachmann said.
Tires are an enormous waste problem in the state. We use up about 3.5 million of them a year. You can’t landfill them whole, and grinding them up is more difficult and expensive than you might imagine. Every time you buy a new tire for your car, you pay a $1 fee to the state Department of Environmental Quality, which uses the money to pay recyclers to take away the old tire and to clean up the illegal tire dumps around the state. The Lafarge Tulsa Plant recycles about 750,000 tires a year.
When you burn a tire at 3,400 degrees, there’s not a lot of waste that survives to go up the Lafarge chimneys. By comparison, Tulsa’s trash-to-energy plant burns at 1,600 degrees.
Oklahoma ends up with less pollution, and Lafarge ends up with lower costs.
Bachmann calls it “industrial ecology” and his plant is taking another step in that direction.
The company dedicated a new pipeline connecting it to a nearby landfill, where a lot of Tulsa’s garbage ends up every day.
That garbage piles up in an area until the landfill caps it. When the waste decays it produces methane, which the landfill collects in pipes and burns in the atmosphere.
That keeps the dump from exploding, but it’s ecologically ridiculous. We’re burying trash, producing fuel with it and using that fuel to heat the atmosphere.
“It’s truly waste from waste,” said Metropolitan Environmental Trust Executive Director Michael Patton.
The pipeline fixes that. It will take the methane to Lafarge, where it will go into the cement kiln. Oklahoma gets less pollution, and Lafarge ends up with lower costs.
Could we burn more of our environmental problems up at Lafarge?
Could Bachmann’s plant handle the piles of mining wastes at Tar Creek or the heaps of chicken litter that are fouling our state’s waterways?
Probably not. The heavy metals in the mine waste make it a bad choice and the chicken waste is more expensive to transport than it is valuable to burn, he said.
But the company is pursuing a plan to use liquid industrial wastes — Fuel Quality Wastes or FQW in the jargon of the industry — from heavy manufacturers.
A Lafarge subsidiary in Kansas takes acceptable wastes — no sewage, medical waste or radioactive material, please — then blends and homogenizes them for cement-making. Using FQW, Lafarge has been able to fuel some of its plants completely with alternative fuels — no fossil fuels, all waste fuels.
“It’s a huge swing,” said Bachmann. “We can do that in Oklahoma if we can get permitted to do industrial wastes.”
The company is at the very beginning of the one- to two-year process of getting a state permit to use the industrial wastes. The company has held a public hearing on the issue in Owasso, Bachmann said.
Skylar McElhaney, spokeswoman for the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality, said the company hasn’t filed applications for either of the two permits that would been needed for the change, but has had preliminary discussions with ODEQ staff.
Typically, that sort of waste currently is going to injection wells where it is be buried far underground, hopefully never to reappear.
As with tires and landfill methane, the goal is lower costs for Lafarge, and those of us who pay taxes to build concrete arenas and streets can fall in love with the idea of spending as much of that money as possible in the local economy.
But the by-product that we all should be excited about is a cleaner Earth.
We live in a society that is going to use cement. We can make that cement using fossil fuels at a higher cost, or we can make it from industrial wastes and support the local economy. Seems like an easy choice to me.
By: Wayne Greene
9 | ashmann
Geneva, Switzerland) — Efforts by the world’s leading cement companies knocked down carbon dioxide emissions from the industry’s manufacturing process by 35 percent even while production climbed by 53 percent, according to the World Business Council for Sustainable Development’s Cement Sustainability Initiative.
The council’s Cement Sustainability Initiative released the findings in its report, “Cement Industry Energy and CO2 Performance: ‘Getting the Numbers Right,’ ” on Tuesday. The report represents the latest progress in an international effort to make cement production more environmentally friendly.
The group’s work includes development of a CO2 accounting and reporting protocol for the industry and creation of the global Getting the Numbers Right database of energy and emissions information. The resource enables the analysis and benchmarking of industry performance. It is managed by an independent third party on an open platform.
The percentages for production growth and the absolute net reduction in CO2 emissions resulted from the analysis of available data from 1990 and 2006. The findings are significant because they indicate a growing ability to “decouple” cement production from related emissions, as a result of comprehensive measurement and management throughout the manufacturing process.
The manufacturing of cement is responsible for about 5 percent of the world’s CO2 emissions. And the three largest producers in the industry are China, the top producer, followed by India and the United States. Reducing CO2 emissions in cement production is an important factor in combatting climate change because the industry is expected to double by 2030.
Eighteen global firms are currently participating in the council’s initiative to make their industry cleaner and greener. They provided information for the Getting the Numbers Right database. The system is the broadest of its kind thus far in the industry and provides aggregated data on more than 800 cement facilities from 100 countries around the globe.
