African Review of Business and Technology articles from October 2006

African Review of Business and Technology archives from October 2006

Editor's note.(Contents)
October 1, 2006... SALES OF GENERATING sets continue to soar--and there is no end in sight. Africa's ever-growing engagement with the global economy is creating an insatiable demand for power, with the oil and gas sector in particular needing standby systems...

Yorpower.(Briefly)
October 1, 2006... A UK-BASED GENERATOR supplier Yorpower has been awarded a major contract to supply 15 gensets for a mobile telecomms project in Angola. The generators, ranging from 20 to 250 kW, will be supplied in weatherproof canopies. Yorpower's control...

The Nigerian CAA recently closed Port Harcourt airport after a recent fire.(Briefly)
October 1, 2006... THE NIGERIAN CAA recently closed Port Harcourt airport after a recent fire. Runway maintenance and perimeter fencing plans were brought forward, and new runway lighting and fire control facilities are also to be installed. Reopening is...

The President says his government is committed to expanding Nigeria's railway system.(Briefly)
October 1, 2006... THE PRESIDENT SAYS his government is committed to expanding Nigeria's railway system, with a contract soon to be signed for the US$8.3bn first phase linking Lagos and Kano. The government of China will be providing a soft loan of US$2 bn for...

Rwanda Government.(Briefly)(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... THE RWANDA GOVERNMENT has invested US$500,000 for the development of a plan to improve its aviation system within the framework of the COMESA Communication, Navigation, Surveillance and Air Traffic Management (CNS/ATM) system. According to...

Safmarine.(Briefly)
October 1, 2006... MULTI-TRADE SHIP owner and operator, Safmarine has officially named the Spirit of Safmarine III, the South African National Sea Rescue Institute's latest rescue craft. Speaking at the naming ceremony, held at the NSRI's Cape Town Victoria &...

US millennium funding for Namibia.(Commercial Review)(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... NAMIBIA IS THE latest country to be pronounced eligible for US Millennium Challenge Corp (MCC) development aid, aiming to complete project submissions by October. The Washington-based MCC was established by President Bush in 2004 to work in...

Real progress at Tin Can Island.(Commercial Review)
October 1, 2006... PHASE ONE OF Grimaldi Shipping's private port scheme at Tin Can Island was commissioned recently after expenditure of US$60 million. Phase two will cost half as much again. The new facilities occupy land formerly used by the NPA, and will be...

NSE's bumper year.(Commercial Review)
October 1, 2006... THE NIGERIAN STOCK Exchange (NSE) has disclosed that in 2005, the 20 most capitalised companies quoted on the exchange generated more than N900bn in turnover. Addressing participants at the NSE's 2006 Annual Conference for Chief Executive...

Uganda prepares for CHOGM.(Commercial Review)(Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting )(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... UGANDA'S MINISTER OF Foreign Affairs Sam Kutesa announced that Queen Elizabeth II will pay a three-day state visit to Uganda prior to the next Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM). The meeting, expected to attract between...

Ghana benefits from China-Africa co-operation.(Commercial Review)
October 1, 2006... IN NOVEMBER THIS year, 48 African leaders will congregate in Beijing for the China-Africa co-operation summit which will seek to promote the already existing relationship between China and Africa, and deliberate on current issues including...

Customs union for biggest trading bloc.(Commercial Review)
October 1, 2006... DISCUSSIONS ON A customs union policy for the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), Africa's biggest economic grouping, are at an advanced stage with final recommendations expected before the end of the year. According...

Benguela agreement on marine issues.(Commercial Review)
October 1, 2006... ANGOLA, NAMIBIA AND South Africa have signed an interim agreement for the Benguela Current Commission (BCC) which provides for the sustainable utilisation of the marine and coastal resources of the Benguela Current Large Ecosystem. The...

Production platform arrives in Gabon.(Oil News)(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... VAALCO ENERGY'S PRODUCTION platform has arrived at its Avouma field off the coast of Gabon in West Africa, and a 16-km-long pipeline linking the platform to a Floating Production, Storage and Offloading facility should be completed next week....

Uganda.(Oil News)
October 1, 2006... AUSTRALIA'S HARDMAN SAID its Mputa-1 well, drilled early this year, is "potentially commercial". The well was tested in August, giving a flow of 820 barrels/day of light 33[degrees] API crude from an upper zone and 300 barrels/day of...

