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The technology group Wrtsil, and Silverstream Technologies, the leading air lubrication solution provider, yesterday announced the signing of a Licence and Co-operation Agreement for future sales and servicing of the Silverstream System. As an authorised sales and service partner, Wrtsil intends to fully integrate Silverstreams air lubrication system within its propulsion solutions.

By offering the Silverstream System as an integral part of Wrtsils propulsion solution for newbuild vessels, compliance with the Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) will be further improved. Under the agreement, the Silverstream System will also be available through Wrtsils sales channels for retrofit installations on existing vessels where Wrtsil is a primary solution provider. The integrated Silverstream System is expected to realise synergies in capital and operational savings across the propulsion chain by increasing fuel efficiency, and optimising engine loading.

This new collaborative partnership will accelerate the deployment of air lubrication systems across all vessel classes, from small bulk vessels to the largest container ships. By combining Wrtsils propulsion expertise and Silverstreams innovative engineering knowledge, access to this clean technology will be facilitated across the market.

Going forward, the collaboration agreement will enable current and future Silverstream customers to access Wrtsils global service network for the maintenance of their Silverstream System installations. Wrtsils network of service centres, workshops, and service professionals is the most extensive in the maritime industry, with 4500 field service professionals located in 70 countries around the world.

The agreement means that more ship owners will have easy access to Silverstreams proven air lubrication technology. The system has been proven to reduce fuel burn and associated emissions by 5 to 10%, depending on vessel type.

Speaking on the agreement, Lars Anderson, Director, Propulsion, Wrtsil Marine, said: At Wrtsil we are committed to fully supporting our customers as they strive to reduce operating costs and improve the environmental sustainability impact of their operations. Todays agreement enables us to facilitate the building of better vessels that meet tomorrows challenges today, and Silverstream are the ideal partners to help us realise this goal.

Noah Silberschmidt, CEO, Silverstream Technologies, added: Todays agreement with Wrtsil reinforces our position as the shipping industrys leading clean technology manufacturer. In Wrtsil we find a partner as committed as we are to achieving a cleaner, more efficient and sustainable maritime industry.

With the global sulphur cap almost upon us and decarbonisation targets on the horizon, the commercial case for proven clean technology has never been stronger. Now is the time for ship owners to take action to reduce their operational costs and their impact on the environment, and todays agreement will help unlock the power of air lubrication technology for more vessels across our sector.

The Silverstream System creates a carpet of microbubbles that coat the entire flat bottom of the vessel. This carpet reduces frictional resistance between the hull and the water, dramatically reducing fuel consumption and related emissions. The technology works in all maritime conditions, is not weather dependent, and does not constrain or negatively impact the normal operational profile of the vessel.Source: Silverstream Technologies

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Wrtsil & Silverstream to collaborate on accelerating deployment of air lubrication technology - Hellenic Shipping News Worldwide

This season can make even the grouchiest New Yorker an urban romantic, and encourages local residents and visitors alike to rediscover the museums and monuments we sometimes take for granted. Prepare for good cheer, special programming and big crowds.

Whether youre coming with your family, your friends, your lover or your good old self, youll want to plan ahead when visiting New Yorks unsurpassed arts institutions, and exploring some exquisite smaller museums outside the tourist green zone. Check online before you go: most have shortened hours on Christmas and New Years Eves, and are closed Christmas and New Years Days. (An exception: The Jewish Museum, on Fifth Avenue, is open as usual on Dec. 25 and reliably popular that day.)

Your top priority should probably be the expanded, refreshed Museum of Modern Art, which now has 30 percent additional gallery space and a far more welcoming entrance. So far the crowds have felt palpable but manageable, although weekdays are a tick more peaceful than weekends. If all goes well you wont have to queue too long at the new digital ticket counters, but you can walk right in if you pay at moma.org and show the ticket on your phone. You can save $25 a head by visiting on Friday after 5:30 p.m., but youd better prepare to wait.

Friday and Saturday evenings are an excellent time to visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art, with its Christmas tree festooned with antique Neapolitan ornaments as well as the Met Breuer, the museums under-trafficked satellite. Before the Met vacates the Breuer building next summer, make time now for its finespun retrospective of the Latvian-American artist Vija Celmins; then head downstairs for a drink at Flora Bar, with the smartest by-the-glass wine list on the Upper East Side.

You can explore a new neighborhood, as well as another time period, by visiting a house museum. The grande dame is the Frick Collection on Fifth Avenue, currently presenting Renaissance bronzes by Bertoldo di Giovanni and matter-of-fact painting by Manet. Were also fans of the Morris-Jumel Mansion in Harlem, which dates to 1765 and is the oldest house in Manhattan; the even older Van Cortlandt House in the Bronx, nestled in one of the citys largest parks; and the Merchants House Museum in the East Village, with one of New Yorks very few landmark residential interiors.

Have a look below at a sampling of whats on view right now, or consider following this three-hour tour through some of Midtowns finer small institutions. Dont worry, kids, its not all art: Weve allotted time for a snack.

These Women Will Blow You Away

VIJA CELMINS: TO FIX THE IMAGE IN MEMORY at the Met Breuer (through Jan. 12). The artists quietly ravishing, brilliantly installed exhibition is one big illusion of reality. Expanses of ocean waves, star-studded night skies, clouds or the moons surface, rendered in graphite, charcoal or muted tones of oil paint can take years to make and are so realistic as to be mistaken for photographs, Roberta Smith wrote in her review. 212-731-1675, metmuseum.org.

