China unveils 'world's fastest train link' !

BEIJING (AFP) – China on Saturday unveiled what it billed as the fastest rail link in the world -- a train connecting the modern cities of Guangzhou and Wuhan at an average speed of 350 kilometres (217 miles) an hour.

The super-high-speed train reduces the 1,069 kilometre journey to a three hour ride and cuts the previous journey time by more than seven and a half hours, the official Xinhua news agency said. Work on the project began in 2005 as part of plans to expand a high-speed network aimed at eventually linking Guangzhou, a business hub in southern China near Hong Kong, with the capital Beijing, Xinhua added.

"The train can go 394.2 kilometres per hour, it's the fastest train in operation in the world," Zhang Shuguang, head of the transport bureau at the railways ministry, told Xinhua. Test runs for the service began earlier in December and the link officially went into service when the first scheduled train left the eastern metropolis of Wuhan on Saturday.


Chinese workers put the final touch on the interior of a new railway station in Wuhan, central China's Hubei province. China has unveiled what it billed as the fastest rail link in the world -- a train connecting the modern cities of Guangzhou and Wuhan at an average speed of 350 kilometres (217 miles) an hour.(AFP/Str)

By comparison, the average for high-speed trains in Japan was 243 kilometres per hour while in France it was 277 kilometres per hour, said Xu Fangliang, general engineer in charge of designing the link, according to Xinhua. Beijing has an ambitious rail development programme aimed at increasing the national network from the current 86,000 kilometres to 120,000 kilometres, making it the most extensive rail system outside the United States.

China unveiled its first high-speed line at the time of the Beijing Olympics in 2008 -- a service linking the capital with the port city of Tianjin. In September, officials said they planned to build 42 high-speed lines by 2012 in a massive system overhaul as part of efforts to spur economic growth amid the global downturn. The network uses technology developed in co-operation with foreign firms such as Siemens, Bombardier and Alstom.

Pengajaran penarafan THE-QS World University 2009

SEBAGAI satu sistem pengajian tinggi yang kolektif, kedudukan purata lima institusi yang termasuk dalam penarafan THE-QS World University Ranking 2009 - Universiti Malaya (180), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (291), Universiti Sains Malaysia (314), Universiti Putra Malaysia (345) dan Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (320) sebenarnya telah meningkat daripada 294 ke 290.

Berasaskan kepada dapatan 2007, tahun pertama perubahan besar metodologi penarafan dilakukan oleh THE-QS, semua universiti telah menunjukkan kemajuan pada 2009 kecuali sebuah. Naik turun tahun ke tahun dijangka berlaku disebabkan kesan perubahan dinamik respons survei dan ubah suai kecil terhadap metodologi kajian.

Menurut Ben Souter, Ketua Penyelidik QS, tiga faktor menyebabkan ketidaktentuan ketara dalam ranking THE-QS, misalnya kedudukan Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia yang berubah seperti "yo-yo" memberikan contoh yang paling jelas (307 pada 2007, 250 pada 2008 dan 291 pada 2009).

Institusi-institusi baru yang memasuki senarai tersebut membawa kesan secara langsung terhadap kedudukan institusi sedia ada, bergantung sama ada penyertaan mereka pada kedudukan di atas atau di bawah institusi sedia ada. Responden survei yang pada awalnya diwakili ramai dari Malaysia, juga mulai dicair dengan penambahan responden dari negara-negara yang dahulunya kurang diwakili seperti Jepun.

Selain itu mulai tahun 2008, respons dalam negara diasingkan daripada respons antarabangsa dan hanya membawa pemberat 15 peratus. Kesan kepada perubahan ini terhadap penilaian keserakanan akademik akan memuncak pada 2010 dan institusi yang paling teruk padahnya adalah institusi dari negara-negara yang memiliki sebilangan kecil institusi sahaja tetapi mempunyai jumlah responden yang tinggi (Malaysia adalah satu contoh).

Kita tidak harus melihat ini sebagai suatu ketidakadilan kerana kita ingin mengecap pengiktirafan antarabangsa selain disanjungi rakan akademia di Malaysia. Sungguhpun terdapat perubahan kaedah yang tidak menyebelahi institusi di Malaysia, kita tidak wajar mengetepikan data penarafan THE-QS kerana ia boleh dijadikan asas perbandingan selain membantu kita merencana pelan strategi dan tindakan untuk peningkatan berterusan.

Sebagai contoh, iltizam UKM untuk memanfaat sumber yang ada telah menghasilkan peningkatan nisbah pelajar fakulti, tenaga pengajar antarabangsa dan pelajar antarabangsa.
Tumpuan UKM kepada pengukuhan penyelidikan dan menggalakkan penerbitan telah meningkatkan jumlah penerbitan dalam jurnal terindeks oleh Scopus, serta jumlah sebutan pada 2008, berbanding jumlah terkumpul empat tahun sebelumnya, sungguhpun jumlah besar belum mencapai keberkesanan global.

Sebagai sebuah universiti penyelidikan, inilah ruang bagi UKM memberikan tumpuan terbesar.
Strategi transformasi dan tindakan yang dirancang dan dilaksanakan, telah direka bentuk untuk memenuhi sasaran yang akan meletakkan UKM sederap universiti penyelidikan lain menjelang 2020. Penyelidikan memacu pendidikan dan perkhidmatan, dan hasilnya tidak seharusnya memberi dampak kepada penarafan dan reputasi akademik sahaja, malah lebih penting lagi menyumbang kepada pembinaaan ekonomi dan masyarakat yang mapan.

Ben Souter merumuskan, dengan KDNK 6.3 peratus, kerajaan telah melakukan pelaburan yang baik dalam pendidikan. Peruntukan kepada pengajian tinggi harus diagih secara berkesan dengan pemberat kepada pengukuhan universiti penyelidikan dan kemajuan negara jangka masa sederhana. Gaya tadbir urus dan kesinambungan kepemimpinan strategik di peringkat institusi adalah kritikal sebagai asas untuk bersaing pada tahun-tahun mendatang.

Sharifah Hapsah Shahabudin
Naib Canselor
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia

Anti-Wi-Fi paint keeps your wireless signal to yourself

With a quick lick of paint, your wi-fi connection could be secured

Don't like the idea of your neighbors rudely snooping on the wireless signal you slaved to pay for from the lazy comfort of their living room? It's not just about slowing down your connection; while they're downloading Mad Men via bittorrent, you could be on the hook for their actions.

Wireless security and encryption systems are fraught with problems and insecurity, and other methods to restrict your signal to a small area are cumbersome at best.

The idea is simple: Use a special paint on walls where you don't want wireless to pass through (say the exterior of your house). The secret is mixing aluminum-iron oxide particles in with the paint. The metal particles resonate at the same frequency as Wi-Fi and other radio waves, so signals can't pass through the thin layer of pigment.

Outsiders would simply be unable to access your wireless network, just as you, inside the house, won't be able to interlope on anything beamed on the outside. Developed by the University of Tokyo, the paint is said to be the first that can block radio frequency in higher spectra where Wi-Fi and other higher-bandwidth communications occur rather than just low-frequency wireless like FM radio.

Most Wi-Fi technologies operate at 2.4GHz; the Tokyo paint can reportedly block frequencies all the way up to 100GHz, with a 200GHz-blocking paint now in the works. The paint isn't just of interest to those concerned about wireless leaking out of the building. Movie theaters have long been interested in finding a legal way to keep cell phones silent during screenings.

Electronic jammers that actively block wireless signals are illegal, but passive materials that prevent wireless signals from getting through are not. Since the wireless-blocking paint can also block the lower-frequency signals that cell phones use, addled mobile junkies would have no outlet for reaching the outside world.

Some aren't convinced that anti-Wi-Fi paint makes a lot of sense for a secure situation, though. Says one engineer, "Surely the thought of having to redecorate a building in order to provide Wi-Fi security is more costly and complex than the security functionality available in even the cheapest of Wi-Fi access points..."

Good point.

More about the Paint : Anti-wi-fi paint offers security .

Researchers say they have created a special kind of paint which can block out wireless signals. It means security-conscious wireless users could block their neighbours from being able to access their home network - without having to set up encryption.

The paint contains an aluminium-iron oxide which resonates at the same frequency as wi-fi - or other radio waves - meaning the airborne data is absorbed and blocked. By coating an entire room, signals can't get in and, crucially, can't get out. Developed at the University of Tokyo, the paint could cost as little as £10 per kilogram, researchers say.

" You could block phone signals from outside and stop people's phones ringing during the movie. " Shin-ichi Ohkoshi, University of Tokyo.

Cost-effective security

The makers say that for businesses it's a quick and cheap way of preventing access to sensitive data from unauthorised users. Presently, most companies have to invest in complicated encryption software to deter hackers.

