Direct & Current

Electrical Apparatus, Nov 2004

NOVEMBER 2004

JUNK FAXES GET A REPRIEVE. Political pressure no doubt is responsible for the Federal Communications Commission's recently extending through June 30, 2005, its requirement of "an established business relationship" by senders of unsolicited faxes. Fax purveyors such as Xpedite have been actively lobbying to get the ruling delayed. The objections to unsolicited faxes, unlike unsolicited mail, have resulted from the costs to recipients of fax paper and printer cartridges. A growing number of fax purveyors are adding to the problem as they broadcast faxes to advertise their services. Most of the junk faxes are advertising mortgages, loans, real estate, health services, and investments.

"REINSOURCIFICATION" is the current vogue word for the new practice of moving outsourcing back to the U.S. After acquiring Bank One, J.P. Morgan Chase canceled its massive outsourcing contract with IBM Global Services. And an official of the largest company in the world, Wal-Mart, says "we'd be nuts to outsource," saying WalMart can "run the entire world out of our facilities in Bentonville, Ark." Maybe we will all someday resume talking to our computer's "technical support" in the U.S., instead of to India.

A PLUG-IN HYBRID ELECTRIC DRIVE TRAIN with an internal combustion engine will be in Dodge Sprinter vans early next year, according to Daimler Chrysler. Spearheaded by the Electric Power Research Institute, PaIo Alto, Calif., the design will be used in three test vehicles. A diesel version will be operated by the Kansas City Regional Transit Authority, and two gasoline versions will be tested by Southern California Edison and South Coast Air Quality Management District. The vehicles combine an internal combustion engine with an electric motor and a rechargeable battery.

ELECTRICITY CONSUMPTION TO GROW. World net electricity, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, will nearly double by 2025 to 23.1 billion kilowatt hours. World net electricity in 2001 was 13.3 billion kilowatt hours.

"POSTAL REFORM," which some believe is an oxymoron, is once again forecast by the government, specifically the "President's Commission on the United States Postal Service," which has had hardly a mention since it was issued last summer, even though its conclusions for the first time brought the Administration into the postal reform process. A Washington lawyer who represents a publishing association has warned of rising postal rates in the form of smaller rate increases every year as opposed to the current large increases every few years.

ELECTRICAL DISTRIBUTORS' SALES ARE GROWING, says the National Association of Electrical Distributors. Nearly 90% of an NAED survey's 449 respondents reported increased sales for the 2nd Quarter (April-June) of 2004. The favorable outlook continues, with 86% expecting sales gains for the 3rd Quarter. A small number, 3.1%, said their sales continue to shrink. The survey went to 3,700 distributor locations, returns approximating 30%,

THE EDITORS