Libya.(Oil News)
October 1, 2006... THE COUNTRY'S THIRD licensing round in recent years was opened by the National Oil Corporation, which invited bids for 41 blocks. There are 29 onshore areas--six in the Sirte basin, three in the Ghadames basin, four in the Murzuq basin, six...

Nigeria.(Oil News)
October 1, 2006... THE GOVERNMENT SAID it wants to bring the UK's Centrica and BG into the Brass LNG group, which is planning to construct a 10 million tonnes/year LNG complex at Brass by 2011. It wants to cut Total's 17 per cent share to 12.5 per cent, and...

Angola.(Oil News)
October 1, 2006... THE GOVERNMENT IS planning to open another licensing round late this year, after the success of the 2005 round, awarded in May. On offer will be 12 areas, three of which--Blocks 46, 47 and 48--will be newly-designated exploration areas,...

Chad.(Oil News)
October 1, 2006... A DISPUTE OVER tax payments has led to the government telling two firms that they will have to surrender their interests in the Doba basin fields, which produce 170,000 barrels/day. The firms are Petronas, which holds 35 per cent of the Doba...

Congo (Brazzaville).(Oil News)
October 1, 2006... SOCO, A UK FIRM, was due to start a 1,200 square kilometres 3-D seismic survey in its Marine XI block in early-October, after agreeing a farm-out deal to bring two more firms--Lundin and Raffia--into the licence group. Soco says exploration...

Equatorial Guinea plans second LNG train.(Oil News)
October 1, 2006... EQUATORIAL GUINEA--due to join the world's liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporters next year--has launched plans for a second train. The EG LNG group, led by US firm Marathon, has awarded a front-end engineering design contract for the...

Kenya's tea exports fall.(Commodities)
October 1, 2006... KENYA'S TEA PRODUCTION saw a 13 per cent rise in July to 23mn kg, mainly on account of increased production in the tea-growing regions west of the Rift Valley due to favourable weather conditions. This came as a welcome turnaround as severe...

Pressure on cocoa.(Commodities)
October 1, 2006... LIFFE COCOA FUTURES have remained under pressure in recent weeks on speculator selling and bearish sentiment due to West African sales expected in the coming weeks. Having begun September at UK[pounds sterling]843 a tonne and just UK[pounds...

Robusta on a high.(Commodities)
October 1, 2006... ROBUSTA COFFEE FUTURES prices on the London International Financial Futures Exchange (LIFFE) continued the upward rally begun in late July into September, moving through the US$2,000 a tonne level for the first time in seven and a half years....

Fresh strike news helps copper.(Commodities)
October 1, 2006... COPPER CONTINUED THE rally begun in the fourth week of June into the first half of September on the back of continuing concern about tight supply. Even the settlement of the 25-day labour strike at Chile's Escondida mine, the world's largest...

Gold hit by weaker oil prices.(Commodities)
October 1, 2006... WEAKENING OIL PRICES, which slumped to their lowest in almost six months in mid-September, and a lack of geopolitical influences have taken their toll on gold (and certain other commodities) in recent days. Having touched a four-week high of...

Arabica futures at seven-week low.(Commodities)(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... THE UPWARD TREND in New York arabica coffee futures due to concern about drought in the world's largest producing country Brazil over the past month crumbled after mid-September due to fund-led selling. The December and March contracts on the...

Executives' calendar.(Calendar)
October 1, 2006... OCTOBER 4-10 Uganda's International Trade Expo LUGOGO Innovation Exhibitions Organiser, Dubai. Tel: +971 4 2828664 Fax: +971 4 2828638 e-mail: info@ieo.ae www.africantradefairs.com 8-11...

Upgrade for Entebbe airport.(Business Travel)
October 1, 2006... THE CIVIL AVIATION Authority (CAA) has handed over two project sites to the contractors that won the bids for construction of a domestic and general aviation terminal building and expansion of the arrivals area at the Entebbe International...

Refurbishment at Kenya's Fairmont hotels.(Business Travel)
October 1, 2006... KINGDOM HOTEL INVESTMENTS, which recently acquired Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, has announced a further 40 per cent capital investment from the initial US$25mn into their plans for the refurbishment of their Kenyan portfolio. These include The...