Speaking on the BBC World Service's Digital Planet programme, Shin-ichi Ohkoshi, who is leading the project, explained how the paint could have many uses beyond security.
"In a medical setting, you could transmit large volumes of data from a medical device, such as an endoscope, to a computer.

"By painting a solution containing our magnetic particles on the walls, you would quickly, and effectively, shield the room from stray electromagnetic radiation from outside." While paints blocking lower frequencies have been available for some time, Mr Ohkoshi's technology is the first to absorb frequencies transmitting at 100GHz (gigahertz).

Signals carrying a larger amount of data - such as wireless internet - travel at a higher frequency than, for example, FM radio. "I'm working on a material that can absorb a larger range of frequencies. We are capable of making a paint that can absorb over 200 gigahertz." He hopes that soon the technology could be woven into clothing. "We're not sure about the true effects of electromagnetic waves, in this range, on the human body.

"We're assuming that excessive exposure could be bad for us. Therefore we're trying to make protective clothes for young children or pregnant women to help protect their bodies from such waves."

At the movies

The paint could also provide some much-needed relief during nights out at the cinema. "Our current mobile phones work at much lower frequencies, around 1.5 gigahertz. But, our material can also absorb frequencies that low, so you could block phone signals from outside and stop people's phones ringing during the movie," he said.

As well as helping to keep the cinema quiet, the paint may also pave the way for higher quality screens. "Movie pictures are beamed on the screen by the projector at the back of the cinema. But in the future, you could use a data link that works with millimetre waves. "You would have problems with interference, unless you painted the wall and ceiling of the theatre with an absorbent material like ours.

"In fact, we've had an order from an American company keen to use our ink in its movie theatre - we've just sent them a sample."

'Nothing new'

Some security experts remain unconvinced by the paint. "The use of electromagnetic shielding techniques are nothing new," said Mark Jackson, security engineer at Cisco UK. "They have been utilised by highly sensitive environments for many years." Mr Jackson notes that while the paint may block eavesdroppers, it would not prevent other types of hackers or intruders.
"Paint that blocks RF based Wi-Fi transmissions does not in any way remove the need to ensure a robust security model is deployed," he added.

"Surely the thought of having to redecorate a building in order to provide Wi-Fi security is more costly & complex than security functionality available in even the cheapest of Wi-Fi access points?" he said.

DIGITAL PLANET

By Dave Lee

BBC World Service

How Products Are Made : Aluminum Beverage Can

Background

Ninety-five percent of all beer and soft drink cans in the United States are made of aluminum. American can makers produce about 100 billion aluminum beverage cans a year, equivalent to one can per American per day. While almost all food cans are made of steel, aluminum's unique properties make it ideal for holding carbonated beverages.

The typical aluminum can weighs less than half an ounce, yet its thin walls withstand more than 90 pounds of pressure per square inch exerted by the carbon dioxide in beer and soft drinks. Aluminum's shiny finish also makes it an attractive background for decorative printing, important for a product that must grab the attention of consumers in a competitive market.

Aluminum was first identified as an element in 1782, and the metal enjoyed great prestige in France, where in the 1850s it was more fashionable than even gold and silver for jewelry and eating utensils. Napoleon III was fascinated with the possible military uses of the lightweight metal, and he financed early experiments in the extraction of aluminum.

Although the metal is found abundantly in nature, an efficient extraction process remained elusive for many years. Aluminum remained exceedingly high-priced and therefore of little commercial use throughout the 19th century. Technological breakthroughs at the end of the 19th century finally allowed aluminum to be smelted cheaply, and the price of the metal fell drastically. This paved the way for the development of industrial uses of the metal.

Aluminum was not used for beverage cans until after World War II. During the war, the U.S. government shipped large quantities of beer in steel cans to its servicemen overseas. After the war most beer was again sold in bottles, but the returning soldiers retained a nostalgic liking for cans. Manufacturers continued to sell some beer in steel cans, even though bottles were cheaper to produce.

The Adolph Coors Company manufactured the first aluminum beer can in 1958. Its two-piece can could only hold 7 ounces (198 g), instead of the usual 12 (340 g), and there were problems with the production process. Nevertheless, the aluminum can proved popular enough to incite Coors, along with other metal and aluminum companies, to develop better cans.

The next model was a steel can with an aluminum top. This hybrid can had several distinct advantages. The aluminum end altered the galvanic reaction between the beer and the steel, resulting in beer with twice the shelf life of that stored in all-steel cans. Perhaps the more significant advantage of the aluminum top was that the soft metal could be opened with a simple pull tab.

The old style cans required the use of a special opener popularly called a "church key," and when Schlitz Brewing Company introduced its beer in an aluminum "pop top" can in 1963, other major beer makers quickly jumped on the band wagon. By the end of that year, 40% of all U.S. beer cans had aluminum tops, and by 1968, that figure had doubled to 80%.

While aluminum top cans were sweeping the market, several manufacturers were aiming for the more ambitious all-aluminum beverage can. The technology Coors had used to make its 7-ounce aluminum can relied on the "impact-extrusion" process.

The modern method for making aluminum beverage cans is called two-piece drawing and wall ironing, first introduced by Reynolds Metals company in 1963. where a punch driven into a circular slug formed the bottom and sides of the can in one piece.

The Reynolds Metals company introduced an all-aluminum can made by a different process called "drawing and ironing" in 1963, and this technology became the standard for the industry. Coors and Hamms Brewery were among the first companies to adopt this new can, and PepsiCo and Coca-Cola began using all-aluminum cans in 1967. The number of aluminum cans shipped in the U.S. rose from half a billion in 1965 to 8.5 billion in 1972, and the number continued to increase as aluminum became the nearly universal choice for carbonated beverages.

The modern aluminum beverage can is not only lighter than the old steel or steel-and-aluminum can, it also does not rust, it chills quickly, its glossy surface is easily imprintable and eye-catching, it prolongs shelf life, and it is easy to recycle.

Raw Materials

The raw material of the aluminum beverage can is, of course, aluminum. Aluminum is derived from an ore called bauxite. U.S. aluminum producers import bauxite, primarily from Jamaica and Guinea. The bauxite is refined and then smelted, and the resulting molten aluminum is cast into ingots The aluminum base, for beverage cans consists mostly of aluminum, but it contains small amounts of other metals as well.

These are typically 1% magnesium, 1% manganese, 0.4% iron, 0.2% silicon, and 0.15% copper. A large portion of the aluminum used in the beverage can industry is derived from recycled material. Twenty-five percent of the total American aluminum supply comes from recycled scrap, and the beverage can industry is the primary user of recycled material. The energy savings are significant when used cans are remelted, and the aluminum can industry now reclaims more than 63% of used cans.

The ManufacturingProcess

Cutting the blank

1 .The modern method for making aluminum beverage cans is called two-piece drawing and wall ironing. The process begins with an aluminum ingot which was cast to be about 30 inches (76 cm) thick, then rolled into a thin sheet. The first step in the actual manufacture of the can is to cut the sheet into a circle, called a blank, that will form the bottom and sides of the can. Each blank is 5.5 inches (14 cm) in diameter. Some material is necessarily

The small ripples at the top of the metal are called "ears". "Earing" is an unavoidable effect of the crystalline structure of the aluminum sheet. lost between each circle, but manufacturers have found that minimum aluminum is lost when the sheets are wide enough to hold two staggered rows of seven blanks each.

About 12-14% of the sheet is wasted, but can be reused as scrap. After the circular blank is cut, it is "drawn" or pulled up to form a cup 3.5 inches (8.9 cm) in diameter.




Redrawing the cup

2. The small cup resulting from the initial draw is then transferred to a second machine. A sleeve holds the cup precisely in place, and a punch lowered swiftly into the cup redraws it to a diameter of about 2.6 inches (6.6 cm). The height of the cup increases simultaneously from the initial 1.3 to 2.25 inches (3.3 to 5.7 cm). The punch then pushes the cup against three rings called ironing rings, which stretch and thin the cup walls.

This entire operation—the drawing and ironing—is done in one continuous punch stroke, which takes only one fifth of a second to complete. The cup is now about 5 inches (13 cm) high. Then another punch presses up against the base of the cup, causing the bottom to bulge inward. This shape counteracts the pressure of the carbonated liquid the can will contain. The bottom and lower walls of the can are also a little thicker than the upper walls, for added strength.

Trimming the ears

3. The drawing and ironing process leaves the can slightly wavy at the top. These small ripples in the metal are called "ears." "Earing" is an unavoidable effect of the crystalline structure of the aluminum sheet. Aluminum companies have studied this phenomenon extensively, and they have been able to influence the placement and height of the ears by controlling the rolling of the aluminum sheet. Nevertheless, some material is lost at this stage. About a quarter inch is trimmed from the top of the can, leaving the upper walls straight and level.

