29 May, 2008
Save Energy In The DC
1. Turn off idle IT equipment. [You don't need to be a rocket science to do this]
2. Virtualize servers & storage.
3. Consolidate servers, storage + data centers.
4. Turn on the CPU's power-management feature. [ . . . more 21st-century rocketry?]
5. Use IT equipment with high-efficiency power supplies.
6. Use high-efficiency UPSs.
7. Adopt power distribution at 208V/230V. ("Just by using the right power cord, you could save money.")
8. Adopt best practices for cooling.
9. Conduct an energy audit of your DC.
10. Prioritize actions to reduce energy consumption.
2. Virtualize servers & storage.
3. Consolidate servers, storage + data centers.
4. Turn on the CPU's power-management feature. [ . . . more 21st-century rocketry?]
5. Use IT equipment with high-efficiency power supplies.
6. Use high-efficiency UPSs.
7. Adopt power distribution at 208V/230V. ("Just by using the right power cord, you could save money.")
8. Adopt best practices for cooling.
9. Conduct an energy audit of your DC.
10. Prioritize actions to reduce energy consumption.
29 May, 2008
Ethernet Explosion
. . . mobile backhaul equipment, the gear that takes all the transmissions from wireless mobile devices and
transports them over cabling. Mobile operators and other providers purchased $3.7 billion in mobile backhaul equipment last
year.
- From 2009 to 2011, Infonetics says the companies will grow their
spending at double-digit rates.
- The IP and Ethernet portion of the
market will experience a triple-digit, five-year compound annual growth
rate from 2007 to 2011, the research firm says.
- The cell-site backhaul connections that are driving the growth will quadruple worldwide during that same time period.
(More)
29 May, 2008
AFCI Push-Back
Notes:
1 -- there's a link to a "billtracker" at the end of this, if you want more info.
2 -- Ohio previously took on the AFCI provisions -- and eliminated them from the state's adoption of the NEC. See a previous EleBlog post.
Lincoln HBA Attacks AFCI Provisions
of the 2008 National Electrical Code
The Nebraska General Affairs Committee
heard testimony on proposed
LB 723, a bill to change the State Electrical
Act. LB 723, if passed, will repeal
the currently adopted 2005 National
Electrical Code® (NEC) and replace it
with the 2008 (NEC).
At the General Affairs Committee
hearing held on January 28, 2008, there
were no scheduled negative comments
on LB 723. While the Lincoln, Nebraska
Home Builders Association’s (HBA’s)
testimony was neutral, it contained a
negative note relative to arc-fault circuit
interrupters (AFCIs).
The HBA gave inflated AFCI costs
in its testimony, and, in response, the
State Electrical Division issued a letter
to the General Affairs Committee providing
more realistic AFCI costs. Because
of this letter, the General Affairs Committee
voted to advance LB 723 rather
than kill it.
The HBA subsequently provided
one of the Senators with an amendment,
which, if approved, would delete
210.12 from the 2008 NEC. The General
Affairs Committee unanimously
approved moving LB 723 to General
File with one amendment that did not
pertain to the 2008 NEC and with the
HBA’s request for the open debate to
include a discussion on deleting Section
210.12 Arc-Fault Circuit-Interrupter
Protection.
This will be the HBA’s last
opportunity to sway at least 25 Senators
to support their amendment. Information
has been sent to Senator L. Patrick
Engel, sponsor of LB 723, so that
he will be informed when the debate
starts. The date and time of the debate
are unknown at this time.
The status of LB 723 can be tracked
by going to the following web address:
http://www.nebraska.gov/billtracker/
billtrack.cgi.
29 May, 2008
Non-residential Falling, Still
From Reed: "Four large markets experienced unusually weak starts in April: Warehouses, apartment buildings and condominiums, nursing homes, and miscellaneous civil projects."
From The Wall Street Journal (4/25): "A proposed $7B downtown Seattle project has become the latest major urban development to be scotched or delayed bcause of the credit crisis and a faltering ecoomy . . . the Seattle project joins other projects in New York, Phoenix, Atalnta, and Las Vegas that have been shelved, scaled back, or beset by financial problems in recent months."
