Napatech, the world's largest vendor of intelligent adapters for network monitoring and analysis, today released the latest brief in its Time to ReThink series of insights into challenges facing network monitoring and analysis appliance vendors and users. In “Time to ReThink Guaranteed Delivery”, Napatech focuses on the challenge of ensuring zero packet loss delivery to the analysis application when designing network appliances.   “For network monitoring and analysis, you need to see all the data, otherwise the analysis is undermined”, stated Henrik Brill Jensen, CEO, Napatech. “Guaranteed packet capture, such as Napatech intelligent network adapters provide, is a necessary first step, but it is not sufficient. To ensure guaranteed delivery to the analysis application with zero packet loss, the network appliance designer needs to ensure that the analysis application itself is designed properly and that the server is configured properly.” In the brief, Napatech outlines a number of potential causes of packet loss that can arise which relate to analysis application software design, to modern server configuration to thermal dissipation issues.   “Through our work with over...

SMARTRAC N.V., the leading developer, manufacturer, and supplier of RFID transponders and inlays, announced that it launches new RFID inlay and PRELAM® products for automated fare collection based on a new smart paper ticketing chip from NXP.   The SMARTRAC PET inlays and PRELAM® products for limited use tickets, public transport cards, access control tickets, and access control cards feature the new MIFARE™ Ultralight EV1 chip, the next generation of MIFARE™ Ultralight chips from NXP.   The new chip generation offers three independent value counters which can be used for limited stored values, trip counting, etc., stored in a separate memory and no resetting of counters possible. The new MIFARE™ Ultralight EV1 additionally offers an originality check feature to protect customer investments by identifying original products from unauthorized copies.   Due to its full backwards-compatibility, products based on the new MIFARE™ Ultralight EV1 seamlessly integrate into existing infrastructures.   “The new MIFARE Ultralight EV1 covers the needs of public transport operators for more flexibility regarding local tariff schemes and brings more convenience to passengers....

Microscan, a global technology leader in barcode, machine vision and lighting solutions, announces that it will host an educational webinar titled “ID and Inspection from Can to Carton” – an exploration of the role of barcode (or auto ID) and machine vision technology in food and beverage packaging. The presentation and live question and answer session are free to attend, and will take place during two live web broadcasts: November 14 at 10 A.M. PST (Seattle) / 1 P.M. EST (Boston) and November 15 at 4 P.M. CET (Amsterdam) / 10 A.M. EST (Boston).   Packaging operations are becoming more sophisticated. Today’s automated, intelligent processes rely on the transfer of data from the factory floor to centralized systems that help manufacturers achieve a number of objectives, from improving product quality, to ensuring regulatory compliance, to achieving supply chain visibility. In this webinar, follow a can of green beans from seamer to pallet on its journey through an automated packaging process. The webinar tours a food and beverage packaging line, stopping at key inspection points to observe how automation solutions like machine vision and barcode technologies help manufacturers meet important...

The recent economic recession forced companies to take an intense look at their supply chains, while changing market conditions have lead to new challenges for logistics in every market sector from FMCG, F&B, retail and automotive to energy and electronics. Demand structures are changing and unpredictable consumer behaviour make forecasting and process optimisation more and more difficult for all players of these industries.    Supply chain, logistics and transportation professionals of numerous key companies have successfully addressed the challenges of today’s market conditions and now decided to come together from more than 20 countries to share their ideas and experiences on how to  reduce costs and optimize processes according to the ever-changing demands and volatile markets. They all agree that in times of uncertainty to cooperate, exchange ideas and to identify supportive partnerships have become more important than ever.   Exchanging ideas and establishing partnerships   All the major challenges of today’s economic environment will be addressed from different angles on 28-29 November 2012 in the *****Corinthia Grand Hotel Royal in Budapest, Hungary, where the most...

