Distribution Poles: From Wood to Hot Dip Galvanized Steel

With the increasing demand of eco-friendly ans sustainable products from both the public and private sector, the main sector to improve is the energy sector itself.
Distribution pole are the main vectors of electricity and have become over the century a common view of our roads and fields.

Steel poles are becoming increasingly popular among utility companies for building distribution lines or for replacing the traditional wood poles. Many reasons push these companies to use steel ans invest in the new distribution poles. In this article we will try to summarize the benefit of hot dip galvanized steel mainly reported from linemen who have worked with both wood and steel

distribution-pole-blue-sky-asset — distribution pole – source: wikipedia.org

Wood pole VS Steel pole

Lighter:

For similar strengh, a steel pole is 30 to 60% lighter than a wood pole. This makes them easier to lift, load, install and handle in general.

Cheaper: Thanks to continuous improvement of quality and manufacturing process of steel poles the cost of steel poles come down to a point where they became competitive with wood.

Flexible:

Unlike wood poles which can only have a certain maximum size determined by the size of the tree taken from, the size of wood poles can be determined freely according to the need. Steel poles can be made to handle virtually any load and in any length and can also be made as single piece poles or in sections if that would help handling them in the field.

More Sustainable:

Galvanized steel poles were a response deforestation issues steel is one of the most recyclable materials around so there is never any environmental concern over disposing steel. an old pole will be recycled to make a multitude of other products. Also , the protective system that is required to cover steel poles is made of zinc which is also an environmentally friendly material and virtually 100 percent recyclable. In addition. The coating systems have been improved so much over the years that it has reduced the maintenance needed and improved their life expectancy of the poles.

Safer:

The steel structures do not require a full-length copper grounding wire. They are already self conducting for grounding purposes. As a result, no installation of a ground wire is required.

pole 4 — lineman on distribution pole source: wikipedia.org

source: steel.org, smdisteel.org

Shanghai Metal Corporation manufactures hot dip galvanized steel products because it believes in its potential and encourages its use for a more sustainable industry and a clean environment.
For more information, you can visit the company’s website or contact us for any inquiry.

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Houria // SMC Editor

“Made in China”, the rise of a new label

“Made in China” is probably what you find the most since decades on all the products you are buying during your shopping sessions. Your outfit is probably manufactured by some Chinese people thought.

But let’s come back on the reputation of the “Made in China” seen by the Western countries. When you hear the mention “Made in China”, you probably suppose products of bad quality, bad conditions of the workers and reminds you some scandals which happened at some times.

We can’t say that these facts don’t exist, but we can moderate what you’re thinking.

Chinese workers are not today working for $1 per day, in wretched conditions. In fact, in 2013, the average cost of labor in China is only the average of half the cost in the US and increase each year on an average of 20%, and could reach 60% in 2015 according to the Boston Consulting Group.

China is today too expensive for most of the western companies of the textile industry which desire to reduce their cost of production. Western countries rather relocate their production in India, Philippines and Bangladesh which are looking like Chine 15 years before.

The problem of most of the Chinese companies is not limited technologies, or unskilled workers, the biggest problem which explain sometimes the fact that the quality is not good enough is really strict bill of specifications. Western companies want large quantities in very short delays at really low prices. The thing is that today, to respect the short delays of the Western companies, some Chinese companies rather deliver products with a lower quality by respecting the delays and low prices.

Marco Polo on the silk road, Catalan Atlas, XIV century. BNF

China have been during thousands of years for Western countries the manufacturer of products really appreciated as silk, spices, jewelry, cashmere, carried on the silk road in direction to Europe, which were synonyms of a high quality and a know-how inimitable.

Today Chinese companies want to go back to this time when hallmarks of Chinese products were synonym of high quality. The Chinese government is investing in some companies as Xiaomij and Lenovo which are breaking the rules by creative innovating products making forget for the buyers the “Made in China” label.

With a massive workforce and a government engaging his companies to innovation, Chinese companies should see their reputation raised in the next few years. As an encouraging observation, today we found 6 companies based in China on Forbes’ Most Innovative Companies List.

Today, Shanghai Metal Corporation also wants to set things right for their “Made in China” label, providing excellent services, products of a great quality at attractive prices and secured packaging to their customers to insure the security of their orders. SMC has many certifications proving the quality of their products and is ready to receive potential customers to their factories to show them the respect of the certification restrictions.

