Recently, I have been growing an interest for renewable technologies for energy production. Therefore, I visited a lecture of Prof. Aldo Steinfeld at Zürich University, entitled: 'Global Potential of Renewable Energy Technologies'. Having a restricted beginner knowledge in this field, I benefited a lot from this presentation. Here I would like just to mention what struck me the most.
Prof. Steinfeld took a scenario (made by the oil company Shell), which predicted a global increase in demand of CO2 free electricity of ~30 TW. (1TW =1012W). Two reasons for that:
* Almost doubled population
* Higher amount of energy per capita
Which technology of renewable energy production has the chance to close the energy gap?
After looking at the practical and theoretical potentials of all possible technologies - wind, hydro, biomass, geothermal and solar - the answer was given: SOLAR!
Solar energy can be the real solution to the expected 30TW gap. Currently the overall energy consumption on Earth is 1.2 x 1014 W. To satisfy that using only solar power, we will need a square area of 500 x 500 km. The theoretical potential of solar power is 120 000 TW, practically 600TW can be achieved. So it is worth discussing.
Prof. Steinfeld presented two main technologies for solar power:
PV - Photovoltaic (Solar Cell) Systems. Through this technology the light (photons) is directly converted into electricity (voltage). Here is a short explanation from http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/: 'Solar cells are made of semiconducting materials similar to those used in computer chips. When sunlight is absorbed by these materials, the solar energy knocks electrons loose from their atoms, allowing the electrons to flow through the material to produce electricity.' Typically, a solar cell has a 15% efficiency, so only 1/6th of the energy that strikes it is converted to electricity. The first solar cell was used in 1950-s and had only 4% efficiency. Today there are also some cells which can reach up to 40% effiiciency. The world growth of PV technology is 34%; European growth - 87%, half of which is in Germany.
CSP - Concentrated Solar Power. Here is a short Wiki Explanation: 'CSP use lenses or mirrors and tracking systems to focus a large area of sunlight into a small beam. The concentrated light is then used as a heat source for a conventional power plant (Rankine plant - a thermodynamic cycle, which converts heat into work. The heat is supplied externally to a closed loop, which usually uses water as the working fluid.). A wide range of concentrating technologies exists. These methods vary in the way they track the Sun and focus light. In all these systems a working fluid is heated by the concentrated sunlight, and is then used for power generation or energy storage.
'What happens when the sun sets?' - you might ask. The advantage of CSP systems is that they can use fossil fuel during the night and thus generate electricity 24 hrs. This combined system is possible due to the fact that the solar power plants work on the principle of conventional power plants. The only difference is the method of heat generation.
BUT Solar power is not competitive with other energy production methods. For this reason the governments of some countries provide a feed-in tariff (in Spain it is 0.27 EUR/kWh) for investments in solar energy. This is the estimated cost of producing solar electricity. This makes the investment in this business profitable and attracts more interest.
Important issue to consider for every investment is Energy Pay Back: the number of years that the factory must work in orer to repay the initial investment.
For PV, depending on the cells used, it can be from 1 to 3.5 years.
For CSP, only about 0.5 years.
Sounds good to me :)
Conclusion: with solar power you can claim a sustainable production of energy, which has the potential to close the energy gap between today and the year 2060.
Friday, 31 October 2008
Tuesday, 28 October 2008
Electrolube Product Poster
Electrolube is a sister company of AF International. It is a manufacturer of cleaning supplies and other chemicals for very specific users - Electronics and Manufacturing Industries. It was tough to make a poster about products that I don't know anything about, but the poster was very needed for an upcoming fair in Romania. Therefore I asked one of the few engineers working in Freckles to enlighten me about the applications of Electrolube chemicals.
He helped me a lot to come up with this poster. If you have seen the AF Product Poster, you will notice some obvious similarities. I wanted to emphasize that both companies are related.
The EL products fall into 6 categories:
He helped me a lot to come up with this poster. If you have seen the AF Product Poster, you will notice some obvious similarities. I wanted to emphasize that both companies are related.
The EL products fall into 6 categories:
- Cleaning - these is the category that resembles a little the AF product range. However, these products are also suitable for much more technical purposes like cleaning motherboards and PCBs.
- Conformal Coatings - with these you can make a protective layer on circuitry against environmental attacks from chemicals, moisture and other contaminants.
- Resins - they have a similar application as conformal coatings, but their specific feature is that they consist of two liquids (resin and hardener), which when mixed in a correct ratio, react to form a solid according to customer requirements.
- Thermal Management - due to the ever-growing complexity of electronic circuits, they generate more heat, which needs to be dissipated so that they function for longer time. This is exactly the purpose of this group of products - they ensure effective operation by dissipating heat away.
- Contact Lubrication - simply said, if you want your switch to last longer (3x its usual lifetime), use these products to reduce friction and enhance electrical performance in switches and connectors.
- Maintenance and Service Aids - a wide range of products vital to any service engineer, coming in different packages.
Friday, 24 October 2008
EnergyDay 08
Das ist mein erstes Blog in Deutsch. Wie alles anders, jeder Anfang ist schwer und es wäre gut, wenn Sie meine Fehler übersehen und der Sinn des Blogs ergreifen :)
Seit 2006 gibt es jedes Jahr einen Anlass in der Schweiz, der Energy Day heisst. Dieses Jahr läuft dieser Tag unter dem Motto 'Abschalten!'.
Man kann überall die Wichtigkeit des Tages fühlen. Die Schweizer Zeitungen widmen viele Seiten dem Energy Day und erzählen ausführlich warum Energie sparen eine grosse Bedeutung für den Staat hat.
Die Zeitungen stellen den Begriff 'Energieeffizienz' vor. Das bringt manchmal ein weitgehendes Missverständnis, dass ich diskutieren möchte. Energieeffizienz bedeutet nicht, dass man den gewohnten Lebensstandard abgeben muss, sondern die gleiche Nützen mit weniger Energieverbrauch erzielen. Das ist durchaus möglich, wenn man eine Reihe von praktischen Tipps folgt. Am Energy Day werden die Schweizer noch ein mal mit diesen Tipps bekannt. Ein dieser Tipps ist der folgende:
'Say Good bye to StandBy'
Wenige von uns erfassen wie viel Elektrizität gespart ist, wenn man die Elektrogeräte abschaltet. Dieser 'Halbschlaf' der Geräte kostet annähernd 130 Millionen Franken pro Jahr!! Aus diesem Hintergrund, bieten verschiedene Geschäfte am Energy Day freie Steckerleisten vor. Damit kann man nur mit einem Knopfdruck viele Elektrogeräte auschalten. Zudem machen die Geschäfte grossen Rabatt von energieeffizienten Haushaltgeräte. Da in jeder Haushalt es ungefähr 15 Elektrogeräte gibt, ist es extrem wichtig an die Zukunft zu denken und sich für die energieeffizienteste Geräte zu entscheiden. Vergessen Sie nicht auch die Licht auszumachen, wenn Sie nicht in dem Zimmer sind. Das alles hilft Ihrem Geldbeutel und auch die Umwelt.
Es gibt noch einen Begriff, den ich hier vorstellen möchte - die EnergieStadt. In der Schweiz gibt es ungefähr 160 Städte, die einer nachhaltige Umwelt-, Transport-, und Energiepolitik führen. Diese Städte sparen jährlich zusammen etwa 74000 Tonnen CO2, 30 Millionen Litre Brennstoff und 68 Millionen Kilowattstunden Strom. (COOP Zeitung, 21 Oktober 2008). 10 von diesr Städten haben auch die European Energy Award GOLD bekommen, unter denen sind Zürich, Basel, Lausanne, Schaffhausen.
Den European EnergyAward® Silber erhalten Gemeinden, wenn sie mindestens die Hälfte der möglichen Maßnahmen umgesetzt haben.
Um den European Energy Award® Gold zu erreichen, müssen in einer Gemeinde mindestens 75 Prozent der möglichen energierelevanten Maßnahmen umgesetzt sein.
(Infoblatt).
Als ich klein war, wurde ich oft von meiner Grossmutter gesagt: 'Lichte aus, Kleines!'. Dann habe ich mir gedacht, 'Ja, vielleicht sagt sie dass, weil sie kein Geld hat den Strom zu bezahlen'. Das war wirklich so. Deshalb habe ich gedacht, es war modern, wenn man so viel Elektrizität verbrauchen kann, wie man will. Ich habe gedacht, dass das ein Zeichen von der fortgeschrittener Welt war. Heute denke ich anders. Heute glaube ich, dass Energieffiezienz sehr nötig für unsere erfolgreiche Zukunft ist. Wir und niemand sonst gestalten die Zukunft. Wir sollen so wenig wie möglich benutzen, um unsere Ziele zu erreichen. Also... noch mal die Botschaft meines erstes Deutschblogs und des EnergyDay 2008: Abschalten!
Seit 2006 gibt es jedes Jahr einen Anlass in der Schweiz, der Energy Day heisst. Dieses Jahr läuft dieser Tag unter dem Motto 'Abschalten!'.
Man kann überall die Wichtigkeit des Tages fühlen. Die Schweizer Zeitungen widmen viele Seiten dem Energy Day und erzählen ausführlich warum Energie sparen eine grosse Bedeutung für den Staat hat.