UK based ECDIS training and consultancy company ECDIS Ltd are pleased to announce their unveiling of a VSTEP NAUTIS full mission bridge simulator with a 315° viewing capability. It is to primarily be used for Bridge Team training but has been fitted with 4 different ECDIS systems all integrated with the NAUTIS software. The Simulator was opened last month by MP George Hollingbery in Southampton.   The Bridge Simulator is to accompany the 6 smaller NAUTIS simulators already used for visual channels during the IMO 1.27 Model ECDIS Course. VSTEP are world renowned for their simulator software and have the capability of integrating their system with most ECDIS manufactures using standard NMEA strings as found onboard any vessel.   The Bridge Simulator has been setup with 2 RADARs and 4 ECDIS systems including OSI, Kelvin Hughes, JRC and Transas which are all full integrated.  However it can also be integrated with other ECDIS manufacturers as required by clients.  The system is capable of displaying RADAR, AIS and ARPA overlays onto the ECDIS giving an extremely realistic experience for the mariner.    Mark Broster, Managing Director of ECDIS Ltd, says: "It represents another milestone...

Accellos, a leading provider of supply chain execution software solutions, has issued a case study of AccellosOne Warehouse Management System (WMS) customer UAB Transimeksa.  After 16 years in the freight forwarding business, the Lithuanian logistics operator charted a new course, finding immediate success.   Company Vilnius-headquartered Transimeksa has been bridging shippers and customers in the European Union to counterparts in Belarus, Russia, Ukraine and beyond over well-developed transportation corridors since the early ‘90s. Committed to further growth, management sensed new opportunities in the field of third party logistics.   Situation Transimeksa’s 4,500 square meter facility was fine for freight forwarding, with product floor-stored and usually held for only a day or two. Transimeksa planned to move into third party logistics (3PL) operations which would call for a much larger facility and a software system that would provide the controls, efficiency and security to assure both high-level performance and profitability.   Solution As construction got underway on a new 12,500 square meter (134,500 square feet) 3PL warehouse, Transimeksa began evaluating its 3PL software...

Recent shale gas explorations in Europe have proved highly promising, and with the US already sitting on a number of vast plays, the latest report from industry analysts GBI Research adds further weight to the suggestion that Russia’s gas export dominance may soon be at an end.   According to the business intelligence firm’s latest study*, shale prospects in Europe may well reshape the continent’s energy market dynamics by easing reliance on Russian natural gas imports.   The International Energy Agency (IEA) stated that unconventional gas reserves in Europe, including tight gas, shale gas and Coal Bed Methane (CBM), are estimated to be around 3,500 trillion cubic feet (tcf). If these reserves were commercially exploited they would produce more than enough to sustain the continent’s gas demand for the next 60 years. However, Russia provided around a third of the 16.5 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of natural gas imported by Europe last year alone, and so a move towards self-sustainability could prove highly damaging to this Eastern European nation’s hydrocarbon export sector.   In addition, shale play exploitation is expected to not only provide the US with enough gas to meet...

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol will have a second equine handling centre from December, with the launch of a joint venture between handling agent Aviapartner and Dutch equine transport specialist European Cargo Services.   The new facility, currently under construction, will be a self-contained unit sited within the existing Aviapartner handling centre, located in the centre of Schiphol’s cargo area, and only 30m from the nearest freighter parking stand.   It will have its own landside entry and direct access to the ramp, and will include 24 horse stalls, a separate quarantine area and cleaning facilities for air-stalls. In addition to the facility’s own staff, experienced grooms will be on standby at all times to assist when required.   The facility will be fully-certificated for V.W.A. (veterinary) inspections, and will operate as a Border Inspection Post for acceptance and clearance of horse movements into the EU from any part of the world. Initially, the facility will cater only for horses; handling of other live animals will be included later.   Says Gerard Kervezee, Aviapartner’s Manager – Commerce for the Netherlands: “Our aim in opening this new facility is not to...