AGNES DENES: ABSOLUTES AND INTERMEDIATES at the Shed (through March 22). A photograph of Agnes Denes standing amid her 1982 public work, a two-acre wheatfield that she grew and harvested in Lower Manhattan, speaks to her pioneering spirit. Its among the items in a superbly installed survey of the visionary artists 50-year journey, exploring her focus on ecology, on the fear of present decay and the hope for future survival, Holland Cotter wrote in his review. Well be lucky this art season if we get another exhibition as tautly beautiful. 646-455-3494, theshed.org.

RACHEL HARRISON LIFE HACK at the Whitney Museum of American Art (through Jan. 12). Puzzlement can be fun, and Ms. Harrison has set it as one of the tasks for her work, Mr. Cotter wrote in his review. The artists first full-scale survey examines the past 25 years of her work with assemblage-style sculptures (the kind of accidental urban still lifes you see on New York City sidewalks on trash collection day), photography, and drawing. As you look and ponder, youll see that these works, Mr. Cotter wrote, translate into information about commerce, class, value, accident, appetite, waste, color, shape, zeitgeist even life and death. 212-570-3600, whitney.org.

BETYE SAAR: THE LEGENDS OF BLACK GIRLS WINDOW at the Museum of Modern Art (through Jan. 4). This exhibition concentrates on Betye Saars early years, tracking the experiments in printmaking and assemblage that led to her pivotal piece Black Girls Window. By filling old window frames with a constellation of images, her mystical works essentially became gateways to the mysteries of the universe, Jillian Steinhauer wrote in her review. 212-708-9400, moma.org.

ZILIA SNCHEZ: SOY ISLA (I AM AN ISLAND) at El Museo del Barrio (through March 22). Recently opened, this museum retrospective is the artists first, and it traces her journey from Cuba, where she was born in 1926, to Puerto Rico, where she has lived and worked since the 1970s. Expect to encounter stretched canvases painted with acrylics in muted color palettes, works on paper, sculptural pieces and more. 212-831-7272, elmuseo.org.

Exhibitions for Kids of All Ages

ART OF NATIVE AMERICA at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (ongoing). Dip into this gallery in the American Wing, and youll get a bit of a reprieve from the crowds. Youll also get plenty of history here and dazzling Native art. In addition to intricately engraved ancient ivories, textiles and beaded embroidery, there are Katsina figures, which were created as physical representations of immortal beings that, as the label reads, bring rain, protect, teach, heal, and carry prayers to the spirit world. This is the first significant display of Native art in the American Wing, which was established in 1924. 212-535-7710, metmuseum.org.

HOLIDAY TRAIN SHOWS at various locations. Fast-moving trains that actually run on time? It must be holiday train show time. And there are several on view across the city, including the Holiday Train Show at the New York Botanical Garden (through Jan. 26), which re-creates famous New York landmarks from leaves, bark, acorns, cinnamon sticks and other natural materials. This year the focus is on Central Park, with mini-replicas of structures like Bethesda Terrace and Belvedere Castle. Holiday Express: All Aboard to Richard Scarrys Busytown at the New-York Historical Society doubles as a celebration of the 100th birthday of the Busytown author and illustrator Richard Scarry.

JR: CHRONICLES at the Brooklyn Museum (through May 3). Can you spot Robert De Niro in the sea of 1,128 people in JRs most recent project, The Chronicles of New York City? To create the large-format mural, JR and his crew photographed and interviewed hundreds of people in the five boroughs last summer. The installation includes a range of works, tracing his career from his documentation of graffiti artists as a teenager in Paris to his more recent digitally collaged murals. 718-638-5000, brooklynmuseum.org.

THE LAST KNIGHT: THE ART, ARMOR, AND AMBITION OF MAXIMILIAN I at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (through Jan. 5). This exhibition of grand scale and heavy metal plots the relentless rise of Emperor Maximilian I of the Holy Roman Empire. Though its armed to the teeth with flashy military gear, Jason Farago wrote in his review, youll also find paintings, illustrated books and celebratory images made with the hottest new technology of the late 15th century: printmaking, which allowed the emperor to broadcast his military prowess through books and monumental woodcuts. 212-535-7710, metmuseum.org.

RAINFOREST V (VARIATION 1) at the Museum of Modern Art (through Jan. 5). The museums fourth-floor Studio space has been devoted to David Tudors strangely wonderful, interactive installation, Alastair Macaulay wrote in his critics notebook. The room is filled with mundane objects (a metal barrel, a wooden box, etc.) that hang throughout the space. Collectively they become a kind of urban jungle, suspended like Calder mobiles with the anti-utilitarian aesthetic of Duchamp ready-mades, Mr. Macaulay wrote. If that werent fun enough, each object emits a unique composition that, once you position yourself to hear, feels like a mini-concert just for you. 212-708-9400, moma.org.

T. REX: THE ULTIMATE PREDATOR at the American Museum of Natural History (through Aug. 9). This eye-opening exhibition gives an up-to-date view of everyones favorite prehistoric pugilist, and also introduces the many other tyrannosaurs that preceded T. rex, some discovered only this century in China and Mongolia, Mr. Farago wrote in his exhibition review. The show mixes 66-million-year-old teeth with the latest 3-D prints of dino bones, and also presents new models of T. rex as a baby, a juvenile and a full-grown annihilator. Wait till you see the fossilized feathers believe it! 212-769-5100, amnh.org.

