Category Archives: Technology

As the cyclists of the Tour de France pull into Paris, they will have collected not just an array of jerseys, crashes, drama, records and more than 2,000 miles of cycling. They also bring with them a vast array of data, second-by-second accounts of their body in the 21 days of riding their bikes that have come before.

Every pedal stroke is weighed, measured and the watts produced handed back to a cycling computer that will stick each of those measurements together to gather a precise picture of how each leg stroke added up to a successful or failed race. Every heartbeat that pumps the blood to power those strokes is tracked too, watched for how the faintest increase or decrease in speed could indicate an imminent win or loss.

This year, that tracking technology is more detailed and cutting-edge than it has ever been, getting literally under the skin of athletes to understand how their bodies keep ticking. It is sometimes so futuristic that it has actually been banned from the traditional world of the tour, for fear that the tracking could spoil the fun.

It is also more accessible than ever. Just as the advances in bikes themselves trickle down carbon fibre was once the preserve only of the elite pro, but is now the material of choice of the weekend warrior so has other technology, allowing even the lightest hobbyist to gather insight that would have seemed impossible to anyone just years ago.

There is no more visceral example of that than Supersapiens, a company that makes the name wearable seem somewhat quaint. The company makes what it calls a biosensor,

It does all that so well that the UCI, cyclings governing body, has banned the sensors from use in the Tour de France. Early in June, it published a new rule that said that devices that capture physiological data including any metabolic values such as but not limited to glucose or lactate are not authorised in competition.

The decision drew criticism from people including the manager of EF Education-Nippo, Jonathan Vaughters, who wrote on Twitter: On brand. If they cant understan it, they ban it.

(The UCIs rules are often about setting limits on performance, intentionally; it has weight limits that prohibit bikes from being too light, for instance. This year, Specialized released its Aethos bike; it is precisely intended as an experiment in breaking those rules it said it wanted to make a bike that is focused on ride quality and lightness, worrying about whether it could be used in a race making it almost the bike version of Supersapiens dilemma.)

But Southerland notes that the problem is also that the trackers are understood as a danger not to the cyclists but to the fun of the sport: if nutrition is turned into a pure and precise science, it takes away some of the artistry that has led cycling teams to bring their own rockstar chefs and cyclists to practise eating with the same intensity they practise cycling. Having too much information could make cycling boring.

Southerland points to other, similarly precise tracking technologies that could be subject to the same complaint: power metres that measure exactly how hard a cyclist is pedalling, core body temperature sensors that watch for how hot or cold they are. And those same arguments have indeed been made, with current UCI president David Lappartient saying in 2018 that he would back the idea of banning power meters that provide live feedback to cyclists during the race, similarly arguing that it holds back the attractiveness of the sport.

(Last year, previous Tour winner Geraint Thomas accidentally gave that idea a try, when a mixup meant that he went without his Garmin head unit during the World Championships. He came fourth during the time trial, and said that having the data normally keeps you so focused and dialled in.)

There is also an obvious commercial opportunity to keeping the products in the tour: as the cavalcade of advertising around the event shows, having a product featured there is big business. When the power meter ban was floated in 2017, James Shaw noted that If the pros dont ride them, people arent going to buy them, and if the money fell out of the market then the teams probably would too.

But the companies making such precise tracking technology are clear that they believe it can provide value to those watching at home, too. The way theyre used might be vastly different, but the principles remain the same.

This year, for instance, one of the things that has been noticeable about the EF-Education Nippo riders already hard to miss in their hot pink kit is a matching pink band strapped around their wrist. Its a Whoop band, which measures not only how hard they are working but also how hard they are not working.

It does that with the help of an optical heart rate sensor of the kind now offered in just about every sports wearable. (The sensor itself is not especially notable and reviews have suggested that it might not be especially accurate when compared to other rivals but Whoop stresses the value of the platform it has for analysing the data it gives out.)

The data collects information such as resting heart rate, infers a riders respiration from the changes in their heartbeat, and tracks heart rate variability, measuring the tiny differences in the rhythm of each beat as a way of knowing how calm a persons body is. All of that is merged together with information about how hard a cyclist is working, how hydrated they might be, to give what Whoops vice president of performance says is a holistic picture aimed at making them as ready as humanly possible.

And it is just one of many companies pitching those elite technologies to non-elite athletes. Holmes says that while the details of a Tour de France riders activity is going to be different, the principles are much the same; normal people have to balance rest with stress and understand how the two work together best, too.

In the end, were all trying to do the same thing, she says. Were trying to live our values with more joy and more energy, and this is technology that helps facilitate that.

Southerland pitches Supersapiens similarly. It might be obvious how elite athletes can benefit potentially too much from the technology, and also how those living with diabetes can be helped by it, but it has plenty to offer people who dont fall into either camp, too, he says.

The literature and the textbooks would suggest that it is a specialist product, he says. But the companys data doesnt it has found that around 45 per cent of the time, when people exercise for more than an hour, they are doing it without enough fuel.

The problems of that might appear in ways that would be familiar to anyone who has exercised: the feeling of being out of shape, not fit or fast enough to keep up. But really, theyre just under-fuelled, he says so everyone has to improve their fueling strategies.

Supersapiens hopes to provide the data to prove that, showing precisely how an energy gel taken at the right moment can help spur a personal best, or a massive night of tacos and margaritas could hinder one. We give you the data to showcase how important it really is.

There is a danger, of course, that all of this is too much; the sheer level of data that could make cycling boring could also serve as a stress for people who find themselves worrying too much about those numbers. Holmes says that she believes the cost of that does not outweigh the benefit of understanding how your body is actually adapting to your environment, especially when people can control many of the factors that are likely to drive those numbers in the right or wrong direction.