Die Zeitungen stellen den Begriff 'Energieeffizienz' vor. Das bringt manchmal ein weitgehendes Missverständnis, dass ich diskutieren möchte. Energieeffizienz bedeutet nicht, dass man den gewohnten Lebensstandard abgeben muss, sondern die gleiche Nützen mit weniger Energieverbrauch erzielen. Das ist durchaus möglich, wenn man eine Reihe von praktischen Tipps folgt. Am Energy Day werden die Schweizer noch ein mal mit diesen Tipps bekannt. Ein dieser Tipps ist der folgende:
'Say Good bye to StandBy'
Wenige von uns erfassen wie viel Elektrizität gespart ist, wenn man die Elektrogeräte abschaltet. Dieser 'Halbschlaf' der Geräte kostet annähernd 130 Millionen Franken pro Jahr!! Aus diesem Hintergrund, bieten verschiedene Geschäfte am Energy Day freie Steckerleisten vor. Damit kann man nur mit einem Knopfdruck viele Elektrogeräte auschalten. Zudem machen die Geschäfte grossen Rabatt von energieeffizienten Haushaltgeräte. Da in jeder Haushalt es ungefähr 15 Elektrogeräte gibt, ist es extrem wichtig an die Zukunft zu denken und sich für die energieeffizienteste Geräte zu entscheiden. Vergessen Sie nicht auch die Licht auszumachen, wenn Sie nicht in dem Zimmer sind. Das alles hilft Ihrem Geldbeutel und auch die Umwelt.
Es gibt noch einen Begriff, den ich hier vorstellen möchte - die EnergieStadt. In der Schweiz gibt es ungefähr 160 Städte, die einer nachhaltige Umwelt-, Transport-, und Energiepolitik führen. Diese Städte sparen jährlich zusammen etwa 74000 Tonnen CO2, 30 Millionen Litre Brennstoff und 68 Millionen Kilowattstunden Strom. (COOP Zeitung, 21 Oktober 2008). 10 von diesr Städten haben auch die European Energy Award GOLD bekommen, unter denen sind Zürich, Basel, Lausanne, Schaffhausen.
Den European EnergyAward® Silber erhalten Gemeinden, wenn sie mindestens die Hälfte der möglichen Maßnahmen umgesetzt haben.
Um den European Energy Award® Gold zu erreichen, müssen in einer Gemeinde mindestens 75 Prozent der möglichen energierelevanten Maßnahmen umgesetzt sein.
(Infoblatt).
Als ich klein war, wurde ich oft von meiner Grossmutter gesagt: 'Lichte aus, Kleines!'. Dann habe ich mir gedacht, 'Ja, vielleicht sagt sie dass, weil sie kein Geld hat den Strom zu bezahlen'. Das war wirklich so. Deshalb habe ich gedacht, es war modern, wenn man so viel Elektrizität verbrauchen kann, wie man will. Ich habe gedacht, dass das ein Zeichen von der fortgeschrittener Welt war. Heute denke ich anders. Heute glaube ich, dass Energieffiezienz sehr nötig für unsere erfolgreiche Zukunft ist. Wir und niemand sonst gestalten die Zukunft. Wir sollen so wenig wie möglich benutzen, um unsere Ziele zu erreichen. Also... noch mal die Botschaft meines erstes Deutschblogs und des EnergyDay 2008: Abschalten!
My favorite Radio Host :)
Retro radio scored a 10 by entrusting the morning show in the hands of this guy :) Here he comes in all his glory - Dimitar Pavlov:
He is the funniest, most original and most sincere host I have heard. There is nothing that can stop him from sharing what he thinks. When Retro Radio was running, I could not imagine more fun from 7 till 11am. He writes his scripts alone. He makes his program alone. He makes people laugh out loud while being stuck in a typical boring Sofia traffic jam. And by no further means than just being himself :)
Dimitar Pavlov is a truly cool person, with a happy heart, whose best quality is that he doesn't take himself too seriously. That is what makes me like him and listen to him daily. When he is given the freedom to talk what he wants, I seriously can't get enough of him.
Here is his Morning Program:
Retro Radio: Mon-Fri
07:00 Wake up song
Sometimes only one song is enough to get you out of bed. Expect the wake-up hit every morning exactly at 7 :)
07:10 Breakfast suggestion
Personal recipes for a healthy start of the day.
08:10 Currency
The only currency information of its kind :) It can freak out representatives of different financial institutions. Listen daily to the adventures of the american dollar, british puns, swiss frank and the euro.
08:30 Office Aerobics
A 'useful' set of exercises for early office arrivers.
09:10 Daily Horoscope
A huge mess of zodiac signs, mentioned with no sense.
09:20 Man of the day
Three nominations, only one award. Listen to the decision of the corrupted jury.10:10 Sport for a peaceful world
10:30 What is happening with your money today
You are better off not knowing about that :)
Specials on Friday:
Honest talk with Engineer Donev (scientific discoveries of Kamen Donev - a Bulgarian actor)
Top 10 (radio version of the TV show)
Useful advice to housewives and young mothers
None of these contains practical information, just extremely funny useless selection of words, which only has for a purpose to make you laugh. But isn't this what all of us want on our way to work?
:):):)
He is the funniest, most original and most sincere host I have heard. There is nothing that can stop him from sharing what he thinks. When Retro Radio was running, I could not imagine more fun from 7 till 11am. He writes his scripts alone. He makes his program alone. He makes people laugh out loud while being stuck in a typical boring Sofia traffic jam. And by no further means than just being himself :)
Dimitar Pavlov is a truly cool person, with a happy heart, whose best quality is that he doesn't take himself too seriously. That is what makes me like him and listen to him daily. When he is given the freedom to talk what he wants, I seriously can't get enough of him.
Here is his Morning Program:
Retro Radio: Mon-Fri
07:00 Wake up song
Sometimes only one song is enough to get you out of bed. Expect the wake-up hit every morning exactly at 7 :)
07:10 Breakfast suggestion
Personal recipes for a healthy start of the day.
08:10 Currency
The only currency information of its kind :) It can freak out representatives of different financial institutions. Listen daily to the adventures of the american dollar, british puns, swiss frank and the euro.
08:30 Office Aerobics
A 'useful' set of exercises for early office arrivers.
09:10 Daily Horoscope
A huge mess of zodiac signs, mentioned with no sense.
09:20 Man of the day
Three nominations, only one award. Listen to the decision of the corrupted jury.10:10 Sport for a peaceful world
10:30 What is happening with your money today
You are better off not knowing about that :)
Specials on Friday:
Honest talk with Engineer Donev (scientific discoveries of Kamen Donev - a Bulgarian actor)
Top 10 (radio version of the TV show)
Useful advice to housewives and young mothers
None of these contains practical information, just extremely funny useless selection of words, which only has for a purpose to make you laugh. But isn't this what all of us want on our way to work?
:):):)
Wallpapers for RetroRadio
For two years I was obsessed with Retro Radio. This was a very cool Bulgarian radio station, which was running from 2001 until 2007. I was so happy it existed, because it gave this fresh, intelligent, funny and smart touch to the radio media.
As every other institution, the success was there thanks to the people working in it. They worked hard to make the program as it was, the sound as it was and the effect as it was. It had a mix of everything and at the same time it was not a mess, but rather a nice everyday companion. Luckily, I got to know these people during my 3-month internship at Retro in 2005 :)
As I mentioned, I really liked the program schedule. Retro music was not just randomly aired with no meaning. Instead it was structured and served, reminding me of yummy dishes at different times of the day - sometimes it came as a lovely romantic dinner, sometimes like a rocky breakfast, sometimes bringing me a nostalgic feeling of something I liked to eat in the past, sometimes like a light Sunday brunch.
Every show on Retro had a really cool jingle attached to it. I loved listening to those jingles, so in a moment of some inspiration and idleness, I made the following two wallpapers.
Funky Time was a set of songs that made me have this 'cool' feeling about retro music. It was running every Saturday afternoon.
'I'm feeling good... on Friday... with Retro Radio' was a random jingle, not connected to any show. It was just reminding me it is Friday and I am again listening to good music.
At 12 am each night, Retro used to air an incredibly nice slow song - just instrumental. I never learned by whom it was. Not because I didn't want to. No. It was because I knew it will come every night at 12. That was exactly when I wanted to hear it. I didn't need it more than once per day.
But... es every beautiful thing, this one came to an end. And I will never know who authored this lovely romantic piece... :) Still, it is kinda nice!
As every other institution, the success was there thanks to the people working in it. They worked hard to make the program as it was, the sound as it was and the effect as it was. It had a mix of everything and at the same time it was not a mess, but rather a nice everyday companion. Luckily, I got to know these people during my 3-month internship at Retro in 2005 :)
As I mentioned, I really liked the program schedule. Retro music was not just randomly aired with no meaning. Instead it was structured and served, reminding me of yummy dishes at different times of the day - sometimes it came as a lovely romantic dinner, sometimes like a rocky breakfast, sometimes bringing me a nostalgic feeling of something I liked to eat in the past, sometimes like a light Sunday brunch.
Every show on Retro had a really cool jingle attached to it. I loved listening to those jingles, so in a moment of some inspiration and idleness, I made the following two wallpapers.
Funky Time was a set of songs that made me have this 'cool' feeling about retro music. It was running every Saturday afternoon.
