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Rohm and Haas Company has reported second quarter 2008 sales of $2,567 million, a 17% increase over the same period in 2007, with Electronic Materials and the chemical businesses outside North America delivering strong growth. The Electronic Materials Group comprises two reportable segments which provide materials for use in applications such as telecommunications, consumer electronics and household appliances. Sales for the Electronic Materials Group were $536 million in the second quarter of 2008, up 34% over the same period in 2007, reflecting the impact of acquisitions in Display Technologies as well as solid organic growth of Electronic Technologies. The Electronic Technologies segment is comprised of the company's Semiconductor Technologies, Circuit Board Technologies and Packaging and Finishing Technologies business units. Sales for the segment of $460 million were up 16% versus the second quarter of 2007, driven by strong growth in Asia for all business units. Sales in the second quarter excluding precious metals pass-through sales were up 15%. Semiconductor Technologies sales grew 13%, reflecting strong demand and favorable currencies, particularly in the Asia Pacific Region. Circuit Board Technologies sales increased 20% as compared to the same period last year, with solid growth in the Asia Pacific Region more than offsetting declines in North America. Packaging and Finishing Technologies sales rose 20% versus last year, primarily driven by strong growth in precious metal sales and in process sales. Adjusted pre-tax earnings for this segment of $107 million were up 11% from the second quarter of 2007, reflecting increased demand and favorable currencies, partially offset by higher metal costs and increased costs related to expansion efforts, including the new Asia Technical Center in Taiwan.\n\n\n

Growth in Asia is illustrated from this reporting at multiple levels of business - Opportunities are available for copper in a multitude of applications.

General Motors Corp., along with a consortium of more than 30 utilities and a non-profit electric industry research group, has struck a deal to forestall potential problems when the company introduces its new electric vehicle to the nation's showrooms. An EPRI official also emphasized the grid aspects of the collaboration. Said Arshad Mansoor, the organization's vice president of power delivery: "Seemless integration of [plug-in hybrid electric vehicles] into the electric grid will require close collaboration between the automobile and electric sectors." The statements from EPRI and the car company also address safe and convenient vehicle charging, public education and other public policies, including codes and standards. Among the utility participants in the collaboration are Consolidated Edison of New York, Duke Energy, First Energy Corp., Pacific Gas & Electric Co. and Southern California Edison Co. Others are listed as part of the EPRI statement. The research organization last year released a report along with the Natural Resources Defense Council that concluded plug-in hybrids had the potential to lower greenhouse gas emissions. GM, meanwhile, emphasized the cost benefit of the new vehicles, saying consumers could find that the per-mile expense of an electric vehicle would be about one-fifth that of a gas-powered car.

GE Energy has acquired Kelman Limited of Lisburn, Northern Ireland, a provider of advanced monitoring and diagnostics technologies for transformers, enhancing GE's smart grid product portfolio. GE's smart grid offerings are designed to help utilities increase productivity and reliability of both traditional and renewable energy generating assets, while also providing consumers with information to better manage their electricity use and expenses.

August 12, 2008 What will the electric carInnovation-At-Big-Companies Dec-07 ownership experience be like? NissanNissan Motors has given us a glimpse of what early adopters are letting themselves in for - rather than bundling expensive, consumable battery packs into the price of the car, Nissan plans to sell its 2010 mass-market battery-electric car for around the same price as a standard petrol car, and lease the battery pack to the buyer on a monthly fee. And the battery lease plus electricity charges should still end up cheaper than a petrol bill. Don't worry, it won't look anything like the test vehicle pictured! In an encouraging auto industry trend, more and more major players are committing to launching hybrid, hydrogenhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrogen and battery-electric carsElectric car in the next few years. Nissan is the latest to outline its plans, which will include a production-model lithium-ion plug-in electric car by 2010. There's also a clever high-tech hybrid on the way, and Nissan has also announced a cheaper way of building a high-power density hydrogen fuelGM-Coskata-Alternative-Fuels cell stack. But it's the imminent battery-electric vehicle (BEV) that offers the most immediate chance for car buyers to get away from gas stationshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filling_station and look into green motoring. And while no details have yet been officially released about range, charging time, body shape or power, Nissan has clarified that its first mass-market BEV will use a lithium-ion battery pack from partner AESC - an expensive option, but the cost (and eventual replacement cost) will be spread out over a lease plan.

Panasonic encouraged by the Japanese Home Appliance Recycling Law has set up a lab called the 'Eco Technology Center' to recycle these products with the cooperation of consumers, retailers and of course manufacturers.

LONDON, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Copper prices slid to six-month lows on Monday as a strengthening dollar triggered a sell-off ina market already worrying about weak demand from top consumers China and the United States. Copper for delivery in three months MCU3 hit $7,315 a tonne on the London Metal Exchange, the lowest since early February, before closing at $7,330 down from Friday's $7,410. "The correction that we are seeing is really a reflection ofthe slowdown of the global economy," said Ashok Shah, chief investment officer at London & Capital. He said weakness in industrial production would continue to weigh on metals as demand was seen slowing and as more investors unwound long positions. "I would expect some more speculative money to be exiting."