Treasures From the Artists Vaults

EDITH HALPERT AND THE RISE OF AMERICAN ART at the Jewish Museum (through Feb. 9). According to Ms. Smith, Edith Gregor Halpert was a formidable, feisty and sometimes manipulative self-starter with an ecumenical eye, a passion for art and an inborn instinct for sales and promotion. The story of her influential art gallery and how she willed it into existence is the subject of this show. Nearly all of the paintings and sculptures on view were exhibited or sold by Halperts gallery, or were in her private collection, including works by the proto-Pop abstract painter Stuart Davis. 212-423-3200, thejewishmuseum.org.

HENRY CHALFANT: ART VS. TRANSIT, 1977-1987 at the Bronx Museum of the Arts (through March 8). Henry Chalfants photographs are considered the definitive document of graffiti culture in New York. Now those works are the subject of an exhibition, in which his train panoramas, some blown up to train car-size, have been assembled alongside his street photography of park jams and wall works, and a collection of archives and black books that re-create his SoHo studio, Max Lakin wrote in a preview of the show. 718-681-6000, bronxmuseum.org.

THE LIFE AND TIMES OF ALVIN BALTROP at the Bronx Museum of the Arts (through Feb. 9). Mr. Baltrops photography of the derelict shipping piers along the Hudson River not only serve as architectural studies but also reveal the semi-residential population of homeless people, teenage runaways, sexual adventurers, criminals and artists who found refuge there, Mr. Cotter wrote in his review. They also double as a monument to New York itself during the 1970s and 80s, when the city was radiating creative energy and, in the wake of the 1969 Stonewall uprising, a home base for a new gay consciousness. 718-681-6000, bronxmuseum.org.

PRIVATE LIVES PUBLIC SPACES at the Museum of Modern Art (through July 1) This thought-provoking new exhibition in the galleries outside MoMAs two main movie auditoriums features neglected footage (47 hours) from the museums collection. With little background information available, you get to play historian and detective. The movies constitute a season of programming on their own, Ben Kenigsberg wrote recently, and taken together they run the gamut from amateurism to outsider art, from arcana to valuable additions to the oeuvres of established experimental filmmakers. 212-708-9400, moma.org.

WANGECHI MUTU: THE NEWONES, WILL FREE US at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (through Jan. 12). The Kenyan-born artist Wangechi Mutus bronze statues of seated women are a striking presence outside the Met. For the first time in the museums history, it has filled the niches of its Fifth Avenue facade with commissioned works, which also reflects a small step on the museums rocky road toward diversity. Among her sources of inspiration, Nancy Princenthal wrote in a profile of the artist, is a modest Congolese prestige stool in the Mets collection that Ms. Mutu admires for its earthiness the figures knees are on the ground, rather than a pedestal and for the eroticism of her parted thighs. Generally she favors sensuality in her own work, although for the Met she opted for figures that are resolutely chaste. 212-535-7710, metmuseum.org.

SIMONE LEIGHS BRICK HOUSE at the High Line (through September 2020). At the northern end of the High Line you can glimpse New Yorks shiny future: supertall skyscrapers under construction in Hudson Yards and the shiny, climbable Vessel sculpture just beckoning for your selfies. But just south of all that is a more subdued work, equally impressive from the street level: Brick House, a 16-foot-tall bronze bust by the artist Simone Leigh. In an interview about the commission with The New York Times, Ms. Leigh said she thought the figure, a black woman with cornrows and a dome-shaped torso, would be a great opportunity to have something about black beauty right in the middle of that environment. thehighline.org.

IN PURSUIT OF FASHION: THE SANDY SCHREIER COLLECTION at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (through May 17). While you anticipate the red carpet looks at next years Met Gala (the exhibition title: About Time: Fashion and Duration) consider the Costume Institutes recently opened fall exhibition. It highlights about 80 of the 165 promised gifts from the collection of Sandy Schreier, who started amassing fashions (20th-century French and American couture and ready-to-wear gear) as a way of preserving the designs she found to be so creative. There are a range of printed gowns and jackets from Mariano Fortuny y Madrazo, Paquin Ltd. and Balenciaga; glittery headdresses and other accessories; and more. 212-535-7710, metmuseum.org.

PIERRE CARDIN: FUTURE FASHION at the Brooklyn Museum (through Jan. 5). The 97-year-old French designer, still defined by his groovy late 60s fashions, gets a swinging exhibition in Brooklyn. His New Look gave way to thigh-high boots and dresses of heat-molded synthetics, Mr. Farago wrote in his review. The show has 85 ensembles, the earliest dating from 1953 and the most recent from this decade. At its core are the space-age outfits that Mr. Cardin designed in a young, newly prosperous Paris, seen here on mannequins as well as in photographs and films of Jeanne Moreau, Mia Farrow and the cast of Star Trek, Mr. Farago wrote. Some are chic, many are risible; all of it has an exuberant view of the future that marks it as decidedly from the past. 718-638-5000, brooklynmuseum.org.

Rich Palettes and Decorative Arts

ERNST LUDWIG KIRCHNER AT NEUE GALERIE (THROUGH JAN. 13) To linger on Ernst Ludwig Kirchners lurid biography would be unfair to the mesmerizing technical genius of his style, Will Heinrich wrote in his review of this show. He went on to call this exhibition a generous and essential overview of a peripatetic and unconventional career. (Kirchner, who had an addiction to morphine, Veronal and absinthe, committed suicide in 1938, at the age of 58, after the Nazis had denounced him as degenerate.) At the Neue Galerie, we see up close how he surrounded more or less sober portrait subjects with backgrounds of flat but brilliant color, though it wasnt just a youthful revolt, Mr. Heinrich wrote. It was also an ingenious way to articulate subjective experience in an increasingly materialist modern world. neuegalerie.org.