'I'm feeling good... on Friday... with Retro Radio' was a random jingle, not connected to any show. It was just reminding me it is Friday and I am again listening to good music.
At 12 am each night, Retro used to air an incredibly nice slow song - just instrumental. I never learned by whom it was. Not because I didn't want to. No. It was because I knew it will come every night at 12. That was exactly when I wanted to hear it. I didn't need it more than once per day.
But... es every beautiful thing, this one came to an end. And I will never know who authored this lovely romantic piece... :) Still, it is kinda nice!
Monday, 20 October 2008
Business Trip Varna - Collages
When I was working in Freckles, we used to go for business trips around Bulgaria to give presentations in front of our dealers. The purpose was to make them differentiate our products from the rest on the market, make them prepared how to handle end customers and thus help them boost their sales.
It was very educational and great fun!
Here is what else we did during our Business Trip to Varna, a lovely city located on the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria...
One quick photo session with the sea behind, before we rushed for dinner :)
The child inside :)
... and the dreamer...
Varna... I want more business trips like this one :)
It was very educational and great fun!
Here is what else we did during our Business Trip to Varna, a lovely city located on the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria...
One quick photo session with the sea behind, before we rushed for dinner :)
The child inside :)
... and the dreamer...
Varna... I want more business trips like this one :)
Wallpapers for Alexander
Sometimes when I sit at work and get tired or lost, I make desktop wallpapers. I just take a picture I like and start playing with it. Soon after Alexander's first birthday, I made this wallpaper. It was a symbol of our closeness, stressing that we had more than just aunt-nephew relationship... a real friendship based on Fresh Curiosity!
Here are some summer wallpapers, when Alexander got his pool :)
I love these mosquito bites :)
My little nephew will always be an inspiration for me :)
Here are some summer wallpapers, when Alexander got his pool :)
I love these mosquito bites :)
My little nephew will always be an inspiration for me :)
Sunday, 19 October 2008
BG 17 - With Love for Alexander
My nephew Alexander was born on 17 Nov 2005, the first baby in the family after lo-o-ong time. His coming to our world was a big big event for me and I was feeling the proudest aunt. For weeks he was the only topic of my talks, the only thought in my mind and I felt I wanted to do something special for him.
At that time I was doing an internship at Retro Radio, Sofia. This was my favorite station with very cool people, who really made me feel comfortable there. I was working in the sound editing department and I was all day long mixing and preparing programs, jingles and ads for airing. Still, I had lots of time when I could do something on my own, so I decided to prepare a music collection for Alexander with 17 BG songs, which I liked at that time. Before each song I make an introduction in order to explain why I chose each of them.
It turned out a pretty nice product of mine! It made few people cry because at times my explanations were very sentimental :) This was my Christmas gift for Alexander :)
Here is the CD cover, where all the singers are written down:
Later I realized that this CD could serve one more purpose - if a person from another country was interested to listen to Bulgarian songs, I could just give them that CD. It contained songs of different times and styles. For this purpose, I recorded myself in English. I actually like the English version more.
Once in a few months I listen to it and it makes me feel very good while remembering the exact time my nephew was born :) It was one Thursday evening, I heard the big news right after I came out of my hip hop practice at Alfredo Style...
At that time I was doing an internship at Retro Radio, Sofia. This was my favorite station with very cool people, who really made me feel comfortable there. I was working in the sound editing department and I was all day long mixing and preparing programs, jingles and ads for airing. Still, I had lots of time when I could do something on my own, so I decided to prepare a music collection for Alexander with 17 BG songs, which I liked at that time. Before each song I make an introduction in order to explain why I chose each of them.
It turned out a pretty nice product of mine! It made few people cry because at times my explanations were very sentimental :) This was my Christmas gift for Alexander :)
Here is the CD cover, where all the singers are written down:
Later I realized that this CD could serve one more purpose - if a person from another country was interested to listen to Bulgarian songs, I could just give them that CD. It contained songs of different times and styles. For this purpose, I recorded myself in English. I actually like the English version more.
Once in a few months I listen to it and it makes me feel very good while remembering the exact time my nephew was born :) It was one Thursday evening, I heard the big news right after I came out of my hip hop practice at Alfredo Style...
Wednesday, 15 October 2008
The world is charming indeed
I spent three wonderful years (2002-2005) of my life at the International University Bremen. In 2006 it was renamed to Jacobs University, after the great Klaus Jacobs who made a very generous donation to the institution. Here is where this amazing place was:
When I say 70 nationalities, I really mean it. They were not equally represented, of course, but they were there: Germany, Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, USA, Nepal, Bangladesh, India, China, Taiwan, Turkey, Colombia, Peru, Botswana, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Jordan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Finland, United Kingdom, Czech Republic, Brazil, Bolivia, Uruguay, Ecuador, Trinidad and Tobago, Tanzania, Sudan, Latvia, Lithuania, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Mexico, Malawi, Phillipines, Mauritius, Australia, Serbia, Albania, Croatia, Italy, Spain, Jamaica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Costa Rica, South Africa, Ireland, Bahrain, Niger, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Russia, Hungary, Belarus.
I am writing them on purpose in a mixed order because that is how you encounter people during the day. I think it is very difficult to realize what is international experience until you are set into such a place.
And because I was really amazed that such daily interactions between people from all over the world were made possible so easily, I made a documentary about 8 of my friends at IUB, portraying their daily activities. This was my internship project during my last semester. The movie carries the proud title (courtesy of my mom) United Colors of IUB. It was aired twice on German TV (Offener Kanal Bremen) and has been used multiple times by the university for various purposes. The tagline of the movie is 'The world is charming indeed' :) It is in English and has German and Bulgarian subtitles. It is specially dedicated to my grandmother who was also excited, due to her eagerness to communicate with people from other countries, was trying to learn English at the age of 60.
Here are the participants in this project:
Here is the DVD cover for my movie:
... and this is the DVD label :)
And this is my internship reference in German :)
If you are interested to watch United Colors of IUB, let me know :)
When I say 70 nationalities, I really mean it. They were not equally represented, of course, but they were there: Germany, Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, USA, Nepal, Bangladesh, India, China, Taiwan, Turkey, Colombia, Peru, Botswana, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Jordan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Finland, United Kingdom, Czech Republic, Brazil, Bolivia, Uruguay, Ecuador, Trinidad and Tobago, Tanzania, Sudan, Latvia, Lithuania, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Mexico, Malawi, Phillipines, Mauritius, Australia, Serbia, Albania, Croatia, Italy, Spain, Jamaica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Costa Rica, South Africa, Ireland, Bahrain, Niger, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Russia, Hungary, Belarus.
I am writing them on purpose in a mixed order because that is how you encounter people during the day. I think it is very difficult to realize what is international experience until you are set into such a place.
And because I was really amazed that such daily interactions between people from all over the world were made possible so easily, I made a documentary about 8 of my friends at IUB, portraying their daily activities. This was my internship project during my last semester. The movie carries the proud title (courtesy of my mom) United Colors of IUB. It was aired twice on German TV (Offener Kanal Bremen) and has been used multiple times by the university for various purposes. The tagline of the movie is 'The world is charming indeed' :) It is in English and has German and Bulgarian subtitles. It is specially dedicated to my grandmother who was also excited, due to her eagerness to communicate with people from other countries, was trying to learn English at the age of 60.
Here are the participants in this project:
- Marcela Fialova > (Narrator)
- Farah Gammoh > (Personal Portrait)
- Artur Palacz > (Personal Portrait)
- Maria Eliana Barona > (Personal Portrait)
- Maria Joy Earle > (Personal Portrait)
- Ognyan Seizov > (Personal Portrait)
- Mayuri Nigam > (Personal Portrait)
- Connie, Mareike and Wiebke Bröker > (Host Family)
- Chien Fu (Jeff) Lin > (Personal Portrait, Assistant)
- Assia Rashkova > (Assistant)
- Markus Wachtmeister > (German Subtitles)
- Raju Dhital > (Assistant)
Here is the DVD cover for my movie:
... and this is the DVD label :)
And this is my internship reference in German :)
If you are interested to watch United Colors of IUB, let me know :)
AF Work Green
It has always been a real pleasure for me to work on the marketing of the AF cleaning products. Why? Not only because I love playing with Photoshop. The more important reason is that I believe they are good products. And I also think Freckles has a very good strategy for their sales. This was proved by our award 'Customer of the year 2007), because of the huge increase of our orders to UK.
How they sell so well in Bulgaria? Certainly not because of lowest market price. No. They sell because of their best quality-price ratio. More about their features you can find here.
Nowadays companies are faced with the challenge how to work efficiently while not harming the environment. Some do not look for solutions, but AF International is not one of them.
Inspired by the English brochure of AF - Work Green - I made a Bulgarian equivalent, but I changed the text inside by selecting the things that would be interesting for us, Bulgarians. I substituted the detailed explanations with short, clear sentences, which would not load people's mind, but rather make them intrigued.
Thus the brochure ended up 4 pages instead of 6. This made it easier to print as well.
Here are pages 4 and 1. The title of the brochure is 'Work Green' and the subtitle is 'You also depend on the environment'. I selected the word 'YOU' because I think it makes people more engaged. When they are addressed personally, they can feel their choice makes a difference. With this brochure we are trying to send the message that when you buy and use AF products, you are one step closer to saving the environment.