Malawi tourism consortium grows.(Business Travel)
October 1, 2006... SANGILO SANCTUARY LODGE has joined the Malawi Tourism Marketing Consortium. Opened in December 2004, it is the most northerly lakeshore lodge in the Consortium, located just south of Chilumba and 20km north of the Livingstonia Mission....

South African Airways.(Briefly)
October 1, 2006... SOUTH AFRICAN AIRWAYS' has launched low fares for the northern hemisphere's autumn season. When traveling from 7 October through November customers can save up to 30 per cent with fares starting as low as US$1,000 (excluding taxes/fuel fees),...

IFA Hotels & Resorts.(Briefly)
October 1, 2006... FOLLOWING FIRST LISTING on the JSE in February, IFA Hotels & Resorts has achieved very significant growth, especially in profits. Revenue for the year to June 2006 was up by 57 per cent to US$22.7mn and EBIT earnings by 138 per cent to...

Dollar down on inflation fears.(Finance)
October 1, 2006... DESPITE VERY HIGH but stable interest rates the US dollar has weakened over the past month, and further falls are expected. The problem is that US inflation is still high compared with other OECD countries and that US economic growth in the...

Exchange rates.(Financial Forecast)
October 1, 2006... Exchange Rates The currencies shown below are valued at the middle rates between buying and selling on 25 September. The rates are an indication of the value and are not intended to be used as the basis for transactions. The...

Forecast movements against the dollar.(Financial Forecast)(Statistical table)(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... Forecast movements against the dollar 25 Sept 2006 end-Oct December Country (actual) 2006 2006 April 2007 Japan (Yen) 116.4 115-117...

Asian giants drive Africa's trade patterns: the rapid integration of China and India, into the global marketplace over the past decade is having a profound impact on macroeconomic interdependence. The Asian giants are poised to dominate the 21st century which, in turn, should provide good news for African commodity exporters.(Trade)
October 1, 2006... THERE IS A strong correlation between performance of the world economy (GDP and industrial growth rates) and primary commodity markets. The University of Liverpool School of Management Research Paper (2004) Growth, Commodity Prices, Inflation...

Expo reflects strong growth in agro industries: Africa's Big Seven (AB7), an annual event staged in Johannesburg, is going from strength to strength. This is partly thanks to the attention African governments are now paying to their agro processing industries.(Show Review)
October 1, 2006... THE LATEST AB7 held in July 2006 attracted over 7,000 qualified trade buyers from 31 countries--a much larger than average attendance for a specialised trade show held outside of Europe--but it's not all about numbers. Almost 51 per cent of...

Relaunch of metical reflects rebirth of a nation: with inflation under control, a stable currency and plenty of international interest in investment, Mozambique is doing well. Overseas governments are queuing up to provide funds says James Hall.(Mozambique)
October 1, 2006... ASIDE FROM THE economic stability brought on by shaving in one swoop three decimal points off the valuation of the national currency, the revamped metical symbolises a fundamentally stronger Mozambican economy and investment environment. ...

Rail link revitalises port of Maputo: the upgrade of the railway link from the Mozambique-South Africa border town of Ressano Garcia to Maputo will achieve a crucial objective of the Maputo development corridor. Stephen Williams reports from Mozambique.(Mozambique)
October 1, 2006... LAST MAY, MOZAMBIQUE'S Transport Minister Antonio Munguambe declared that after many months of delay, the railway between South Africa and Maputo will be fully renovated and operational by the end of this year. He also said that traffic from...

Kenya's post office uses VsaT technology.
October 1, 2006... THE POSTAL CORPORATION of Kenya has introduced an electronic money transfer service akin to that offered by multinationals Western Union and Moneygram. The Corporation has teamed up with Afripayments, a locally incorporated firm with...

CNBC Africa coming.(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... BUSINESS TV BROADCASTER CNBC has concluded an agreement with Africa Business News Ltd to Launch the first regional business and financial TV news channel for sub-Saharan Africa. CNBC Africa will focus on local business markets and provide...

Printing problems? Let's get practical: all of us get seduced by the marketing dreams of the IT industry--how easily our business problems could be solved by just one more piece of shiny hardware or sexy software! But, suggests Karen Young, ensuring delivery of solutions really involves sitting down and thinking hard about your operation.(Information Technology)
October 1, 2006... FOR ONCE, LET'S not paint wild dreams about the future. Let's leave aside the marketing proposals that litter your desk and promise everything you might ever need. Instead, with the help of some eminently practical suggestions from...