HENRY ARNHOLDS MEISSEN PALACE: CELEBRATING A COLLECTOR at the Frick Collection (ongoing). Is this collection of ceramic ware impressive enough to make you swoon? Augustus II, King of Poland, was certainly a fan: According to the museum, Augustus was the most important porcelain collector of his time and was enamored with the works that he was said to have been afflicted by a maladie de porcelaine (porcelain fever). The pieces on view here are drawn from the collection of Henry H. Arnhold, a prominent banker and philanthropist who died in 2018. The gallery where these works reside has been turned into an 18th-century porcelain room, with the pieces grouped together by color. frick.org.

ARTISTIC LICENSE: SIX TAKES ON THE GUGGENHEIM COLLECTION at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (through Jan. 12). Displays that artists select from a museums collection are almost inevitably interesting, revealing and valuable. And thats the case with this show for which Cai Guo-Qiang, Paul Chan, Richard Prince, Julie Mehretu, Carrie Mae Weems and Jenny Holzer were invited to select six separate yet cross-talking thematic displays, one per ramp. The result is a rare, dazzling, dizzying cornucopia of objects, viewpoints and agendas, Ms. Smith wrote. 212-423-3500, guggenheim.org.

JASON MORAN at the Whitney Museum of American Art (through Jan. 5) The pianist and conceptual artist Jason Moran turns space and time sideways in his first museum survey, Giovanni Russonello wrote about the show. Here, Mr. Moran engages with the physical history of jazz in collaborations with Kara Walker, Joan Jonas and other art world figures. Its a modest, yet striking installation that is best when activated during weekend performances by renowned jazz musicians. 212-570-3600, whitney.org.

AMY SILLMAN: THE SHAPE OF SHAPE at the Museum of Modern Art (through April 12) Ms. Smith called this iteration of the Moderns Artists Choice series one of its best and among the most valuable of the newly reopened museums inaugural shows. In pulling works from the permanent collection, the New York painter Amy Sillman, who worked with the curator Michelle Kuo, sought out overlooked or excluded artists and unfamiliar works. Her effort reflects a relatively robust visual appetite and the shows dense installation encourages surprising connections. 212-708-9400, moma.org.

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Holiday Museum Guide: Where to See Art This Season - The New York Times

Early Black Friday deals in 2019 have been shockingly good. Seriously, you can see for yourself. Theres one wildly popular brand that has been noticeably absent from all those early Black Friday sales though, and its Philips Hue. Thankfully, the drought is now over because a killer sale just popped up on Amazon. Philips Hue Single Premium A19 Smart Bulbs cost $50 each, and theyre still the best-selling LED smart bulbs out there. Head over to Amazon right now though, and you can snag them for $34.99 a piece! Theres also a good deal that slashes $40 off the price of a Philips Hue 2-Pack Premium Smart Light Starter Kit, which comes with a hub if you dont already have one.

Follow @BGRDeals on Twitter to keep up with the latest and greatest deals we find around the web. Prices subject to change without notice. BGR may receive a commission on orders placed through this article.

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The first Philips Hue Black Friday deal is finally here, and its a good one - BGR

The global market forresidential building construction industrytotaled $4,171.3 billion in 2017 and is estimated to reach $6,800.9 billion by 2022, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.3% for the period of 2017-2022.

Report Scope:

Following are brief summaries of the chapters included in this report.

The Chapter One summary presents the reports scope, methodology and structure, as well as brief overviews of each of the reports chapters.

Get More Information sample:https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/sample/11814

Chapter three provides a high-level overview of the residential flooring industry, including historical, current and future industry perspectives, as well as a look at current, and anticipated manufacturing issues and trends. The chapter also covers current market conditions in the new construction and renovation residential segments. Chapter three also includes an overview of industry trade organizations, such as the National Wood Flooring Association (NWFA) and the North American Building Material Distribution Association (NABMDA). The chapter also discusses the key trade shows that residential flooring manufacturers and other industry participants attend, such as one of the industrys largest events, The International Surface Event: SurfacesStonExpo/MarmomaccTileExpo. The chapter also details the primary trade media that cover the industry, such as Floor Covering News.

Product types in the residential flooring industry are in a constant state of evolution and at different stages of innovation in an effort to meet changing market needs and demands. Chapter Four provides a detailed look at seven different residential flooring categoriescarpet, ceramic tile, hardwood, laminates, stone, other resilient and vinylincluding associated new products and technologies, and applicable environmental programs and incentives, as well as government regulations and requirements affecting each flooring type.

Chapter Four provides a comprehensive overview of the residential flooring market size and growth in North America through 2021. A preview of residential flooring value by region is provided here, setting the stage for more detailed breakdowns by distribution channel and by product category, both in this chapter and in Chapter Five: Market Definition.

For the purposes of this report, BCC Research has analyzed Southeast, Northeast, Midwest, Southwest, West regions in the U.S., as well as Canada, to complete our North American residential flooring research.

Chapter Four also includes a breakdown of residential flooring expenditures by flooring typecarpet, ceramic tile, hardwood, laminates, stone, other resilient and vinylthrough 2021 in million squares and million dollars for the six key industry distribution channels: floor covering stores; furniture and home furnishing stores; home improvement centers and building materials supplies dealers; general merchandise stores; electronic and online sales; and direct sales.