Sony Corp will invest about 40 billion yen (US$372 million) to boost its output capacity of lithium-ion batteries amid growing global demand, the company said. On top of plans to increase production in Singapore and China, the Japanese consumer electronics firm said it will build new facilities and enhance existing lines in Japan, hoping to expand output capacity to 74 million cells per month in 2010 from the current 41 million cells. "This is the first phase of investment in lithium ion batteries Sony is undertaking as part of efforts to reinforce core areas of its component and semiconductor business over the next three years," the company said in a statement.

Australia`s competition regulator on Friday identified iron-ore as a potential major concern in evaluating mining giant BHP Billiton`s US$128 billion bid for rival Rio Tinto and said it would make a final ruling on the hostile takeover by October 1. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) devoted most of its nine-page "statement of issues" to the proposed deal`s likely impact on the iron ore trade and, in particular, on Australian steel-makers. Rio Tinto and BHPB are the world`s second and third largest iron-ore producers, respectively, behind Brazil`s Vale. But the ACCC saw no major competition issues surrounding trade in copper, gold, uranium, bauxite and alumina.

"We showed that copper ions diffuse out from a brass plate into a fish tank filled with seawater, and within 40 hours the copper killed 99.99% of the Vibrio food poisoning bacteria contaminating the living fish and shellfish," says Dr Jeong-Weon Huh from the Department of Health Research, at Gyeonggi-do Institute of Health and Environment, Republic of Korea. The copper is absorbed by the bacteria, causing them to die and fall off the gills and skin of the fish. Vibrio are even flushed from the internal organs of the fresh fish, sinking to the bottom of the tank. The remaining copper ions are absorbed from the seawater in the tank by sand and polyester filters, leaving safe, clean fish ready to be eaten by restaurant diners. "By being able to remove the copper ions, we can prevent people from consuming excess copper themselves, but let them safely enjoy any kind of fish, either raw or cooked," says Dr Jeong-Weon Huh.

As we move towards a consumer society that's based more on experiences, on status stories, on the ephemeral-and in which, for many, time is now the only true scarcity-expect perks and privileges to become an integral part of every B2C industry and sector.

The way electric power is generated and distributed will change substantially over the next two decades. Power will be democratized, as small-scale production at the individual and community level moves from niche to normal. The resulting "electron-democracy" will still have centralized power plants, but power grid activity will increasingly be dominated by innumerable incremental energy flows between small producers and consumers. This is likely to happen whether or not public policy mandates a shift away from dependence on fossil fuels.

GENERATION G | "Captures the growing importance of 'generosity' as a leading societal and business mindset. As consumers are disgusted with greed and its current dire consequences for the economy-and while that same upheaval has them longing more than ever for institutions that care-the need for more generosity beautifully coincides with the ongoing (and pre-recession) emergence of an online-fueled culture of individuals who share, give, engage, create and collaborate in large numbers.

BEIJING -- China, the world's largest metal consumer, discarded a plan to buy copper to support domestic smelters because producers are still profitable and inventories aren't high, government and company officials said.

The aim of this project, known as Sormen, is to develop a technology for the separation of scrap metal from electronic waste based on a multispectral vision system and incorporate it into a recycling plant. This new machine overcomes the limitations of current, essentially manual, methods that are labour-intensive and time-consuming, and which are unable to separate metals whose characteristics of colour, shape and weight are similar.

Basic resource (in this case water and energy) availability is a growing concern for governments, businesses and consumers worldwide. It seems logical that there will be increased use of designs in consumer goods which use relatively less resource.

LONDON - Copper prices fell on Wednesday as investors retreated on fears about global economic growth and lower demand from China and the United States, the world's top two consumers.

Recycling electronics is never easy, so it's extremely helpful when electronics companies take it upon themselves to help out. Panasonic announced today that is creating a program in the United States to let consumers easily recycle Panasonic products free of charge. The program, which is scheduled to start November 1, is being managed by the Electronic Manufacturers Recycling Management Company-a joint venture between Panasonic, Toshiba, and Sharp.

Started by Google and Intel in 2007, the Climate Savers Computing Initiative is a nonprofit group of eco-conscious consumers, businesses and conservation organizations.

Focus on European Smart Grids by Michael Setters, Smart Electric News London, UK [RenewableEnergyWorld.com] A host of initiatives across Europe has led to an explosion in interest into how -- and where -- smart grids will be implemented and deployed. According to Jose Antonio Vanderhorst-Silverio, a leading voice in the Electricity industry, "It is clear that dramatic change is coming in the future for the electric utility industry...the way energy is generated, delivered and consumed [is] substantially changing the whole business model. This change is coming to a piece of the industry that hasn't been known for radical change over its 120 plus year history... Implementation of the Smart Grid will require a complete rethinking of the utility business model and business processes."

The European Commission has adopted a third package of legislative proposals to ensure a real and effective choice of supplier and benefits to every single EU citizen. The Commission's proposals put consumer choice, fairer prices, cleaner energy and security of supply at the centre of its approach.