There might also be a concern that all of the data is nice to have but fundamentally redundant; you probably know if you are tired, or havent eaten enough, whether you are testing those things at the Tour de France or just in your normal life. But both Holmes and Southerland stress that the information is not just decorative both companies charge not insubstantial amounts of money for their products o the promise that they will highlight behaviours and their effects in ways you might not realise for yourself.

Like Supersapiens, Whoop is exercise technology that is as much focused on the time you dont spend exercising one of its biggest metrics is the recovery score, tracking those 23 hours a day when you might not be working out. All of those products come at a time when the various bits of the health picture that are not actually about physical activity, such as rest, nutrition and general wellbeing, are being recognised as being at least as important to performance as the actual workout.

As such, much of the data being provided to athletes both elite, Tour de France level cyclists and normal people just trying to be healthier is as much about telling them when not to exercise, and how to do that, as it is about ensuring they do. That data helps inform those efforts, and Holmes notes that its not really todays training session that informs how well youll do tomorrow, but rather the sleep and everything else that goes into the rest of the day.

All of this works together with more traditional tracking and technology, all of which has advanced alongside the more cutting-edge work. This year, for instance, Garmin released its new Rally tracking pedals, allowing people to gather information on the power their legs were putting out even when riding in rough terrain; many wearables including those from Apple and Garmin also monitor blood oxygen, shining lights into the skin to get a picture of how saturated the blood is, using that as a way to understand the effect of altitude as well as possible health problems.

It is all a long way from the spirit of the early Tour, when technology did not even extend to gears and sport science was so primitive that cyclists avoided keeping themselves hydrated because of a sense that they raced better when dry. But it embodies the same commitment to finding and transcending limits that have always characterised elite sport.

The speed and might of the Tour is rivalled by the fast pace of the technology that has helped its riders come to be so quick. It might now be electronic and wearable, but the history of cycling has been won and lost by rapid innovation as much as by rapid legs, and that looks set to continue.

It has often not been for the good; professional cycling has not always shown much care for the well-being of its athletes. Much worse has been done to cyclists blood than monitoring it for glucose; their hearts have been treated with far less care than they are by Whoop; power meters are relatively pedestrian as far as manipulating the performance of cyclists legs goes.

It is almost unusual that the latest technology is focused on making cyclists healthy so they are fast, when in the past it has been almost the opposite; cyclists resting to ensure their sleep metrics is high is a welcome departure from the horror stories of them having to wake up in the middle of the night and cycling for 10 minutes on rollers in their hotel rooms to ensure that their fit and drug-enhanced hearts didnt fail as they slept.

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Tech tracks cyclists better than ever but is it too much? - The Independent

The wheel never stopped turning since the time it was invented almost 5,500 years ago. From horse drawn-carriages and steam engines to drone taxis and self-driving cars, mobility has come a long way.

Today, urban mobility is a thriving space with unimaginable potential. How cities move their people is a prominent factor that determines their quality of life and preserves the essence of the urban environment.

Many cities across the world are already leveraging the Internet of Things (IoT) and big data analytics to tap into the behavioural patterns of their citizens and harness this intel to power last mile connectivity.

Ride-hailing and vehicle-rental entities have played a significant role in bridging the gap between city dwellers and public transport by introducing shared mobility into the equation.

Here are the key industry and technology trends that will pave the way for this integration:

EVs are driving forth the possibility of mobility with minimal disruption. There were 10 million electric cars on the roads globally in 2020. Though electric car registrations have increased by in the past year, the real silver bullet of sustainable mobility is going to be e-bikes. Thanks to the enhanced lithium-ion batteries, improved performance and affordable prices, the e-bike movement is steadily taking over the world.

Thanks to the FAME II subsidy hike recently announced by the Department of Heavy Industries (DHI), Indian e-two-wheeler manufacturers will be able to up their game and get on par with their Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) counterparts in the market.

Though many people are aware of the positive impact of EVs on the environment, they are hesitant to get onboard with battery-powered vehicles due to the lack of charging stations.

But if the cost of renewable energy goes down, intermittent distributed generation will make up a notable share of the world's energy distribution. This will enable cheaper and cleaner energy distribution, allowing EV owners to recharge their vehicles from their local solar or electric charging points.

Shared mobility is not solely restricted to ride-hailing services; vehicle rental apps too play a part in this shift as they enable large client pools to travel around the city using a limited number of rented vehicles.

In the last one decade, global and national brands have quickly picked up pace to help city dwellers move around with ease.

MaaS is a trend that is gaining traction along with the rent-over-buy movement because people are starting to view transportation as an experience and not a luxury.

MaaS can be defined as a system or platform where all transportation is viewed as a single unit. It would incorporate all the current practices of paying for bus/train tickets using a phone or hailing a ride using a rental app into a centralised system.

Micromobility is shaking up urban transportation worldwide. In many populous cities, people are choosing to travel via walking, cycling, or shared mobility to escape congestion on roads. This is where micromobility comes init refers to the small-scale, short-term transportation alternatives people can opt for to move around the city with ease.

VR, on the other hand, can help city planning experts perfect their research and prototyping with the help of interactive design visualisations and life-like simulations.

Sustainable mobility shouldnt be limited to vehicles shifting to alternative energy options alone, it should also extend to the manufacturing process. Additive manufacturing enables the creation of lighter, stronger, and eco-friendly vehicle spare parts. This will not only enable upcoming startups to experiment with low-cost, durable materials but also facilitate rapid prototyping.

Though the mobility and the automotive sectors have been drastically hit by the repercussions of the pandemic, in many other ways, this adversity has helped thought leaders to aggressively innovate and reinvent themselves. In fact, 2020 witnessed a startup surge of 24.3 percent, owing to the existential urgency triggered by all the uncertainty.

In the coming years, urban mobility will only get faster, better, and more versatile, all the while keeping sustainability at the forefront. This is the right time for key players to identify new opportunities and accelerate innovation.

(Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of YourStory.)

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Riding the technology: The future of urban mobility is now - YourStory

A Jolywood-produced n-type cell on display at SNEC 2021. Image: PV Tech.

The PV industry today has become a China-driven manufacturing sector, with the rest of the world often left to deal with the good and bad associated with one specific country being so dominant from a production standpoint.

Indeed, in looking at upstream investments, the difference only seems to grow each year, somewhat regardless of what is happening with technology trends, pricing levels, profit margins and end-market deployment.

But everything goes in cycles, and this could well extend to the period within the solar industry that has seen annual deployment levels move from 10GW per annum to levels north of 150GW today.

Are we in fact on the verge of a major manufacturing balancing act that will occur as the industry drives towards the terrawatt annual deployment level by 2030?

As PV Tech prepares for the next staging of our flagship event PV CellTech held online again during 25-26 August 2021, the need to understand current state-of-the-art, mainstream PV cell manufacturing has not been so critical in the past decade.

How will the p-type to n-type transition occur? Are the current crop of Chinese cell producers really going to be ones that drive this technology shift? How can western investments into new cell/module fabs justify returns, and how should they strategise to be in a position to lead PV cell technology when the timing is right?

This article previews the session topics for PV CellTech 2021 Online and discusses some of the key questions on PV technology currently being scrutinised by the industry in general, and especially for new cell/module investments on the global stage.

The growth of the solar industry over the past decade has been corporate, institutional investment-led, where the last decimal place on return on investment models has trumped everything else related to the manufacturing of the key components needed to build a solar farm.

The days of power to the people that permeated the industry at the country-level seem a distant memory now; when government incentives targeted homeowner investments (capex). While much of PV deployment then was still based on financial gain, there was a much stronger personal attachment to the installers (domestic, local firms) and which company was supplying the modules.

However, all investment is subject to scrutiny, not just from a financial standpoint, but a moral one. And today, origin of manufacture and sustainability footprints firmly fall into the moral category. While it is easy to join the dots today on the Xinjiang question, this is just one example. It is part of the much bigger picture related to solar being beneficial to local economies, and not at the behest of any one country (such as China is today). In fact, the same logic could be applied to shipping costs, or indeed exchange rate fluctuations. There is an endless list actually of issues that all come back to the industry being overly reliant on one country making such a high volume of product used.

This does not imply by any means that Chinas role in PV manufacturing should be seen as negative moving forward. It just puts it into a different context, and one that is challenged and moulded by what is happening globally through the entire manufacturing value-chain. Indeed, it may well be that the quickest route to levelling off the one-country disparity in manufacturing is for Chinese companies to embrace overseas production sites from a long-term strategic standpoint.

An interim route of course exists, where Chinese companies work with not against regional manufacturers.

None of the above is necessarily a showstopper, and may indeed become a prerequisite of truly playing in a global TW annual industry. But what is more interesting to ponder now is how technology fits into this, and whether this type of environment can move the industry in a different direction and speed, compared to leaving China to figure out how to make TW levels of advanced n-type or tandem-based solar cells by 2030.

Finally, the icing on the cake would be for global corporates (the ones that have driven the industry to utility-scale) to get fully on board with PV technology, and not just rushing around today to dampen any negative publicity that could arise from being exposed to the China-centric production machine that is responsible for 90%-plus of components used on owned assets.

This would be a gamechanger, not seen before in the sector, and would reinvigorate manufacturing on a global level.

When we started PV CellTech back in 2016, the industry had strong participation from cell producers in Taiwan, Korea and Japan. This diversity actually created a more stimulating discussion on which technologies would emerge in the coming years; multi vs mono was by far the most common topic at PV CellTech events until 2018, for example, in addition to PERC market share levels.

As everyone knows right now, p-mono PERC is completely dominant within the sector, with virtually every Chinese PV player (existing and new entities) churning out press announcements on a weekly basis on aspirations about becoming an n-type cell maker at the 10-GW-level by tomorrow. While one can applaud the sentiment, it really should be the global sector (upstream and downstream) that collectively drives such an important technology change today.

Cell manufacturing and location-of-fabs therefore sets the scene for the topics to be covered in PV CellTech 2021 Online during 25-26 August 2021, but another major factor here relates to a crucial part of the industry today: production equipment and materials supply. Any shift to global manufacturing would have to be in parallel with a new list of production equipment suppliers compared to the past few years, and would also necessitate some of the leading Chinese equipment suppliers becoming more globally-focused and not simply selling domestically to fellow Chinese PV entities.

PV CellTech 2021 Online occurs over two days (25 and 26 August 2021), with three key sessions each day. Each session will be formed of 3-4 keynote presentations, all of which I will moderate myself. One can imagine PV CellTech Online as a two-day high-quality webinar feast, with the ability for attendees to listen to recordings outside their local time zones.

The following sections of the article will discuss each of the six sessions of PV CellTech 2021 Online.

The first session on day one starts with a treat for the industry as a whole. Titled Mass production status and efficiency limits for leading p-type & n-type cell architectures, the talks here will be delivered by Martin Green of UNSW and Wei Shan, the CTO at JA Solar. Additional talks include an up-to-date technology review by myself, looking at where the real n-type production is taking place this year. The opening session will therefore identify the key themes for the two days of PV CellTech Online 2021, and how the industry is really moving to make the n-type transition, in addition to the benefits on offer by way of efficiency and cost once p-type has been fully phased out.

The second session Production equipment & materials to enable high-throughput & low-cost n-type cell manufacturing at the multi-GW scale focuses on perhaps the most critical part of the n-type transition, and key manufacturers of equipment and materials. Talks will come from Heraeus, SCHMID Group and Von Ardenne. Getting the new n-type fabs operating reliably at the multi-GW scale is currently one of the major challenges to the sector, and the contribution here from equipment and material suppliers over the next few years is essential to n-type success.