Finally, growth projection data analysis for this chapter covers residential flooring volume by product type though 2021 in million squares and million dollars.

For the market definition part of this report in Chapter Five, BCC Research analyzed the two primary residential flooring segments in North America: new construction and renovation.

The residential flooring analysis contains expenditure and share data for the years 2015 and 2016, as well as projections for 2021 along with the compound annual growth rates (CAGRs) for the years 2016 through 2021. We have also provided a detailed analysis on the following six North American regions: Southeast, Northeast, Midwest, Southwest, West and Canada.

In addition, this chapter includes an overview of 19 of the leading residential flooring product manufacturers with data on 2015 and 2016 revenues, number of employees, and overall market share. Also included are market share breakdowns for the leading manufacturers by product category, as well as a listing of each manufacturers product lines in each product category.

Finally, this chapter provides data on average pricing and installed costs for all product types in the years 2015 and 2016, with projections for 2021. The residential flooring industrys six primary distribution channelsfloor covering stores; furniture and home furnishing stores; home improvement centers and building materials supplies dealers; general merchandise stores; electronic and online sales; and direct salesare covered, as well as listings of major flooring distributors with data on revenues (overall, by product type, by distribution channel and associated market shares).

Chapter Seven profiles 30 of the major producers in the seven residential flooring product categories: carpet, ceramic tile, hardwood, laminates, stone, other resilient and vinyl. The major suppliers in residential flooring products offer multiple product lines. Chapter Seven contains the following information about each company profiled (when available): background, recent company news (selected significant announcements within the past 18 months), products, financial performance, strategic direction and distribution.

Report Includes:

An overview of the market for residential flooring in North America. Analyses of global market trends, with data from 2015, estimates for 2016, and projections of compound annual growth rates (CAGRs) through 2021. Information on different product and technology types, such as carpet, ceramic tile, hardwood, laminates, stone, vinyl, and resilient flooring. Information on various flooring products, distribution methods, new products and technologies, and the direction of the industry in the near future. Profiles of major companies in the industry.

Report Summary

The North American residential flooring industry is one of the most diverse of any manufactured product in terms of product type and selection. From broadloom carpet and carpet tile to hardwood and innovative resilient products made from cork and rubber, consumers and others involved in new residential construction and renovation have no shortage of choices to meet their architectural or interior design needs and requirements. Within each flooring product type, there exists a myriad of surface textures, color choices and quality levels, as well as collection upon collection of product with intriguing names like Accord, Hydroment Vivid, VersaBond and Blue Emotion, among others. Other product names are more grounded in familiarity and longevity like the well-known Congoleum brand.

Following are a few market observations on several of the flooring types analyzed in this report.

Flooring products are among the most important building materials and constitutes a versatile market with a wide product portfolio. The flooring market is expected to expand significantly due to strong growth of construction and automotive sectors coupled with increases in home improvement and renovation project activities. The demand for various residential flooring materials is expected to increase considerably in the forecast period. Increasing residential construction and reconstructionactivities in North America is one of the major factors fueling the demand for residential flooring in this region. However, in recent times regulations have been issued against import of lumber due to illegal deforestation. This is one of the primary factors restraining the residential flooring market.

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The hardwood flooring products remain popular despite the advent of a large number of cheaper flooring products such as laminates and resilient flooring. Easy cleaning, better strength and durability, better acoustics and presence of large number of varieties are some of the major factors fueling the demand for hardwood flooring products. Owing to these factors, hardwood flooring is one of the primary choices for a large number of residential constructions.

Vinyl flooring is the fastest growing product category, growing at a CAGR of 7.4% between 2016 and 2021. Although vinyl tile floor is often installed in commercial settings where high traffic is a constant, or where a clean or staticfree environment is desired, it is also a versatile and costeffective choice for any household. Moreover, lower maintenance cost is also one of the primary factors expected to drive the demand for vinyl flooring in the coming years.

In terms of value chain, a high degree of backward integration is being witnessed in the flooring market. Several key players are engaged in the manufacture of raw materials. Amoco, a subsidiary of Shaw Industries, is actively involved in the manufacture of fiber. Amoco manufactures polypropylene fibers, which are used by Shaw Industries to manufacture carpets and rugs. Besides being a key player in the hardwood flooring market, Boral Limited is involved in the timber business. Burke Industries Inc., a major rubber manufacturing company based in California, is owned by Mannington Mills, one of the largest flooring manufacturers in North America.

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Residential Building Construction Industry Market Intelligence Report Offers Growth Prospects 2022 - Downey Magazine

TUNICA, Miss. (localmemphis.com) The Tunica Humane Society is helping cats and dogs beyond the shelter for this years Giving Tuesday. Its campaign, Freedom Fences and Full Tummies, is aiming to provide food for pets whose owners cant always provide food and fencing so dogs dont need to be chained up.

Sandy Williams works around the clock to take of nearly 150 dogs and 40 cats and rescue those in need on the streets. Their community is one of the poorest in the Mid-South and receives no funding from Tunica county or the state. The no kill shelter is the only animal shelter in the county and is run strictly by donations.

From the very beginning of our humane society, its always been our desire to help as many animals as we can in our community, Williams said. In reality, theres no way we can take all those animals to our shelter.

The money raised with this years campaign will go toward buying dog and cat food for their pantry and buying fences and shelter so animals are protected in the coming winter months. She said its important to keep animals dry, out of the wind, and with fresh water to drink at all times.