From a 4/27 Baltimore Sun story headlined Project Stall -- "Mor ethan $1B in development projects -- offices, residences, stores, and hotels that would change Baltimore's skyline and help to revitalize the city -- have stalled in the face of the nationwide housing slump and faltering economy . . . at least 11 major projects have been recast or are in limbo."
From The Wall Street Journal (4/25): "A proposed $7B downtown Seattle project has become the latest major urban development to be scotched or delayed bcause of the credit crisis and a faltering ecoomy . . . the Seattle project joins other projects in New York, Phoenix, Atalnta, and Las Vegas that have been shelved, scaled back, or beset by financial problems in recent months."
From a 4/27 Baltimore Sun story headlined Project Stall -- "Mor ethan $1B in development projects -- offices, residences, stores, and hotels that would change Baltimore's skyline and help to revitalize the city -- have stalled in the face of the nationwide housing slump and faltering economy . . . at least 11 major projects have been recast or are in limbo."
None of this is permanent.
29 May, 2008
Energy Factolito
Data are for U.S. residential electricity consumption in 1999. Here are shares of that:
Answering machines: 0.17%
Cordless phones: 0.21%
Cordless/answering: 0.11%
Mobile chargers: 0.03%
Cordless phones: 0.21%
Cordless/answering: 0.11%
Mobile chargers: 0.03%
And shares of the same thing for TV set-top boxes:
cable, analog: 0.37%
cable, digital: 0.07%
wireless: 0.16%
game console: 0.05%
cable, digital: 0.07%
wireless: 0.16%
game console: 0.05%
What's the point? I guess one might note that there are a lot more wireless chargers and CATV set-top boxes NOW than in 1999. But let's leave that alone. If you add up what's presented here (the LBNL data), "together, set-tops and telephony constituted 1.2% of U.S. residential electricity consumption in 1999."
I believe the proper verdict on that is "that really sucks."
. . . and here's the kicker: "Standby power use accounted for about 60% ofthis energy use."
The verdict on that might be: "the sucks BIG-time."
27 May, 2008
"Oil Nonbubble"
That would be impressive.
A lot of what Krugman writes makes sense to me. I don't always agree with him, of course -- but his thinking (expressed in 700 words twice a week) is always worth reading.
His 5/12 column was headlined "The Oil Nonbubble." His take: The recent run-up in oil prices is NOT the fault of speculators.
I don't know where you can point fingers on the oil price. Some say we should be poking holes in the earth, in Alaska and in the oceans. Others think we need to harvest switchgrass and turn it into ethanol. I could go on with all of the choices.
I spent this past weekend reading up on oil prices. I am a paid-up subscriber (there's a cost) to Oil & Gas Journal; I subscribed a few months ago to try to keep up with what's going on in the oil sector. Thanks to the 3-day weekend, I caught up on some reading.
SUMMARY: The folks who publish that august magazine do NOT think that current prices are justified by anything.
EleBlog take:
a. I am now a confirmed believer in Peak Oil (see www.theoildrum.com, and READ). That means we've already found all of the easy-to-find, easy-to-harvest crude in the earth, and what's left -- although NOT in short supply -- will be harder to get at, more expensive to harvest, and so forth.
As an example: Stories I've recently read about the "Tar Sands" in Canada say the process of turning that gooey stuff into gasoline or diesel takes ONE barrel of oil equivalent for every THREE barrels of oil produced. And: That does NOT include (I don't think) the cost of restoring the landscape to its previous condition.
If you believe as I do, you might come to the conclusion that the U.S. is better off leaving the oil (if there is any) that's in Alaska and off the contintent's coasts WHERE IT IS. We might need it later.
If you believe as I do, you might come to the conclusion that the U.S. is better off leaving the oil (if there is any) that's in Alaska and off the contintent's coasts WHERE IT IS. We might need it later.
b. Speculators would have to be right out of their minds to allow oil to run up and NOT take profits. Today, oil correct down more than 2%. That's NOT the end of the world. It doesn't mean the oil bull market is over. It means that speculators MUST pause, from time to time, to take profits. There's no point in speculating without this, you know!
