“The process of purchasing the Hong Kong-based R&D company is tracking well,” says Robert Kaapke, CEO of Evolution Solar. “We believe better engineering and technological innovations are the keys to delivering increasingly cost-effective solar panels.”

Evolution Solar says it is planning to establish a footprint with manufacturing capabilities in the Asian markets that can assist in the reduction in the manufacturing and procurement of materials in the heavy technology manufacturing providence of Shanghai, China.

SOURCE: Evolution Solar

The 2nd Iraq Security & Defense Summit is produced by the organizers of the Rebuilding Iraq Series that pioneered in 2003 and was profiled on the front page of the New York Times and more than 100+ other media outlets.

Topics will include:

* An Overview of the Threats to Iraq’s Defense and Security
* Iraq Defense Strategy
* Iraq Security Strategy
* Border Control Challenges
* Foreign Military Presence
* Iraq Defense & Security Acquisition Policy & Procurement
* Transparent Contracting & Nation Building
* Establishing the Rule of Law and Public Order in Iraq

For registrations please find attached conference brochure, fill out the registration form, and fax it to 202-280-1239. Any questions regarding 2nd Iraqi Security & Defense Conference Sponsorship Opportunities and Conference Agenda may be directed to Carla Torres, Project Team Leader at carla@nfemail.com or by telephone at 202-536-4909.

Official Letters of Invitation will only be issued and forwarded to delegates that have registered for 2nd Iraqi Security & Defense Conference for the purpose of facilitating travel and obtaining a visa and does not constitute any financial aid such as waived registration fee nor financial support for travel or accommodation. Except otherwise indicated in writing, all expenses incurred in relation to the summit are the sole responsibility of the delegate. Individuals requiring an official Letter of Invitation in order to obtain a visa and authorization to attend the Summit should register their name and contact details on the registration form.

www.new-fields.com

If you looking for commercial or residential moving job or willing to offer one or many, we will display the offers 24/7 for you, and will notify all parties of job availabilities based on specified criteria.

Why drive back from Florida or California without load if we have plenty of jobs for you. Why lose customers if there are lots of movers looking for jobs.

(PRWEB) February 18, 2008 — ClinicalDrugSource.com, a clinical trial drug procurement specialty company, has noticed a significant increase in the number of requests for drug procurement quotes and services in the past year. The specialization of clinical trial services has exploded in recent years. One novel, new area within the clinical trial service industry is comparator drug procurement services. Rather than dealing with the complex and convoluted process of sourcing and procuring comparator drugs themselves, clinical researchers and their staff are turning to specialized companies experienced in the field of comparator drug procurement.

ClinicalDrugSource.com is a licensed Canadian pharmaceutical wholesaler which offers Contract Research Organizations, clinical trial sponsors, Clinical Research Coordinators and anyone involved in drug procurement for clinical trials, a simple solution for their comparator drug sourcing and procurement needs. Since 2006, ClincalDrugSource.com, has established an extensive network of licensed, international pharmaceutical wholesalers. Their unique, proprietary pharmaceutical network allows ClinicalDrugSource.com to be able to offer very reliable and cost-effective comparator drug sourcing.

Procuring active comparator drugs for drug studies and clinical trials is a key component of the clinical research process. Comparator drug sourcing within your own country can be a complicated, expensive and time-consuming process. Sourcing comparator drugs from international locations can be extremely daunting without the right knowledge and expertise. Unique pharmaceutical regulatory restrictions in various countries and the geographical distance from the source country and their pharmaceutical manufacturers and wholesalers can make international comparator drug sourcing a monumental task.

Clinical researchers are moving towards the utilization of specialty drug procurement companies such as ClinicalDrugSource.com to avoid the headaches involved in international and local comparator drug procurement. This specialized, niche service has grown leaps and bounds over the past few years due to the growing demand to help relieve the stresses and high regulatory demands placed on clinical researchers during the clinical trial process.

About Clinical Drug Source:
ClinicalDrugSource.com is a licensed pharmaceutical wholesaler based in Winnipeg, Canada. Clinical Drug Source was established in early 2006. Clinical Drug Source is operated by a licensed pharmacist and former Health Canada official with 14 years of regulatory oversight experience. The company provides international and local comparator drug and study drug sourcing and procurement services for the clinical trial industry.

2. Have realistic expectations of a 3PL.
Do not expect more out of the provider than you do of yourself. Trust,
flexibility, and responsiveness are indispensable elements on both sides
of the 3PL provider-user relationship to move ahead. What will help with
all of this is communication and relationship.