We want to set up a special fund, so we can get dogs off of chains, possibly install fences or dog pens to get the dogs off of chains, weve also had a food pantry here, Williams said.

The food pantry is for families in need in their community who cannot always afford to feed their pets. She said its her passion to help as many animals in her community no matter the effort it takes.

Somebody has to do this. Somebody has to be their voice, Williams said. There are so many animals suffering out there with no one to take care of them, and its our passion to provide them a good life.

Click here for additional information about the Tunica Humane Society.

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Tunica Humane Society launches Freedom Fences and Full Tummies campaign to help take care of cats and dogs in their community - WATN - Local 24

Over the summer, after some 15 years, the Trump administration announced the federal government would reinstate capital punishment. A federal judge in Washington, DC, however, last week halted that plan, blocking four scheduled executions. The Justice Department filed a request to stay the decision, and says it plans to appeal.

Yet de facto capital punishment continues to exist for one specific violation, at least for the inmates at an undisclosed number of federal prisons: Attempted escape.

Earlier this month, the federal government issued a solicitation for bids from contractors to refurbish a so-called lethal/non-lethal fence around a federal correctional facility in Tucson, Arizona. Three bids have so far been submitted, ranging from $3.3 million to about $3.8 million. One of the companies, KWR Construction, has been involved in constructing prototypes for US president Donald Trumps long-promised, and highly controversial, border wall.

A lethal/non-lethal fence is an electrified fence running around the perimeter of a prison. Upon first contact, these fences deliver a non-lethal electric shock, but a second one triggers a lethal high-voltage discharge, typically several times more powerful than a standard electric chair. This is meant to kill the potential escapee on the spot.

Lethal force is authorized to prevent inmate escapes, said Justin Long, a spokesperson for the US Bureau of Prisons, the agency that oversees the federal correctional system. Long declined to provide Quartz with the precise number of federal facilities now equipped with lethal electric fences, but said its more than seven.

A majority of US states, meanwhile, still have the death penalty, though few actually carry out executions. And like their federal counterparts, a number of state prisons are surround by non-lethal/lethal electric fencing. In California, where governor Gavin Newsom in March declared a moratorium on executions, about two dozen state prisons are equipped with the deadly fences. Electric prison fences in California deliver 5,000 volts of electricity to inmates trying to escape. In Missouri, the fences mete out 5,100-volt shocks.

As a comparison, most electric chairs employ a shock of between 1,700 and 2,400 volts for 30 to 60 seconds to produce a lethal current, wrote Milo Miller, a former researcher at Southwest Missouri State University, in a paper published in 2001 in the California Western Law Review.

Many states allow for the use of deadly force to thwart an escape attempt, but limit its use to situations where the officer reasonably believes it necessary to prevent or terminate the escape.

The use of firearms or other means of deadly force in a particular situation, by its nature, calls for the application of human judgment or discretion. Fences, unlike humans, cannot think, assess circumstances, or exercise judgment, Miller wrote.

Lethal fencing began in the early 1990s as a way to save money. Some state prisons, including in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Nevada, and Missouri, have now used them for more than two decades. In California, the first lethal fence was installed in 1993. It was part of a program to install 19 electrified fences in order to save $42 million a year ($79 million today).

The Bureau of Prisons began plans to install lethal fencing in federal prisons in 2006 for the same reason. The fences meant less need for tower guards, who earn up to $70,000 per year at some prisons, with overtime, and generous pensions after they retire. Fences dont.

The use of such fences is of concern to human rights advocates.

Under international law, guards standing on towersor any automated systemmust weigh whether or not the use of lethal force is strictly necessary, said Alison Leal Parker, director of US Programs at Human Rights Watch. In this, she told Quartz, the use of lethal force under state and federal law in the US contradicts international human rights law.

There are times when technology can be rights-respecting and even rights-protecting in a way that human decision-making may be flawed, she added. But there are also many, many instancesand I would argue this is onewhere the need to assess whether killing someone is strictly necessary cannot be done by an automated fence.

That is, fences lack the key element of human judgement that would make the use of deadly force legal.

The Eighth Amendment is what we would look at to see if [the fences] are legal, said Nila Bala, an associate director for criminal justice and civil liberties at R Street, a nonpartisan public policy research nonprofit. The amendment forbids the use of cruel and unusual punishment, and the indiscriminate use of lethal force by an automated device would likely not pass this standard.

This issue has never really reached the Supreme Court, Bala told Quartz, though the court has ruled on the use of deadly force in correctional facilities. The law is fairly deferential about what happens in correctional facilities, she said, allowing for good faith judgement made by law enforcement officials, even when it results in the death of the inmate.

But an automated device is different, and its use should raise questions even from a policy point of view, as their function can deviate from the goal of deterring escapees. Inmates could use the fence against each other, Bala said, or use them to commit suicide. Further, she added, there are plenty of examplesboth in the United States, and from other countriesshowing there is no added advantage, in terms of safety, in using indiscriminate lethal force when lesser force would be effective.

Whether or not lethal/non-lethal fences adhere to the letter of the law is almost beside the point, said Nick Schwellenbach, director of investigations at the nonprofit Program on Government Oversight.

This seems like a dramatic escalation of consequences without requiring human intervention, Schwellenbach told Quartz. While electric fences are a more pedestrian technology, this makes me think of the intense debate over drones that could kill without human oversight.