The final session on day one Cell manufacturing in Europe, the U.S. & Korea; GW mass production from a diversified supply-base addresses one of the major themes discussed at the start of this feature article; making cell production a global industry, not just focused on China and Southeast Asia. This issue is currently seeing huge focus, with investment decisions pending in coming months and years.

The second day of PV CellTech 2021 Online starts with Technology-transfer opportunities to accelerate n-type ramp-up investments globally. It is clear today that decision making on n-type variants, and how to make these work reliably at low cost, is taking place across all parts of the industry. Many of the proponents will only succeed however, if they are aligned with expertise that exists mainly in the leading technology-transfer research institutes globally. This was a key part of the industry making p-type and p-mono PERC mainstream a few years ago. It will almost certainly have to be repeated again, focused on n-type and training production engineers to maximize the new technology potential.

The next session on day two is titled: Polysilicon & wafer supply: geographic production status & meeting high-efficiency cell purity/quality requirements. This issue has been known to be critical for years, as the supply of n-type ingots/wafers has been a niche segment until now. The time to fully understand that is needed from polysilicon purity and ingot pulling for n-type cell production is now, before the demand for wafers comes online in scale. Knowing if all n-type polysilicon and wafers will be made in China (like p-mono today) is a massive deal, and now has a political element underpinning it.

The final session of PV CellTech 2021 Online has been a regular feature at every PV CellTech event going back to 2016: The PV technology roadmap for 200-GW-plus cell production in 2022. This session will again feature the latest ITRPV results and forecasts, delivered by Markus Fischer, in addition to other perspectives on PV technology trends out to 2030. Knowing the factors that will impact adoption rates of n-type (and the possibility of hybrid or tandem variants) out to 2030 is key to understand now.

Details on attending the online event during 25-26 August 2021 can be found at the event website here. There are still a few speaking slots available, so dont hesitate to ask us. The final agenda will be published on the site at the start of August.

Finally, dont forget that the accompanying PV Tech quarterly report, details of which can be seen here. Our team will be happy to set up a demo to see the capacity, capex, technology roadmap, production and R&D spending of the companies making up more than 95% of all industry manufacturing and shipments in 2021, in addition to lots of other information essential to forming strategies going forward.

Read more here:

New PV technologies in new manufacturing regions: has the PV industry finally grown up? - PV-Tech

Smart Label Market Research Report by Technology (Dynamic Display Labels, Electronic Article Surveillance Labels, and NFC Tags), by Application (Electronic & IT Assets, Equipment, and Pallets Tracking), by End User, by Region (Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe, Middle East & Africa) - Global Forecast to 2026 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19

New York, July 16, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Reportlinker.com announces the release of the report "Smart Label Market Research Report by Technology, by Application, by End User, by Region - Global Forecast to 2026 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19" - https://www.reportlinker.com/p06087817/?utm_source=GNW

The Global Smart Label Market size was estimated at USD 9.99 Billion in 2020 and expected to reach USD 11.19 Billion in 2021, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) 12.32% from 2020 to 2026 to reach USD 20.08 Billion by 2026.

Market Statistics:The report provides market sizing and forecast across five major currencies - USD, EUR GBP, JPY, and AUD. It helps organization leaders make better decisions when currency exchange data is readily available. In this report, the years 2018 and 2019 are considered historical years, 2020 as the base year, 2021 as the estimated year, and years from 2022 to 2026 are considered the forecast period.

Market Segmentation & Coverage:This research report categorizes the Smart Label to forecast the revenues and analyze the trends in each of the following sub-markets:

Based on Technology, the Smart Label Market was studied across Dynamic Display Labels, Electronic Article Surveillance Labels, NFC Tags, RFID, and Sensing Labels.

Based on Application, the Smart Label Market was studied across Electronic & IT Assets, Equipment, Pallets Tracking, Perishable Goods, and Retail Inventory.

Based on End User, the Smart Label Market was studied across Aerospace, Automotive, Construction, FMCG, Healthcare, Logistics, Manufacturing, Postal Services, and Retail.

Based on Geography, the Smart Label Market was studied across Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe, Middle East & Africa. The Americas is further studied across Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, and United States. The Asia-Pacific is further studied across China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines, South Korea, and Thailand. The Europe, Middle East & Africa is further studied across France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, United Arab Emirates, and United Kingdom.

Cumulative Impact of COVID-19:COVID-19 is an incomparable global public health emergency that has affected almost every industry, and the long-term effects are projected to impact the industry growth during the forecast period. Our ongoing research amplifies our research framework to ensure the inclusion of underlying COVID-19 issues and potential paths forward. The report delivers insights on COVID-19 considering the changes in consumer behavior and demand, purchasing patterns, re-routing of the supply chain, dynamics of current market forces, and the significant interventions of governments. The updated study provides insights, analysis, estimations, and forecasts, considering the COVID-19 impact on the market.

Competitive Strategic Window:The Competitive Strategic Window analyses the competitive landscape in terms of markets, applications, and geographies to help the vendor define an alignment or fit between their capabilities and opportunities for future growth prospects. It describes the optimal or favorable fit for the vendors to adopt successive merger and acquisition strategies, geography expansion, research & development, and new product introduction strategies to execute further business expansion and growth during a forecast period.

FPNV Positioning Matrix:The FPNV Positioning Matrix evaluates and categorizes the vendors in the Smart Label Market based on Business Strategy (Business Growth, Industry Coverage, Financial Viability, and Channel Support) and Product Satisfaction (Value for Money, Ease of Use, Product Features, and Customer Support) that aids businesses in better decision making and understanding the competitive landscape.