Cleaning and decorating

4. The drawing and ironing process leaves the outer wall of the can with a smooth, shiny surface, so it does not require any further finishing such as polishing. After the ears are trimmed, the can is cleaned and then imprinted with its label. After the can is decorated, it is squeezed in slightly at the top to a make a neck, and the neck is given an out-ward flange at the very top edge, which will be folded over once the lid is added.

The lid

5. The lid is made of a slightly different alloy than the aluminum for the base and sides of the can. The inward bulge of the bottom of the can helps it withstand the pressure exerted by the liquid inside it, but the flat lid must be stiffer and stronger than the base, so it is made of aluminum with more magnesium and less manganese than the rest of the can. This results in stronger metal, and the lid is considerably thicker than the walls.

The lid is cut to a diameter of 2.1 inches (5.3 cm), smaller than the 2.6-inch (6.6 cm) diameter of the walls. The center of the lid is stretched upward slightly and drawn by a machine to form a rivet. The pull tab, a separate piece of metal, is inserted under the rivet and secured by it. Then the lid is scored so that when the tab is pulled by the consumer, the metal will detach easily and leave the proper opening.

To ensure that the cans are made properly, they are automatically checked for cracks and pinholes. One in 50,000 cans is usually found to be defective.

Filling and seaming

6. After the neck is formed, the can is ready to be filled. The can is held tightly against the seat of a filling machine and a beverage is poured in. The lid is added. The upper flange formed when the can was given its neck is then bent around the lid and seamed shut. At this point, the can is ready for sale.

Byproducts/Waste

Some aluminum is lost at several points in the manufacturing process—when the blanks are cut and the ears are trimmed—but this scrap can be reused. Cans which have been used and discarded by consumers can also be reused, and as mentioned above, recycled material makes up a significant percentage of the aluminum used for beverage cans. The savings from recycling are quite significant to the industry.

The major expense of the beverage can is in the energy needed to produce the aluminum, but recycling can save up to 95% of the energy cost. Can producers also try to control waste by developing stronger can sheet so that less aluminum goes into each can, and by carefully controlling the manufacturing process to cut down on loss through earing. The lid of the typical can is smaller in diameter than the walls in order to conserve the amount of aluminum that goes into it, and as world-wide demand for beverage cans continues to grow, the trend is to make the lid even smaller.

A new can introduced in 1993 with a lid a quarter-inch smaller in diameter than most cans can save manufacturers $3 per thousand. This figure seems small until it is multiplied by the hundreds of millions of cans produced each day in the U.S. It becomes clear that any small savings in raw materials or energy can be a major step in conserving both money and resources.

The Future

Worldwide production of aluminum beverage cans is steadily increasing, growing by several billion cans a year. In the face of this rising demand, the future of the beverage can seems to lie in designs that save money and materials. The trend towards smaller lids is already apparent, as well as smaller neck diameters, but other changes may not be so obvious to the consumer.

Manufacturers employ rigorous diagnostic techniques to study can sheet, for example, examining the crystalline structure of the metal with X-ray diffraction, hoping to discover better ways of casting the ingots or rolling the sheets. Changes in the composition of the aluminum alloy, or in the way the alloy is cooled after casting, or the thickness to which the can sheet is rolled may not result in cans that strike the consumer as innovative. Nevertheless, it is probably advances in these areas that will lead to more economical can manufacture in the future.

Where To Learn More

Book

Smith, George David. From Monopoly to Competition: The Transformations of Alcoa, 1888-1986. Cambridge University Press, 1988.

Periodicals

Hosford, William F. and John L. Duncan. "The Aluminum Beverage Can." Scientific American, September 1994, pp. 48-53.
Larson, Melissa. "New Ideas Come In Cans." Packaging, April 1993, pp. 30-31.
Singh, S. Paul. "Internal Gas Pressure on the Compression Strength of Beverage Cans and Plastic Bottles." Journal of Testing and Evaluation, March 1993, pp. 129-31.

Prepared by : Putra-Design

Proton unveils its first MPV, the Exora.

KUALA LUMPUR: Proton Holdings Bhd unveiled its first multipurpose vehicle (MPV), the Exora, to the public in a gala event here Wednesday night. Launched by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, the 1.6-litre Exora has already received orders of 2,500 units, even before its public unveiling.

The seven-seater -- Proton’s most important model for the year -- also marks the company’s entry into the MPV market, which is growing domestically and regionally.
In addition to an interior that is easily more spacious than other MPVs in its engine class, the Exora also comes with a separate air-conditioner blower with ceiling mounted vents for the second and third row passengers. Large doors allows for easy entry and exit while the second and third row seats can be folded for a flat floor layout when carrying bulky items.

The vehicle is also not short on safety features with dual front airbags, pretensioner seatbelts and an anti-lock braking system with electronic brake-force distribution.
In the safety department, the MPV has the equivalent of a four-star crash safety rating in the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP).

The vehicle also has a steering wheel with audio buttons, reverse sensors, an immobiliser and radio/ CD player that supports MP3 and WMA files and Bluetooth handsfree connectivity.
The Exora is a result of an investment of RM450mil and 18 months of intense in-house research and development, the company said.

It is powered by a 1.6-litre CamPro CPS engine with 125bhp and torque of 150Nm, and is available in a four-speed automatic version, in trim levels of Mid-Line and Hi-Line.
The Mid-Line Exora costs RM69,998 and the Hi-Line variant, RM75,998 for the metallic colours.

The Hi-Line variant gets additional features such as a rear DVD monitor, tinted glass, portable satellite navigation system, cruise control, fog lamps, rear spoiler, and leather seats and finishing. Colour choices are Solid White, Genetic Silver, Tranquillity Black, Blue Haze, Pyrite Brown and Gaia Blue.

A fine achievement indeed

As an offering, this one must surely rank as an absolute highlight for a company that has well and truly come back from the ropes. Indeed, it’s all the more impressive given the fact that it’s unchartered waters that’s being treaded.


Say hello then to the Proton Exora, the country’s first fully homegrown MPV. As the third part of the great comeback, following on the successes of the Persona and Saga, the vehicle - developed from design to completion in 18 months and at a cost of RM450mil - is quite a sterling showpiece, and essentially completes the circle of reinvention for the brand.

As a platform, there’s nothing radical about it - a seven-seater MPV isn’t exactly a new type. But for what it is, it’s a very clever offering, rolls in at an excellent price point and incorporates enough winsome features that there surely must be little to complain about, and there really isn’t, but more as we go along.

At the point of launch, two versions of the Exora go on sale - the 1.6l AT Medium-line and 1.6l AT High-line, and both only come with a four-speed automatic gearbox, which features a retuned transmission control unit and a revised final drive. There’s a manual variant, though this is only slated for launch later in the year.

Visually, the Exora is best described as elegant; shades of the Toyota Wish and Honda Stream, benchmarks in the development of the vehicle, as well as the Mitsubishi Grandis, can be traced in the exterior lines and general flow, but the Exora has enough of its own identity, helped by a prominent enough looking front end and a tail that has one of the best looking tail-lamp clusters in recent memory.

The sleek vehicle, which has a coefficient drag of 0.33Cd, looks sizeable, and once you get inside, you’ll find it is indeed quite the spacious offering it promises to be. The dashboard is unfettered, there’s plenty of space, and the legroom on the second row is rather good, with the third adequate for short hauls. The rear doors open to a maximum angle of 80 degrees, making for easier ingress and egress for passengers.

As for seating layout combinations, the Exora does pretty well in this regard too, with six different seat folding configurations. Granted, with the rear seats up, there's little cargo space, but with the third row seats fully flat-folded and the second row stored forward the load-carrying space becomes very convincing. Ingress to the third row is by means of a single-lever seat-folding mechanism on the second row, and in use getting in and out is accomplished easily enough.

In terms of trim, the Medium-line version comes with a simple grey interior with fabric seats, whereas the High-line variant features leather and Alcantara-finished seats in light grey. Surprisingly, I thought the fabric seats offered a better visual perspective, both in terms of shade and texture - the leather looked a little on the pasty side.

Much attention has been paid to reducing the noise levels in the cabin - the firewall, door panels and floor pan have been given soundproofing insulation treatment, and all the pillars are injected with foam; effectively, it makes everything less zingy. As for fit and finish, there were some small assembly imperfections here and there on some panels, but nothing that would make you scream murder.

Plenty of new and subtle features abound, courtesy of an integrated Body Control Module (BCM) unit from Siemens VDO; this is the first Proton to be equipped with BCM and offers a whole new range of application options and items. With a total of 24 different functions, from follow-me-home lights, programmable door locking configurations and wiper speeds (this one is done rather neatly) to automatic hazard light activation during emergency braking from above 96kmh, the list is pretty comprehensive.