Account opening technology: getting it right ...(BANKING ON TRANSFORMATION: DELIVERY CHANNELS AND FUNDS)
October 1, 2006... There are many reasons why account opening technology has become one of the most publicised IT initiatives over the last couple of years. Government regulations are certainly one of the forces pushing financial institutions to seriously...

Future-proofing your messaging middleware.(BANKING ON TRANSFORMATION: DELIVERY CHANNELS AND FUNDS)
October 1, 2006... AS DISTRIBUTION pressures grow in the investment funds industry, the challenge for the industry is to develop an infrastructure that can both support the expected growth in business as well as satisfy regulatory requirements of risk reduction...

Funds intermediaries--an emerging powerhouse.(BANKING ON TRANSFORMATION: DELIVERY CHANNELS AND FUNDS)
October 1, 2006... Collective investment vehicles, commonly known as mutual funds, unit trusts or SICAVs, have been a popular investment avenue, the world over, for the past few decades. The role of financial intermediaries (advisers, distributors, or...

Union Bank wins awards for excellence.(BANKING ON TRANSFORMATION: DELIVERY CHANNELS AND FUNDS)
October 1, 2006... WITH A clutch of awards under its belt, Union Bank of Nigeria plc is one of Nigeria's top two banking institutions. With offices in Lagos, its origins date back to 1917 when it was a colonial bank. It later became part of the Barclays brand....

Interview with Barth Ebong, group managing director and chief executive officer.(BANKING ON TRANSFORMATION: DELIVERY CHANNELS AND FUNDS)(Interview)
October 1, 2006... Industry trends Q: How has consolidation altered the Nigerian banking industry in recent years? Do you expect this process to continue? A: The first phase of Nigeria's banking industry consolidation has been concluded and the...

Skye Bank has special place for IT.(BANKING ON TRANSFORMATION: DELIVERY CHANNELS AND FUNDS)
October 1, 2006... ONE OF Nigeria's newly created banks, Skye Bank plc is living proof that the country's consolidation process is working and was formed out of a merger of five banks--the former Prudent Bank, EIB International Bank, Bond Bank, Reliance Bank...

Interview with Sola Akinfemiwa, managing director and chief executive officer.(BANKING ON TRANSFORMATION: DELIVERY CHANNELS AND FUNDS)(Interview)
October 1, 2006... Q: Why was i-flex chosen as your IT partner? A: i-flex was chosen for one of several reasons; * Completeness of solution; their system supports all areas of banking operations. * Its leadership position in the global banking...

Latest MFD brings advanced features to the small office.(IT News)(multifunction device)
October 1, 2006... XEROX HAS LAUNCHED the WorkCentre 4118 desktop multifunction device (MFD) to deliver advanced copying, printing, scanning and faxing capabilities to small offices. It copies and prints at 18 ppm and is available in two configurations....

Training the truck drivers: standards of training drivers of heavy commercial vehicles vary widely in Africa. Transaid is now in the second phase of a programme in Zambia and Malawi based on adapting best practice from abroad.(Commercial Vehicles)
October 1, 2006... IN ORDER TO drive a large commercial vehicle a licence applicant has to pass a test, the requirements of which vary from country to country. Driver training is particularly important in Africa because the road conditions are so often poor,...

Marine diesels provide safe power at sea: marine diesels are the power sources of choice for working boats above 10hp. Reliability and safety are the main considerations.(Power Supply)
October 1, 2006... MOST OFFSHORE WORKERS in Africa who provide their own vessel start with an outboard-powered fibreglass boat. That means easy on-the-spot servicing, but it also entails carrying spare tanks of volatile gasoline fuel, electrical ignition...

Sophisticated battery package.
October 1, 2006... THE NEW HAWKER Premier lift-truck battery from EnerSys Motive Power requires very low maintenance, even in heavy-duty including cold-store operations. The Premier package includes top-up intervals of up to 65 cycles combined with substantial...

Major genset contract awarded in South Africa.
October 1, 2006... AT LEAST 16 Perkins engines will be used in one of the largest generator set contracts in South Africa's history. The contract, which was awarded to Umndeni Circon, is for the backup power solution for IT systems integrator, Business...