Market Share Analysis:The Market Share Analysis offers the analysis of vendors considering their contribution to the overall market. It provides the idea of its revenue generation into the overall market compared to other vendors in the space. It provides insights into how vendors are performing in terms of revenue generation and customer base compared to others. Knowing market share offers an idea of the size and competitiveness of the vendors for the base year. It reveals the market characteristics in terms of accumulation, fragmentation, dominance, and amalgamation traits.

Company Usability Profiles:The report profoundly explores the recent significant developments by the leading vendors and innovation profiles in the Global Smart Label Market, including Accraply, Advantech U.S., Alien Technology Inc., ASK S. A., Avery Dennison, Avery Dennison Corporation, CCL Industries Inc., Checkpoint Systems, Inc., Crepak Technology Ltd, Displaydata Ltd., GR LABEL, Graphic Label, Inc., Intermec Inc., Invengo Information Technology Co. Ltd., Metra Blansko, Muehlbauer Holding Ag & Co., Resource Label Group, Sato Holdings Corporation, Smart Label Solutions, Smartrac N.V., Thin Film Electronics ASA, TOSHIBA Global Commerce Solutions, Inc., Willian Frick & Company, and Zebra Technologies Corporation.

The report provides insights on the following pointers:1. Market Penetration: Provides comprehensive information on the market offered by the key players2. Market Development: Provides in-depth information about lucrative emerging markets and analyze penetration across mature segments of the markets3. Market Diversification: Provides detailed information about new product launches, untapped geographies, recent developments, and investments4. Competitive Assessment & Intelligence: Provides an exhaustive assessment of market shares, strategies, products, certification, regulatory approvals, patent landscape, and manufacturing capabilities of the leading players5. Product Development & Innovation: Provides intelligent insights on future technologies, R&D activities, and breakthrough product developments

The report answers questions such as:1. What is the market size and forecast of the Global Smart Label Market?2. What are the inhibiting factors and impact of COVID-19 shaping the Global Smart Label Market during the forecast period?3. Which are the products/segments/applications/areas to invest in over the forecast period in the Global Smart Label Market?4. What is the competitive strategic window for opportunities in the Global Smart Label Market?5. What are the technology trends and regulatory frameworks in the Global Smart Label Market?6. What is the market share of the leading vendors in the Global Smart Label Market?7. What modes and strategic moves are considered suitable for entering the Global Smart Label Market?Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p06087817/?utm_source=GNW

About ReportlinkerReportLinker is an award-winning market research solution. Reportlinker finds and organizes the latest industry data so you get all the market research you need - instantly, in one place.

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Smart Label Market Research Report by Technology, by Application, by End User, by Region - Global Forecast to 2026 - Cumulative Impact of COVID-19 -...

COLUMBIA, Mo.

EquipmentShare, an equipment and digital solutions provider serving the construction industry, announces the completion of a $230 million funding round led by Tiger Global Management, The Spruce House Partnership and RedBird Capital Partners, with additional participation from Tru Arrow Partners and existing investors Romulus, Insight Partners and Anchorage Capital Group. These fundraising efforts provide capital for EquipmentShare to launch its core technology solution, T3, the operating system for construction, and expand its suite of technology solutions. This investment round also allows the company to increase its national footprint to better serve the needs of its customers.

We are grateful to our new and existing investors for joining us on this journey to build connectivity for the construction industry, EquipmentShare President and Co-founder Willy Schlacks said. We are eager to leverage this milestone round to launch several initiatives, with the continued goal of empowering contractors and accelerating productivity in construction.

Founded in 2014 and incorporated in 2015, EquipmentShare has experienced rapid growth, spurred by the demand for its award-winning fleet management technology and equipment solutions. More than a rental company, EquipmentShare is building upon its asset tracking solution to create an ecosystem of connectivity for construction, a sector that has historically been disconnected from technology and lags in productivity gains. The company will soon launch T3, a comprehensive construction technology solution that digitizes and connects the three verticals of construction productivity: assets, people and materials. T3 will give contractors real-time visibility into parts of the jobsite that are historically difficult to track and manage.

"After meeting Willy, Jabbok, and their team, we were incredibly impressed by what they are building at EquipmentShare. They have not only created a fast-growing, technology-enabled rental business that their customers love, but they are also building software and solutions to make the entire construction industry safer, more efficient, and more productive, Spruce House Partnership Co-founder Ben Stein said. We are excited that our investment allows EquipmentShare to run even faster at these ambitious goals."

EquipmentShare also announced the appointment of Trevor Schauenberg as its Chief Financial Officer (CFO). For the past 10 months, Schauenberg has served as an Executive Operating Partner and board member. He brings 28 years of progressive leadership experience at General Electric Company (GE) in operational, strategic and financial leadership roles to his newly appointed role of CFO.

Over the past year, Trevor has demonstrated the leadership qualities needed to take our company to the next level, CEO and Co-founder of EquipmentShare Jabbok Schlacks said. It's been a natural progression to appoint Trevor to the CFO role, and we look forward to building upon this momentum.

"I'm thrilled to accept the CFO role at EquipmentShare and help the company continue to execute on its strategic growth plans," Schauenberg said. "After working with the EquipmentShare team as an advisor and board member this past year, I'm convinced we have a differentiated offering that will drive exceptional growth for many years to come."

EquipmentShare plans to significantly increase its footprint in the U.S. in 2021 to grow its total presence to more than 100 locations. These additional rental, retail and service locations will allow the company to connect with new customers and better serve larger companies nationwide.

As part of its expansion plans, EquipmentShare plans tohire in each new market it enters. Currently, the company hires an average of 100 employees each month. In 2020, Glassdoor named EquipmentShare one of the top growing companies in the country, despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, Forbes named the company on its list of Americas Best Startup Employers based on employee satisfaction, employer reputation and growth for the second consecutive year.

For more information on EquipmentShares equipment and digital solutions, visit equipmentshare.com.