It turns out that inmates arent the only ones under threat from these lethal fences. Its other species that suffer the most.

Mostly they kill birds and small animals, Martin Horn, former commissioner of the NYC Department of Correction, told Quartz.

Indeed, the first five years after California installed lethal electric fencing in 1993 at 25 of its 33 state prisons, some 3,000 migrating birds were electrocuted, according to United States Fish and Wildlife Service data cited by the New York Times. They included 144 burrowing owls, 111 loggerhead shrikes, and 10 red-tailed hawks.

To Steven Van De Steene, a Belgian expert on the use of technology in correctional settings, a dynamic correctional model works best. That means focusing on creating a culture of rehabilitation, fostering trust between staff and inmates, and utilizing non-security-related tools and technologies to create a safer environment, he told Quartz.

If you treat people like animals, he said, they will behave like animals.

See the rest here:
US prison fences designed to kill inmates may be illegal - Quartz

Olympic fencing gold medalist Miles Chamley-Watson is G.H. Mumm's most recent celebrity endorser

G.H. Mumm & Cie., the venerable Champagne producer, has announced a new partnership with American world-class fencer, world champion and Olympic medalist Miles Chamley-Watson. The company, which is headquartered in Reims, in the heart of the Champagne district, is the fourth best-selling Champagne brand in the world, with annual sales of approximately eight million bottles. Its owned by French wine and spirits conglomerate Pernod-Ricard.

Mumm has a long history with celebrity endorsers. From 2000 to 2015, it was an official sponsor of Formula 1 racing. Its distinctive red stripe was showcased on the podium and its Champagne was used to celebrate the winner after each race. They are now the official sponsor of Formula E, a motorsport championship series that only uses electric cars.

Champagne and the art of fencing

The company has also been closely associated with international horse racing. It is the official champagne of the Kentucky Derby, Australias Melbourne Cup and South Africas The Sun Met. Since 2016, the brand has also been closely associated with eight-time Olympic gold medalist sprinter Usain Bolt. He has been featured in a multi-media promotional campaign as the companys CEO or Chief Entertainment Officer.

Its latest celebrity spokesperson, Chamley-Watson joins the G.H. Mumm family, sharing a mission to challenge convention and perceptions of what is considered 'the norm' in traditional fields.

Tina Reejsinghani, G.H. Mumm U.S. Director, noted that Mumm is

Proud to partner with Miles Chamley-Watson, who is a groundbreaking force in fencing and fashion. Miles exudes the values of our brand, driving progress in his field with style. He will be a key ambassador and partner of the brand. His bold and daring attitude is a natural fit to the G.H. Mumm style and heritage.

Chamley-Watson is not a typical fencer. Hes brought a dynamic, unconventional style to the sport. His trademark move The Chamley-Watson whipping his foil around the back of his head to score a point on the opponent, is making waves within the sport. Already in his career, he has modernized fencing and redefined people's expectations around the sport.

According to Chamley-Watson:

I live my life by the motto create a legacy not a moment, which is exactly what G.H. Mumm is doing in the Champagne space. Nothing great ever comes from abiding to the status quo, and Im excited to continue my legacy through this partnership with G.H. Mumm.

Champagne houses are typically conservative and tradition bound, but Chamley-Watson believes that G.H. Mumm is anything but traditional.

They're all about changing the game and doing things differently in their field, which I love.

Champagne and its marketing are usually associated with luxury brands. Fencing isnt usually thought of as a luxury item the way car racing or equestrian events are associated with luxury lifestyles, but Chamley-Watson believes that associating fencing with an upscale luxury item like champagne will help fencing expand its audience.

I think my fans and fans of the sport of fencing will definitely be excited by the association. I genuinely believe in the importance of breaking with tradition and making your own statement so I think G.H. Mumm will translate to the audience who enjoy the sport especially because of the versatility of the champagne you can drink it however you want. Who wouldn't be into that?

A bottle of G.H. Mumm Champagne

As the Olympian has paved the way and changed the face of fencing, so too, in parallel, has G.H. Mumm reinvented what it means to be an international Champagne house with a rich heritage, by modernizing the category to the new age. The brand prides itself on their legendary liquid and iconic heritage among Champagnes, yet insists on pushing boundaries and driving innovation. From the groundbreaking redesign of the Grand Cordon bottle, with a label-less bottle and sleek iconic Cordon Rouge indent, to its modernization of Champagne glassware and consumption, G.H. Mumm is consistently driving progress in its category.

Today, G.H. Mumm and Miles invite consumers to challenge convention and feel empowered to break with tradition, starting with the introduction of G.H. Mumm's newest disruptive innovation The Cloupe. The Cloupe is an innovative hybrid between a flute and coupe glass, drawing from the Maison's rich, disruptive history. Emblazoned with the iconic, indented red sash, this innovative glassware aims to modernize and enhance the Champagne drinking experience with the legendary liquid of G.H. Mumm.

To find out more about the partnership between G.H. Mumm and Miles Chamley-Watson, follow @ghmumm_us on Instagram.

Cheers

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Getting To The Point: Champagne And The Art Of Fencing - Forbes

The Athletics Division of Williamson County Parks and Recreation (WCPR) will begin registering for Winter Youth Fencing and Junior Tennis Clinics in early December.

WINTER YOUTH FENCING CLINICRegistration will open on December 2 for Williamson County Parks and Recreations Winter Fencing Clinic for coed youth ages 7 to 17. The clinic dates are January 7 through March 5 and will meet on Tuesday and Thursday evenings at the Indoor Arena at Crockett Park, 1485 Volunteer Pkwy., in Brentwood. The cost is $125 (includes equipment rental for level 1 and 2).