Indeed, there’s no shortage of mod cons throughout - yes, items such as 10 cup holders may seem like overkill, but better to have more than less, yes? Among the many small, but nice, touches is the inclusion of what is tagged a teh tarik holder, located below the glove compartment area, for your takeaways. Not new, but handy nonetheless.

In terms of safety, twin front airbags - standard fitment in both versions - and front seat-belt pretensioners are part of the kit, as well as ABS and EBD.
Elsewhere, the primary differences in both variants, besides the seat material, are with equipment levels, as the chart below shows:

Opting for the High-line version bags you fog lights, front seat armrests, cruise control, a remotely mounted navigation system, a roof-mounted DVD/LCD monitor - with SD/MMC card slots and USB port - for rear passengers, a rear spoiler and tinted glass. And of course, those leather seats.

Powering the Exora is the tried and tested 1.6l Campro CPS engine, here offering 125bhp at 6,500rpm and a maximum torque of 150Nm at 4,500rpm. Placed in a vehicle that weighs in at 1,422 (M-line) and 1,442kg (H-line), the result isn’t ever going to be breathtaking, but surprisingly the Exora goes about its business ably enough as an entire package.

The chance to sample the final product came at a press preview last week, and as is usually the case with previews, there wasn’t enough time spent with the vehicle to offer a firmer opinion than a mere skim-through, but it’s certainly a very likable sort.
First impressions reveal a vehicle that is as comfortable and pliant as promised. Ride comfort is high, and in general everything is geared towards cosy, though the softness comes through without being overly mushy.

A quick ride being seated in the third row showed very little undue modulation, with only large dips causing some discomfort. The lack of lower-end support here means that if you’re an adult - and a strappy one at that - it’s definitely not going to be rosy if you decide on say, doing Penang from KL, but at least you won’t be shaken senselessly while at that.

Performance-wise, the 1.6l pot is adequate enough for the job, under most conditions - at the preview, the vehicle showed a slight lack of urgency on take-up unless pushed, and doing so results in the block being a little shouty, but once you get moving the vehicle pulls along well enough, and at cruising levels the car feels tractable. This, mind you, with five adults on board.

As for fuel consumption figures, the claim is 7.2l per 100km at a steady rate of 90kmh, while for a combined cycle it is 9l per 100km. In the real world, with some of the loads that are going to be expected in many Exoras, those figures might differ a fair bit. Still, we’ll be able to tell you more about how well it does in terms of actual fuel economy - as well as operation over a wider range of conditions - when a full road-test is done, hopefully soon.

The pricing for the Exora Medium-Line is RM69,998, while the High-Line goes for RM75,998 (both on-the-road, without insurance). Six colour choices are available - Pyrite Brown, Gaia Blue, Genetic Silver, Tranquillity Black, Blue Haze and Solid White - and the vehicle comes with an extended warranty of 175,000km or five years, whichever comes first.

On the whole, this one should hit it right on the spot for a very large audience, and there are 2,500 of these so far from pre-launch bookings. Undoubtedly, detractors will continue to do the usual, but surely three out of three is more than commendable.

Putra Design - TheStar

PROTON EXORA DILANCAR

NAJIB Tun Razak, Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, Datuk Mohd. Nadzmi Mohd. Salleh dan Datuk Syed Zainal Abidin Mohamed Tahir (kanan) menunjukkan isyarat bagus pada majlis pelancaran MPV Proton Exora di Pusat Konvensyen Kuala Lumpur, malam tadi. – UTUSAN/Ahmad Zakki Jilan

SETELAH beberapa bulan menunggu penampilannya, Proton Exora, kenderaan pelbagai guna (MPV) pertama keluaran Proton dilancarkan oleh Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak di ibu negara, malam tadi.

Proton Exora yang menggunakan enjin 1.6 Campro CPS dengan 125 kuasa kuda, dijual pada harga RM69,998 hingga RM75,998 sebuah. Tidak hairanlah dengan harga semurah itu, 2,500 unit telah ditempah orang ramai.

Peminat kenderaan untuk seisi keluarga itu mempunyai pilihan membeli unit transmisi automatik empat kelajuan atau manual lima kelajuan.

MPV itu ditawarkan dalam enam warna pilihan dan dua varian iaitu Exora Hi-Line 1.6 Automatik Metallic (RM75,998) dan Exora M-Line 1.6 Automatik Metallic (RM69,998).

Tempoh 18 bulan bangunkan Exora

KUALA LUMPUR 15 April – Kenderaan pelbagai guna (MPV) pertama Proton, Exora dibangunkan hanya dalam tempoh 18 bulan, lebih cepat daripada standard antarabangsa untuk membangunkan kenderaan yang selalunya mengambil masa 24 bulan.

Pengerusi Proton Holding Berhad, Datuk Mohd. Nadzmi Mohd. Salleh memberitahu, Exora juga dibangunkan dalam tempoh lebih pendek berbanding semasa syarikat ini mula-mula membangunkan kereta sendiri iaitu Proton Waja yang mengambil tempoh 36 bulan.

“Ini kejayaan Proton kerana bukan saja mampu membangunkan produk dalam tempoh 18 bulan malah jumlah jurutera yang terlibat hanya 250 orang berbanding ketika membangunkan Proton Waja yang melibatkan 1,000 jurutera di samping bantuan pembekal kejuruteraan daripada syarikat kereta di Eropah dan Jepun,” katanya.

Beliau berkata demikian ketika berucap pada majlis pelancaran Proton Exora yang disempurnakan oleh Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak di Pusat Konvensyen Kuala Lumpur (KLCC) di sini hari ini.

Mohd. Nadzmi memberitahu, Exora bukan hanya model terbaru Proton tetapi titik permulaan kepada kemajuan teknologi automotif tempatan dan ia merupakan MPV pertama buatan Malaysia.

Tegasnya, Exora dibangunkan 100 peratus oleh anak Malaysia daripada penyelidikan dan pembangunan, reka bentuk dan sehingga ke peringkat pemasangan.

UM - Putra Design

Important : Koobface, Other Worms Target Facebook Friends (NewsFactor)

- As Facebook works to make itself more relevant and timely for its growing member base with a profile page makeover, attackers seem to be working overtime to steal the identities of the friends, fans and brands that connect though the social-networking site.

Indeed, Facebook has seen five different security threats in the past week. According to Trend Micro, four new hoax applications are attempting to trick members into divulging their usernames and passwords. And a new variant of the Koobface worm is running wild on the site, installing malware on the computers of victims who click on a link to a fake YouTube video.

The Koobface worm is dangerous. It can be dropped by other malware and downloaded unknowingly by a user when visiting malicious Web sites, Trend Micro reports. When attackers execute the malware, it searches for cookies created by online social networks. The latest variant is targeting Facebook, but earlier variants have also plagued MySpace.

Koobface's Wicked Agenda

Once Koobface finds the social-networking cookies, it makes a DNS query to check IP addresses that correspond to remote domains. Trend Micro explains that those servers can send and receive information about the affected machine. Once connected, the malicious user can remotely perform commands on the victim's machine.

"Once cookies related to the monitored social-networking Web sites are located, it connects to these Web sites using the user log-in session stored in the cookies. It then navigates through pages to search for the user's friends. If a friend has been located, it sends an HTTP POST request to the server," Trend Micro reports.

Ultimately, the worm's agenda is to transform the victim's computer into a zombie and form botnets for malicious purposes. Koobface attempts to do this by composing a message and sending it to the user's friends. The message contains a link to a Web site where a copy of the worm can be downloaded by unsuspecting friends. And the cycle repeats itself.

An Attractive Face(book)

Malware authors are investing more energy in Facebook and other social-networking sites because that effort pays off, according to Michael Argast, a security analyst at Sophos. Facebook alone has more than 175 million users, which makes it an attractive target.

"Many computer users have been conditioned not to open an attachment from an e-mail or click a link found within, but won't think twice about checking out a hot new video linked to by a trusted friend on Facebook," Argast said.

Argast called the Koobface worm a mix of something old and something new. The new is using social networks as a method to spread malware. The old is using fake codec Trojans linked to a saucy video to induce the user to install the malware.

Argast said people can protect themselves by running up-to-date antivirus software, restricting which Facebook applications they install, thinking twice before clicking on links from friends and never, never installing a codec from some random Web site in the hopes of catching some celebrity in a compromised situation.

"I would expect to see more attacks on Facebook," Argast said. "As long as this is a successful propagation method, the bad guys will double down and invest more. They are entirely motivated by financial gain. If it pays, they'll continue to romp in your social playgrounds."

Putra-Design

SWOT ANALYSIS

Organizational strategies are the means through which companies accomplish their missions and goals. Successful strategies address four elements of the setting within which the company operates: (1) the company's strengths, (2) its weaknesses, (3) the opportunities in its competitive environment, and (4) the threats in its competitive environment. This set of four elements—strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats—when used by a firm to gain competitive advantage, is often referred to as a SWOT analysis.