So perhaps you can interpret what happened today as "proof" that speculators are in control. If you follow markets (of any kind), you know that speculators usually end up crying. Sometimes, it takes time for this to happen.
c. Twice in a 5-month period, President George W. Bush has gone to Saudi Arabia to ask those people to boost oil output. I find this to be both stupid and humiliating. First, we here in the U.S. are capitalists: We should expect the Saudis, as merchants of a raw material, to act ONLY IN THEIR OWN INTEREST.
So we look stupid. It's humiliating for our president to go begging like this as well.
Additionally, it's possible that Matthew Simmons, author of Twilight In The Desert, is right. If he is, the Saudis KNOW they are sitting on a finite resource. IF that's true -- if Simmons is right, if the Saudis know they do not have "infinite" crude oil reserves -- textbook behavior by savvy merchants would be to MODERATE production as prices go up (i.e., NOT to increase it).
Right?
You want a steady cash flow from your resource (say it's X). When the price goes from $80 to $130 per barrel, you can stay at X cash flow only by REDUCING the amount of stuff you sell.
Right?
Additionally, it's possible that Matthew Simmons, author of Twilight In The Desert, is right. If he is, the Saudis KNOW they are sitting on a finite resource. IF that's true -- if Simmons is right, if the Saudis know they do not have "infinite" crude oil reserves -- textbook behavior by savvy merchants would be to MODERATE production as prices go up (i.e., NOT to increase it).
Right?
You want a steady cash flow from your resource (say it's X). When the price goes from $80 to $130 per barrel, you can stay at X cash flow only by REDUCING the amount of stuff you sell.
Right?
d. SOME FACTS TO CONSIDER
1 - From my reading, there are tankers full of "heavy" crude oil out there, on the seas, looking for buyers. Not every refinery can handle "heavy" crude . . . which would seem to mean, of course, that some enterprising SOB should be out there building a specialized refinery.
2 - Also from my reading, the "spread" between the price of crude oil and the price in the U.S. of gasoline has NARROWED. I follow this pretty closely, as I have some money (not much!) invested in VLO stock. According to something I read this weekend, if the spread were to return to where it has been in the past, gasoline would be up around $6.16/gallon.
. . . no, that's NOT a typo. $6.16.
3 - I bought that stock (Valero Energy = VLO) because I believe that all markets run to extremes, and then run back. Smarter people call this "reversion to the mean." In other words: Refining margins right now are NARROW. They won't always be. If you want to buy stock (or ETFs) that will go up with the price of oil, you can look into symbols USO or OIH.
But if you think gasoline prices might eventually go up, as that crude-gasoline spread WIDENS over time, the thing to do is buy the stock of a refiner when no one wants it. Which would be . . . now.
- - - - -
BOTTOM LINE: If it's speculation driving prices higher, SO BE IT. The speculators eventually will run oil up too far (and it will correct $25/barrel in a day).
If it's production being moderated by oil producers . . . well, so what? What would a reasonable customer group expect?
If it's a mismatch of what's being produced (an oversupply of "heavy" crude) and how Western refineries are equipped (i.e., they can best handle "light, sweet crude") . . . heck, that's fixable, given capital, know-how, and motivation.
If the U.S. wants to make itself immune from these crazy swings in oil prices in the future, the answer is NOT to poke more holes in the earth. Oil seeks a "market" price -- we won't get cheaper gasoline because we're harvesting crude off our coasts. WE DON'T GET CHEAPER GAS because of the 40% of our crude that comes from U.S. sources now; the U.S. crude is priced equal to the stuff we import from Venezuela or Saudi or wherever. THINK ABOUT IT. You can also check on this at www.eia.doe.gov.
No -- to make ourselves immune, we have to think outside of the freakin' box. That switchgrass idea -- it might be worth a think.
27 May, 2008
Grid Q+A
But CSE is always worth reading. Here's one answer worth a read -- and a think:
Businesses will become creative in how they manage their power
reliability needs. We know of one utility that offers high availability
“premium power” service to several customers. In this case, the utility
arranged for financing of high-efficiency UPS equipment from a third
party institution, installed the UPS systems at the customer’s
facility, and is recouping the cost through the premium utility rate
that it charges to the customer.