The system currently has data for 1990, 2000, 2005 and 2006, which primarily cover operations in Europe, North America and Latin America. It has also received 50 percent of the information needed for India. But reporting by China and the members of the Commonwealth of Independent States could be improved, project leaders said.
In June, the council released the results of the nearly 3-year-old project to identify the most effective ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the global cement industry.
In a separate effort to reduce emissions, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has proposed new regulations governing emissions from energy-intensive Portland cement kilns — Portland cement is the most commonly use type of cement in the world.
By: GreenBiz Staff
10 | ashmann
Capturing and storing (or sequestering, if you prefer) carbon dioxide to meet international greenhouse gas reduction targets is expected to be a high growth industry in the next few years if the technology can be made cost effective.
An alternative to storing carbon dioxide underground is to work within the industrial waste stream to convert CO2 to an energy source and valuable organic molecule. Mantra Venture Group of Seattle is developing technology that will turn CO2 into formic acid, which is naturally produced by stinging ants who use it as a defense mechanism.
Formic acid is currently used in a variety of applications, including a hog feed additive, for de-icing planes, in pharmaceuticals and rubber manufacturing. According to Mantra CEO Larry Kristof, the company’s electro-reduction of carbon dioxide (ERC) technology requires electricity, platinum as a catalyst, and a salt water solution.
The technology cab be used to recycle carbon at coal plants, cement plants, and in petroleum refineries, according to Kristof. Mantra has agreements to build small scale facilities in Korea and in Germany, in partnership with Swedish energy company Vattenfall, with an eye towards large scale plants in 2012, and full commercialization by 2014. Mantra acquired the technology from the University of British Columbia in 2007, and in May 2009 received a grant of $75,000 from the government of British Columbia.
A potentially larger use for formic acid would be as an energy source in small fuel cells that can power electronics devices such as phones or laptops. Tekion, of Burnaby, British Columbia, has a license to formic-acid fuel cell technology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. According to the company, the fuel cells would coast about 10-15 percent more than batteries, but would double the amount of power.
Another potential application for formic acid is in “steel pickling” a finishing process that removes oxides. Kristof says that formic acid is a biodegradable alternative to hydrochloric acid.
With carbon caps looming, the price of carbon credits likely to rise, and carbon sequestration still a technical and economic challenge organizations will be looking for ways to eliminate CO2 disposal from their balance sheets. Recycling carbon to create a fuel source — especially one that is not carbon emitting — sounds very attractive in theory. Another option currently being cultivated is recycling CO2 can by feeding it to algae to turn it into a biofuel.
By John Gartner – Matter Network
(John Gartner is Editor in Chief of Matter Network and an Industry Analyst for Pike Research.
SOURCE: http://www.reuters.com
11 | ashmann
Shoreview is taking a gamble on a new form of pervious concrete that is designed to let rainwater go through it rather than it running off into storm sewers and lakes. The pervious concrete is made of gravel and cement, but does not include sand, the component which provides the impervious nature of typical concrete. Under the pervious concrete layer is a layer of aggregate, which will store the water so that it can filter gradually into the ground.
For about five years, several cities in Minnesota have experimented with this concrete in some limited areas such as parking lots. Shoreview is the first Minnesota city to fully commit to using it on residential streets in place of traditional storm drainage systems, which include catch basins, pipes, and settling ponds. Settling ponds need maintenance and generally result in buildup of potentially toxic materials that have to be removed and disposed of. It is hoped that the reduced runoff will help to protect a nearby lake, which has been becoming increasingly polluted from runoff.
There are some concerns and caveats. One question is whether it will hold up in frigid Minnesota winters. It is crucial that snow and ice does not build up and result in freeze-thaw cycles that will break apart the concrete. However, the history of the product where it has been used so far, and the very nature of the product allowing drainage of the water, has been promising.
It does require some special maintenance to keep the pores open. Shoreview has included in the budget a special street sweeper machine to do the job. It also requires those who install it to be familiar with the product, and as one may expect, it is more expensive than traditional concrete. The Ramsey Conservation District will be monitoring the groundwater to determine any impact on either the level or the quality of the groundwater in the area.
This exciting project holds great promise, and should be carefully watched by other cities as a model for the future.