3. Understand that sometimes things just go wrong.
The 3PL provider that you chose might not be the right fit, or they
might not deliver on all their promises in a timely fashion. Try to be
offensive before having to be defensive. You can set up an “Exit Clause”
on the contract, and after six months you will be able to reassess the
situation and decide whether or not things are working out with the
partner you have chosen.

Third Party Logistics: How to Avoid a Service Disaster (continued)

4. Know your problems and guess at possible solutions.
If you do not know the definition of the problem yourself, then it is
unrealistic to think that the provider will be able to find the solution.

5. Document your requirements and your current service levels.
As you document requirements, it forces you to look at the operation in
depth. Companies should first go through a meticulous self-evaluation and
establish a standard against which the 3PL’s performance can be measured.

6. Give the selection process the proper amount of time and assessment.
Create an initial list of three to four providers and from that list
narrow down the choices to two providers.
The five most important criteria in selecting the 3PL are price,
technology capabilities, financial stability, customer service capability,
and creativity in problem solving. Take site visits and interview the
3PL’s past clients in order to get a realistic view of their performance.
“A 3PL study published by Georgia Tech found that in order to improve
the quality of this specific business relationship, both parties should
think of 3PL providers in three related contexts:

— As a key resource directly to 3PL user organizations;
— As a key link between supply chain organizations, and;
— As a key to supply chain integration.
You just can’t afford to shortchange any of these,” LEL’s Torcomian
concluded.
About Leading Edge Logistics
Leading Edge Logistics is a non-asset based, third party logistics
provider that guarantees customer cost reduction by using a proprietary
approach, including customized monthly reports, to focus on the root causes
that effect logistics costs. LEL operates i2 Supply Chain Software… one
of the most powerful logistics tools available. Leading Edge Logistics’
special service philosophy is to work for their customers as opposed to
working for their own assets.
For More Information on LEL services, go to
http://www.leadingedgelogistics.com

Corby Chilled Distribution

The new British partner Corby Chilled Distribution has 600 employees at six locations in the UK. Sales in the last fiscal year stood at EUR 74 million. With its integration into the Innovate Group in October 2006, Corby Chilled established itself as the UK market leader in the field of temperature-controlled food logistics. The focus of the company’s activities is on procurement logistics for temperature-sensitive foods for British retailers. Through its network, Corby Chilled delivers consignments from the Food Logistics network to destinations in the UK and Ireland.

Cavalieri

With a full-coverage distribution network of 23 branches, a fleet of more than 1,000 vehicles and annual sales of approx. EUR 120 million, Cavalieri is the Italian market leader in the food logistics segment.

Delanchy

Delanchy, which also has 23 branches, is the number two food logistics provider in France, with 2,140 employees and sales of EUR 165 million. Like Corby Chilled, Delanchy specializes in procurement logistics for French retailers and transport services in the refrigerated goods segment.

Since the expansion of European services was declared to be the strategic goal of Dachser Food Logistics some years ago, both the import and export volumes handled by the Kempten-based company have risen sharply and constantly. To ensure that it can manage this growth, while - at the same time - guaranteeing consistently high quality standards, Dachser has been working hard to develop and harmonize its network structure. “The new partnerships are the result of necessitated expansions and the continuous optimization of our network,” comments Gerhard Riester, managing director of Dachser Food Logistics.

“We have deliberately opted to cooperate with strong specialists who are well-established in their respective regions, rather than to operate outside Germany under our own name,” Riester explains. The European market in the food logistics segment is still very much dominated by “family-owned and -run companies in which traditional values come before market share and shareholder value,” he adds. And he continues: “Being a family-owned company means assuming responsibility for employees, striving for financial security and upholding an entrepreneurial spirit. Companies that have these qualities are in good company with us.”

Alongside its corporate culture, Dachser Food Logistics also focuses strongly on stringent internal quality standards (e.g. the HACCP norms and ISO 9001 certification), a highly developed national network, and supply of food retailers. All of the company’s partners fulfil these requirements, and more. Both Delanchy and Corby, for example, are contractual partners of Europe’s biggest retailers, Carrefour and Tesco.

In 2006, Dachser - the international logistics provider - generated sales worth EUR 3.1 billion. 15,000 staff working in 294 profit centres worldwide handled 33 million consignments weighing a total of 20.8 million tonnes.

For several reasons, Dachser believes it is ideally equipped to face the forthcoming predatory competition in the transport and logistics industry. Its rapid growth rate over recent years has given it the critical strategic mass needed to compete in a global market. The expansion of its Europe-wide overland network of branches gives it the infrastructure necessary to provide higher-level logistics services, especially contract logistics. And the company’s outstanding IT competence ensures that it can offer its customers genuine value added. In its core business, Dachser is one of few family-owned company among Europe’s major players: that makes it a natural partner for medium-sized businesses, but the company also enjoys successful partnerships with international groups. By adopting a global strategy at an early stage, Dachser has been able to secure its European core competence while at the same time tapping additional regional growth potentials. In the next years Dachser will enlarge its activities globally. Thanks to an owner family that thinks and acts in an entrepreneurial spirit and its significant financial power Dachser can face the challenges of the future as a truly responsive, flexible and efficient market player.