I selected to put a child on the first page, because children are the future. People are not supposed to be feeling good just now and neglecting the future. A child's face (particularly the close-up) is supposed to remind them that 'Hey, it is your kid that might suffer the consequences of your actions'.
Page 4 educates in a few sentences why people should recycle - a) because our resources are not endless and b) in this way they pollute less. Under this there is a table with guidelines how to recycle AF products.
Pages 2 gives a short introduction about AF International, after which the goal of the brochure is stated: To show AF's engagement for environment protection. Further there is a text titled 'Does warmer mean nicer?', which quickly explains the terms Global warming and Greenhouse effect. On the right I have listed some of the consequences under the title: 'What if we don't take measures?'
Page 3 clearly shows how AF work green, without compromising its products' quality and safety:
In order to have a complete set of the Work Green marketing materials, I also made an INFORMATIONAL poster, where all the brochure text is nicely summarized.
So if you are using AF to clean your keyboard or laptop screen, you are working green as well :)
How they sell so well in Bulgaria? Certainly not because of lowest market price. No. They sell because of their best quality-price ratio. More about their features you can find here.
Nowadays companies are faced with the challenge how to work efficiently while not harming the environment. Some do not look for solutions, but AF International is not one of them.
Inspired by the English brochure of AF - Work Green - I made a Bulgarian equivalent, but I changed the text inside by selecting the things that would be interesting for us, Bulgarians. I substituted the detailed explanations with short, clear sentences, which would not load people's mind, but rather make them intrigued.
Thus the brochure ended up 4 pages instead of 6. This made it easier to print as well.
Here are pages 4 and 1. The title of the brochure is 'Work Green' and the subtitle is 'You also depend on the environment'. I selected the word 'YOU' because I think it makes people more engaged. When they are addressed personally, they can feel their choice makes a difference. With this brochure we are trying to send the message that when you buy and use AF products, you are one step closer to saving the environment.
I selected to put a child on the first page, because children are the future. People are not supposed to be feeling good just now and neglecting the future. A child's face (particularly the close-up) is supposed to remind them that 'Hey, it is your kid that might suffer the consequences of your actions'.
Page 4 educates in a few sentences why people should recycle - a) because our resources are not endless and b) in this way they pollute less. Under this there is a table with guidelines how to recycle AF products.
Pages 2 gives a short introduction about AF International, after which the goal of the brochure is stated: To show AF's engagement for environment protection. Further there is a text titled 'Does warmer mean nicer?', which quickly explains the terms Global warming and Greenhouse effect. On the right I have listed some of the consequences under the title: 'What if we don't take measures?'
Page 3 clearly shows how AF work green, without compromising its products' quality and safety:
- Usage of recycled materials
- Introduction of more pump bottles instead of aerosols, which have a propellent gas (which contains Greenhouse gases)
- Refill sales, so that the plastic covers are re-used multiple times
- Transport by water, which reduces the harmful emissions 6-7 times
In order to have a complete set of the Work Green marketing materials, I also made an INFORMATIONAL poster, where all the brochure text is nicely summarized.
So if you are using AF to clean your keyboard or laptop screen, you are working green as well :)
New Release Template for Freckles
Every month the product portfolio of Freckles was increasing in almost all catgories. It was incredibly important to let the customers know about the new products they can order. Again this was a process with random character and with no strategy. Therefore, I sat down and made a New Release template, which was as flexible as the promotion template.
The whole idea behind the template was the beginning of new sales. Therefore, I tried to relate it to the new day. We feel the new day mostly when we get up in the morning, eat breakfast and read the headlines of the newspaper. I wanted the New Release of Freckles to bring that mood.
As you may notice, this new release has other breakfast accessories. This time there were too many products to include pictures of all of them, so I decided a simple list will look more orderly. The new release is about products for remanufacturers of toner cartridges: drums, wiper blades, etc.
I was also responsible for posting the new releaes on the web site, so this is a small web banner, which the product category and the brand of the product(s), which was newly added to it. This time the morning sign is the orange juice :)
Here comes one more web banner in English. This time about inks. I like the combination of toaster and newspaper in this one.
Here I have to admit my morning element is missing, but this is only on the web banner. The real new release that was sent by email had it :) Anyway, once I thought for a minute how to represent new DVDs coming to the product portfolio, I immediately made an association with a frisbee game, so I tried to visualize it :)
This is my morning freshness new release template :) Very often design is dictated by the world around and the usual order of things.
The whole idea behind the template was the beginning of new sales. Therefore, I tried to relate it to the new day. We feel the new day mostly when we get up in the morning, eat breakfast and read the headlines of the newspaper. I wanted the New Release of Freckles to bring that mood.
- So my title for it was 'Good morning' and subtitle was: 'Another good morning with new products from Freckles'.
- On the side there was always some typical breakfast 'accessories' and the date.
- Under the title there were all the categories in exactly the same order as in the promotion template and the web site. However, this time it was only titles with no pictures. I decided this would make the template too crowded.
- The color I chose after many tried was blue. These two shades of blue suited very well each other and the darker rectangle in the middle is the one supposed to be filled with content.
- At the bottom there is the same footer as on promotion template.
As you may notice, this new release has other breakfast accessories. This time there were too many products to include pictures of all of them, so I decided a simple list will look more orderly. The new release is about products for remanufacturers of toner cartridges: drums, wiper blades, etc.
I was also responsible for posting the new releaes on the web site, so this is a small web banner, which the product category and the brand of the product(s), which was newly added to it. This time the morning sign is the orange juice :)
Here comes one more web banner in English. This time about inks. I like the combination of toaster and newspaper in this one.
Here I have to admit my morning element is missing, but this is only on the web banner. The real new release that was sent by email had it :) Anyway, once I thought for a minute how to represent new DVDs coming to the product portfolio, I immediately made an association with a frisbee game, so I tried to visualize it :)
This is my morning freshness new release template :) Very often design is dictated by the world around and the usual order of things.
Tuesday, 14 October 2008
Promotion Template for Freckles
A good sales company always maintains a regular relationship with the customers. This includes personal call, visits, trainings about the different product types, etc. The purpose of this strong relationship is to understand customers' needs and at the same time try to help the customer sell well what he bought from you.
Freckles always tries to be a reliable and understanding partner. Its constant task is to find ways to improve customers' business. A common way to stimulate customers is through promotions. As any other company, Freckles was sending numerous promotions to its dealers. However, it was a big pain to make a visual of each promotion separately. They were all different colors and shapes and dealers were getting confused finding what the promotional conditions are. When I came to the company, we decided to make them more regular (they were sent out in the first week of each month) as well as more structured (all having the same template, just a different content).
So here are some promotions, which were sent to dealers. The template was my design. It has the following characteristics:
This was a special kind of continuous promotion - reduction in price for one particular ribbon for dot-matrix printers.
In the beginning the middle part of the promotions was allowed to change color. However, in order to achieve a good stable design, I decided to update the template to this:
This is a turnover promotion. If the dealer reaches a certain level, he gets a present. All the products are included in this promotion.
This is my Freckles Promotion Evolution until now :)
Freckles always tries to be a reliable and understanding partner. Its constant task is to find ways to improve customers' business. A common way to stimulate customers is through promotions. As any other company, Freckles was sending numerous promotions to its dealers. However, it was a big pain to make a visual of each promotion separately. They were all different colors and shapes and dealers were getting confused finding what the promotional conditions are. When I came to the company, we decided to make them more regular (they were sent out in the first week of each month) as well as more structured (all having the same template, just a different content).
So here are some promotions, which were sent to dealers. The template was my design. It has the following characteristics:
- On them dealers can see all the product categories that Freckles has. There is a single product of each and the category name below it.
- There is a little red arrow and red rectangle, which point at the category, which is in promotion.
- Under it there is a title 'PROMOTION' and a subtitle, which tells what the promotion is about in very few words.
- Then there is the big orange space, which is filled in with the promotional text and pictures. It can contain one or many products.
- Under the orange space there are some small notes, which refer to the current promotion. Like: 'Prices do not include VAT', or 'One spindle of CDs contains 25 pieces'.
- At the very end there is a footer with Freckles' details. On the right there is a sketch of a printer, which I find particularly stylish. It represents the area Freckles is professional at and how the business started. My first idea for motto was '... and your printer makes you smile again!', which was very well accepted by the company and was put every time with the logo and all the details.
- The template has always the same width (estimated to fit exactly on the web site) and the length can be extended as needed.
This was a special kind of continuous promotion - reduction in price for one particular ribbon for dot-matrix printers.
In the beginning the middle part of the promotions was allowed to change color. However, in order to achieve a good stable design, I decided to update the template to this:
- The orange triangle is in the middle, but looks better (because of the shadow it drops) and always keeps the same color.
- The promotion title is more subtle and yet nice.
- Date is inserted right next to the title.
This is a turnover promotion. If the dealer reaches a certain level, he gets a present. All the products are included in this promotion.
This is my Freckles Promotion Evolution until now :)
Monday, 13 October 2008
Why buy compatible?
This article was written by a colleague of mine for the website of Freckles. My job was to translate it in English. I put it here because it makes good sense to me. Don't forget to think twice while shopping :)
So… you are already a proud owner of a new printer.