SWOT was developed by Ken Andrews in the early 1970s. An assessment of strengths and weaknesses occurs as a part of organizational analysis; that is, it is an audit of the company's internal workings, which are relatively easier to control than outside factors.

Conversely, examining opportunities and threats is a part of environmental analysis—the company must look outside of the organization to determine opportunities and threats, over which it has lesser control.

Andrews's original conception of the strategy model that preceded the SWOT asked four basic questions about a company and its environment: (1) What can we do? (2) What do we want to do? (3) What might we do? and (4) What do others expect us to do?

The answers to these questions provide the input for an effective strategic management process. While Andrews' original conception of this analysis has been developed and changed to the more streamlined SWOT analysis that we know today, his work is the foundation of this activity.

STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES,OPPORTUNITIES, AND THREATS

Strengths, in the SWOT analysis, are a company's capabilities and resources that allow it to engage in activities to generate economic value and perhaps competitive advantage. A company's strengths may be in its ability to create unique products, to provide high-level customer service, or to have a presence in multiple retail markets. Strengths may also be things such as the company's culture, its staffing and training, or the quality of its managers. Whatever capability a company has can be regarded as strength.

A company's weaknesses are a lack of resources or capabilities that can prevent it from generating economic value or gaining a competitive advantage if used to enact the company's strategy. There are many examples of organizational weaknesses. For example, a firm may have a large, bureaucratic structure that limits its ability to compete with smaller, more dynamic companies. Another weakness may occur if a company has higher labor costs than a competitor
who can have similar productivity from a lower labor cost. The characteristics of an organization that can be strength, as listed above, can also be a weakness if the company does not do them well.

Opportunities provide the organization with a chance to improve its performance and its competitive advantage. Some opportunities may be anticipated, others arise unexpectedly. Opportunities may arise when there are niches for new products or services, or when these products and services can be offered at different times and in different locations. For instance, the increased use of the Internet has provided numerous opportunities for companies to expand their product sales.

Threats can be an individual, group, or organization outside the company that aims to reduce the level of the company's performance. Every company faces threats in its environment. Often the more successful companies have stronger threats, because there is a desire on the part of other companies to take some of that success for their own. Threats may come from new products or services from other companies that aim to take away a company's competitive advantage. Threats may also come from government regulation or even consumer groups.

A strong company strategy that shows how to gain competitive advantage should address all four elements of the SWOT analysis. It should help the organization determine how to use its strengths to take advantage of opportunities and neutralize threats. Finally, a strong strategy should help an organization avoid or fix its weaknesses. If a company can develop a strategy that makes use of the information from SWOT analysis, it is more likely to have high levels of performance.

Nearly every company can benefit from SWOT analysis. Larger organizations may have strategic-planning procedures in place that incorporate SWOT analysis, but smaller firms, particularly entrepreneurial firms may have to start the analysis from scratch. Additionally, depending on the size or the degree of diversification of the company, it may be necessary to conduct more than one SWOT analysis. If the company has a wide variety of products and services, particularly if it operates in different markets, one SWOT analysis will not capture all of the relevant strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that exist across the span of the company's operations.

LIMITATIONS OF SWOT ANALYSIS

One major problem with the SWOT analysis is that while it emphasizes the importance of the four elements associated with the organizational and environmental analysis, it does not address how the company can identify the

elements for their own company. Many organizational executives may not be able to determine what these elements are, and the SWOT framework provides no guidance. For example, what if a strength identified by the company is not truly a strength? While a company might believe its customer service is strong, they may be unaware of problems with employees or the capabilities of other companies to provide a higher level of customer service. Weaknesses are often easier to determine, but typically after it is too late to create a new strategy to offset them. A company may also have difficulty identifying opportunities.

Depending on the organization, what may seem like an opportunity to some, may appear to be a threat to others. Opportunities may be easy to overlook or may be identified long after they can be exploited. Similarly, a company may have difficulty anticipating possible threats in order to effectively avoid them.

While the SWOT framework does not provide managers with the guidance to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, it does tell managers what questions to ask during the strategy development process, even if it does not provide the answers. Managers know to ask and to determine a strategy that will take advantage of a company's strengths, minimize its weaknesses, exploit opportunities, or neutralize threats.

Some experts argue that making strategic choices for the firm is less important than asking the right questions in choosing the strategy. A company may mistakenly solve a problem by providing the correct answer to the wrong question.

USING SWOT ANALYSIS TO DEVELOPORGANIZATIONAL STRATEGY

SWOT analysis is just the first step in developing and implementing an effective organizational strategy. After a thorough SWOT analysis, the next step is to rank the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats and to document the criteria for ranking. The company must then determine its strategic fit given its internal capabilities and externalenvironment in a two-by-two grid . This fit, as determined in the grid, will indicate what strategic changes need to be made. The quadrants in this grid are as follows:

Quadrant 1—internal strengths matched with external opportunities;
Quadrant 2—internal weaknesses relative to external opportunities;
Quadrant 3—internal strengths matched with external threats; and
Quadrant 4—internal weaknesses relative to external threats.

Quadrant 1 lists the strategies associated with a match between the company's strengths and its perceived external opportunities. It represents the best fit between the company's resources and the options available in the external market. A strategy from this quadrant would be to protect the company's strengths by shoring up resources and extending competitive advantage. If a strategy in this quadrant can additionally bolster weaknesses in other areas, such as in Quadrant 2, this would be advantageous.

Quadrant 2 lists the strategies associated with a match between the company's weaknesses with external opportunities. Strategies in this quadrant would address the choice of either improving upon weaknesses to turn them into strengths, or allowing competitors to take advantage of opportunities in the marketplace.

Quadrant 3 matches the company's strengths and external threats. Strategies in this quadrant may aim to transform external threats into opportunities by changing the company's competitive position through use of its resources or strengths. Another strategic option in this quadrant is for the company to maintain a defensive strategy to focus on more promising opportunities in other quadrants.

Quadrant 4 matches a company's weaknesses and the threats in the environment. These are the worst possible scenarios for an organization. However, because of the competitive nature of the marketplace, any company is likely to have information in this quadrant. Strategies in this quadrant may involve using resources in other quadrants to exploit opportunities to the point that other threats are minimized. Additionally, some issues may be moved out of this quadrant by otherwise neutralizing the threat or by bolstering a perceived weakness.

Once a strategy is decided on in each quadrant for the issues facing the company, these strategies require frequent monitoring and periodic updates. An organization is best served by proactively determining strategies to address issues before they become crises.

An example of how a firm can develop strategies using these quadrants is as follows. Generic Corporation produces high-quality; high-priced specialty kitchen items in a catalog and in stores and is known for their excellent customer service. This strength has been able to offset its major weaknesses, which are having few stores and no current capabilities for Internet sales. Its major opportunities come from the explosion of Internet shopping, and its threats are other more high-profile competitors, operating primarily on the Internet, and the concerns of identity theft in Internet sales that many customers have. Matching Generic's strengths to its opportunities (Quadrant 1), the firm may choose to enhance its Internet site to allow online purchases, still providing its excellent 24-hour telephone customer service.

Ideally, this strategy will offset the weakness of not having an Internet presence, which addresses the concerns of Quadrant 2. Additionally, by bolstering the strength of excellent customer service by applying it to the online shopping site, the company may be able to alleviate customer concerns about identity theft (Quadrant 3). A strategy for Quadrant 4, which matches the company's weaknesses and threats, is that Generic may consider selling its online business to a competitor. Certainly, the Quadrant 4 strategy is the least preferred, but a proactive strategy that plans for managing such a situation is favored over a crisis situation in which the company is forced to sell with no planning.

A SWOT analysis is a first, but critical, step in developing an organizational strategy. By examining the company's internal capabilities—its strengths and weaknesses and its external environment—opportunities and threats, it helps to create strategies that can proactively contend with organizational challenges.

FURTHER READING:

Andrews, K. The Concept of Corporate Strategy. Homewood, IL: R.D. Irwin, 1971.
Barney, Jay. Gaining and Sustaining Competitive Advantage. 2nd ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2002.
Fleisher, Craig S., and Babette E. Bensoussan. Strategic and Competitive Analysis: Methods and Techniques for Analyzing Business Competition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2003.
Jackson, Susan E., and Randall S. Schuler. Managing Human Resources: A Partnership Perspective. 7th ed. Cincinnati, OH: South-Western College Publishing, 2000.