The Kühne Foundation, a public-benefit organisation based in Switzerland, today announced it has partnered The Logistics Institute - Asia Pacific (TLI - Asia Pacific) of the National University of Singapore (NUS), to establish a joint education centre on Humanitarian Logistics.   The Kühne Foundation - NUS Education Centre for Humanitarian Logistics Asia Pacific is a first for the region. In line with its guiding concept “from/by Asia for Asia”, the Centre housed under TLI - Asia Pacific will be a unique platform for raising awareness and fostering collaboration between regional academics, government agencies, non-profits, universities, students and the commercial sector in this area.   Mr. Karl Gernandt, Chairman, Kühne + Nagel International AG, and member of the Board of Trustees of the Kühne Foundation commented, "The Kühne Foundation is very proud to venture into Asia and open its first overseas office in Singapore as a joint-venture with NUS and TLI - Asia Pacific. The field of humanitarian logistics is so far an untouched subject in the region and the response for education, training and applied science is...

Despite the challenges of a precarious economic environment, the 2011 global lubricant market grew a resilient 2%, with global lubricant demand estimated at 38.6 million tonnes. This growth was largely fuelled by the BRIC countries’ resurgent industrial activity and expansion in the commercial and passenger vehicles sales, according to the recent Global Lubricants: Market Analysis and Assessment report by international consulting and research firm Kline & Company.   The United States remains the largest lubricant market, but its near 22% global share continues to decrease. China and India are the next biggest markets with a combined total of over 26%, with Russia’s consumption expected to surpass Japan’s and consequently be the fourth largest market. Aside the BRIC countries, strong growth is also expected in Indonesia, South Africa, and Malaysia, driven by an increase in new vehicle ownership and production, construction, and industrial activity, especially in the power-generation and oil and gas production sectors.   The core of competition has evolved to be on a value chain basis and is most intense between multinationals and local majors in most developing countries. On the global level...

Menlo Worldwide Logistics (Menlo), the global logistics subsidiary of Con-way Inc. (NYSE: CNW), is committed to the academic advancement of supply chain and logistics management; the Company is an advocate of professional training in the field throughout the world and invests in education.  Its on-going support of the Supply Chain Management Masters Degree programme at Tilburg University, the Netherlands is testimony to this commitment.  The award is designed to inspire students to excel in this area of study.   Menlo recently took part in judging and presenting the Award for the “Menlo Best Thesis”, written by graduate students as part of their course, to Lotte Diepenmaat for her paper entitled, 'Make Sustainable Sourcing Part of a Buyer's DNA'.     The awards jury, under the direction of Professor Vos, judged Lotte’s thesis as the winner.  "The student formulated a well-defined research question based on the academic literature. Her thesis contains a highly-critical analysis of the literature. The benchmark study was carried out in a structured way and presented clearly. The thesis provided an extremely useful tool for application in practice and the client (a...

Dirk de Rooij has been named Head of Commercial Operations – EMEA & CIS at CHAMP Cargosystems. He is reporting directly to the VP, Global Commercial Operations (GCO) as a member of the Senior Management Team within the GCO. As such he is responsible for all sales activities in the EMEA & CIS region.    Dirk de Rooij has previously held the position of Executive Vice President at OAG Cargo (part of UBM Aviation) where he was responsible for further developing the cargo product portfolio and the company’s online air cargo community. He joined OAG Cargo through the acquisition of the Dutch internet company Inforwarding BV. Before founding Inforwarding in 2001, he spent several years with the global logistics services provider Panalpina in various IT and business roles. He will thus be able to give additional impetus to CHAMP’s drive in expanding the company’s focus from airlines to all players of the supply chain.   In addition, Steven Fayers has joined CHAMP Cargosystems as Head of Proposition Development eCargo. Steven Fayers has 15 years of experience in the air cargo information technology under his wings, having worked for BA (Speedwing), BT (Syntegra), and UBM Aviation (OAG...