Nowadays the prices of the printing devices are so low compared to the one of computers that often we easily decide to buy both. But after we pay money for some printer consumables, this decision acquires a bitter taste.
When you a buy a printer you are obediently forced to buy the consumable for it. Thus, without noticing, you have taken two decisions at the same time.
Do you know that the value of the original consumable will be around 70% of all future expenses connected to your printing! The paper will be around 20%. This means that the price of the printer in the shop makes up one tenth of your future expenses. Put one more zero behind the price and then you will know how much you are going to spend in reality.
The price of the consumable defines your printing expenses.
“But this is normal” some of you will say. And indeed, this ratio is the same regardless of which printer model you buy. The problem is that the price of the printer was made as low as possible because of the competition on the market for printing devices, while the price of the consumable was made painfully high because that’s where the market is to a big extent monopolistic. When you choose a printer of a certain brand, its manufacturer puts an obligation on you to buy his consumables as well. This is the definition of a monopolistic market and it is quite natural for the prices to be high.
But markets always find solutions. This artificially maintained disbalance has caused the emergence of an alternative for the consumer – the compatible consumables. They are manufactured by companies which are specialists in the field. These companies are thriving in a very competitive environment and thus it is natural for the prices of their products to be lower. These are the actual market prices and not the artificially pumped monopolistic prices.
Doesn’t low price mean low quality, which will produce bad printout and could also damage the printer? Of course, one of the ways to achieve low prices is to use bad (cheap) raw materials or to invest less in technology. But we have already explained that low price is a result of high competition and should not always be translated into bad quality. Then how can a customer choose the right compatible consumable? The same way as with all other products: check all the available information, become interested about the reputation of the product, ask for advice from you tradesman. One thing is clear, the good compatible consumable will give you good quality, which you will like and which will save a huge part of your printing expenses. It is nice indeed to have a choice between good alternatives. Have a nice shopping!
Green Initiative of Freckles
Yet another poster, belonging to my portfolio.
As it turns out, the 'green topic' is rather boring to some people. It is often considered to be a dirty marketing trick in order to win the customers.
However, in Freckles we are sure that we are doing something very green every day - we collect empty cartridges, which are otherwise carelessly thrown in the bin, from where they end up bunked in nature. We pay cash to the people that bring them to us. We refill them and we sell them again. The cycle repeats on average 5-7 times for each cartridge, depending on its condition, of course. See how we motivate people to recycle here.
Needless to say, there is also a great money advantage connected to the empties collection. The new remanufactured cartridge has a significantly lower price and practically the same quality as the original, so it sells VERY well. But still, with the empties collection process we keep the environment at least a bit cleaner than it would be without it, right?
That is why this green poster is pasted in our reception room, marking the beginning of our Green Initiative.
AF Product Poster
Freckles Ltd. (www.freckles.bg) is surprisingly not a company that sells cosmetics. Well... in a way it does, but to fix problems in your office. It has a big dealer network around Bulgaria and a few customers in Macedonia and Romania.
If you need specially coated paper for your inkjet printer, or storage media to keep your data safe and sound, or just an advice about how to choose the right cartridge for your machine, the Freckles team can be of great help.
Freckles also sells professional office cleaning supplies and is exclusive distributor for Bulgaria and Romania of the UK brand AF International.
This poster illustrates the most selling products of the AF range around the world - solutions and cloths to clean plastic, screens and CD/DVD players. It has circulated a big number of presentations and is given to dealers to paste on the walls of their shops, right where they arrange the products.
The poster belongs to my wide portfolio of graphic design projects. Many of them were meant for marketing purposes and served very well their purpose. And this makes me REALLY happy :)
AF - The UK brand for office cleaning supplies that really work smart!
In one of my previous jobs I was very much involved with the marketing strategy of the UK brand AF. This is a full range of cleaning products, which satisfy every office need. It was a real challenge to sell them on a highly price-oriented market as the Bulgarian one, where it is a big effort to convince the customer why he should pay a little more then he wants. Therefore, presenting the product was of great importance.
In November 2007, we made a presentation in front of a big audience at BAIT Expo (an exhibition organized by the Bulgarian Association of Information Technologies). Below is one summary of AF's main advantages, which were clearly explained to the audience. The presentation was also covered by the print media.
With the AF products you can clean different surfaces, screens, CD&DVD devices as well as fine spots like lenses. Besides their ability to kill almost 100% of harmful bacteria, the AF products have many other positive qualities, the most important of which is their non-flammability. Mr. Stefanov demonstrated how easily a flammable product can bring about undesired incidents at work. Besides non-flammability, the AF products are characterized by nice lemon smell and strong antistatic effect, which keeps future dust away. Still the biggest advantage of the wide product range AF is the fact that they just clean well.
It is definitely a good idea to point out some other qualities, like the extensive research and development, which every product undergoes before it is released on the market. In this way the company managed to tackle the huge challenge of integrating a real perfume smell into everyday cleaning wipes. In addition, these products are extremely easy and safe to use as well as quite harmless to the environment. You should not be worried about rashes, allergies or headaches because the company has done every possible thing in order to avoid these undesired side effects. The good news is that all the information, which you need to know for each product is described in a Material and Safety Data Sheet, which is available for everyone on the manufacturer’s web site www.af-net.com. Soon you will be able to see the MSDS translations in Bulgarian on www.freckles.bg.
Besides a detailed products demonstration, the presentation also contained some extremely useful pieces of advice about how to sell these products successfully. “Always try to understand the problem of the customer and then sell them the solution. In this way you win the customer for longer time.” – advised his dealers Mr. Stefanov.
At the very end the main motto of the presentation was reminded again: “Work smart… Work clean… with AF”.
In November 2007, we made a presentation in front of a big audience at BAIT Expo (an exhibition organized by the Bulgarian Association of Information Technologies). Below is one summary of AF's main advantages, which were clearly explained to the audience. The presentation was also covered by the print media.
In the beginning of November Freckles Ltd. made its present and prospects partners happy with a presentation of cleaning supplies AF, which took place at the exhibition BAIT Expo. Besides 45-minute introduction to the products, the audience received free samples and a stylish cup with AF logo.
The manufacturing company of the mentioned products is AF International and it belongs to HK Wentworth Group, founded in 1957 in UK. Its first business is technical cleaning supplies, from where later on emerges the idea about office cleaning supplies. The products have Certificate for quality 9001 and are being sold very well in more and more parts of the world. In Germany, for example, the sales amount to 4 000 000 EUR per year and according to latest research, the potential of the market is 40 000 000 EUR per year.
With the AF products you can clean different surfaces, screens, CD&DVD devices as well as fine spots like lenses. Besides their ability to kill almost 100% of harmful bacteria, the AF products have many other positive qualities, the most important of which is their non-flammability. Mr. Stefanov demonstrated how easily a flammable product can bring about undesired incidents at work. Besides non-flammability, the AF products are characterized by nice lemon smell and strong antistatic effect, which keeps future dust away. Still the biggest advantage of the wide product range AF is the fact that they just clean well.
It is definitely a good idea to point out some other qualities, like the extensive research and development, which every product undergoes before it is released on the market. In this way the company managed to tackle the huge challenge of integrating a real perfume smell into everyday cleaning wipes. In addition, these products are extremely easy and safe to use as well as quite harmless to the environment. You should not be worried about rashes, allergies or headaches because the company has done every possible thing in order to avoid these undesired side effects. The good news is that all the information, which you need to know for each product is described in a Material and Safety Data Sheet, which is available for everyone on the manufacturer’s web site www.af-net.com. Soon you will be able to see the MSDS translations in Bulgarian on www.freckles.bg.
Besides a detailed products demonstration, the presentation also contained some extremely useful pieces of advice about how to sell these products successfully. “Always try to understand the problem of the customer and then sell them the solution. In this way you win the customer for longer time.” – advised his dealers Mr. Stefanov.
At the very end the main motto of the presentation was reminded again: “Work smart… Work clean… with AF”.
What is the best application for laser printers?
There is a reason why most offices use laser printers for printing long text documents. Even though the price of a laser printer is higher than the price of an inkjet printer, the consumables for laser printers (toner) are on average cheaper than those for inkjet printers (inks).
Besides the low cost of consumables, the laser printers are also preferred because of their good ability to handle printing tasks coming from different computers on the network. Thus a small office can use a single printer for all printing needs.
As personal printers, laser printers are becoming more and more affordable. With further advance in technology their price is predicted to continue to drop.
Besides the low cost of consumables, the laser printers are also preferred because of their good ability to handle printing tasks coming from different computers on the network. Thus a small office can use a single printer for all printing needs.
As personal printers, laser printers are becoming more and more affordable. With further advance in technology their price is predicted to continue to drop.
Why is printout by laser printers so durable?
Besides the high speed, the other main advantage of laser printers is the durability of printout. This is a consequence of the way the toner is attached to the paper. Instead of just being absorbed in the paper as in inkjet printers, the toner is actually fusing with the surface of the paper. This makes it possible for the toner to be printed not only on paper but also on other printing media. The fusion rolls will always make sure that the toner will not be smudged or harmed in any way once the paper has come out of the printer. In addition, the fusion rolls give even more flexibility for the output by allowing the heat and pressure applied by them to be controlled. Thus the user can decide how his final output will look like, which can include matte and gloss.