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About EquipmentShareHeadquartered in Columbia, Mo., EquipmentShare is a nationwide construction solutions provider dedicated to solving industry pain points through smart jobsite technology and equipment rental, retail and service centers. More than a rental company, EquipmentShares cloud-connected platform is powered by telematics and machine hardware to give construction and industrial companies a real-time view into the jobsite. EquipmentShares enterprise suite is OEM-agnostic and can track any piece of equipment, regardless of brand, to help fleet managers monitor assets, prevent theft and machine misuse, track employee hours and shifts, increase machine utilization, streamline maintenance and prevent unplanned downtime. Founded in 2014 and incorporated in 2015, EquipmentShare employs more than 2,300 team members of diverse perspectives that push the boundaries of possibilities to create unparalleled customer value, support their communities and empower construction professionals to work more efficiently. EquipmentShares growing presence of locations, which includes equipment and service yards, research and development sites, dealerships for major brands, administrative offices and specialty solutions locations, serve the rising demand for the companys equipment and digital solutions. Our company is on a mission that has no summit, working to accelerate productivity for contractors and build connectivity for construction. To learn more, visit equipmentshare.com.

The Spruce House PartnershipThe Spruce House Partnership was founded in 2005 to make concentrated, long-term investments in public and private companies led by exceptional founders.

About RedBird Capital Partners

RedBird Capital Partners is a private investment firm focused on building high-growth companies with flexible, long-term capital in partnership with its Entrepreneur & Family Office Network. Founded by former Goldman Sachs Partner Gerry Cardinale, RedBird today manages $5 billion of capital principally across its Sports, TMT, Financial Services and Consumer industry verticals. RedBird invests with an entrepreneurial, company-building mentality, with an emphasis on capital appreciation and compounding equity returns over longer holding periods. RedBirds network of business founders and entrepreneurs is central to its investment sourcing strategy, and its highly curated group of limited partners are active co-investors who provide scalable capital support. For more information, please go to http://www.redbirdcap.com.

About Tru Arrow Partners

Tru Arrow Partners is an investment partnership based in New York, formed specifically to partner with investing families from around the world. The firms investing focus is on private growth technology companies primarily in the global internet, software, consumer, and fintech industries. The firm was founded by Glenn Fuhrman, James Rothschild and Adam Silverschotz. Prior to launching Tru Arrow, Glenn co-founded MSD Capital, L.P., the private investment firm for Michael Dell, the founder and CEO of Dell Technologies, and from 1998 through 2019 served as its Co-Managing Partner. James was co-founder and Managing Partner of West Arrow, a Partner at Lepe Capital and has directed his family investment vehicles for 15 years. Adam was most recently at TCV where he led their investments in ByteDance and Capsule after spending several years at Coatue as a Managing Director in Hong Kong.

About Romulus Capital

Romulus Capital is an early-stage venture capital firm focused on building, rather than betting on, the next big technology and science-enabled companies. The firm partners with entrepreneurs looking to become industry leaders and works with them to build world-class teams, win major customers, iterate on product, and think strategically about building a strong foundation. The firm was founded by former entrepreneurs in 2008, more information is available at http://www.romuluscap.com.

About Insight Partners

Insight Partners is a leading global venture capital and private equity firm investing in high-growth technology and software ScaleUp companies that are driving transformative change in their industries. Founded in 1995, Insight Partners has invested in more than 400 companies worldwide and has raised through a series of funds more than $30 billion in capital commitments. Insights mission is to find, fund, and work successfully with visionary executives, providing them with practical, hands-on software expertise to foster long-term success. Across its people and its portfolio, Insight encourages a culture around a belief that ScaleUp companies and growth create opportunity for all. For more information on Insight and all its investments, visit insightpartners.com.

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About EquipmentShareHeadquartered in Columbia, Mo., EquipmentShare is a nationwide construction solutions provider dedicated to solving industry pain points through smart jobsite technology and equipment rental, retail and service centers. More than a rental company, EquipmentShares cloud-connected platform is powered by telematics and machine hardware to give construction and industrial companies a real-time view into the jobsite. EquipmentShares enterprise suite is OEM-agnostic and can track any piece of equipment, regardless of brand, to help fleet managers monitor assets, prevent theft and machine misuse, track employee hours and shifts, increase machine utilization, streamline maintenance and prevent unplanned downtime. Founded in 2014 and incorporated in 2015, EquipmentShare employs more than 2,300 team members of diverse perspectives that push the boundaries of possibilities to create unparalleled customer value, support their communities and empower construction professionals to work more efficiently. EquipmentShares growing presence of locations, which includes equipment and service yards, research and development sites, dealerships for major brands, administrative offices and specialty solutions locations, serve the rising demand for the companys equipment and digital solutions. Our company is on a mission that has no summit, working to accelerate productivity for contractors and build connectivity for construction. To learn more, visit equipmentshare.com.

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EquipmentShare Completes $230M Funding Round to Expand Technology and US Footprint, Announces Appointment of Former GE Capital Executive Trevor...

Stocks that were in focus in yesterday's session include L&T which rose over 4 percent to hit a 52-week high, L&T Technology Services gained over 19 percent, and Zensar Technologies Ltd saw gains of over 4 percent.

July 16, 2021 / 08:43 AM IST

It was a strong day for the bulls on July 15 as the Indian market hit a fresh record high amid positive global cues. The Nifty50 hit a high of 15,952 while the Sensex rose to a record of 53,266.

The S&P BSE Sensex settled 254 points higher at 53,158 while the Nifty50 closed with gains of 70 points at 15,924. The S&P BSE Midcap index was up 0.3 percent, and the S&P BSE Small-cap index closed with gains of 0.43 percent.