Insatiable demand sees soaring sales: our special correspondent explains why genset sales are soaring--especially in the highly competitive African marketplace. He also assesses some new diesel-driven sets launched over the last year.(Generating Sets)
October 1, 2006... THE BOOM IN generating set sales appears to have no end in sight. Provisional figures on exports of generating sets from 1 to over 2000 kVA from the UK suggests that exports are running at around US$120 million per month for the first five...

Oil sector demands safety and security: generating sets have to meet special demands in the fire-prone hydrocarbons industry, including the offshore operators of West Africa. Here, we outline the safety precautions that have to be taken from initial construction to operation.(Generating Sets)
October 1, 2006... THREE VARIATIONS OF diesel generating sets are applicable to the oil industry. These are: * Standby duty for offices and premises that need protection of 200 to 3000 kW; * Standby duty for refineries to protect essential and...

Dummy loads put gensets through their paces: dummy loads for diesel generators are essential to keep the equipment in tip-top condition. This feature explains the principles on which load banks operate and looks at the growing number of manufacturers in this niche market.(Generating Sets)
October 1, 2006... AROUND 30 YEARS ago a hospital engineer rang a company called Petbow with what was considered a strange request. He wanted to purchase some load test banks he had noticed being used during a witness test of his hospital's standby diesel...

Protection with Powerware 9355 40 kVA.(Power Supply)
October 1, 2006... EXCELLENT POWER PERFORMANCE, long runtimes with internal batteries, and wide connectivity options make Powerware 9355 from Eaton an ideal UPS solution for centralised IT server rooms, building systems, industrial automation applications and...

New MTU Series 4000 diesel genset engines.(Power Supply)
October 1, 2006... MTU FRIEDRICHSHAFEN RECENTLY premiered the new generation of their Series 4000 diesel-powered genset engines. The new engines are more powerful, more economical and environmentally friendly than their predecessors. Utilising new MTU internal...

Swaziland secures energy future.(Power Supply)
October 1, 2006... IN ORDER TO advance its biodiesel business, D1 Oils Swaziland has entered into a MoU with the government of Swaziland for the roll-out and planting of Jatropha curcas on 20,000 ha of land, expanding to 50,000, within the Middleveld and...

Visa gensets spread south through Africa.(Power News)
October 1, 2006... ITALIAN BRAND VISA SpA, synonymous with quality in the generating set sector and present in over 60 countries across the globe, and with exclusive and highly qualified distributors, has now landed in Africa. At first developing in the north...

Deutz introduces compact engine ranges.(Power Supply)
October 1, 2006... DEUTZ, ONE OF the world's largest independent manufacturers of diesel and gas engines, has added two new compact engine families to its range. Falling into the lower end of the power bracket, with outputs for the five additional models...

Low emissions from Sabre 4.4s.(Power Supply)(Perkins Engines Company Ltd.)(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... ALL FOUR GENSET engines in the new Sabre 4.4 Series from Perkins guarantee full compliance with all known and proposed emissions standards, including the US's demanding EPA Tier II. The 4.4GM, 4.4TGM, 4.4TWGM and 4.4TW2GM represent a brand...

Siemens to modernise Eskom's I & C plant.(Power Supply)
October 1, 2006... SIEMENS POWER GENERATION is to modernise the Komati coal-fired power plant in Johannesburg with SPPA-T3000, the world's most advanced I & C system. The power plant will be fitted out with the latest equipment and its service life extended by...

Aggreko expands power generation at Embakasi: during the last 12 months Aggreko has fulfilled five orders for temporary power plant in East Africa. Geoffrey Muleme was at the latest launch at Embakasi, Kenya.(Company Focus)
October 1, 2006... UK POWER-PLANT supplier Aggreko says the installation of a 100MW power station at Embakasi in Kenya marks the fifth major order that the company has won for the provision of temporary power generation capacity in East Africa over the last 12...

Metal wear analysis: moving parts in a factory or industrial plant are exposed to wear and tear from foreign bodies and particles. Close inspection of wear debris can reveal a great deal about the source of the problem, and protect your equipment. Dr Terry Mabbett explains.(Condition Monitoring)
October 1, 2006... CONDITION MONITORING BY wear debris analysis is all about identification, characterisation and categorisation of particles and relating this back to the type of material and mode and level of wear suffered by working machines. It involves...