... what about color laser printing?
How do they manage to produce a quality printout so fast?
Many of you probably know that in the beginning of laser printing technology there were only black printouts. This is known as monochrome printing. But why not have color as well since a successful technology already exists? The color printout is produced the same way as the black one (refer to: What does laser have to do with printing?), however the whole process repeats for every color – cyan, yellow, magenta and black. Different combinations of these 4 basic colors can generate the full color spectrum.
The color laser printer works in either of two ways. Each color can be applied on the drum and consequently on the paper one at a time OR all colors are first applied on a plate and then pasted on the paper at the same time. There are also more advanced and thus more expensive printers, which have a full printer unit (including laser, drum and toner system), for each color. The paper goes through a small journey inside the printer and collects all the exact proportion of each color on the way.
Usually the resolution of color laser printers is 600 or 1200 dpi. Printers with lower resolution generally do not give a nice continuous color tone on the printout.
Many of you probably know that in the beginning of laser printing technology there were only black printouts. This is known as monochrome printing. But why not have color as well since a successful technology already exists? The color printout is produced the same way as the black one (refer to: What does laser have to do with printing?), however the whole process repeats for every color – cyan, yellow, magenta and black. Different combinations of these 4 basic colors can generate the full color spectrum.
The color laser printer works in either of two ways. Each color can be applied on the drum and consequently on the paper one at a time OR all colors are first applied on a plate and then pasted on the paper at the same time. There are also more advanced and thus more expensive printers, which have a full printer unit (including laser, drum and toner system), for each color. The paper goes through a small journey inside the printer and collects all the exact proportion of each color on the way.
Usually the resolution of color laser printers is 600 or 1200 dpi. Printers with lower resolution generally do not give a nice continuous color tone on the printout.
What does laser have to do with printing?
The arrival of the laser printers made many people wonder how exactly laser can be used inside a printer. Here you will get to know briefly this fairly recent printing method.
How is it possible for a laser to produce character or graphics on paper? The essence of the answer is hidden within one basic scientific principle: static electricity. We are all familiar with the situation of removing a pullover and having our hairs up in the air after that. This happens because electrical charge is built up on your hair and on the clothes you are wearing – one is positive and the other negative. This causes them to attract.
How is the principle of static electricity used inside a printer?
The drum – one of the major components in laser printers – receives a positive charge by a special wire (corona wire), which has an electrical current running through it. When the paper is fed into the printer, the drum starts rotating. Then laser plays its role – it "draws" on the drum all characters, which need to be printed. All the points at which the precise laser beam is directed become negatively charged. The rest of the drum remains positively charged.
Once the laser has done its job, the printer brings into use the positively charged toner. This is very fine black powder. The toner immediately sticks to the negatively charged areas of the drum. During this time the paper is rolling on a belt under the drum. The drum is ready to paste the fixed toner pattern on the paper, but before it does that the paper receives a negative charge by the same wire, which charged the drum positive. The negative charge of the paper is stronger than the negative charge that is holding the positively charged toner on the drum. Therefore the paper attracts the toner. Right after this the paper is discharged by another wire, called detac corona wire so that it does not get attracted to the positive drum. At the same time the drum goes through another procedure: a discharge lamp goes through its entire surface and erases the electrical image. Then the drum’s surface again receives a positive charge from the corona wire, making it ready for the next page waiting to be printed.
The drum and the paper move at the same speed so the image that was on the drum is pasted in exactly the same way on the paper. One more operation is needed before you can take your ready printout – the toner needs to become tightly fixed to the paper fibers. For this purpose the paper is rolled quickly between two heated rollers, called fusers. They melt the toner and thus it fuses with the paper. Then the paper arrives hot at the output tray, from where you can take it.
Did you like this article? Continue to the further reading:
Curious fact: The laser does not move on its own. In fact, it is always directed in the same way, but it has a moveable mirror in front, which bounces the beam. Then the beam goes through a series of lenses and gets projected on the drum’s surface.
Curious fact: The laser accounts for the high speed and the high precision of laser printers. The reason lies in the fact that a laser beam can move much faster than any inkjet cartridge. The high precision comes from the fact that the laser always has the same shape and diameter, which cannot be controlled to such a high extent in an ink droplet.
How is it possible for a laser to produce character or graphics on paper? The essence of the answer is hidden within one basic scientific principle: static electricity. We are all familiar with the situation of removing a pullover and having our hairs up in the air after that. This happens because electrical charge is built up on your hair and on the clothes you are wearing – one is positive and the other negative. This causes them to attract.
How is the principle of static electricity used inside a printer?
The drum – one of the major components in laser printers – receives a positive charge by a special wire (corona wire), which has an electrical current running through it. When the paper is fed into the printer, the drum starts rotating. Then laser plays its role – it "draws" on the drum all characters, which need to be printed. All the points at which the precise laser beam is directed become negatively charged. The rest of the drum remains positively charged.
Once the laser has done its job, the printer brings into use the positively charged toner. This is very fine black powder. The toner immediately sticks to the negatively charged areas of the drum. During this time the paper is rolling on a belt under the drum. The drum is ready to paste the fixed toner pattern on the paper, but before it does that the paper receives a negative charge by the same wire, which charged the drum positive. The negative charge of the paper is stronger than the negative charge that is holding the positively charged toner on the drum. Therefore the paper attracts the toner. Right after this the paper is discharged by another wire, called detac corona wire so that it does not get attracted to the positive drum. At the same time the drum goes through another procedure: a discharge lamp goes through its entire surface and erases the electrical image. Then the drum’s surface again receives a positive charge from the corona wire, making it ready for the next page waiting to be printed.
The drum and the paper move at the same speed so the image that was on the drum is pasted in exactly the same way on the paper. One more operation is needed before you can take your ready printout – the toner needs to become tightly fixed to the paper fibers. For this purpose the paper is rolled quickly between two heated rollers, called fusers. They melt the toner and thus it fuses with the paper. Then the paper arrives hot at the output tray, from where you can take it.
Did you like this article? Continue to the further reading:
Curious fact: The laser does not move on its own. In fact, it is always directed in the same way, but it has a moveable mirror in front, which bounces the beam. Then the beam goes through a series of lenses and gets projected on the drum’s surface.
Curious fact: The laser accounts for the high speed and the high precision of laser printers. The reason lies in the fact that a laser beam can move much faster than any inkjet cartridge. The high precision comes from the fact that the laser always has the same shape and diameter, which cannot be controlled to such a high extent in an ink droplet.
The importance of paper
This article is dedicated to one of the most needed commodities in everyday life – paper. Understanding how it is made and its characteristics is an important step to more successful printing.
Some history: The term paper comes from papyrus. This is the Greek name for the ancient material on which the Egyptian used to write as early as 3000 BC. Back then it was made from papyrus plants.
Today paper is mostly made by combining natural vegetable fibers. These fibers are composed of cellulose and are further held together by hydrogen bonding. In order to achieve certain physical properties, paper manufacturers incorporate synthetic fibers as well. These fibers are contained in different kinds of trees.
When you want to print a good image on your inkjet printer, the paper needs to have certain characteristics. You may have noticed that standard copier paper gives you an image that is less bright and vivid than an image on inkjet paper. The two main factors that will have significance for your image quality are brightness and absorption.
A smooth paper will have a brighter image than a rough one, because the light is reflected back in the same direction. Most magazines use smooth paper for better quality images. Light projected on rough surface is reflected in several directions. Thus the pictures in newspapers, which are usually printed on more rough paper, look less bright and less clear.
Absorption also plays an important role in image quality. Once the ink strikes the paper, it is supposed to stay on it shaped as a nice dot. It should not be too much absorbed in the paper since this will cause the dot to spread sideways on the paper. This in turn will make the picture look blurry, especially at the edge of every object or character.
It is important whenever you print to adjust the settings in the printer to suit the paper, so that the right amount of ink is sprayed. Usually papers are characterized by their weight and resolution achieved. They can also be of two types – glossy (smooth) or matte (very rough). If you want to print only text, you can usually take a standard general purpose office paper (80 – 100 g/m?) for both inkjet and laser printer. For graphics, however, you should use other coated papers. They have a waxy film, which keeps the ink on the surface and thus allows printers to produce an image at a significantly bigger resolution. A printer that can achieve 720x720 dpi on normal paper can reach 1440x720 dpi when using coated paper.
Thanks to paper properties, inkjet papers can give you a magnificent image with vivid live colors and photographic quality.
Some history: The term paper comes from papyrus. This is the Greek name for the ancient material on which the Egyptian used to write as early as 3000 BC. Back then it was made from papyrus plants.
Today paper is mostly made by combining natural vegetable fibers. These fibers are composed of cellulose and are further held together by hydrogen bonding. In order to achieve certain physical properties, paper manufacturers incorporate synthetic fibers as well. These fibers are contained in different kinds of trees.
When you want to print a good image on your inkjet printer, the paper needs to have certain characteristics. You may have noticed that standard copier paper gives you an image that is less bright and vivid than an image on inkjet paper. The two main factors that will have significance for your image quality are brightness and absorption.
A smooth paper will have a brighter image than a rough one, because the light is reflected back in the same direction. Most magazines use smooth paper for better quality images. Light projected on rough surface is reflected in several directions. Thus the pictures in newspapers, which are usually printed on more rough paper, look less bright and less clear.