By: L, Blake
12 | ashmann
Pua’s mighty ‘Pen’
S. INDRAMALAR speaks to the creator of the now indispensable Pen Drive
Fact file
Name: Pua Khein Seng
Age: 31
Hometown: Sekinchan, Selangor
Education: SJKC Yeok Kuan, Sekinchan; Pin Hwa Independent school, Klang; Chiao Tung University, Taiwan
Occupation: Engineer/ president of Phison Electonics Corp
Current base: Taipei , Taiwan
Years abroad: 12
WHEN he set off for Taiwan in 1993, Pua Khein Seng’s only aim was to complete his degree in Electrical Control Engineering at the renowned Chiao Tung University and return home to work in Malaysia .
Never did he envision himself heading a multi-million dollar Taiwanese company that developed the world’s first USB flash removable disk, which they called Pen Drive .
Pua Khein Seng went to Taiwan to get his engineering degree but ended up staying on, starting his own company and inventing the pen drive.
“I went to Taiwan to pursue my undergraduate degree. I chose Taiwan only because it was too expensive to study either in the United States or Singapore .
“However, I did well in my undergraduate programme and was offered a place to do my masters,” explained Pua, who was back in Kuala Lumpur recently for a holiday.
After completing his Masters in July 1999, Pua worked for about six months in a local company before deciding to set up his own venture company with four fellow engineers who had studied with him at Chiao Tung.
“We were confident that we had the know-how and ability to start our own business, which is focused on USB technology. The company is called Phison because there are five of us – two Malaysians and three Taiwanese engineers,” said Pua, 31, who hails from Sekinchan, Selangor.
Phison Electronics Corporation was set up in November 2000 and within six months the young entrepreneurs came up with their first invention – a USB storage device called Pen Drive .
“We were the first company in the world to develop the USB Drive SoC (System On Chip) and we were very confident that the market for USB will be huge. At the time, no one believed in us so we had to do everything ourselves – from developing the technology, the chips to the product itself.
“We were only 27 at the time and inexperienced. But we were confident that we could design good systems and chips but we didn’t know anything about selling. So, we sought partners or traders who could help sell our products for us,” Pua added.
Through smart partnerships and shrewd strategies, Phison soon made its way into European, American and Japanese markets. One quick move was securing Japanese tech giant Toshiba as Phison’s largest shareholder and customer.
“We launched Pen Drive in June 2001 and by August the same year, we broke even! From September 2001, we were reaping monthly profits from our invention and there has been no turning back since.”
Having established himself in Taiwan , Pua is in the midst of setting up Phison’s branch in Malaysia , due to begin operations this
February.
“I am starting a branch in Malaysia because this is my country. I would like to do contribute to its development.
“We have about 100 engineers at Phison in Taiwan , 20 of whom are Malaysians. Though they studied in Taiwan , I had to re-train all the engineers I hire because, like most fresh graduates (in this field), they are not industry-ready upon graduation.
“Unfortunately, some of the Malaysian engineers want to return home after a couple of years because they are homesick, about to start a family and so on. Some prefer to work in Singapore , as it is closer to home. Instead of losing them to competitors, I decided to set up an office in Malaysia where they can still work for me,” said Pua.
Another problem faced by returning computer engineers from Taiwan , Pua added, was the lack of job opportunities for hardware engineers in Malaysia .
“There is no environment or support for design engineers here in Malaysia . One of my Malaysian engineers from Phison returned home and ended up as a teacher in a Chinese school! I was shocked and thought, ‘After all that training and re-training, he is going to just teach?’ I told him to hold on till I open up the Phison branch in Malaysia .”
Though he has been in Taiwan for the past 12 years and married to a Taiwanese, Pua is not sure how much longer he will remain there.
“I have really no idea where I will be in 20 years. Maybe Taiwan , maybe Malaysia , maybe somewhere else … it all depends on my business. The industry is moving so fast that I cannot predict what or where I will be,” he said.
For the moment though, Taiwan is home for Pua, his wife and two children even though he misses the Malaysian way of life.
“I come home once a year for Chinese New Year and will usually stay for about two weeks. There are several things I really miss about Malaysia One is the food! For the past 12 years I have been craving for Malaysian food … I miss laksa, curry noodles, chee cheong fun and all the other delicious dishes we have here.
“I also miss the lifestyle and quality of life here. When I come back, I am always amazed to see people hanging out and relaxing at mamak shops at night. In Taiwan , most people would still be at work at that time of the night!
“Before I got married, I used to work for 15 to 17 hours a day, everyday. Now that I have children, my wife has forbidden me to stay so late. Now, I go to work at 9am and come home by 11pm. These hours are quite normal for the Taiwanese.”
The man who invented USB pen-drive is a young modest Malaysian
who can’t even get into a local University but invented the most
versatile, indispensable computer peripheral today. And helped
his adopted country, Taiwan made $31bil in the process. The rest is history