Others with a need for continuous power will provide for their own power security via UPS and generator, through the use of on-site generation in parallel with the grid or a combination thereof. On-site combined-heat- and-power systems provide opportunities for reliability improvement and long-term energy savings.
Others with a need for continuous power will provide for their own power security via UPS and generator, through the use of on-site generation in parallel with the grid or a combination thereof. On-site combined-heat- and-power systems provide opportunities for reliability improvement and long-term energy savings.
EleBlog take: There's a TON of opportunity in here for electrical contractors. You could even see the mutation or evolution (call it what you will) of a "new" type of EC -- the "power specialist."
Someone has to install (correctly) that "high-efficiency UPS equipment." Someone will have to help companies "provide for their own power security." Someone is going to become an expert in CHP ("combined heat and power").
RELIABILITY is an opportunity, too, that one might treat separately from this.
27 May, 2008
Wireless Harvesting
Yes, you push the thing to "on" and the tiny energy generated by flipping the switch would power the signal. Since learning about this, I've tried to follow both the basic idea (which is called "energy harvesting") and EnOcean itself.
Here's a recent release on the EnOcean Alliance. The mission: "To enable intelligent green buildings based on EnOcean energy harvesting wireless technology."
27 May, 2008
Solar Prices To Sink
the silicon shortage will become a silicon oversupply which will start to push down prices next year and then accelerate further in 2010. Analysts also see demand risks from potential changes in 2010 to rebate
programs in Germany and Spain, two of the largest markets for solar.
For consumers, falling solar prices means that they'll be able to purchase more watts per dollar. That's not necessarily good news for manufacturers, though.
24 May, 2008
Neat Oil Price Graphic
24 May, 2008
Non-Res FLAT
Design Slowdown Continues in April, the AIA weekly newsletter's headline said. Elsewhere, the flattening was reported as positive (or at least not-so-bad). The fact is, the March data was the worst in the history of this index -- and April was flat. BAD NEWS.
24 May, 2008
Greens Battle On Nukes
“Greenpeace is opposed to the use of hydro power, nuclear energy,
widely accepted sustainable forestry standards, and vinyl products, to
name but a few of the things they are opposed to," said Moore.
"How ironic since nuclear and hydro are among the most sustainable of energy sources while wood and vinyl are among the most sustainable of building materials," said Moore.
"How ironic since nuclear and hydro are among the most sustainable of energy sources while wood and vinyl are among the most sustainable of building materials," said Moore.
See the item here. "Moore" is a co-founder of Greenpeace.
For the record: The writer of the EleBlog is a pro-nuke (with conditions!) tree-hugger.
24 May, 2008
Order: 667 Wind Turbines(?)
24 May, 2008
'Tools You Need'
24 May, 2008
Audio Tips
24 May, 2008
Deaths By Electrocution
20 May, 2008
DC Energy Use Soars
-- from a GreenerComputing.com item on an Uptime Institute conference.
Apparently, the EPA estimate of data center power use growth UNDERshot.
Note that the item linked above includes a link -- heck, here's the linked page -- to a page where you can see a video for more info, if you don't feel like reading.
(More)
20 May, 2008
Wind Industry: Snapshot
(More)
20 May, 2008
Water-Damaged Equipment?
20 May, 2008
CA Shortage: 'Green Labor'
Already, the state lacks enough solar panel installers to keep up with demand, and electrical utilities trying to expand their use of
renewable power have a hard time finding qualified workers, said
panelists at the Advancing the New Energy Economy summit in San
Francisco.
AND"If we're going to meet these challenges, we're going to have to weatherize millions of buildings," said Van Jones, co-founder of the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights. "We're going to have to install millions of solar panels, build thousands of wind farms. That's millions of jobs."
20 May, 2008
Video Cable For Audio
Cooper conductors have an advantage
Lower resistance
Better flexibility
Connector simplicity
"Any" length options
Rated products
Digital potential
Lower resistance
Better flexibility
Connector simplicity
"Any" length options
Rated products
Digital potential
BEST OF ALL -- see the comments posed below the article. One comment says it's a great article; another says it's "full of contradictions." PLENTY TO THINK ABOUT HERE!!!