Sectorally, buying was seen in Realty, Capital Goods, IT, Industrials, and banks while profit-taking was seen in oil & gas, telecom, public sector, and energy.

Stocks that were in focus include L&T which rose over 4 percent to hit a 52-week high, L&T Technology Services gained over 19 percent, and Zensar Technologies Ltd saw gains of over 4 percent. All stocks hit their fresh 52-week high on Thursday.

Here's what Shrikant Chouhan, Executive Vice President, Equity Technical Research at Kotak Securities Ltd, recommends investors should do with these stocks when the market resumes trading today:

L&T:

The stock rallied over 4 percent on July 15. During the session, the stock opened with a gap-up and quickly surpassed Rs 1,585 resistance-mark with strong volume activity.

Post breakout, the entire day, it was trading above the resistance level which is broadly positive for it.

In the short-term time frame, the stock has formed a strong price-volume breakout pattern. The texture of the pattern suggests that the breakout action will continue in the near future if the stock succeeds to trade above Rs 1,560 level.

For swing traders, Rs 1,560 should be the sacrosanct level. If the stock trades above the same, we can expect an uptrend continuation wave up to Rs 1,680-Rs 1,700.

L&T Technology Services:

On July 15, the stock registered an all-time high of Rs 3,493. So far this month, the stock has rallied nearly 21 percent. On Thursday, after a strong gap-up opening, the stock rallied from Rs 3,116 to Rs 3,344.

On the daily and weekly charts, the stock has formed a breakout continuation pattern which is grossly positive for the L&T Tech.

As long as the stock is trading above Rs 3,300, and the uptrend texture is likely to continue up to Rs 3,500-Rs 3,575, and on the flip side, dismissal of Rs 3,300 could possibly trigger a quick short-term correction up to Rs 3,200-Rs 3,100.

Zensar Technologies:

After a strong uptrend - the rally from Rs 300 to Rs 345, the stock was hovering between Rs 345 to Rs 330 price range.

However, on Thursday, the scrip not only surpassed its previous resistance of Rs 345 but comfortably managed to sustain above the same.

The sharp 5 percent intraday price volume rally clearly suggests that the stock is in strong hands and is likely to continue the uptrend texture in the near future.

Unless it trades below Rs 330, positional traders retain an optimistic stance and look for an upside of Rs 385-Rs 405. Fresh buying can be considered now and on dips if any between Rs 355 and 345 levels with a stop loss below Rs 330.

Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by experts on Moneycontrol.com are their own and not those of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.

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Trade Spotlight: What should investors do with L&T, L&T Technology Services and Zensar? - Moneycontrol.com

Representations of cryptocurrencies Bitcoin, Ethereum, DogeCoin, Ripple, Litecoin are placed on PC motherboard in this illustration taken, June 29, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

ISLAMABAD, July 16 (Reuters) - Once a week Ghulam Ahmed, 38, takes time out from his cryptocurrency consulting business to log into a WhatsApp group with hundreds of members eager to learn how to mine and trade cryptocurrency in Pakistan.

From housewives looking to earn a side income to wealthy investors wanting to buy cryptomining hardware, many barely understand traditional stock markets but all are eager to cash in.

"When I open the session for questions, there's a flood of messages, and I spend hours answering them, teaching them basic things about cryptocurrency," said Ahmed, 38, who quit his job in 2014, believing it was more profitable to mine Bitcoin.

Pakistan has seen a boom in trading and mining cryptocurrency, with interest proliferating in thousands of views of related videos on social media and transactions on online exchanges.

While cryptocurrency is not illegal in Pakistan, the global money laundering watchdog, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), has called on the government to better regulate the industry. Pakistan is on the FATF's grey list of countries it monitors for failing to check terror financing and money laundering.

In response, the federal government has set up a committee to study cryptocurrency regulation, which includes observers from the FATF, federal ministers, and heads of the country's intelligence agencies.

"Half the members had no clue what it was and didn't even want to understand it," said committee member Ali Farid Khwaja, a partner at Oxford Frontier Capital and chairman of KASB Securities, a stock brokerage in Karachi.

"But the good thing is someone set up this committee. The relevant bodies in the government who need to get things done are supporting it, and the promising thing is nobody wants to stand in the way of technical innovation."

And the head of the country's central bank, Reza Baqir, said in April the authority was looking into another digital asset, a central bank digital currency, and its potential for bringing transactions happening off the books into a regulatory framework.

"We hope to be able to make some announcement on that in the coming months," he told CNN. Baqir declined to comment to Reuters on the topic.

Even the education sector has caught on.

In February, one of the country's leading universities, the Lahore University of Management Sciences, received a grant worth $4.1 million to study the technology from Stacks, a blockchain network that connects Bitcoin to apps and smart contracts.

LEGALISATION AND INVESTMENT

These moves can't come soon enough for cryptocurrency advocates.

Institutions have at times treated those involved in the trade of cryptocurrency with suspicion, worried about possible associations with money laundering.

Ahmed said he has been arrested by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and charged with money laundering and electronic fraud twice, though the charges have not held up in court.

On one occasion, he said, the FIA seized a cryptocurrency mining farm he had set up in Shangla, in Pakistan's northern Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, which ran on its own hydroelectric power. The FIA did not respond to Reuters' request for comment.

Waqar Zaka, a former TV host with more than a million followers on Youtube, has been lobbying officials for years to not only legalise the industry, but have the government invest in it. Zaka, like Ahmed, had set up a cryptocurrency mining farm running on hydroelectric power.

Earlier this year, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa's provincial government tapped Zaka and Ahmed to be on a committee studying how it can profit from such ventures. In March, the group announced it was looking into setting up new mining farms using Zaka's facility as a template.

The committee was dissolved in June, with the provincial government saying federal authorities should handle any new policies on cryptocurrencies.

Despite the challenges, Pakistan's crypto boom shows no signs of stopping.