Absorption also plays an important role in image quality. Once the ink strikes the paper, it is supposed to stay on it shaped as a nice dot. It should not be too much absorbed in the paper since this will cause the dot to spread sideways on the paper. This in turn will make the picture look blurry, especially at the edge of every object or character.
It is important whenever you print to adjust the settings in the printer to suit the paper, so that the right amount of ink is sprayed. Usually papers are characterized by their weight and resolution achieved. They can also be of two types – glossy (smooth) or matte (very rough). If you want to print only text, you can usually take a standard general purpose office paper (80 – 100 g/m?) for both inkjet and laser printer. For graphics, however, you should use other coated papers. They have a waxy film, which keeps the ink on the surface and thus allows printers to produce an image at a significantly bigger resolution. A printer that can achieve 720x720 dpi on normal paper can reach 1440x720 dpi when using coated paper.
Thanks to paper properties, inkjet papers can give you a magnificent image with vivid live colors and photographic quality.
How similar is a Dot Matrix Printer to a Typewriter?
A dot matrix printer or impact matrix printer is a type of computer printer, which operates with a print head that runs back and forth on the page, striking an ink-soaked cloth ribbon against the paper. The print head has a set of tiny steel pins - usually between 9 and 24 and when it is running the printer generally prints one line of text at a time. When the pins strike on the fabric or carbon ribbon they create dots on the paper. Characters are composed of patterns of these dots by moving the print head laterally across the page and striking at a very close distance from the previous strike. The pins are activated by solenoids (small wire coils). These solenoids are energized at a particular time, depending on what character should be printed. Timing of the signals sent to the solenoids is programmed into the printer for each character. Multiple passes of the print head may be used to increase the effective number of pins and improve print quality.
The strikes on ink-soaked cloth make these machines resemble a typewriter. However, unlike a typewriter, letters are drawn out of a dot matrix, and this way, varied fonts and arbitrary graphics can be produced. Facing the ribbon and the paper is a small guide plate pierced with holes to serve as guides for the pins.
Dot matrix printers can be very durable, but several problems can make it wear out. Ink often enters the guide plate of the print head, causing grit to adhere to it. This grit slowly causes the channels in the guide plate to wear from circles into ovals or other shapeless slots, providing less and less accurate guidance to the printing wires. Eventually the printing becomes too unclear to read. Other problematic issues about these types of printers are their stepper modes of use, drivers and interconnect cables.
It is important to know that nearly all printers, including inkjet and laser printer produce dot matrices. Thus, the name dot matrix printer is not used correctly to describe only this type of printer. Still, in everyday language, other types of printers are almost never called dot matrix printer in order to avoid confusion with dot matrix impact printers.
The strikes on ink-soaked cloth make these machines resemble a typewriter. However, unlike a typewriter, letters are drawn out of a dot matrix, and this way, varied fonts and arbitrary graphics can be produced. Facing the ribbon and the paper is a small guide plate pierced with holes to serve as guides for the pins.
Dot matrix printers can be very durable, but several problems can make it wear out. Ink often enters the guide plate of the print head, causing grit to adhere to it. This grit slowly causes the channels in the guide plate to wear from circles into ovals or other shapeless slots, providing less and less accurate guidance to the printing wires. Eventually the printing becomes too unclear to read. Other problematic issues about these types of printers are their stepper modes of use, drivers and interconnect cables.
It is important to know that nearly all printers, including inkjet and laser printer produce dot matrices. Thus, the name dot matrix printer is not used correctly to describe only this type of printer. Still, in everyday language, other types of printers are almost never called dot matrix printer in order to avoid confusion with dot matrix impact printers.
What technologies are hidden behind the name "inkjet"?
Depending on the type, inkjet printers can form ink droplets in a different way. Nowadays printer manufacturers use two main technologies. One uses heat; the other – vibration. A third technology uses continuous flow of ink and will be discussed briefly.
Thermal bubble, also known as bubble jet, is a technology used in printers made by HP (Hewlett Packard), Canon and Lexmark. It was discovered in 1977 by a Canon engineer. The name bubble jet comes from the fact that in order to push ink through the nozzles, small resistors create heat, which vaporizes and creates a bubble. While the bubble is expanding, some parts of the ink are pushed by it through the nozzle on the paper. Once the bubble pops, a vacuum is created which pulls more ink from the cartridge into the print head.
The bubble jet print head usually has 64 or 128 nozzles, which can send a droplet at the same time. The inks are dye-based or water-soluble pigment. The resolution varies between 300 and 600 dpi, sometimes up to 1200. One drawback of this technology is that the ink should be heat-resistant. The next drawback follows from the same heating techniques – the ink needs to cool down, which requires additional time. Monochrome text is printed at the speed of 4-8 pages per minute. Color and graphics – 2-4ppm. Still one advantage remains, the bubble jet print head is usually produced at less cost than other inkjet technologies.
The Epson printers function thanks to a patented technology with piezo crystals. This utilizes the fact that piezo crystals change their properties if a current is applied on them. A piezo crystal is sitting behind each nozzle. The crystal vibrates every time when it receives a small electric charge. If it vibrates inwards, it send ink through the nozzle. If it vibrates outwards, more ink is pulled from the reservoir into the printhead. The good sides of this technology is that it allows for more control on the shape and size of the droplet. The number of nozzles is 128 for black and 64 for each of the three colors CMY. The basic resolution is 720 dpi, but it can be improved to 1440dpi. In addition, there is no heating and cooling of the ink, so time is saved. The inks used for this printing technology are very quick-drying. They can be of bigger variety than the ones used in thermal inkjet technology. Once they penetrate the paper, they tend to hold their shape and not spread, which creates a very good image on different coated papers.
In 1951 Siemens introduced another printing technology – continuous inkjet. It involves a continuous stream of ink droplets. This technology has the advantage that the nozzles do not clog because the jet is always in use. However the fluid handling system is usually very complicated.
Thermal bubble, also known as bubble jet, is a technology used in printers made by HP (Hewlett Packard), Canon and Lexmark. It was discovered in 1977 by a Canon engineer. The name bubble jet comes from the fact that in order to push ink through the nozzles, small resistors create heat, which vaporizes and creates a bubble. While the bubble is expanding, some parts of the ink are pushed by it through the nozzle on the paper. Once the bubble pops, a vacuum is created which pulls more ink from the cartridge into the print head.
The bubble jet print head usually has 64 or 128 nozzles, which can send a droplet at the same time. The inks are dye-based or water-soluble pigment. The resolution varies between 300 and 600 dpi, sometimes up to 1200. One drawback of this technology is that the ink should be heat-resistant. The next drawback follows from the same heating techniques – the ink needs to cool down, which requires additional time. Monochrome text is printed at the speed of 4-8 pages per minute. Color and graphics – 2-4ppm. Still one advantage remains, the bubble jet print head is usually produced at less cost than other inkjet technologies.
The Epson printers function thanks to a patented technology with piezo crystals. This utilizes the fact that piezo crystals change their properties if a current is applied on them. A piezo crystal is sitting behind each nozzle. The crystal vibrates every time when it receives a small electric charge. If it vibrates inwards, it send ink through the nozzle. If it vibrates outwards, more ink is pulled from the reservoir into the printhead. The good sides of this technology is that it allows for more control on the shape and size of the droplet. The number of nozzles is 128 for black and 64 for each of the three colors CMY. The basic resolution is 720 dpi, but it can be improved to 1440dpi. In addition, there is no heating and cooling of the ink, so time is saved. The inks used for this printing technology are very quick-drying. They can be of bigger variety than the ones used in thermal inkjet technology. Once they penetrate the paper, they tend to hold their shape and not spread, which creates a very good image on different coated papers.
In 1951 Siemens introduced another printing technology – continuous inkjet. It involves a continuous stream of ink droplets. This technology has the advantage that the nozzles do not clog because the jet is always in use. However the fluid handling system is usually very complicated.
What kind of printing technologies have been invented until today?
Many people would give the following answer to this question: dot-matrix, inkjet and laser technology. You would be right if you are listing the most common ones. However, there are more ways to print. In this article you can get to know them. For visual representation, please check the end of the article. The easiest way for you to think about printing technologies is to make a distinction between impact and non-impact technology.
Dot matrix printers – they produce printout through the help of series of small pins, which strike an inked ribbon and thus cause the ink to transfer to the paper at the point if impact.
Character printers – they are much like computerized typewriters. They have a ball or series of bars with actual letters and numbers embossed on the surface. The required character is struck against the ink ribbon, transferring the character's image to the paper.
Inkjet printers make a printout by spraying drops of ink straight on the paper with the help of nozzles.
Laser printers – they use toner, static electricity, and heat to place and attach the ink onto the paper. Solid ink printers have sticks of wax-like ink that are melted and applied to the paper. The ink then hardens and the printout is ready.
Dye-sublimation printers contain a long roll of transparent film which resembles sheets of red-, blue-, yellow- and gray-colored cellophane attached together end to end. This film has inside solid dyes of to the four basic colors used in printing: cyan, magenta, yellow and black (CMYK). The print head uses a heating element that differs in temperature, depending on the amount of a certain color that needs to be applied. The dyes vaporize and enter the glossy surface of the paper before they return to solid form. The printer runs the long roll completely over the paper for each of the basic colors. Thus step by step the image is produced. Thermal wax printers function as a hybrid of dye-sublimation and solid ink technologies. They use a ribbon with alternating CMYK color bands. The ribbon passes in front of a print head which has many tiny heated pins. The pins make the wax melt and attach to the paper, where it hardens right away.
