Facing raw materials crisis?

Markt & Technik, is asking the question which in the minds of majority in the electronic industry we face already for years. Shortages occur periodically, remember the Osaka earthquake (90's) where a major resin producer was put out of business causing several months long shortage of resin used to package IC's?
Material used for production of HD, batteries, flat displays and so on. China is the exporter of 93% of world supply of rare earth materials
http://www.baotou-rareearth.com/?gclid=CIv8p4mnu6MCFUQq3wodDFhcdg.

Recently China decided to reduce its exports successively and by 2015 to stop exporting them all together.

Apparently export limits are drastic, For export destined rare earth materials were 22.24 t. in the first 6 months of 2010, comparing that with only 7.98 t. for the second half of 2010, making total exports in 2010 amounting to just over 30 t. Comparing that with exports of over 50 t. in 2009. Europeans and the Americans are concerned that China could use its superior position to dictate prices in the future. Gontermann is noting tat already in July prices on some of these rare materials rose by up to 50%. This could lead to distortions in the supply chain, and even to its collapse.
In response the US and Australia is working hard to increase supply of these rare materials to compensate the coming shortage but authorities warn that will take at least 2 years to make up for the difference.

Skype raises funding on NASDAQ

Skype, a Luxembourg-based provider of internet telephony, said it planned to raise $100m through an initial public offering on the NASDAQ stockmarket. The company, which was founded in 2003, was acquired by eBay in 2005. The online auction site sold 70% of its stake for about $2 billion last year, following legal disputes with Skype’s founders.

new US law, takes "blood" cell phones in its sights

In July, US congress approved the new law, that obliges publicly listed companies to disclose use of specific materials like Tantal, Gold, Tungsten and Tin which may come from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Definitely, the raw materials, especially from lands with no state structures or with collapsed state control, like in Somalia, Congo, Liberia etc. Naomi Campbell is an exception which confirms rules, that big money is involved. John de la Carrè was writing about state involvement in supporting rouge groups, in areas like Goma (Congo), Rwanda, Uganda, and even Kenya where Europeans, Americans, and even recently Chinese play in search of more and more scarce resources, for rapidly increasing industrial consumption.

BASF has joined development of batteries for e-cars

Is electro-mobility a term designed to descrobe mobility via electric driven vehcles, Iris Strom is writing in German.

Einige haben sich die Zeit genommen und mir per Email Ihre Meinung zum Thema E-Mobilität zukommen lassen. Zunächst also erst einmal ein herzliches Dankeschön an alle! Natürlich wollte nicht jeder, dass ich seine Meinung auf unserer Website veröffentliche, einem Wunsch, dem ich selbstverständlich nachkomme. Doch ich lege jedem nahe, sich die Zeit zu nehmen und die zur Veröffentlichung freigegebenen Meinungen (Kommentare zum Thema Elektromobilität) zu lesen. Denn mit teils sehr deutlichen Worten fordern die Leserbriefschreiber, der deutschen/europäischen Automobilindustrie keine Fördergelder in den Rachen zu schieben.
Ich möchte aber darauf hinweisen, dass auch die gegenteilige Meinung zu hören war, nämlich, dass es ohne massive Subventionen nicht machbar wäre, Elektroautos in Masse zu produzieren!
Allerdings möchte ich betonen, dass sich die Mehrheit ganz klar gegen eine Subventionierung der OEMs ausspricht - schade eigentlich, dass die Politiker sich selten wirklich für die Meinung ihrer Wähler interessieren.


Iris Stroh

Components shortages drive use of unauthorized copies

Passive and mechanical components vendors suffer from copies, as allocations lists elongate. Distributors are forced to use them to make sure the production lines are running. According to Jean Quecke, of TTI, the problem arose late in 2009 and is going to extend into 2011 when the Supply Chain should return to normality. Distributors use vendors delivery notes as a proof of guarantee for product quality and reliability. Sometimes for the expediency vendors require also use of brokerages, where such documentation is not easily available.

iPhone and Blackberry are on a way out?

It Mr. Thomas de Maiziere (CDU) and Sebastian Edathly (SPD) had their ways, already all iPhones and Blackberrys would be on their way out of the German Bundestag (Parliament).

Recent bans in Saudi Arabia doe not seem so outrageous any more. The news we be getting are such that Blackberry has survived the critical data security test.

Having similar objections many in the parliament view the possible PDF bug in iPhone applications may contribute to the distrust of parliamentarians. Once this PDF bug is activated, the sender could take control of the smart phone.

Organizing a catastrophe-Love parade in Duisburg

Recently organized (or mis-organized) Love Parade in Duisburg cost more than 20 lives. It has to be said that quite a few large events went well, without major tragedies, thus critics should agree that organization rules if properly implemented could provide adequate safety.
Markt & Technik, Heinz Arnold is lamenting on insufficient use to available technologies gered to serve and to protect such as digital police radio, more explicit by-laws, and other ideas.
From where I am standing, I know it is hard to predict human crowd's behavior in a suddenly stressing situations.
Technology might be helpful, certainly. But common sense, a degree of mistrust and a healthy dose of precautions, provisions for expanding spaces, exits, and crowd control in real time, and with macro-management.

We hope such tragedy wont happen again. But as it was said about wars: if you want to avoid a catastrophe, prepare for it.