Pakistan-based social media groups explaining how to trade and mine cryptocurrency abound, some with tens of thousands of followers on Facebook. On YouTube, cryptocurrency videos in Urdu have been viewed hundreds of thousands of times.

Online cryptocurrency exchanges, most based outside Pakistan, like Localbitcoins.com, have hundreds of Pakistani traders listed, some with thousands of transactions.

Apps like Binance and Binomo, which track and trade cryptocurrency, have more downloads than some of the country's largest banks' apps, according to web analytics company SimilarWeb.

"You cannot stop crypto, so the sooner Pakistan regulates things and joins the rest of the world, the better," Ahmed said.

(This story corrects to clarify State Bank head was referring to a central bank digital currency, not cryptocurrency, in paragraph 9 and to show provincial committee dissolved in paragraph 19)

Reporting by Umar Farooq; Editing by Karishma Singh

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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Pakistan moves to bring cryptocurrency boom out of the dark - Reuters

Company focused on technology

A technology company (or tech company) is an electronics-based technology company, including, for example, business relating to digital electronics, software, and internet-related services, such as e-commerce services.[1][2][3]

According to Fortune, as of 2020[update], the ten largest technology companies by revenue are: Apple Inc., Samsung, Foxconn, Alphabet Inc., Microsoft, Huawei, Dell Technologies, Hitachi, IBM, and Sony.[4] Amazon has higher revenue than Apple, but is classified by Fortune in the retail sector.[5] The most profitable listed in 2020 are Apple Inc., Microsoft, Alphabet Inc., Intel, Facebook, Samsung, and Tencent.[4]

Apple Inc., Alphabet Inc., Facebook, Microsoft, and Amazon.com, Inc. are often referred to as the Big Five multinational technology companies based in the United States. These five technology companies dominate major functions, e-commerce channels, and information of the entire Internet ecosystem. As of 2017, the Bigs Five had a combined valuation of over $3.3 trillion and make up more than 40 percent of the value of the Nasdaq 100 index.[6]

Many large tech companies have a reputation for innovation, spending large sums of money annually on research and development. According to PwC's 2017 Global Innovation 1000 ranking, tech companies made up nine of the 20 most innovative companies in the world, with the top R&D spender (as measured by expenditure) being Amazon, followed by Alphabet Inc., and then Intel.[7]

As a result of numerous influential tech companies and tech startups opening offices in proximity to one another, a number of technology districts have developed in various areas across the globe.[8] These include: Silicon Valley in the San Francisco Bay Area, Silicon Docks in Dublin, Silicon Hills in Austin, Tech City in London; Digital Media City in Seoul, Zhongguancun in Beijing, and International Tech Park in Bangalore.

Information-technology (IT) companies and high-tech companies comprise subsets of the set of technology companies.

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Technology company - Wikipedia

PODCAST

The 'need for speed' and the global chip shortage are stressing the tech ecosystem

How much stress on the system is created by the so-called need for speed with regard to advanced technology adoption and deployment in federal agencies?

In this episode of Project 38, we pick up on the second half of Senior Staff Writer Ross Wilkers discussion with a pair of chief technology officers at federal systems integrators on the right methodologies to help government customers wanting to shrink timelines from years to months and sometimes weeks.

Peder Jungck of BAE Systems Inc.s intelligence and security sector and Cameron Chehreh of Dell Federal conceded that the shift does create stress on the system, but also explain ways to work through it.

Wilkers closed the conversation by asking Jungck and Chehreh for their views on the global computer chip shortage that has disrupted substantially the entire economy, plus what that could mean for the federal technology landscape and the future global supply chain.

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PROJECT 38: How to survive today's tech stressors - Washington Technology

CHARLOTTE, N.C., June 19, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ --As the nation prepares to celebrate Juneteenth as a federal holiday for the first time, a new frontier for diversity in tech is opening for exploration. Fortune 500 Senior Software Engineer Mardochee "Mardix" Macxis is launching BlackDevHub.io, the first Black social and job matching network built on blockchain technology.

BlackDevHub.io offers Black and African American people in tech and hiring organizations who want to hire them a decentralized platform to build community, share job opportunities and create new applications in a free space limited only by its users' ambitions.

BlackDevHub.io exists to solve a real problem plaguing the tech industry: lack of diversity. Despite historic interest in racial equity and inclusion at all levels of society, Black representation in tech remains low. At leading tech companies like Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Twitter, Black people make up just 36% of employees. And it's not for lack of desire Black people are interested in tech, and tech companies are interested in hiring them. They just don't always know how to find each other.

"I created BlackDevHub.io to level the playing field and bridge the gap between Black talent and employers. BlackDevHub.io splits the power evenly between Black talent and the companies who want to hire them, providing opportunity-seekers a growth-minded community and hiring managers a secure, streamlined platform to list positions and connect with incredible talent they may have otherwise missed. We can't wait to see what our users accomplish on BlackDevHub.io."

BlackDevHub.io also makes it easier for organizations committed to diversity to showcase their efforts to the world. With its blockchain-verified Diversity Index, BlackDevHub.io ranks Fortune 500 companies for diversity in tech hires. And with corporate profile verification, community members can easily identify and connect with organizations committed to promoting greater inclusion.

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About BlackDevHub.io

BlackDevHub.io exists to advance the positions of Black and African American people in tech, leveraging the power of community and blockchain technology to share and create new opportunities, ideas and innovations. Together, we're changing the face of tech.

To stay up-to-date with BlackDevHub.io, follow us on Instagram and Twitter.

Media Contact

Mardochee Macxis, BlackDevHub.io, +1 910-991-0369, contact@blackdevhub.io

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SOURCE BlackDevHub.io

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The first-ever Black-owned social job network built on blockchain technology launches Juneteenth - Johnson City Press (subscription)