Prepared by :
Putra-Design

Satellite Receiving Antennas

All satellite dishes incorporate a parabolic curve into the design of their bowl-shaped reflectors. The parabolic curve has the property of reflecting all incident rays arriving along the reflector's axis of symmetry to a common focus located to the front and center. The parabolic antenna's ability to amplify signals is primarily governed by the accuracy of this parabolic curve. Poor antenna performance can result from inaccuracies in the dies used to manufacture the reflector surfaces. More often, however, low antenna efficiencies are caused by the installer's failure to grasp the importance of using good antenna assembly techniques.

Antenna Materials & Construction

The reflector must be constructed out of metal in order to reflect the incoming microwave signals. Some antenna reflectors appear to be manufactured out of plastic or Fiberglas; however, these dishes contain an embedded metal mesh material that reflects the incoming satellite signals.
Solid one-piece antennas are most often the best performers because there are no assembly errors and they will maintain their exact shape over the lifetime of the system. Solid petalized antennas constructed out of four or more segments are generally the next best performers. Potential assembly errors are limited to variations along the seams between petals.

The installer can easily visually inspect these seams during assembly to ensure that there are no variations in the surface curve from one petal to the next. One-piece and petalized antennas are also available in a perforated form. The diameter of the perforation holes is a function of signal wavelength: too small to pass or resonate with the wavelength of the incoming microwave signals but large enough to pass light in order to minimize the antenna's environmental impact.

Mesh antennas are the most susceptible to construction errors. The two-part construction process consists of the building of a support frame and a series of flexible mesh panels. The installer attaches the mesh to the frame using a series of metal clips or sheet metal screws. Mesh antennas also are highly susceptible to environmental effects. Heavy wind storms, for example, can loosen the clips holding the mesh to the frame and distort the curve from its original shape or even blow out one or more of the mesh panels. The installer should examine the antenna at intervals during the installation process. Close attention should be paid to how the various petals fit together. The reflector surface should appear to be continuous, with minimal variation from petal to petal and few noticeable bumps or waves along the surface of mesh antennas. Antenna symmetry is also very important.


Improper construction of a petalized antenna can warp the reflector curvature. The installer should sight along a side view of the reflector from the near to far edge of the antenna rim. If the near and far rims of the dish do not line up in parallel with each other then the installer will need to loosen the bolts holding the petals together and re tighten them in such as way that the reflector conforms to the manufacturer's intended shape. Another way to detect warp is to run strings across the antenna's rim. All strings should lightly touch over the center of the dish. Any gaps between strings indicate a flaw in the reflector surface.

Prime Focus Antennas

The basic design principle of the parabolic curve can be incorporated into antenna designs in a variety of ways. Dishes with a focal point directly at the front and center of the reflector are called prime focus antennas. Prime focus antennas are easy to construct and point toward the desired satellite. There are two main design disadvantages, however: the feedhorn and feed support structure block part of the reflector surface and the feedhorn must look back at the dish at such an angle that it can also intercept noise from the "hot" earth located directly behind the reflector.

The feedhorn's illumination of the antenna must be attenuated or tapered to minimize noise contribution from the perimeter of the dish. This design necessity acts to reduce the antenna's efficiency.Prime focus antennas use two different types of feedhorn support bracket. A three or four-legged support provides a rigid support structure for the feedhorn and LNB over the center of the dish and at the distance specified by the manufacturer. The main disadvantage of this structural approach is that it may be difficult to make minor variations in the focal length, that is the distance from reflector center to the lip of the feed opening.

The buttonhook structural design uses a single support member to position the LNB and feedhorn. This tubular leg can usually be slid in and out of a clamp or bracket at the center of the dish, allowing the installer to fine-tune the focal length. However, the buttonhook support may not always position the feed at the precise center of the dish, especially when the feedhorn is weighted down by multiple LNBs. Motorized dishes may experience feedhorn movement when the antenna is moved from one satellite to the next; heavy winds can also temporarily move the feedhorn away from the antenna's focus. Guy wire kits are available which the installer can use to provide additional structural rigidity to the buttonhook support if required for a given installation.

Offset-fed Antennas

The dish design of choice for most digital DTH systems is called an offset-fed antenna. Here the manufacturer uses a smaller subsection of the same parabolic curve used to produce prime focus antennas, but with a major axis in the north/south direction, and a smaller minor axis in the east/west direction. With the offset-fed design, the feedhorn is no longer positioned at the front and center of the reflector but rather offset to the bottom of the dish. However, the feed would be centrally located if we extended the parabolic curve of the offset fed dish to the full length of a prime focus parabola. The offset fed antenna design offers several distinct advantages over its prime focus counterparts.

There is no feedhorn blockage, an important consideration when the antenna aperture is less than one meter in diameter. Moreover, the offset angle at which the feedhorn tilts up toward the reflector is such that if the feed looks over the antenna's rim it will see the cold sky rather than the hot earth. Due to these advantages, the offset-fed antenna can achieve higher efficiency levels than prime focus antennas can generally attain. The low inclination angles required by offset antennas also may be beneficial in certain climate zones. In tropical or semi-tropical environments, rain will not collect inside the reflector. In cold weather climates, snow will slide off of the antenna surface rather than accumulating inside the reflector.

Cassegrain Antennas

The cassegrain antenna is most often used for dishes that exceed five meters in diameter. Its use is primarily restricted to uplink earth stations and cable TV head ends. The cassegrain design incorporates a small sub reflector located at the front and center of the dish. The sub reflector deflects the microwaves back toward the center of the reflector, where the feedhorn is actually mounted. Like the prime focus dish, the cassegrain antenna's view of the satellite is partially obscured, in this case by the sub reflector.

However, when the diameter of the dish exceeds 5m, the percentage of blockage is actually quite small. This type of antenna obtains higher efficiencies because the feedhorn looks up at the cold sky and the required illumination taper is reduced. The precise manufacturing tolerances required to implement this dual reflector approach, however, increases the manufacturing cost and adds complexity to the installation process.



Spherical Antennas

The spherical antenna design creates multiple focal points located to the front and center of the reflector, one for each available satellite. The curvature of the reflector is such that if extended it outward far enough along both axes it would become a sphere. Spherical antennas are primarily used for commercial SMATV and cable installations where the customer wishes to simultaneously receive multiple satellites with a single dish. These satellites must be within +/- 20 degrees of the reflector's axis of symmetry.

Planar Arrays



Some digital DTH systems in Japan and elsewhere have elected to use an alternate antenna design called the planar array. These flat antennas do not rely on the reflective principles used by all parabolic dishes. Therefore no feedhorn is required. Instead a grid of tiny elements is embedded into the antenna's surface. These elements have a size and shape which causes them to resonate with the incoming microwave signals. A spider's web of feed lines is used to interconnect all the resonant elements in such a way that their signal contributions are all combined in phase at a single terminal located at the center of the array which connects directly to the LNB.

Planar arrays are relatively unobtrusive: there is no feedhorn and the LNB is located to the rear of the antenna out of sight. Since these antennas are most always dedicated to the reception of a single satellite or constellation of collocated satellites, they can be mounted in a fixed position on an outer wall or rooftop. One main disadvantage of the planar array is its limited frequency bandwidth which is about 500 MHz. Parabolic antennas, however, have a broad bandwidth; a single dish, for example, can be used to receive S, C, and Ku-band satellite signals. Another disadvantage of the planar array is the high construction cost: more than four times the cost of manufacturing a feedhorn and parabolic reflector with equivalent signal amplification characteristics.

Antenna Gain and G/T

The gain of a satellite antenna is the measurement of its ability to amplify the incoming microwave signals. Gain, which is expressed in decibels, or dB, is primarily a function of antenna capture area or aperture: the larger the antenna aperture, the higher the antenna gain. Gain also is directly related to antenna beam width: the narrow corridor or "boresight" along which the antenna looks up at the sky.

The antenna's efficiency rating is the percentage of signal captured by the parabolic reflector that actually is received by the feedhorn. As we have previously seen, the feed-horn's illumination of the outer portion of the dish is attenuated or tapered, which leads us to conclude that antenna gain is not as important a factor as it might first appear to be. The ultimate figure of merit for all receiving antennas is the G/T (pronounced "G over T"); that is, the gain of the antenna (in dB) minus the noise temperature of the receiving system (in dB). A typical C-band DTH system will have a G/T of around 20 dB/K, while most Ku-band digital DTH systems have a G/T of 12.7 dB/K.

The more powerful the satellite signal, the lower the G/T value that will be needed at the receiving system down on the ground.The noise value (T) primarily comes from two sources. The antenna noise is a function of the amount of noise that the feedhorn sees as it looks over the antenna rim towards the hot earth (which has a noise temperature of 290 K). Antenna noise generally ranges between 30 and 50 K.