At SAPPHIRE® NOW conference and SAP TechEd being held in Madrid, November 13-16, 2012, itelligence AG will present itself as one of the leading international SAP consulting firm for small- and medium-sized business. What special highlights can be expected from the itelligence presentations at the most important SAP customer event in Europe: the SAP HANA® platform as well as the itelligence rapid-deployment solution for SAP EWM.   Uwe Bohnhorst, COO, itelligence AG: “In the areas of SAP HANA and SAP® Rapid Deployment solutions, itelligence is once again among the ‘early adopters’ of these SAP platforms and solutions, and is thus creating a basis—together with its customers—for finding new, innovative solutions. Our customers profit from our many years of experience in taking the latest developments in existing SAP products and integrating them professionally into the market.”   SAP HANA platform The SAP HANA platform offers a large variety of possibilities through its new paradigm of managing data. itelligence AG has been among the first SAP partners to have gathered experience on the power of in-memory transactional and analytical data processing supported by SAP...

Effective 3rd September 2012, Damco has appointed Ivan Thuynsma as Global Head for the Mining Vertical.     Ivan will be responsible for the global development of customers in and around the mining industry.    Damco has over the last few years seen an increased interest in it’s products and services around the mining vertical - particularly in growth markets like Africa.    “I’m delighted to welcome Ivan to the Damco organization. With his expertise and our unique footprint in Africa I’m sure we will quickly achieve the first steps to our strategy,” says Jacob Moe, Chief Commercial Officer – Damco Africa & Middle East.    “With Damco I feel we have a great position to offer unique end-to-end solutions to customers in the mining industry. Our global footprint – with a key strength in growing markets like Africa & South America – offers something new and exciting to the industry” says Ivan.   Prior to joining Damco, Ivan worked for UTi for 10 year of which 7 were as part of their Mining and Projects vertical, leading the Africa and Middle East Mining and Project vertical for the last 18 Months.   ...

Today, OnAir and Honeywell (NYSE: HON) signed an agreement making OnAir the distributor of Inmarsat’s Global Xpress Ka-band aircraft connectivity services to the business and general aviation segment. The five-year agreement gives passengers access to high-speed, in-flight wireless broadband. Geneva-based OnAir already distributes this technology to commercial airlines. “Today OnAir is the only connectivity supplier providing Global Xpress Ka-band to the entire aviation space, both the commercial and business sectors,” said Ian Dawkins, OnAir CEO. “This contract reflects a revolutionary trend that the passengers are demanding – to use their devices in the sky just as they do on the ground. It is essential to be at the forefront of providing the passengers and crew with what they need: inflight connectivity.”   Global inflight connectivity: crossing boundaries OnAir provides the technology that allows airlines and business jet passengers worldwide mobile connectivity to make calls, browse online and text from the comfort of their aircraft seat just as they would on the ground.   OnAir's in-flight mobile phone and Wi-Fi products can be used across the world, over both land and...

The relatively recent and intense exploitation of US natural gas reserves is resulting in an increased dependence on butadiene imports, states a new report from energy analysts GBI Research.   The business intelligence company’s latest study * states that the disparity between butadiene production and demand will climb in the near future as the US moves away from crude oil and naphtha to the increasingly cheap natural gas.   The percentage of C4 hydrocarbons required for the production of butadiene is very low in natural gas compared to crude oil or naphtha. As a result, growing demand will necessarily require a boost in imports.   US butadiene demand last year stood at 1.9 million tons – comparable to the 1.6 million tons the country produced. However, GBI Research predicts demand will hit 2.4 million tons by 2020, while butadiene yield will climb at a slower rate, reaching 1.9 million tons by the end of the decade.   The next four years in particular are expected to be relatively bleak in terms of butadiene production growth, but a number of on-purpose technologies which are currently in development are then expected to contribute to overall production – although it will take some...

HID Global®, a worldwide leader in secure identity solutions, today announced a new cloud-based platform for secure Near Field Communications (NFC) tags and services that eliminates the inherent risks of authenticating original documents, processes, data-logging and high-value assets with traditional sign-off procedures.  Leveraging the company’s proven Trusted Identity Platform® (TIPÔ) for secure communications and identity transactions, the HID Trusted Tag™ Services platform secures assets and protects consumers from counterfeit goods while improving authentication convenience by using contactless readers or any NFC-enabled smartphone.  HID Trusted Tag transponders can be embedded within an item or attached to a document to establish its unique identity, and presented to any NFC-enabled reader or smartphone to verify its authenticity.   The HID Trusted Tag Services ecosystem includes a comprehensive range of tag, inlay and card solutions as well as the HID Trusted Tag authentication transaction environment.  This environment enables cloud-based provisioning of identity certificates to the NFC tags, as well as the revocation of certificates at any time, such as when a batch of...

