Elon Musk – how influential is he?

Let’s get the answer out the way quickly; Elon Musk is incredibly influential. Musk is leading the way for clean energy.  He is arguably the most talked about CEO in the world right now and there is a very real chance that the ideas and endeavours of this man are going to dictate the future of you and me. This article is going to briefly identify and give a synopsis of some of probably his 3 most influential investments thus far.
Tesla Motors
It would be foolish to start with anything but Tesla. Founded in 2003, Tesla has gone onto become one of the most talked about and sought after automotive names in the world, due to its commitment to clean energy. From the start Elon Musk has been a key player in the company and is now the CEO, with a 22% share of the company, making him by far the largest shareholder of the corporation. Tesla, led by Elon Musk are revolutionizing the motor industry, paving the way for electric vehicles to one day be the common car and fade out the need for fossil fuel dependent motor vehicles. Believe us when we say this, the shift is happening at a staggering pace, the Model 3 is by far one of the most eagerly anticipated vehicles in history, considering it’s not due for release until mid to late 2017, it’s already received an incredible 400’000 pre-orders. It’s estimated that vehicle orders so far accumulate to approximately $10 billion. The world’s biggest automotive companies have felt the presence of Tesla and are being forced to innovate their own electric cars – as of yet, none have come close to threatening Tesla’s dominance.
SolarCity Corporation 

The leading provider of solar energy in the United States, Californian based SolarCity are on a mission to shift consumers from utility based energy to that of solar. The company was founded in 2006 and at this moment, employs over 13’000 people. Although not a CEO or founder, Elon Musk has still been a major figurehead in the development of the company. He is currently the chairman and it was Musk who suggested to his cousins and current CEO’s about the potential of a solar company and has since provided them with support. However, with the rapid progression of Tesla, Musk now wants an even bigger hold and position within the company, which explains why Tesla Motors and Solar City together announced the former would be purchasing the latter, in a $2.6 billion merger deal. The deal is expected to be finalised and announced in November 2016. The collaboration does make perfect business sense.

Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (Space X)
Okay, so, if Elon Musk’s companies can’t save planet earth, then he is just going to fly us all to Mars instead. Unlike Tesla, Elon Musk has been the CEO of Space X from the very start, so if you asked him which company meant the most to him personally, he would probably point you in the direction of Space X. The business goal of Space X is really quite simple, to make humans a ‘multi-planetary’ species, Elon Musk wants to be the main that pioneered humans capabilities of living on multiple planets. In September 2016, Elon Musk announced Space X through the Interplanetary Transport System would carry at least 100 people to Mars and return more passengers. The company currently employs over 5’000 members of staff to pursue Musk’s ambition of having 1 million people living on Mars by 2035, through the utilization of thousands of rockets. Musk is famously quoted as saying “I’d like to die on Mars, just not on impact’.
Whatever, your opinions of Musk, whether he is just in it for the money or he genuinely wants to be the man to save the human species, there is no denying the innovation and courage of this man is of great benefit to planet earth.

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Keep it Fresh!

As one of the leading manufacturers and suppliers of metal products in China,  one of our most popular products is the shipping containers. We offer shipping containers in different sizes and variations, among which is the Reefer Container, also known as the refrigerated container.

At SMC we ensure that your perishable goods are kept cool and fresh through the long journey of reaching the export market; or as they are being transported from the place of origin, that is the farm to the  market place in our temperature controlled cargo.  Our professional handling of perishable goods in these reefer containers is specifically beneficial to businesses that trade in the horticulture business farming products such as flowers, fruits, vegetables, sea food ,meat and other fresh produce.

Much like a cold room with controlled temperature, our reefer containers have a controlled atmosphere to ensure that the goods being transported remain as fresh as can be, thus quality products is not compromised.

This intense temperature control is particularly useful in ensuring food quality; so it comes a long way as a great benefit for countries that aren’t self sufficient in food production and are dependent on imported fresh produce.

Refridgerated containers are also essential for transporting other sensitive goods such as plants,medicines and vaccines which need to be under certain temperatures all the time.

These containers are also handy in transporting  food products to military personnel living in bush camps and are out of reach of fresh produce.

 

Our reefer containers are equipped with low power consuming refridgeration technology, which is essential for energy saving.

