London Assembly urges renewed energy goals

London officials are urging the mayor to lobby the UK government for a renewed commitment to energy efficiency. Under a motion passed this week, the London Assembly is asking Mayor Boris Johnson to push for a reversal in UK reductions to the Energy Company Obligation (ECO). The government's stance also threatens a city target to insulate…

ByThe Global ViewMarch 7, 20140Comments

Investment

Decarbon helps businesses cash in on ‘fifth fuel’

Energy efficiency is a strange "fuel." You don't get a monthly efficiency bill like you would for, say, heating oil or natural gas. But efficiency -- or the lack of it -- can have as big an impact on your bottom line as what you shell out for every kilowatt-hour or BTU you consume. The trouble…

ByThe Global ViewFebruary 20, 20130Comments

Energy

At Finnish ‘research hotel,’ the top amenity is efficiency

Foreign students will get more than just a place to stay while visiting the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland -- they'll also help the VTT investigate new ways to encourage people to control their home energy use. That's because visiting students' accommodations aren't any old dorm, but a new "research hotel" designed for studying energy…

ByThe Global ViewNovember 15, 20120Comments

Investment

Higher, faster, smarter: How to build a 220-story tower in 90 days

Can smarter building techniques also make for faster construction? China's Broad Group hopes to answer that question with a resounding "Yes" by completing the world's tallest building in 90 days. The company plans to build the 220-story Sky City tower in Changsha City using modular construction technology developed by its Broad Sustainable Building (BSB) Company. Construction…

ByThe Global ViewAugust 15, 20121Comment

Cloud

Before you hit ‘print’: Efficient document strategies for business

Thanks to innovations like ever-faster and more affordable PCs, smart phones and cloud computing, a small or mid-sized business today can enjoy an advanced IT infrastructure unimaginable even five or 10 years ago. One "perk of the future" that has yet to be delivered, though, is the paperless office. In fact, far from becoming paperless, many…

ByThe Global ViewMay 31, 20120Comments

Policy

Efficiency or sustainability? Devil’s in the details

There are lots of ways to measure how efficient a thing or process is: miles per gallon, GDP per barrel of oil, lumens per watt, etc. There are also, as Mark Twain (or was it Benjamin Disraeli?) said, "three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics." What does that have to do with efficiency? Quite a…

ByThe Global ViewFebruary 23, 20120Comments

Cities

Will the ‘internet of things’ be ruled by giants?

Is bigger necessarily more efficient? It all depends on circumstances. For example, an Amazon certainly enjoys an economy of scale no brick-and-mortar local bookstore can ... as fallout in the book-selling business has proven. On the other hand, when conditions on Earth changed dramatically, the mighty dinosaurs that ruled for millions of years found themselves…

ByThe Global ViewDecember 5, 20110Comments

Smart Cities

ABB controllers drive zero-emissions data center in Iceland

ABB's programmable logic controllers are helping to run what is believed to be the world's first zero-emissions data center, a facility in Iceland that gets its electricity from hydropower and geothermal energy. The Thor Data Center near the capital city of Reykjavik recently opened its first data storage container and expects a second to be delivered…

ByThe Global ViewOctober 5, 20110Comments

Cities

The cure for city parking headaches? Sensors and better data

Sick and tired of circling the block in the vain hope of finding an open parking space? There could soon be an app for that in a city near you. IBM and Streetline, a company using smart technology to tackle the perennial lack of parking in urban areas, have started working together to help cities ease…

ByThe Global ViewSeptember 28, 20110Comments

Smart Cities

How energy-efficient are your home’s doors? New ratings will say

Residential doors in the UK will now be given energy efficiency ratings much like windows have long received, under a new program from the British Fenestration Ratings Council (BFRC). The Door Energy Ratings (DER) scheme extends the rating system already used for doors on fridges, freezers and other white goods to standard residential doors as well…

ByThe Global ViewSeptember 8, 20110Comments

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