20 May, 2008
ESCs in Home Building
I'm not sure I agree with every word of this, but if you're in the electrical contracting business, this relatively short article is worth a read . . . and a think!
20 May, 2008
Sunset - Google Earth 4.3
20 May, 2008
Doors & Energy Waste
At one oft-used M.I.T. building, the researchers calculated that if
everyone - instead of the 23% they observed - used the revolving
doors, it could save $7,500 in natural gas payments and spare the
planet 15 tons of CO2 emissions a year.
16 May, 2008
Economic Movement (???)
1. The price of gold ran up almost $40 in the past two days. Kitco.com charts for 5/14 show the spot-market close @ $863.00/oz. for gold. Today: $901.60.
2. The federal unemployment report for April was as bogus as many of us suspected. See the Reuters news item on today's revelation from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
3. Year-over-year growth in withholding taxes continues to decline. NOTE: THERE IS GROWTH. Read the chart carefully -- it shows growth these days in the 5% range, which isn't horrible. But look at the chart, as presented here. It seems to tell a story of an economy in decline.
16 May, 2008
Wireless Babysitting
To help it and its clients reduce some of these traditionally high
labor costs, SuperheatFGH recently developed and implemented a wireless
solution between its 6Wi 460 V, six-HAZ power-units and Site-Access
Management (SAM) computing system. This WiFi link allows a technician,
who used to monitor only six to12 weld zones, to now oversee and run up
to 100 power units, or a total of 600 zones. Lewis says this allows
Superheat to run a welding project with 70% fewer staff, which means a
site that used to need 100 technicians now needs only 30 or fewer. The
level of these labor savings even enables more users to self-perform
more of their own welding projects, so Superheat trains them to use its
technology.
(More)
16 May, 2008
Utilities & Energy Efficiency
Essential steps, according to the analysis, include
i
ncreased consumer education;
adoption and enforcement of aggressive building codes and appliance standards;
creation of utility business models that promote increased efficiency within the power sector; and
adoption of electricity pricing policies that more accurately reflect the cost of providing electricity to consumers.
There's a lot to think about there!ncreased consumer education;
adoption and enforcement of aggressive building codes and appliance standards;
creation of utility business models that promote increased efficiency within the power sector; and
adoption of electricity pricing policies that more accurately reflect the cost of providing electricity to consumers.
16 May, 2008
Energy Inaction
According to the second annual Johnson Controls Energy Efficiency
Indicator survey, nearly three-quarters (72 percent) of organizations are
paying more attention to energy efficiency than they were just a year ago.
However, the percentage of companies expecting to make energy efficiency
improvements, as well as their planned investment over the next year, has
remained constant.
16 May, 2008
What Green 'Really Means'
Today, if you
evaluate products based on a single green attribute, you could be
overlooking manufacturing processes, carbon emissions resulting from
transport, disposal pathway, etc. To prevent these oversights,
life-cycle assessment (LCA) takes a holistic approach to evaluating environmental impact
16 May, 2008
Digital Dialogue
In the "what recession?" category, there's this slice of an entry from 5/6:
New data released this week by CEA shows that HDTVs
have the potential to penetrate half of U.S. homes by the end of the
year. The study also shows that the average U.S. household reports
spending $1,405 on consumer electronics products in the past 12 months.
That’s $120 more than the previous 12 months.
16 May, 2008
Bangledesh Power Outages
What's being damaged? Elevators, AC, refrigerators, washing machines, microwave ovens, lights, and fans.
Loads are being shed -- and it's "frequent, abrupt," according to the story -- for 6 to 7 hours per day. It happens "for several hours at different spells on a day."
16 May, 2008
Copper Cabling Advice
Here's what the writer said NOT to do:
Avoid buying cheap imports. I learned in the early 1980s that the
variance in copper that is listed as .24 AWG doesn’t necessarily mean
.24 AWG but could mean .230009 or .231777 or anything between .23 and
.24 AWG. Then, there’s the quality (purity) of the copper and of course
the jacketing, materials used and the twists. Not all cables are the
same, there are differences and the biggest differentiator is going to
be price, and that should be a starting indicator.
If you go to the site be sure to make it down to the "sidebar" at bottom, on corporate leasing of office compnents.