The noise contribution of the LNB's internal circuitry is the other major source of concern. C-band LNB performance now ranges as low as 20 K. If we add an antenna/feed noise of 40 K to LNB noise of 35 K = 75 K. Ten times the Logarithm of 75 K equals a (T) of 18.8 dB. A typical 1.8m diameter C-band antenna will produce a gain of 38 dB. Therefore the G/T of the system described above would be (G) 38 dB minus (T) 18.8 equals 19.2 dB/K.

Deep Versus Shallow Dishes

The parameters of the parabolic curve that the antenna designer selects can be adjusted to create a variety of focal length to antenna diameter (f/D) values. Antennas which have an f/D greater than .38 are said to be shallow, whereas dishes will an f/D less than .33 are said to be deep.Although the long focal length afforded by the shallow dish design increases the feedhorn's ability to illuminate the entire reflector surface, we have already seen that there are distinct disadvantages to doing this.

Moreover, antenna noise increases as antenna elevation increases. Shallow dishes are more susceptible to intercepting earth noise when pointing at low elevation angles. Finally, the shallow dish is more susceptible to picking up terrestrial interference from microwave relay stations. The deep dish trades off gain in order to lower antenna noise performance.

The deep-dish design is an attractive alternative for locations that potentially may experience terrestrial interference problems or at installations which require low antenna elevation angles. The deep-dish design positions the feedhorn relatively close to the rim of the reflector. Therefore the deep dish has a greater ability to shield the feedhorn from potential TI sources. However, the feedhorn is so close to the reflector that it cannot illuminate the entire surface.

Antenna Side Lobe Rejection

The explosive worldwide growth in satellite telecommunications is leading to closer spacing between satellites in geostationary orbit. What's more, the very latest satellites are transmitting higher-powered signals than ever before. Both of these developments act to increase the potential for interference from nearby or adjacent satellites. The perfect parabolic antenna would only receive signals from the satellite at which it was pointed while rejecting all signals coming from other directions.

In the real world, however, each antenna design will produce a main beam along the axis of symmetry as well as other beams of lower intensity that look out at adjacent angles. These beams of lower intensity are called "sidelobes". The goal of all satellite TV antenna manufacturers is to reduce the gain of these sidelobes to levels that are at a minimum of 15 dB below the gain of the main lobe. This level of sidelobe attenuation is usually sufficient for preventing adjacent satellites from causing interference to reception of the desired satellite.

The location off axis of each sidelobe is a function of antenna diameter and signal frequency. The installer can therefore select an antenna that is large enough to put the adjacent satellites in the first "null" of the antenna receiving pattern or use an antenna which has a sidelobe that is at least -15 dB down from the main beam.

Antenna Mounts

The steel mount and the bearing that supports the antenna reflector must be able to maintain a precise position once boresighted onto the desired satellite. A misalignment of the mount of as little as two inches can make the difference between perfect TV reception and no reception at all. The installer should check the rigidity of the mount by grasping the rim and gently shaking it to see if there is any "play" as wind or rainstorms may push the dish off of boresight, causing erratic reception.

All mounts incorporate adjustments that permit the installer to point the dish at the desired satellite. Digital DTH antennas commonly have what is known as a fixed mount that is adjusted once at the time of installation and then left alone thereafter. The fixed mount has separate settings for the required azimuth (compass bearing corrected to true north) and elevation (the angle at which the reflector tilts up at the sky). Motorized DTH antennas must rotate in an arc that mimics the curvature of the geostationary arc where all the satellites are located.

A modified form of the polar mount used by astronomers on their telescopes is used to achieve this effect. The axis of the modified polar mount must be aligned with the earth's axis of rotation at an angle that corresponds to the latitude of the receiving site. Precise tracking of the geostationary arc also requires a declination adjustment that tilts the antenna downward slightly in the direction of the geostationary arc. This modification to the polar mount is required because of the relative closeness of the satellites in comparison to the stars that astronomers view with polar mounted telescopes.


First published in Middle East Satellite Today magazine. Copyright 1998 Mark Long.

Putra-Design

Sony Company Profile, History and Culture, and SWOT

Sony Corporation Company Profile, History and Culture, and SWOT

Executive Summery :

Sony's current financial difficulties are tied into its corporate culture which were stated over 30 years ago. With such a large multinational corporation, greater planning and more use of strategies should be pursued. Sony could start with the implementation of a new mission statement, with profit and benefits of the company tied more closely to everyday operations. Internally, the four forces, the management, the designers, the production and the marketing should achieve better communication and cooperation.

Alliance and cooperation between competitors should also be actively sort after in order to create standards in new fields. Sony should aim at being the leader instead of being the maverick. As for cost cutting, Sony should seriously consider setting up operations in other Asian countries in order to take advantage of the cheap labour and the budding markets. Finally, diversification, instead of pursuing the fast changing and easily imitated consumer goods market, Sony should use its technological know-how for high-end business and office equipment.

With SWOT analysis and Porter's competitive forces model, we can view that the market is much more competitive with less profit margins and lead-time for product innovation. The conclusion is that change is needed in Sony. However,even with strategirial and structure change, the Sony spirit of innovation should remain intact because that is what made Sony grow and would make it stay strong.

Introduction

The first thing that comes to peoples minds of the company and products of Sony is its high-technology-filled-with-gadgets electronic goods and innovation. It was also this innovation that make Sony the greatest company that started in post-war Japan. Sony has used its innovation in building markets out of thin air, created a multibillion, multinational electronic empire with products such as the transistor radio, the Trinitron, the Walk-in and the VTR. that changed everyday household lives forever.

However, this consumer targeted quest for excellence and constant innovation instead of targeting mainly at profit also has a lot to do with current crisis Sony is facing - sales and profits are down or are slowing down, capital investment cost and R&D are climbing, competitors are moving in with copycats, the battle between VHS and Beta and the search for a smash hit product such as the Trinitron or the Walk-in.

This volatility and emphasis (or gambling) on new products instead of concentrating on profit and loss statements have always been a part of Sony since its beginning days. For each successful product (i.e. transistor radio and Trinitron), R&D cost often ran so high that the they pushed the firm to the verge of bankruptcy. This can also be seen through the eyes of the investor in which although sales have increased tremendously throughout the past twenty years, the stock price has remained relatively low.

History and Culture

The current Sony corporation has a unique culture which is firmly rooted in her history especially in relationship to her two founders, Masaru Ibuka and Akio Morita. Ibuka and Morita were both dedicated electrical engineers and geniuses above their business talents. Both gave insights and visions in what the company should make and how it should be made. Ibuka, especially, gave constant advice and suggestions to the engineers involved in projects from the earlier on transistor radios to Walkmans.

This created the umbrella strategy in which Sony operates under where the top management, especially Ibuka, Morita and now Norio Ohga gave the general direction in which the lower engineers actively learned, developed and improved on the vision/idea. Therefore, although there is a planned direction, the actual product development through launching is emergent with great flexibility.

Although the research and development section of Sony differs greatly from other companies with its great flexibility, Sony, in its essence is still a traditional Japanese company in many ways. There is life-time employment, with strong norms and values which in turn create strategies through their actions. Status is given (the crystal award) instead of bonuses (not significant amount) for superior achievement. There is also the strong seniority system such as the mentor and apprentice relationship that is typical of a Japanese firm. All this can be classified as the cultural school in which strategy formation is of collective behaviour. Collective vision and stress on human resource, which is typical of many Japanese, can be clearly seen in the mission statement "Management Policies".

Weaknesses and Threats

Referring to Exhibit 1, sales has slowed down considerably since the beginning of the 80s. In the domestic market, sales actually decreased by 7.22%. The overseas market expanded both in real terms and relative to total sales, but slowed down to around 10% a year. This can be seen as the vacuum period between one hit product, the Walkman, and its succession. As mentioned by Ibuka, business is conducted in a ten year cycle.

However, in the eighties, the product might still take a few years to develop, but the time reaping the results and profits might be much less. As seen in the VTR example, both the VHS and Beta were developed by Sony. However, in a short time, Matsushita could come up with a competitive product based on Sony's technology. Therefore, it is fair to say that other electronic firms would be able to copy Sony's technology in a much shorter time while offering more competitive prices. The margin for technology advancement is therefore diminishing.

Associated with innovation is the capital expenditure cost and return on investment ratio. As seen from Exhibit 1, capital expenditure has risen dramatically, especially in 1981, due to the automation of plants. However, the return on investment has decreased. Spending around 10% of sales on capital investment is by all company standards an extremely high figure. The question is that does this high rate of investment represent corresponding growth in profitability? As mentioned above, the diminishing returns from product innovation is apparent. However, the internal dimension also poses as much of a problem.

With its great freedom, research and development are divided into small teams which are free to pursue their interest with little reference to "how it will fit into a market, what the product can do, how well it will function or how it could be used by customers." Secret projects without management knowing about them until "secret reports" are submitted are of common practice.