Sight and active signaling come together with RadarEye. Orlaco has developed this radar unit in addition to the camera- monitor systems. By combining this sight solution with an active signaling system, RadayEye offers additional safety and efficiency. Especially applicable for trucks.    Traffic continues to increase, leading to more safety risks. A truck driver needs another pair of eyes, especially in cities. He has to keep an eye on all people, vehicles and other objects around him while simultaneously performing all tasks to do his job. A driver is expected to keep an overview, but also to arrive at his destination in time, safely and without sustaining any damage. A camera and monitor system provides the driver with maximum visibility around his truck. The innovative RadarEye supplements the visibility solution by sounding an alarm to the driver when there is something or someone behind the truck.   Active warning system Orlaco designs, develops, produces and delivers professional camera and monitor systems for all machines, vehicles, and maritime vessels worldwide. The Dutch camera manufacturer has developed various visibility solutions for trucks, which meet strict quality requirements and national...

The next few years will see increased use of Floating Liquefied Natural Gas (FLNG) vessels in the global LNG industry, as distant ‘stranded’ natural gas fields are given new life through the pioneering technologies offered by FLNGs, states a new report by natural resources experts GlobalData.   The new report* examines the huge anticipated rise in FLNG vessel capacity, which is set to witness a shift in concentration from the American continents to the up-and-coming Asian region.   FLNG vessels are used in the production, liquefaction and offload of LNG to carrier ships, and enable access to remote offshore natural gas fields left unexplored and undeveloped due to the high development costs that traditional LNG facilities would necessitate. Offshore LNG facilities can also avoid inland environmental laws, and be transferred to new locations in response to industry need.   The report discusses how technological developments have been instrumental in raising the profile of the global FLNG industry, which is slowly developing its presence in the global oil and gas industry. GlobalData’s analysis states that a total of 20 FLNG regasification terminals are planned across 13 countries for...

The Bavarian Energy Prize for 2012 went to Krones AG, Steinecker Plant, Freising, Germany. Martin Zeil, Bavaria’s Minister of State for Economic Affairs, Infrastructure, Transport and Technology, presented the company with the main award on 18 October 2012 for the energy-economical EquiTherm brewing system. “Here, the scientifically and technically  possible in terms of maximally efficient energy utilisation is achieved by rigorously interlinking all energy conversion functions. Outstanding new ideas like this guarantee an innovation-driven energy turnaround”, commented Martin Zeil in praising Steinecker’s new concept.    This is already the second time that Krones has received this accolade.   Interest in this energy prize, initiated by “Bayern Innovativ” – the Free State of Bavaria’s Society for Innovation and Knowledge Transfer – was immense this year: for the first time, 167 entries were submitted. In addition to the main prize, twelve Recognition Prizes were awarded. EquiTherm – an energy-saving system for breweries   In the production process for beer, substantial quantities of thermal and electrical energy are required, which...

World leading logistics provider Damco was honored at the 8th annual SCM Logistics Excellence Awards 2012 tonight. Damco won the category “Supply Chain Sustainability Award” for excellence in showcasing customer sustainability results.    "We'd like to congratulate Damco as they are recognized for their efforts in working with their clients & stakeholders in reducing their carbon footprint. Sustainability & green logistics are critical to the industry's growth and with Damco’s excellent track record in championing methodologies & processes in enhancing their partners' sustainability initiatives in conjunction with their service delivery - Damco is helping their partners drive change to green their operations," says Eleanor Uy, General Manager with Terrapinn, the conference organisor.   This is the second time Damco is awarded by its peers at the SCM Logistics Excellence Awards. Last year Damco won the “Supply Chain Best Partnership Award”. With this year’s award, Damco broadens the accolade received for solutions in supply chain management with a distinct customer focus. The Awards are part of the SCM Logistics World Conference, held at the Marina Bay...