12 May, 2008
Green Supply Chains
Ryder, meanwhile, has taken a number of steps
to green its own vehicles and thereby enhancing the relative
"green-ness" of its customers. The company has taken steps to reduce
the amount of sulfur emitted from diesel-powered engines by providing
ultra low sulfur diesel (ULSD) fuel at all Ryder fueling operations in
the U.S. Ryder also provides biodiesel supplies in areas where this
fuel is mandated by regulation.
EleBlog take: Of course, anyone in the Distribution business "should" read this. But so should all of the rest of us -- assuming we all want to "go green" for reasons other than Public Relations!
12 May, 2008
'A/V Cables Explained'
12 May, 2008
'Shift' To Solar/LEDs?
The current survey shows the transformation
in the way companies view energy consumption continues to represent
a giant opportunity for investors, particularly within the solar and
LED markets.
12 May, 2008
Housing Crisis Update
For starters, a bottom does not mean that prices are
about to return to the heady days of 2005. That probably won't happen
for another 15 years. It just means that the trend is no longer getting
worse, which is the critical factor.
Most people forget that the current housing bust is nearly three years old. Home sales peaked in July 2005. New home sales are down a staggering 63% from peak levels of 1.4 million. Housing starts have fallen more than 50% and, adjusted for population growth, are back to the trough levels of 1982.
EleBlog take: When the cockeyed optimists -- and I really DO want to stress the word "cockeyed" here -- note that we're not going to return to 2005 prices for 15 years, you might want to take a pass on bullish arguments until, maybe, 2012 or 2015.12 May, 2008
Data Center Boom!
Developers delivered about 671,000 square feet of office and flex
telecom hotel and Web hosting space last year, compared with about
411,200 square feet in 2006, according to CoStar Property Professional
data. After a pause in the first quarter, nearly 500,000 square feet of
space is slated for delivery in the current quarter, followed by about
400,300 in the second half of 2008.
With at least 1.8 million square feet in the construction pipeline in the current quarter, deliveries should remain brisk through 2009.
With at least 1.8 million square feet in the construction pipeline in the current quarter, deliveries should remain brisk through 2009.
12 May, 2008
Construction Accounting Software
12 May, 2008
Commercial: Price Correx 'Unavoidable'
a. There's a significant amount of denial in this market right now -- like housing in late 2006 and early 2007.
b. This segment is doing a good job of keeping the construction industry busy, including (and specially) electrical contracting.
I just read an April issue article from National Real Estate Investor, A Price Correction Is Unavoidable, by a guy from the Brookings Institution. It's 1,135 words. I'm not sure this person is correct. Here'd a tiny piece of it -- from deep into the thing -- that woke me up:
How far will commercial property prices fall? No one can be sure, but consider how much those prices rose from 1993 to 2006. If the net income from a commercial property remained the same in dollars from 1993 to 2006, the prices of properties rose an average of 63.9% among industrial properties and 78.3% among office properties.
Those figures are based solely on declines in the cap rates typical of such properties, according to the National Council of Real Estate Investment Fiduciaries. But if net operating income rose by 20% during the same period, the price increases reached 96.7% and 113%, respectively. There is plenty of room for property prices to decline and still leave owners financially well off, if they owned the properties throughout that period.
07 May, 2008
Copper Thieves + Substations
Catching theives and bringing them before a judge is small beer!
Bottom line: You ain't smart enough to plunder a transformer, a substation . . . or the power lines. Your utility might not have an intrusion detection and alarm system in place. If it doesn't, you might make it through -- to enough voltage to fry you instantly.
07 May, 2008
Los Angeles Mandates LEED
[This is filed under "Intelligent Buildings" -- but it ought to be there with a damn big ? mark!!!!]
07 May, 2008
Non-Res: BAD NEWS
It really is BAD news. See the graphic below, assembled by the Northern Trust folks from data from the American Institute of Architects AND the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
07 May, 2008
Siemon Offers Free E-Book
07 May, 2008
Green Plug -- ???