FLIR Systems launches GasFindIR[TM]: infrared camera especially developed for detection of dangerous gas leaks.(Company Focus)
October 1, 2006... Many industrial gases and chemical compounds are invisible to the naked eye. Yet companies transport, measure and transform these ingredients every day. They use a range of tools to monitor, identify and contain these assets from the loading...

Consulting engineers with an original approach: Ninham Shand's 2005 Review reveals many details of the consulting engineers' projects throughout Africa. Water is a recurring theme with numerous schemes ranging from wastewater disposal to River Basin studies and dam inspection.(Water Supply)
October 1, 2006... NINHAM SHAND OF South Africa is a well established firm of consulting engineers and environmental scientists, employing over 500 in a wide variety of disciplines, many of them elsewhere in Africa. The company's annual Project Review--latest...

Cat powers huge truck-tractors in SA.(Cat Power Systems)(TAS Automotive)(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... BARLOWORLD EQUIPMENT ENERGY: Cat Power Systems has appointed TAS Automotive, of Rosherville, as a Truck Engine Product Support (TEPS) dealer for the world's largest truck-tractor, built by France's Nicolas Industrie. The Tractomas TR 10 x 10...

Volvo CE orders jump 60 per cent in second quarter.
October 1, 2006... THE FIRST SIX months of 2006 saw sharp increases in sales, income and order book value at Volvo Construction Equipment. Helping its parent company to post its best ever figures for a financial quarter, Volvo CE continues to perform strongly...

Rock-solid real estate.
October 1, 2006... A NIGERIAN FIRM Crushed Rock Industries is to invest Ksh400mn (US$ 5.6mn) this year in the Kenyan property market. The company will be exporting granite to be used in construction of executive homes. With the rising demand for houses in the...

Soweto retail space is hot property.(Construction News)
October 1, 2006... DEVELOPERS MAPONYA GROUP and Zenprop Property Holdings report that offers for 85 per cent of the retail space in Soweto's first regional shopping centre of international standard, Maponya Mall, have already been received, ahead of opening in...

Mines 2006.(Construction News)
October 1, 2006... THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION and the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) are organising the fourth in a series of mining sector partnership meetings in Lusaka. This event, MINES 2006, part of the ESIPP (EU-SADC Investment Promotion...

Latest loaders have loads of features: the wheel loader with its many useful attachments is one of the most versatile machines on any site. Variants include the compact and handy backhoe loader and the highly manoeuvrable skid-steer. They are all equally at home on farm, factory/warehouse or construction site.(Construction)
October 1, 2006... INVENTED MORE THAN 50 years ago as a development of the farm tractor, the front loader is a prized item of equipment on any medium-sized construction project. Usually equipped with surface-protecting tyred wheels (hence often called a wheel...

Mozambique rebuilds its rural roads: a new manual from the UK-based Transport Research Laboratory is helping Mozambique's provincial authorities to improve local roads. Mary Monro reports.(Construction)
October 1, 2006... RURAL ROADS IN Africa may be the only connection for villages to markets, medical facilities or schooling, but the traffic levels are often low, and their capacity to generate any revenue is minimal. As a result they do not come high on a...

Diamond sector puts in sparkling performance: Priscilla Ross reports on the status of Africa's thriving diamond industry and the crackdown on illegal sourcing. The De Beers group produced a record 24.7mn carats in four African countries in January-June this year.(Mining)
October 1, 2006... AFRICAN COUNTRIES PRODUCE some 65 per cent of the world's diamonds, worth US$8.3bn a year according to Nicky Oppenheimer, chairman of De Beers speaking in Israel at the 32nd World Diamond Congress, World Federation of Diamond Bourses &...

Software packages aid exploration: since geological modelling went digital, software specialists have used the basic technology as a platform for multiple applications.(Mining)
October 1, 2006... STORAGE AND STATISTICAL analysis of mineral exploration data was one of the first applications of computing power in the mining industry. The later availability of compact workstations and graphics capability allowed software developers to...

Tools for municipal application.(Construction)(rental equipment for municipal duties)
October 1, 2006... A RECENT BUSINESS tip of the month from the Cat[R] Rental Store shows that equipment rental can help municipalities stay on budget--and still keep up the good work. Governmental agencies are responsible for diverse applications including road...