Thermal autochrome printers are different from other printer types because they have the color in the paper instead of in the printer. Wrapped between a base material and a protective heat-resistant layer, the three layers (cyan, magenta and yellow) in the paper, are activated by the application of a specific amount of heat. The print head has a heating element that can differ in temperature. When it goes over the paper three times, it provides the required temperature for each color layer.
- Impact – these printers include all those that have a mechanism for touching the paper. They include:
Dot matrix printers – they produce printout through the help of series of small pins, which strike an inked ribbon and thus cause the ink to transfer to the paper at the point if impact.
Character printers – they are much like computerized typewriters. They have a ball or series of bars with actual letters and numbers embossed on the surface. The required character is struck against the ink ribbon, transferring the character's image to the paper.
- Non-impact – these printers do not touch the paper while producing a printout. Here they are:
Inkjet printers make a printout by spraying drops of ink straight on the paper with the help of nozzles.
Laser printers – they use toner, static electricity, and heat to place and attach the ink onto the paper. Solid ink printers have sticks of wax-like ink that are melted and applied to the paper. The ink then hardens and the printout is ready.
Dye-sublimation printers contain a long roll of transparent film which resembles sheets of red-, blue-, yellow- and gray-colored cellophane attached together end to end. This film has inside solid dyes of to the four basic colors used in printing: cyan, magenta, yellow and black (CMYK). The print head uses a heating element that differs in temperature, depending on the amount of a certain color that needs to be applied. The dyes vaporize and enter the glossy surface of the paper before they return to solid form. The printer runs the long roll completely over the paper for each of the basic colors. Thus step by step the image is produced. Thermal wax printers function as a hybrid of dye-sublimation and solid ink technologies. They use a ribbon with alternating CMYK color bands. The ribbon passes in front of a print head which has many tiny heated pins. The pins make the wax melt and attach to the paper, where it hardens right away.
Thermal autochrome printers are different from other printer types because they have the color in the paper instead of in the printer. Wrapped between a base material and a protective heat-resistant layer, the three layers (cyan, magenta and yellow) in the paper, are activated by the application of a specific amount of heat. The print head has a heating element that can differ in temperature. When it goes over the paper three times, it provides the required temperature for each color layer.
Sunday, 12 October 2008
What is Energy?
My boyfriend works in a company which manufactures gas turbines. A few months ago the term 'gas turbine' belonged to my list of boring words that I didn't have any desire to learn about. However, lately things have changed.
Two weeks ago I had the incredible opportunity to experience a guided tour in Beznau Nuclear Power Plant. I did not suspect this would be such a memorable event, but it gave me such an enlightenment about the source of energy, that I feel it deserves a short description.
The Power Plant was using the abundant Uranium as a fuel to supply electricity to all cantons in NE Switzerland. The Beznau Power Plant is one of the many plants of the NOK (Nordostschweizerische Kraftwerke AG). Both nuclear and river-based hydroelectric plants cover the base load - this is the electricity that is usually needed in this part of Switzerland. When there are peak periods with more electricity required, it is provided by other kinds of power plants, which take less time to switch on and off. The most important rule is that the electricity produced at each moment should be equal to the electricity consumed.
Beznau Power Plant was cleverly situated on the island Beznau, which is in the river Aare. Three main reasons for that: huge amounts of water were needed for different (mainly cooling) functions inside the plant; the region is with a big electricity demand so the costs for electricity transport are minimized; the site is easily reachable by car and trains.
Furthermore, in order to make the best use of the island, the other end is the home for a hydroelectric plant.
Why Uranium? Because it is everywhere and is easily extracted. The electricity produced from 1 Tonne Uranium = electricity produced from 10 000 Tonnes Oil. In addition, big reserves are easy to store in a small area. Beznau always has enough Uranium for two years ahead.
All Power Plants have one thing in common - in one way or another, steam is produced inside. This steam further reaches the turbines and spins them so that the motion activates the generator, which creates the so much needed and desired by each of us - the electric current.
And what happens in a Nuclear Power Plant: here the steam is produced by a chain reaction called Nuclear Fission. The Uranium atom is fissioned, which realeases consuderably good amounts of Energy. This energy heats a container of water to a quite high temperature of 312 C. But guess what? The water does not boil because big pressure is applied to it while it is being transported to the steam generator. There the water is allowed to boil and here we go - steam is produced. From here on, all power plants follow the same structure as described above.
Looking a little bit in detail into the fission process, we have to note one thing: once the Uranium atom is split, it becomes into an isotope, which is... radioactive! But this is taken care of - the fission takes place in a reactor, which is surrounded by two walls with vacuum in between. Thus assuring that nothing should leak out of it. But how do we get rid of the radioactive waste? It is packed and carefully trasnported to other countries where the waste is recycled and about 95% of it are sent back to Beznau for further use. Good, right? Still 5% of radioactive waste is there... somewhere..., which will always be a drawback of the Nuclear Fission Method of producing Energy.
The turbines: these 'boring' at first hear structures spin quite fast. They are mounted on the same shaft as the generator, which makes - 3000 rpm (rotations per minute). Just imagine it! Now what is the consequence? This fast speed is needed to induce a voltage on the stator windings. Here it is the fundamental law of physics, which even a social scientist like me remembers: Energy is never produced or destroyed, it is just transformed. In this very moment, kinetic energy is transformed into electrical energy, symilar to what happens in a bike - the dynamo in your rear tire uses the spin in order to give you enough energy for front and back lights. The generator produces 15.5 kV, and the transfomers outside step it up to 220 kV and then send it to the high voltage transmission lines.
And thus I, sitting somewhere in NE Switzerland, am able to write this blog and hopefully make someone else as enriched as I was when I saw all that with my own eyes.
Good job, Beznau!
Two weeks ago I had the incredible opportunity to experience a guided tour in Beznau Nuclear Power Plant. I did not suspect this would be such a memorable event, but it gave me such an enlightenment about the source of energy, that I feel it deserves a short description.
The Power Plant was using the abundant Uranium as a fuel to supply electricity to all cantons in NE Switzerland. The Beznau Power Plant is one of the many plants of the NOK (Nordostschweizerische Kraftwerke AG). Both nuclear and river-based hydroelectric plants cover the base load - this is the electricity that is usually needed in this part of Switzerland. When there are peak periods with more electricity required, it is provided by other kinds of power plants, which take less time to switch on and off. The most important rule is that the electricity produced at each moment should be equal to the electricity consumed.
Beznau Power Plant was cleverly situated on the island Beznau, which is in the river Aare. Three main reasons for that: huge amounts of water were needed for different (mainly cooling) functions inside the plant; the region is with a big electricity demand so the costs for electricity transport are minimized; the site is easily reachable by car and trains.
Furthermore, in order to make the best use of the island, the other end is the home for a hydroelectric plant.
Why Uranium? Because it is everywhere and is easily extracted. The electricity produced from 1 Tonne Uranium = electricity produced from 10 000 Tonnes Oil. In addition, big reserves are easy to store in a small area. Beznau always has enough Uranium for two years ahead.
All Power Plants have one thing in common - in one way or another, steam is produced inside. This steam further reaches the turbines and spins them so that the motion activates the generator, which creates the so much needed and desired by each of us - the electric current.
And what happens in a Nuclear Power Plant: here the steam is produced by a chain reaction called Nuclear Fission. The Uranium atom is fissioned, which realeases consuderably good amounts of Energy. This energy heats a container of water to a quite high temperature of 312 C. But guess what? The water does not boil because big pressure is applied to it while it is being transported to the steam generator. There the water is allowed to boil and here we go - steam is produced. From here on, all power plants follow the same structure as described above.
Looking a little bit in detail into the fission process, we have to note one thing: once the Uranium atom is split, it becomes into an isotope, which is... radioactive! But this is taken care of - the fission takes place in a reactor, which is surrounded by two walls with vacuum in between. Thus assuring that nothing should leak out of it. But how do we get rid of the radioactive waste? It is packed and carefully trasnported to other countries where the waste is recycled and about 95% of it are sent back to Beznau for further use. Good, right? Still 5% of radioactive waste is there... somewhere..., which will always be a drawback of the Nuclear Fission Method of producing Energy.
The turbines: these 'boring' at first hear structures spin quite fast. They are mounted on the same shaft as the generator, which makes - 3000 rpm (rotations per minute). Just imagine it! Now what is the consequence? This fast speed is needed to induce a voltage on the stator windings. Here it is the fundamental law of physics, which even a social scientist like me remembers: Energy is never produced or destroyed, it is just transformed. In this very moment, kinetic energy is transformed into electrical energy, symilar to what happens in a bike - the dynamo in your rear tire uses the spin in order to give you enough energy for front and back lights. The generator produces 15.5 kV, and the transfomers outside step it up to 220 kV and then send it to the high voltage transmission lines.
And thus I, sitting somewhere in NE Switzerland, am able to write this blog and hopefully make someone else as enriched as I was when I saw all that with my own eyes.
Good job, Beznau!
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