Amid overwhelming response from the media and analyst communities (www.greenplug.us/news.html), Green Plug - pioneering developer of digital technology enabling real-time collaboration between electronic
devices and their power sources - today will demonstrate examples of the industry's first environmentally-friendly DC power hub using its
exclusive green technology.
devices and their power sources - today will demonstrate examples of the industry's first environmentally-friendly DC power hub using its
exclusive green technology.
07 May, 2008
Green Engineer Shortage
"A shortage of qualified engineers -- and no indication that numbers are improving -- will severly hamper Ireland's progress on renewable energy projects . . the government's aim for one-third of Ireland's electricity to come form renewable sources by 2020 could face a major hurdle: A lack of engineers to carry out the projects."
(More)
07 May, 2008
Elephant Painting (???)
It's gotta be faked. Doesn't matter, it's nice to dream of such wonderful things!
06 May, 2008
Home Theater Installs
2007: 166,000 installations
2012: 277,000 installations.
2012: 277,000 installations.
As noted in an item posted today, the White House thinks there are 80 million houses in the U.S. For all of the hoopla over home theater, obviously, the market is QUITE limited!
06 May, 2008
NEC & Standby Gensets
Is the cabling from the generator a feeder or a service?
What does the NEC require for generator sizing?
How quickly must a generator start up and transfer?
Is a disconnect required on the gnerator?
Is another disconnect required at the point of building entrance?
What size of generator breaker should feed a fire pump?
What does the NEC require for generator sizing?
How quickly must a generator start up and transfer?
Is a disconnect required on the gnerator?
Is another disconnect required at the point of building entrance?
What size of generator breaker should feed a fire pump?
06 May, 2008
Monk Parakeet Nests
This is part of it!
06 May, 2008
Key Housing Data
Now, I don't normally agree with the Bush Administration. But there's a slide in here with some key data:
1. There are 80 million houses in the U.S.
2. 25 million of them are PAID OFF (no mortgage!).
3. 55 million (obviously) have outstanding mortgages.
4. Of those, 51 million mortgagees (homeowners) are PAYING ON TIME.
5. Which leaves 4 million who are behind in payments . . . 8% of the total.
Putting aside the rest of the presentation and the Bush position (whatever that is) . . . I'm pretty sure I don't know why the rest of us should bail out the 4 million problem children. Politically, it's a bit crazy to push the 92% who are RESPONSIBLE to help the irresponsible. Economically, bailing these people out will only encourage more extreme behavior next time.
All I can figure is that the folks in Washington are being pushed by the folks in the financial community to bail them (the financials) out completely. I'm pretty upset about what's already been done for the monied interests. More makes no sense.
ON THE OTHER HAND: With 8% of 55 million homes in trouble, you can readily understand that the housing crisis -- in terms of falling prices -- is going to be around for a while. It will take a long time to clear this. I don't have a problem with that; if houses become cheaper, or become more expensive, that is a MARKET operation.
. . . it's a market op, of course, unless the government gets involved!
06 May, 2008
Construction Spending, Q1
06 May, 2008
EC Employment
At 715,700, the 4/08 figure makes the best April since 2001. The number is still down -- just 8/10ths of 1% -- from the January 2008 figure, however.
06 May, 2008
Unemployment Data
First, it's hard to believe you'd push the # of phantom jobs UP in 4/08 compared with 4/07 -- isn't it? A downward move make sense.
Second, the components of the 267K phantom jobs are a bit weird. We added 45,000 birth/death jobs in April. What that means is that 45,000 construction workers went into business for themselves OR were hired by new businesses that the BLS thinks it can't track.
I checked the official release. Construction workers increased from 6,997,000 in March, the BLS says, to 7,111,000 in April. I guess that's possible, with improvement in the weather. Yet (as you've seen here, if you've been looking) -- residential construction is STILL slowing down, and non-residential is approaching the fall-off-a-cliff point.
Who the heck is hiring? Who the heck is going into business for himself at such a time? It's (at the very least) mysterious.
01 May, 2008
Water & Plug-In Hybrids
For every mile driven by a gas-powered vehicle that is displaced by one
driven by an electric vehicle, the researchers report, about three
times as much water is consumed (that is, lost to evaporation) and
about 17 times as much is withdrawn (used and returned to its source).
Jeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeez.