So don’t hesitate to visit our website or to contact us for any information needed about our products.

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Damien / SMC Editor

The attraction for copper nowadays

Du cuivre — Photopqr – Le Parisien – Daboval Adeline

It’s a good and an unfortunate assessment at the same time that we are able to do each year.

In fact, the attraction for copper have increased the business of this type of metal for manufacturers but unluckily for our customers, the steal of copper is a real problem in Europe, until the point that it became a scourge for European countries.

Italy is one of the most important victims of these thefts in Europe. According to the newspaper Le Figaro, between 2010 and 2011 the number of thefts has known an increase of 300%, from 408 to 1226 cases. These thefts represent almost 631 tons of copper which have been stealed during this period. And the numbers are not decreasing. In Belgium the observation is even worst, from 290 cases of thefts in 2009, the Infrabel Group reported 1 362 cases in 2012. The value of the copper robbed was approximately of 8 millions of Euros which is significant for the Infrabel Group according to the Fedra newspaper.

In the United Kingdom, France and other European countries, the observations are the same. In the UK, the police have made of this problem their second preoccupation after terrorism, which is quite representative of the scope of the thefts.

The railways are not the only targets of the organized gangs. Electrical communications, communication networks, construction sites or private houses, are also concerned about this problem. The fact of stealing is not the only problem for these companies, there is many consequences for the companies’ victims of the piracies.

These thefts are creating delays for the companies, and for the railways companies, the cost is huge. In the United Kingdom, the thefts and delays of the trains have created 770 million pounds or 900 million Euros in 2011 of loss. In Belgium these thefts have resulted of 66 440 minutes of delay for the SNBC Group.

The cause of the increase in the attraction for copper is that the copper is becoming rare and as a consequence the price is sharply rising. In 2011, the price of a tone of copper represented 8 000 Euros, five times more than ten years before. Sold in the black market the copper means a lot of money for the organized gangs.

The copper is not the only metal attracting these groups, zinc, steel and nickel are also famous metals experiencing a resurgence of thefts.

Shanghai Metal Corporation, as a manufacturer, exporter and supplier of different types of metals as copper, steel, aluminum, etc, provides you, considering the actual issues encountered by many companies, products with competitive prices and a high quality incomparable to the harmful effect surrounding the label “Made in China”.

For more information about our products, feel free to visit our website to discover a large range of products that could probably match with your needs. And do not hesitate to contact us for specifications.

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Damien / SMC Editor

From “Traditional Manufacturing” into “Smart Manufacturing”

It is expected that China will become the world’s largest manufacturer by 2025. Over the past decade, China’s manufacturing sector has made large contributions to the country’s and also the world’s economy.

China has become a big manufacturing country but has not yet been a powerful one. The main problems in Chinese manufacturing are:

Weak independent innovation ability
High dependence on foreign countries in core technologies
Low resource use efficiency

Premier Li Keqiang announced on March 25 China’s plan to focus on these three issues and to upgrade its manufacturing capacity for the next decades, leading China into a more competitive international manufacturer. This program, “Made in China 2025”, aims for a greener and more intelligent manufacturing with the use of the internet, improving innovation ability, integrate informatization, industrialization and bring the economy towards a higher sustainable growth.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang. Photo from ejinsight

Ten sectors have been identified as priorities:

New information technology
High-end numerically-controlled machine tools and robotics
Aerospace equipment
Ocean engineering equipment and ships with high technology
Advanced railway traffic equipment
Energy saving and new energy vehicles
Power equipment
New materials
Biological medicine and high-performance medical devices
Agricultural production machinery

Shanghai Metal Corporation serves the world’s businesses as an integrated global manufacturer, exporter, and supplier. We stand firm to our philosophy in bringing value across the globe and we always dedicate our effort to provide quality products and reliable services. Our commitment pushes us to continuously put efforts in innovation and improve our manufacturing capacity. Shanghai Metal Corporation, alongside with China, will continuously work hard in the future to become a better manufacturer and bring value across the world. We hope to change the world’s perception of Chinese goods from simply “made in China” to “innovated in China”.

Sources: English.gov.cn, ChinaDaily, BritishChamber.cn
Featured image: tiny.pr, smartmanufacturing

Ayu P.//SMC Editor

Copper and architecture

Copper is used in architecture more and more often. Copper claddings, copper walls, copper roofs…One Belgium atelier – Atelier Vens Vanbelle designed a curving copper-clad extension that was added to a house in Ghent, Belgium. It looks retro-futuristic and surprisingly stylish.