This portal on shipping and logistics industry was developed to integrate logistics end users and logistics service providers.

The main features of this portal are:
* Directory - World’s largest free online shipping & logistics directory
* News – Latest industry relevant news edited by industry experts
* Jobs – Aiming to become largest job site in this industry by offering free job posting
* Freight Marketplace – Service users can post their transportation requirement for sea, air, road, courier, air/sea chartering. The service providers can reply directly to the users with their offer
* Knowledge Center – This section provides articles and interviews contributed by industry experts
* Download – This offers a collection of softwares and tools useful to shipping and logistics industry

Latest News in related to shipping and logistics industry provide by shipping-exchange.com

See at: - Shipping Industry News http://www.shipping-exchange.com/news/p1/shipping-industry-news.htm

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Professional Free Press Release News Wire

Report Buyer, the online destination for business intelligence for major industry sectors, has now added a new report on the expanding Indian logistics market. “India Logistics Outlook 2007,” forecasts that the market will grow 9% each year to reach $125 billion by 2010.

India is experiencing strong growth enablers which are leading to increased market opportunities within its logistics industry and the outsourced or third-party logistics (3PL) sector of the market. Fuelled by the growth of per capita disposable incomes, fast growing manufacturing and organised retailing sectors, strong foreign direct investment inflows (FDI) in automotive, capital goods, electronics, retail, and telecom means the market is ripe to expand dramatically over the next five years.

It is the consumer market which will lead growth in the 3PL sector as operators provide multiple tactical logistics services. Consumer markets are extending beyond the five metros of Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad and efficient product distribution is key to successfully competing across various industry channels. As a result specialist knowledge of logistics is becoming invaluable and opening up the 3PL market.

The currently fragmented nature of the logistics industry also provides an opportunity for 3PL service providers. Transporters with fleets of smaller than five trucks account for over two thirds of the total trucks owned and operated in India. In order to reduce logistics costs and focus on core competencies, Indian companies across various industries are now increasingly seeking and using the services of experienced 3PL providers.

However, there are obstacles to be overcome if the full potential of this market is to be exploited. India’s infrastructure remains underdeveloped and, with most freight traveling on a road network which has only 2% as National Highway there are clearly issues to be addressed.

This report provides an essential overview of the Indian logistics market, its structure and activities of the key stakeholders. The report incorporates top level data, forecasts and insightful analysis of the main factors affecting the industry, both currently and in the future. Verticals covered include FMCG, automotive, textiles, retailing, electronics and pharmaceuticals. Logistics Industry Segments include Air freight, road freight, rail freight, CEP (Courier, Express and Parcels), sea freight, multi-modal transportation and container logistics.

“India Logistics Outlook 2007,” is available in pdf format from Report Buyer.

Report Buyer product ID: DAT04666

About Report Buyer
Report Buyer is a UK-based independent online store supplying business information on major industry sectors. These include the Automotive Industry, Banking & Finance, Energy & Utilities, Food & Drink, Telecoms and Pharma & Healthcare. The website now carries over 16,000 business information products, including market reports, studies and books. Report Buyer is the intelligent way to buy market research making it an essential resource for executives and information buyers worldwide. Subscribers receive a free monthly newsletter and email alerts on new titles in their areas of interest.

Agency / Source: Report Buyer

In agricultural terms, the world’s appetite for automotive fuel is insatiable. The grain required to fill a 25-gallon SUV gas tank with ethanol will feed one person for a year. The grain to fill the tank every two weeks over a year will feed 26 people.

Investors are jumping on the highly profitable biofuel-bandwagon so fast that hardly a day goes by without another ethanol distillery or biodiesel refinery being announced somewhere in the world. The amount of corn used in U.S. ethanol distilleries has tripled in five years, jumping from 18 million tonnes in 2001 to an estimated 55 million tonnes from the 2006 crop.

In some U.S. Corn Belt states, ethanol distilleries are taking over the corn supply. In Iowa, a staggering 55 ethanol plants are operating or have been proposed. Iowa State University economist Bob Wisner observes that if all these plants are built, they would use virtually all the corn grown in Iowa. In South Dakota, a top-ten corn-growing state, ethanol distilleries are already claiming over half of the corn harvest.