01 May, 2008
Webcast: Sustainable Stadiums
01 May, 2008
FO & Industrial
MYTHS listed in the article
1 - FO cable is fragle.
2 - FO networks are more expensive than copper.
3 - FO benefits "are limited to higher bandwidth, faster speeds, longer distances, and interference immunity." What the F is wrong with that list of benefits, I don't know, but the article provides more ("equally significant safety and security-related benefits over copper").
4 - FO cabling is primarily for backbone.
2 - FO networks are more expensive than copper.
3 - FO benefits "are limited to higher bandwidth, faster speeds, longer distances, and interference immunity." What the F is wrong with that list of benefits, I don't know, but the article provides more ("equally significant safety and security-related benefits over copper").
4 - FO cabling is primarily for backbone.
I've been a believe in FO for a long time (thanks to the tutelage of Jim Hayes), so none of this is a shock. If you're not up on this stuff, give this article a read.
01 May, 2008
Nuclear Worker Shotage
The huge engineering firm Fluor already is canvassing high schools
within a 100-mile radius of Bay City, with an extraordinary offer:
After graduation, enter Fluor's training program—free of charge—to
learn carpentry, welding, electrical work, or another skilled trade.
You'll eventually be sent for work and on-the-job training at one of Fluor's other construction projects in Texas: an oil refinery in Port Arthur or coal plant in Oak Grove. When NRG Energy, the company planning the two south Texas nuclear reactors, receives the government go-ahead to start building, around 2010, Fluor aims to bring those workers back to Bay City for specialized nuclear plant training and to start in on the job.
The annual pay: $60,000 to $75,000.
You'll eventually be sent for work and on-the-job training at one of Fluor's other construction projects in Texas: an oil refinery in Port Arthur or coal plant in Oak Grove. When NRG Energy, the company planning the two south Texas nuclear reactors, receives the government go-ahead to start building, around 2010, Fluor aims to bring those workers back to Bay City for specialized nuclear plant training and to start in on the job.
The annual pay: $60,000 to $75,000.
Read the rest of A Worker Shortage In The Nuclear Industry -- here.
01 May, 2008
'At Least 3 Years . . .'
For all I know, you can get in and register free. But I'm not sure that's possible.
ANYWAY, How and When Can the U.S. Housing Market Recover? was the title of the 1/18/08 piece. The thoughts went into detail (with charts) on "duration" -- how long it takes to sell a house. Tentative conclusion of the writers (which included William C. Wheaton, Ph.D.): It's going to take a long time to clear the market, unless significant buying from some unforeseen source (i.e., foreign buyers?) comes to the fore.
The thing concluded as follows (I've bolded the key 5 words):
A final way that duration might be reduced would be if the
denominator—sales—were to increase. Most sales are driven by the
"lateral" moves of households, as they change jobs, family status, or
income. Economists call such mobility housing "churn", and generally it
rises a bit in good economic times and during strong housing markets.
Census surveys do show, however, that mobility is quite stable over the long term. With all of the current concern about the economy and housing market, a significant pick-up in sales seems unlikely.
All of this suggests that housing prices (and construction) will likely not begin
a recovery for at least three years.
Furthermore, if the five market changes (above) that are needed for this recovery do not occur, then prices will continue to fall until they do. That, after all, is the nature of equilibrium economics!
01 May, 2008
Africa: Still Dark
Power for most Africans is still a luxury. Just under a quarter of
sub-Saharan Africa's population has access to electricity in the first
place, and that is concentrated in urban areas. Africa has the capacity
to generate about 63 gigawatts of power for roughly 770 million people
-- about what Spain produces for its population of 40 million. For most
African countries, the World Bank estimates that universal access to
electricity is at least 50 years away.But these days, even the few who
have come to expect electricity are finding it increasingly difficult
to come by -- or afford.
If you have access to the WSJ site, click here. 01 May, 2008
Solar Leases For Homeowners
I hope this link (to the East Bay Business Times site) works. You'll probably get only a piece of the story, unless you are registered. According to the balance (which you probably won't see), Morgan Stanley backs the lease program. This is a lot better idea than flushing the money down the drain, as so many financial companies have done.
I also hope the program works! This is a REALLY good idea.