This extension is for accommodating an extra bathroom, bedroom, a new foyer area to minimize a disruption to already established spaces and family routines.

When you look at this house from the outside, it has kind of maritime feel which is accentuated by the domed portholes.

The whole extension is covered with copper panels and supported by a copper-clad wall. More about this architectural design dezeen.com.

Shanghai Metal Corporation offers various types of copper, copper clad, copper sheet/plate. For more information visit our website or send us inquiry. English speaking staff will guide you further. Download a new application by scanning QR code or follow us on Social Media.

Silvia M.//SMC Editor

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Credits : googleimages, dezeen.com

How Do You Lengthen A Ship? Cut It In Half Of Course

Have you heard of the infinite chocolate theory? See below for details:

Well that’s not quite what these engineers had in mind, but close. It can be expensive to build an entirely new ship – maybe that’s why one cruise line decided to recycle an old one. Italian line MSC Cruises has decided to cut its smallest ship Armonia in half and stick a new part in.

Over several days, the 60,000-ton vessel was cut in two and a new 79ft-long, nine-deck-high section containing 193 extra cabins was slowly slotted into place. The work that took place in the Fincantieri shipyard in Palermo, Sicily, increases the ship’s length to 902ft – longer than the main Canary Wharf tower in London is high – and makes space for a total of 2,679 passengers. The upgrade will take nine weeks and cost £40million – and then be repeated on three other MSC ships, Sinfonia, Opera and Lirica. The new Armonia is due to sail from the yard on November 17 – fully watertight, of course.

If they wanted to save some money, they could have called Shanghai Metal who manufactures carbon steel shipbuilding plate at competitive prices. As an ISO 14001 (International Quality Management System) Company and recipient of the “Star Enterprise Award,” Shanghai Metal Corporation prides itself on exceeding international standards of quality and reliability. We guarantee the best prices, quality support, and fast delivery. To find out more, please visit our Website or send your inquiry here. Our English speaking personnel will be more than pleased to assist 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: Metro

Siobhan R.// SMC Editor

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Humor Through The Ages And Why It Changes Over Time

Why does our sense of humor change over time? At one point in our lives, armpit farting noises were the pinnacle of hilarity. At age five, nothing else could possibly top it. For some of us, nothing ever will. But for most people, what strikes us as funny changes drastically over time. There are also great spatial variations. What’s funny in one country will silence a room in another. Let’s have a look at what our ancient ancestors found funny:

Egyptians

“How do you entertain a bored pharaoh?”

“You sail a boatload of young women dressed only in fishing nets down the Nile and urge the pharaoh to go catch a fish.”

Egyptians maintain their political satire to this day with the following quip:

“Nasser was killed by poison, Sadat by a bullet and Mubarak by Facebook,”

Greeks

One ancient Greek idiot joke reads: “An idiot, wanting to go to sleep but not having a pillow, told his slave to set an earthen jar under his head. The slave said that the jug was hard. The idiot told him to fill it with feathers.”

There are also the comic insults, listed so as to be used in instant one-line put downs – “You don’t have a face, but a fireplace” reads one. But my particular favorites are the ‘doctor’ jokes: “A person went to a doctor and said “doctor, whenever I get up from sleeping, I’m groggy for a half an hour afterwards and only after that am I all right” To which the doctor replied: “Get up half an hour later.”

Romans

Another of the jokes – said to be dated to 248AD when Rome held what was billed as the ‘Millennium Games’ – tells the story of a distraught athlete.’

Never mind,’ says a spectator. ‘You can always try again at the next Millennium Games.’

There is also an ancient version of the Monty Python dead parrot sketch.

It reads: ‘A man buys a slave, who dies soon after. When he complains, the slave seller replies, “Well, he didn’t die when I owned him”.’

So humor is a static concept, changing due to circumstance and audience. Or maybe its due to a maturing appreciation for humor. Ultimately, humor is subjective, and is up to the individual to form.

This particular Roman joke was found in a 1,700 year old book during a metal detecting excavation in the UK, along with clay pots and old coins. Amateur metal detecting is said to make up 90% of all archeological finds, as our article about The Law of Finders Keepers described. Metal detectors are relatively easy and cheap to get your hands on, and are made of hardwearing stainless steel so you can continue your hobby for years.