With so many distilleries being built, livestock and poultry producers fear there may not be enough corn to produce meat, milk, and eggs. And since the United States supplies 70 percent of world corn exports, corn-importing countries are worried about their supply. Since almost everything we eat can be converted into fuel for automobiles, including wheat, corn, rice, soybeans, and sugarcane, the line between the food and energy economies is disappearing. Historically, food processors and livestock producers that converted these farm commodities into products for supermarket shelves were the only buyers. Now there is another group, those buying for the ethanol distilleries and biodiesel refineries that supply service stations.

As the price of oil climbs, it becomes increasingly profitable to convert farm commodities into automotive fuel, either ethanol or biodiesel. In effect, the price of oil becomes the support price for food commodities. Whenever the food value of a commodity drops below its fuel value, the market will convert it into fuel.

Crop-based fuel production is now concentrated in Brazil, the United States, and Western Europe. The United States and Brazil each produced over 4 billion gallons (16 billion litres) of ethanol in 2005. While Brazil uses sugarcane as the feedstock, U.S. distillers use grain — mostly corn. The 55 million tonnes of U.S. corn going into ethanol this year represent nearly one sixth of the country’s grain harvest but will supply only 3 percent of its automotive fuel.

Brazil, the world’s largest sugar producer and exporter, is now converting half of its sugar harvest into fuel ethanol. With just 10 percent of the world’s sugar harvest going into ethanol, the price of sugar has doubled. Cheap sugar may now be history.

In Europe the emphasis is on producing biodiesel. Last year the European Union (EU) produced 1.6 billion gallons of biofuels. Of this, 858 million gallons were biodiesel, produced from vegetable oil, mostly in Germany and France, and 718 million gallons were ethanol, most of it distilled from grain in France, Spain, and Germany. Margarine manufacturers, struggling to compete with subsidized biodiesel refineries, have asked the European Parliament for help.

In Asia, China and India are both building ethanol distilleries. In 2005, China converted some 2 million tons of grain — mostly corn, but also some wheat and rice — into ethanol. In India ethanol is produced largely from sugarcane. Thailand is concentrating on ethanol from cassava, while Malaysia and Indonesia are investing heavily in additional palm oil plantations and in new biodiesel refineries. Within the last year or so, Malaysia has approved 32 biodiesel refineries, but recently has suspended further licensing while it assesses the adequacy of palm oil supplies.

The profitability of crop-based fuel production has created an investment juggernaut. With a U.S. ethanol subsidy of 51 cents per gallon in effect until 2010, and with oil priced at 70 dollars per barrel, distilling fuel alcohol from corn promises huge profits for years to come.

In May 2005, the 100th U.S. ethanol distillery came on line. Seven of these distilleries are being expanded. Another 34 or so are under construction and scores more are in the planning stages. The soaring demand for crop-based fuel is coming when world grain stocks are at the lowest level in 34 years and when there are 76 million more people to feed each year.

The U.S. investment in biofuel production in response to runaway oil prices is spiraling out of control, threatening to draw grain away from the production of beef, pork, poultry, milk, and eggs. And, most seriously, the vast number of distilleries in operation, under construction, and in the planning stages threatens to reduce grain available for direct human consumption.

Simply put, the stage is being set for a head-on collision between the world’s 800 million affluent automobile owners and food consumers. Given the insatiable appetite of cars for fuel, higher grain prices appear inevitable. The only question is when food prices will rise and by how much. Indeed, in recent months, wheat and corn prices have risen by one fifth.

For the 2 billion poorest people in the world, many of whom spend half or more of their income on food, rising grain prices can quickly become life threatening. The broader risk is that rising food prices could spread hunger and generate political instability in low-income countries that import grain, such as Indonesia, Egypt, Nigeria, and Mexico. This instability could in turn disrupt global economic progress.

If ethanol distillery demand for grain continues its explosive growth, driving grain prices to dangerous highs, the U.S. government may have to intervene in the unfolding global conflict over food between affluent motorists and low-income consumers.

There are alternatives to using food-based fuels. For example, the equivalent of the 3 percent gain in automotive fuel supplies from ethanol could be achieved several times over– and at a fraction of the cost — simply by raising auto fuel efficiency standards by 20 percent. Investing in public transport could reduce overall dependence on cars.

There are other fuel options as well. While there are no alternatives to food for people, there is an alternative source of fuel for cars, one that involves shifting to highly efficient gas-electric hybrid plug-ins. This would enable motorists to do short-distance driving, such as the daily commute, with electricity.

If wind-rich countries such as the United States, China, and those in Europe invest heavily in wind farms to feed cheap electricity into the grid, cars could run primarily on wind energy, and at the gasoline equivalent of less than a dollar a gallon.

*Lester R. Brown is president of the Earth Policy Institute and author of “Plan B 2.0: Rescuing a Planet Under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble.”