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Lebo Seopane//SMC Editor

Credits: SMC homepage, Google Images

The WaterLess Jeans

It is no news that most US garment production has moved offshore to countries such as China, India, Bangladesh to take advantage of low production costs. And along with that decision rise questions of whether or not vendors and factories involved in the manufacturing processes comply with ethical, environment and social standards that create the “true” sustainable products.

Moving offshore does not imply fewer challenges for the apparel companies, but more intricate responsibilities to ensure that “making profits” can be done without compromising the quality of life of those involved in the process, as well as the future of the environment. In order to address these social challenges, the American Denim giant, Levi Strauss, launched its Water<Less jeans collection in 2011 – designed to reduce the water used in the finishing process by an average of 28 percent and up to 96 percent – and its 100% recycled water standard, a first for the apparel industry.

If the new Water<Less jeans can really save water? Well, Levi’s announced during the World Water Day on March 22 this year that the line has saved over 770 million liters of water — enough to supply drinking water for 811,000 people for one year — since its launch. The company also planned to make extra 9 million units of the Water<Less jean, saving 71 million liters of water, according to Environmental Leader.

During the full product cycle of Levi’s single pair of typical 501 jeans more than 3,000 liters of water are used. Almost half of it (49 percent) is used to grow the cotton, while 45 percent is used when customers wash their jeans, typically about 100 times. The remaining 6 percent of the water is used during the manufacturing process of the jean, which required an average of 3 to 10 spins in cavernous washers and dryers to give it its unique appearance.

Now, the new Water<Less jeans combines the multiple wash cycles into a single wet-cycle process, followed by the ozone processing (dry or raw denim).  When the ozone decomposes, it reverts to free oxygen, not requiring washing the pair of jeans after the dyeing process. That was exactly where Levi’s could exert the most control of the usage on water and energy: the manufacturing process.

To celebrate the denim brand’s Water<Less jeans over 100 pairs of the jeans were fixed together forming a fluid whirlpool design. The art piece was inspired and designed by British architect Ian McChesney as part of the Regent Street Windows Project in London and used more than 1,000 copper rivets.

Shanghai Metal Corporation offers a wide range of copper rivets in varying sizes and forms, widely used in the manufacturing of art sculptures such as the Water<Less jeans in London. To find out more about us, please visit our Website, WordPress, LinkedIn , Twitter , Facebook  and Instagram. Or you could try our new mobile app by scanning our QR code. Moreover, we sell directly from Alibaba , EC21 and Tradekey.

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Source and pictures: sustainablebrands.com, greentechcorp.net, fibre2fashion.com, fashionsustainability.weebly.com, theguardian.com, hmvm.co.uk, celsias.com, greenglobaltravel.com

 

Camilla G.//SMC Editor

China’s Steel Industry Is Changing Greatly

Steel is the world’s most recycled material. This is good news because steel is everywhere in our lives. Numbers tell us that the global production of steel has now reached almost 1.5 billion tonnes each year. Geographically, China accounts today for almost half of the world’s steel production, increasing by over 500% since 2000. In 2012, China produced 708 million tonnes of steel. China is also a great consumer of steel, 60% of rebar, used in buildings to reinforce concrete, that is produced each year, is now consumed in China.

However, in order to produce each tonne of steel in China, 0.69 tonnes of coal is required in energy consumption in average, i.e. 500 million tonnes of coal each year is consumed to produce steel in China. This is equivalent to almost 7% of the world’s coal, and if China’s steel industry was a country it would rank 6th globally, ranking above both Germany and Canada in total primary energy consumption.

Good news is that China Steel Industry is changing greatly, and a series policies for steel industries’ transformation and upgrade have been issued by China government first in 2011 during China Sustainable Steel Summit. Part of the China “12th Five Year Plan”, these policies range within the field of M&A, restructuring, energy saving and emission reduction, closing backward facility, iron ore and steel price, also climate change, CSR, sustainability.

Shanghai Metal Corporation offers a wide array of high quality metals such as steel, stainless steel, galvanized steel.  To find out more, please visit our Website or send your inquiry here. Our English speaking personnel will be more than pleased to help you. Follow us on  LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel. Or you could try our new mobile app by scanning our QR code.

Source: The Energy Collective, China Sustainable Steel Summit 2011

Photo credit: Wikipedia

Camilla G.//SMC Editor

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