With this kind of practice, there is lack of communication between management and R&D and threat of duplication of resources among the small groups. There is also a lack of general direction. This would be especially prominent when Ibuka and Morita, the symbolic leaders and founders retire. This is because the two in many ways act as the main guidance and bridge between management and the engineers. Therefore, there is also a succession problem.

Sony has always been a leader in technology, creating markets by looking for new markets where bigger, well-established companies are not a threat. However, new products such as VTR, the Walk-in and the Mavica involve both hardware and software. Sony can no longer just produce superb quality machines and expect them to sell. The software would also have to be available. For the Walkman, cassette tapes were well established but for the Beta system and Mavica, a standard has yet to be set. For example, the images of Mavica would be held on a high density magnetic disk but Kodak, 3M and Sony all have different systems and are not compatible. The Mavica system also stands alone with little compatibility with conventional systems and little transitional interfaces.

This leads to the problem of cooperation where Sony is often the maverick, alone creating markets. With Sony entering markets such as the VTR with no standards, it might be beneficial to both Sony and other vendors if they cooperated instead of competing on conflicting software that supports the systems. This could also be seen in Exhibit 2, the Porter competitive forces mode: new entrants from other Asian countries, other Japanese industry competitors, substitutes and buyers are all strong and much stronger than 20 years ago which reinforce the weakness of Sony acting alone.

Last but not least, Sony lacks strategy. Product development, manufacturing and marketing are all well established but the firm lacks any formal long term direction. The original mission statement is also outdated with its references to W.W.II. Short term strategy is also lacking and there is little emphasis on profit and accountability of research and development of products. The result : a company with strong components but unable to coordinate in a coherent way in order to achieve maximum potential.

Strengths and Opportunities

The greatest asset of Sony is of its human capital, especially its engineers which make up the R&D department. Their constant innovation is crucial for a consumer electronic firm which specializes in audio-visual equipment and the higher profit margin, which comes from being the leader of the pact. Subsidiaries are also well established, such as in the United States and Europe which give Sony a distinct local hands-on knowledge of the local market.

It also makes Sony an international corporation, bringing together the talents and best of strategies of both world to the organization. Besides the employees, the two founders, Ibuka and Morita also legends in their fields which they create vision and sense of direction for the organization. The also acts as bridges between the employees and the management.

The self promoting system and job rotating systems creates satisfaction for employees and give them greater exposure to all aspects of the business. Ideally, this would produce better products as engineers gain knowledge on consumer needs while marketing people engaged in the production and can give their point of view.

The innovative style also stems from the "never copy others" culture, the generous funding of the R&D and huge amounts in capital investments. As described by Ibuka,"It also stems from consumer driven in which technology is targeted at consumers or business while American electronic industry are spoiled be military and space applications."

Sony has been ahead in the race of Video Tape Recorders and digital imaging techniques in Mavica which both offer tremendous potential of household penetration and sales. It also has the opportunity to set up standards and dominate the field. Sony has also acquired enough technology to increase width by going into the high technology business fields. With the rise of the Asian countries, Sony also has the opportunity to make use of them for markets and for cheap labour.

Recommendations

Building of Strategy

With the succession of the two founders at hand, it would be very difficult for the company to find someone as visionary, as respected and with the same engineering background to lead the umbrella strategy company. With Sony as a much international company with major branches in Europe and the United States and stocks listed in 23 stock exchanges, the Japanese cultural school strategy is not sufficient. Becoming a mature company, the strategy should also change to more profit orientated. There should also be greater emphasis on market share, especially in Japan where Sony's market is shrinking. Strategy should be aimed at greater control and communication between manager and workers, especially the engineers in the R&D Department. A more planned strategy should be adopted, which should outline the general direction of the company.

Diversification

One direction which is possible is concentrating more on electronic know how in non-consumer business. Currently, the buyer has much more choosing power and competition is fierce (Exhibit 2). The competitors are also able to copy the product in a much shorter time. To create larger profit margins, Sony should concentrate on the business sector and industries, supplying high technology equipment and parts. This would make full use of the R&D Department, the strongest advantage of Sony without waiting for the price cutting and technology adaptation to fit the average consumers needs. This would also make Sony less dependent on coming up with a steady stream of relatively short-lived hit products, and able to use its unique talents in video and semiconductor technology to create its version of the office of the future.

Although the Sony name is often related to expensive, high-profit end of the market, the organization should also expand its product range by offering lower priced, simpler featured products that would compete head on with other copycats. With the lower priced line, Sony can also increase its market shares in both overseas and Japanese markets.

Alliance and Cooperation

Sony should try to become a leader instead of a maverick. The difference is great, the leader, besides a great innovator, should also be a great coordinator. New products, which involve both hardware and software such as the Mavica, should try to achieve industry wide standards. The standard may not be the best or the one created by Sony, but Sony, by pioneering in the field first, would already have a significant head start and the standards is just a way to ensure stability to allow Sony to concentrate on product development and improvement. This is because Sony is not large and strong enough to acquire and provide both software and hardware for one product. They also lack the know-how to the creative software market. Consumers also prefer to have the ability to choose between competitive equipment.

Internally, the different R&D groups should cooperate more. The product line should also be made more compatible with one another which is crucial through the communication between groups and managers, i.e. no more secret projects. Products should be made with higher added value and longer life rather than making frequent model changes. This is also a shift from a manufacturer-orientated mentality to a consumer-orientated mentality, which is a way to save natural resources. The brand-line compatibility also builds brand loyalty for consumers.

In relationship with the other Japanese consumer electronic firms, a more cooperative attitude should also be taken. Just like when Japanese took over the US market through cheap yet quality consumer goods, other Asian countries such as Taiwan and South Korea, with their lower labour cost, pose as great competitors at the lower end of consumer goods. Therefore, the Japanese firms should cooperate in setting up standards in high technology areas in order to reap maximum profits and extend the technological lead-time over their fellow Asian countries.

Cost Cutting

Cost cutting is important because R&D plays an integral part in the success of Sony and cannot be cut drastically although it gobbles up 10% of sales. Therefore, the only way to improve profit margins is to cut cost.

Sony currently has factories in the United States and Japan. Although this is good for relationship of the firm in a foreign firm and offers a chance to pay suppliers with local currencies, Sony is not fully making use of other lower cost areas in the world, especially Asian countries such as Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines etc. By setting up factories in these countries, Sony can take advantage of their cheap labour and also get a head start in their budding consumer markets.

As mentioned above, products should be refined instead of reinvented so that there would be less set up cost and greater automation could be achieved.

Integration of production, design and marketing

In many ways, designing and developing of a product is separate from the production and marketing. Although there is job rotation, the design stage is backed by intuition and experience rather than market research and analysis. Often, the rational is that it is the marketing personnel's job to find a market for a product after it has been developed instead of the other way round. To cure this phenomenon, R&D should listen more to what the consumer needs and then innovate instead of always creating new markets. With great freedom, the designing team should also take on greater responsibility in making the product fit to the current production pattern and marketing aims. They should also be made more responsible to the profit and lost of the particular product. Empowering these three separate groups create conflict, but it also brings these separate efficient groups together achieving synergy.

Implementation

Internally, strategy should be reviewed beginning with renewing the corporate goals. It should integrate together both the Japanese work ethic and its western counterparts. This is possible, because Sony is a multinational corporation with employees and customers in many different countries. This involves writing the importance of profits and its responsibility to shareholders in the statement. Integration of the company, the designing, production and marketing should be encouraged, with increased communication between each groupand the management acting as liaison and guidance. The management should be providing the organization with specific goals and strategies for the short and long term. These changes are intended to balance business Vs engineering.

Setting up alliances with fellow electronic manufacturers / competitor is crucial to mutual benefit so should be pursued as soon as possible. In areas such as the VTR, Sony has to decide what standard the world is adapting and make decisions to cut off setbacks. For new products such as the Mavica, new standards for the industry should be actively sort after with commitment from other competitors and conventional producers. This is also a change in culture for Sony so top management has to actively push and pursue for this direction.

Cost cutting, with emphasis in making use of lower cost of labour in the Asian developing countries should then be implemented. This could also be seen as a long term strategy. The work force could also be made more flexible. Finally, diversification, with emphasis on making business supplies a major part of Sony's business. This is one of the long term goals in which Sony should thrive to achieve. However, the end product ratio between consumer and business products should be constantly reviewed throughout the process to achieve the optimum mix.

Conclusion

Although other electronic firms are taking market share and profits from Sony by being copycats, the heart of Sony's success, the innovative spirit and quest of excellence and perfection cannot be copied. Sony's main task is to integrate its talent by placing common goals and priority for this increasing competitive market. Sony also has the potential to innovate into a company with international operations as well as culture since it was one of the first Japanese companies to set up a main branch in the United States. With strategy and luck, Sony could become a great firm as it was and will be.

Putra-Design