Shanghai Metal manufactures value added stainless steel products similar to those mentioned. As an ISO 14001 (International Quality Management System) Company and recipient of the “Star Enterprise Award,” Shanghai Metal Corporation prides itself on exceeding international standards of quality and reliability. We guarantee the best prices, quality support, and fast delivery. To find out more, please visit our Website or send your inquiry here. 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.

Sources: Daily Mail, Curiousity Discovery, History Extra, Smithsonian Magazine, Splitsider, BBC

Siobhan R.// SMC Editor

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How To Live Forever

Doctors have begun human trials of suspended animation to buy more time for critically injured patients. This is reminiscent of Hollywood movies where characters wake up in steel pods during space travel having been frozen for years at a time. For more on movie realism, see our article on what Hollywood finally got right about science.

However, this is not quite the concept Dr Tisherman of the USA has meant it for. Emergency preservation and resuscitation (EPR) uses an innovative rapid-cooling procedure to suspend life, similar to how surgeons induce hypothermia during some surgeries.

Dr Tisherman’s EPR process, developed with the help of $800,000 from the Department of Defense, is mostly about resurrection. The idea at this stage is to use equipment like the catheters and pumps that can be found in any trauma centre to suspend the life of critically injured people in order to buy more time for surgeons to try to save them.

EPR works by lowering the patient’s body temperature and replacing their blood with a cold saline solution. If the human trials are successful, the aim is to take the technique out into the field. For example, a paramedic might be able to use EPR to put a dangerously ill patient into a suspended state until they can be rushed to a specialist hospital. Such a system could also be used on the battlefield to evacuate injured soldiers.

Shanghai Metal produces the carbon steel used in surgical blades. As an ISO 14001 (International Quality Management System) Company and recipient of the “Star Enterprise Award,” Shanghai Metal Corporation prides itself on exceeding international standards of quality and reliability. We guarantee the best prices, quality support, and fast delivery. To find out more, please visit our Website or send your inquiry here. 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 Economist

Siobhan R.// SMC Editor

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Alien Machinery Found In Russia

300 million year old machinery has been found in Russia – experts say the steel gear is not the result of natural forces, and may be extraterrestrial.

According to Yulia Zamanskaya, when a resident of Vladivostok was lighting the fire during a cold winter evening, he found a rail-shaped metal detail which was pressed in one of the pieces of coal that the man used to heat his home.

Mesmerized by his discovery, the responsible citizen decided to seek help from the scientists of Primorye region. After the metal object was studied by the leading experts, the man was shocked to learn about the assumed age of his discovery. The metal detail was supposedly 300 million years old, and yet the scientists suggest that it was not created by nature but was rather manufactured by someone. The question of who might have made an aluminum gear in the dawn of time remains unanswered.

Shanghai Metal produces our current terrestrial supply of value added carbon steel products. As an ISO 14001 (International Quality Management System) Company and recipient of the “Star Enterprise Award,” Shanghai Metal Corporation prides itself on exceeding international standards of quality and reliability. We guarantee the best prices, quality support, and fast delivery. To find out more, please visit our Website or send your inquiry here. 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.

Sources: Before Its News

Siobhan R.// SMC Editor

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Sliding Doors Moment – Is Fate Real?

Did you ever see the 1998 Gwenyth Paltrow movie where her character gets fired from her job and we get to watch her parallel lives unfold, based on whether she made it into the tube before the sliding doors closed? Watch here for a reminder:

In an instant, life can change and we can lose everything: our health, our jobs, or the people we love. But, think about how much we can gain in an instant too. There are moments like this one in the movie that you do not control, do not choose and cannot decide. However, there other situations where you clearly make a decision, that you know it is affecting, no matter what, the main course of your life.

Have you ever had a sliding doors moment? Do you believe in fate? So what makes the difference? It’s all in the sliding door. Shanghai Metal manufactures the carbon steel strip tape used in sliding doors.

As an ISO 14001 (International Quality Management System) Company and recipient of the “Star Enterprise Award,” Shanghai Metal Corporation prides itself on exceeding international standards of quality and reliability. We guarantee the best prices, quality support, and fast delivery. To find out more, please visit our Website or send your inquiry here. 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.

Sources: afreshchapter, Hypervision, Youtube

Siobhan R.// SMC Editor

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