Fencing is a modern-day equivalent of a sword fight and is one of the fastest-growing sports in the country. Clinic participants will learn the rules of the sport, basic footwork and posture, as well as the rules of the sport, scoring, weaponry and safety rules.

Online registration will remain open through January 4 or until the clinics are full. Register at http://www.wcparksandrec.com. Registration code #16460. The fee is $35 per child for the six-week clinic.

For more information contact Chris Podunajec at (615) 377-6530, ext. 6602, or Chris.Podunajec@williamsoncounty-tn.gov.

WINTER JUNIOR TENNIS CLINICSRegistration for WCPRs Winter Indoor Tennis Clinics (Session 2) for juniors will open December 3 at 10:00 a.m. The clinics will begin the week of January 6 and continue through February 15 at the Indoor Sports Complex in Brentwood, 920 Heritage Way. Junior tennis clinics (age 5 and older) in beginner through advanced skill levels are offered Monday(s) through Saturday(s). Prices vary depending on the duration of clinic. Space is limited. A full class schedule, fees and registration information are available at http://www.wcparksandrec.com.

Link:
Parks and Rec Offers Youth Winter Fencing and Tennis Clinics - Williamson Source

After the Verdi project was completed, Reliable FenceCompany went to work on the project to make U.S.Highway 50 over Spooner Summit a four lane highway. I did not work on the Spooner Summit project but the following story was told to me by Johnny Warren after theproject was completed.

On the Spooner Summit project, federal funds were involved and federal aid requirements had to be followed by the State Highway Department during construction. One of the requirements was that the general contractor and all the subcontractors had to submitcertifiedpayrolls every week to show that the contractors were paying the prevailing wage rates specified for each classification. This was a requirement of the Federal Davis-Bacon act.

When Reliable Fence Company started work on theright-of-way fence along the sides of the highway, they soon discovered that the slopes were very steep and the terrain was incredibly rough. Even military jeeps or other 4-wheel drive vehicles could not safely haul rolls of barbed wire, bags of concrete and fence posts to the job site.

Johnny Warren then decided to approach the State Highway Department to issue him a change order to use mules to haul the fence materials up the steep slopes. The bureaucrats in the construction office at the Highway Department at first told Johnny Warren that this could not be done, since there wasnot anequipment rental rate in the contract fora mule. Johnny Warren then replied with a proposal to have the mule ordonkeys put on his payroll so the animals could be paid at the prevailing wage rate forlaborers. This would cover the cost of buying themules and the hay they ate.

After considerablenegotiating, the State finally agreed to the proposal, but they cautioned him that as laborers, the mules ordonkeys must be shown by name and should have a social security number. They later dropped the social securitynumber requirement, but insisted thelaborers should be given a name.

When the change order was finally approved and Reliable Fence Company started work using a mule,the first certified payroll was submitted to theConstruction Office. Along with all the other equipment operators and laborers, there was one laborer listed with the name Jack Ass. Later, other mules and some donkeys were used on the project but Jerry Nelms could notremember their names. This information was confirmed recently by a telephone call to Jerry Nelms, Foremanfor Artistic Fence Co. He also told me that Harker and Harker Electrical Company had used a helicopters to put in the power lines on this same project due to the steep slopes.

This article is by Dayton Author and Historian, Dennis Cassinelli, who can be contacted on his blog atdenniscassinelli.com. All Dennis books sold through this publication will be at a discount plus $3.00 for eachshipmentfor postage and packaging.

Excerpt from:
Building the fence over Spooner Summit - Mesquite Local News

I'll be totally honest, signing up for another streaming service does not excite me right now. And while my family is all about that Disney life, a lot of the movies and shows on its new streaming service I already own on DVD. Unlike Netflix, where seeing a physical release is super rare, Disney has been a part of our lives in every possible format for as long as I've been alive. And until I see more than one original series or movie on the platform that excites me, I wasn't sure this was something I wanted to invest in.

Over the holiday weekend, that changed. And now that Disney Plus (Disney+) is up for a super sweet $5 per month Cyber Monday deal, I am real happy I waited to pick this service up.

I grew up on cheesy Christmas movies. Miracle on 34th Street, Scrooged, Babes in Toyland, and so many others were part of a regular rotation at my Aunt's house. I have a soft spot in my heart for these films, and a lot of the newer Christmas stories don't really scratch that itch for me. Disney+ has an exclusive Christmas Movie, Noelle, with Bill Hader and Anna Kendrick, and I watched it after Thanksgiving with my family. It was perfect, the right blend of comedy and Christmas magic that made me feel like I was back on my Aunt's couch on Christmas Day. It really made me feel good, and was the final straw for me to really take a deeper look at what is happening with this Disney Plus thing.

Right now, thanks to Cyber Monday, Disney+ is $5 per month if you pay for the whole year up front. That's a cup of hot chocolate each month for me, which more than justifies having access to the massive mountain of things this service offers. While I originally shrugged off the service for all of the stuff I had already bought, there are tons of things here from when I was a teenager that I had totally forgotten about. It's a lot of fun to take this trip into my past, especially now that I have my sister to share it with.

If you've been on the fence about Disney+, you should give this a shot. I did, and couldn't be happier.

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If you were on the fence about Disney Plus, this Cyber Monday deal is everything - iMore