A strong September 2012 result for Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals Limited (Hactl) – the major air cargo handler at the world’s largest air cargo hub – has seen the company pull ahead by the best year-on-year growth since January 2011.   Exports in the month were up 2.0% at 123,343 tonnes – the best increase since the post Chinese New Year bounce of March 2012. Imports were up 9.3% at 58,264 tonnes – the best growth since January 2012. Transhipments meanwhile were up 13.6% on 2011 at 56,154 tonnes, continuing the strong trend of the past year. The month’s total of 237,761 tonnes was the highest monthly throughput since March, and additionally marked the best year-on-year growth (6.3%) since February.   The third quarter of 2012 saw Hactl handle a total of 697,791 tonnes – the strongest quarter of 2012 so far, and the second highest result since the final three months of 2010’s bumper year.   Results for 2012 to date were also positive: the cumulative January-September total of 2,023,293 tonnes was 0.7% up on the same period of 2011 – marking the best year-on-year cumulative growth recorded in any month since January 2011.   Says Lilian Chan,...

Data centre and communications firm Node4 holds the official opening of the new hall at its Leeds data centre this week. This new hall will grant the company additional capacity to serve its customers.    The new 350sq m hall comprises of 4 x 32 rack cold aisle containment pods. The site will be manned 24/7 for high security and is ISO27001 compliant. The extension will be an important step in the company’s goal to become the largest provider of local data centres in the UK.    Andrew Gilbert, Managing Director of Node4, said, “The close relationships with our clients at a local level, and our growing number of local data centres, will enable us to respond to their requirements and continually evolve our offering to make sure it always leads the field. Moreover, Leeds is one of the UK’s most popular cities, with great transport links - so it makes excellent sense to offer a more spacious data centre there - meaning that more people will be able to benefit from our award-winning service on their doorstep. “As we expand, we always put the utmost importance on delivering a service which is safe and secure. The addition of another hall to our existing data centre is just a natural...

Accellos, a leading provider of supply chain execution software solutions, today announced that Accel-KKR has made a strategic equity investment in Accellos.    Accellos was founded with a vision that small and midsized business and logistics service providers were in need of a single-source supply chain software partner.  This vision has manifested itself in the acquisition and integration of six supply chain software companies and the development of a unifying product technology – the AccellosOne platform.  Over 3,000 companies in 27 countries now use Accellos software to power their supply chains.  In order to continue execution of this strategy, Accellos founders sought a new strategic financial partner and have received an equity investment from Accel-KKR.   Accel-KKR is a leading technology-focused private equity firm with over $2.3 billion of assets under management.  Accel-KKR focuses exclusively on middle market software and technology companies with strong growth profiles.   ”We are excited that Accel-KKR chose to partner with Accellos,” said Michael Cornell, Accellos’ CEO.  “The founders and employees at Accellos believe strongly in our...

Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals Limited (Hactl) – the major air cargo handler at the world’s largest air cargo hub – has appointed Vivien Lau as Managing Director of its Hacis (Hong Kong Air Cargo Industry Services Limited) subsidiary. Ms Lau replaces Kenneth Bell, who has transferred to Tradeport as Chief Executive.   Vivien Lau has worked for various companies wholly- or partly owned by the Jardine Matheson Group since 2000 (Jardine Matheson is the largest shareholder in Hactl). She spent the first six years in EastPoint Property Management Limited, where she was responsible for business development, marketing, brand strategy and corporate communications.   She then moved to Jardine Airport Services Group (50%-owned by Jardines), where she was responsible for business expansion strategy in China, and helped establish the first Sino-foreign joint venture in Kunming. In 2011, Vivien was appointed Executive Assistant to the Managing Director of Jardine Matheson. She is an MBA scholarship winner from Henley Business School in the UK, holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Sciences, and is a qualified management accountant.   In her new post at Hacis, Ms Lau will lead the company’s...