Latest news with #cranes
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Feds approve waiver for Alabama rail project amid automation concerns
The Federal Railroad Administration has approved a Buy America waiver for a planned intermodal container transfer facility (ICTF) in Montgomery, Alabama despite concerns that such a waiver could lead to lost jobs through automation. The Alabama State Port Authority (ASPA), which will oversee the ICTF, told the Federal Railroad Administration that the waiver is necessary in order to purchase two rubber-tired gantry cranes it wants to install at the facility, located next to the main CSX rail line between Montgomery and Mobile, Alabama. Projects receiving funding under FRA's Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) program – ASPA received a $67.3 million CRISI grant for the project in 2022 – must adhere to the agency's Buy America requirements. But FRA may waive those requirements if it determines that:Applying the Buy America requirements would be inconsistent with the public interest; Steel, iron, and goods produced in the U.S. are not produced in a sufficient and reasonably available amount or are not of a satisfactory quality; Rolling stock or power train equipment cannot be bought and delivered in the United States within a reasonable time; or Including domestic material will increase the cost of the overall project by more than 25%. 'FRA has determined that the two rubber-tired gantry cranes, including spreaders, that meet ASPA's technical specifications are not produced in the United States in a sufficient and reasonably available amount or satisfactory quality' consistent with the regulation, FRA stated in a notice published on Wednesday. 'FRA finds ASPA has conducted appropriate due diligence through market research and an open procurement process to identify potential domestic suppliers for the products. ASPA's efforts included a market research study that identified one potential supplier; however, ASPA did not receive any responses to its RFP from domestic suppliers.' The Transportation Trades Department (TTD), part of the AFL-CIO, which represents railroad employees, had protested the waiver last year, arguing that because ASPA's bid request stipulates that the cranes allow for future conversion to remote operations, a waiver 'may serve as a back door to securing federal funding for a huge share of the cost of equipment that will eventually be converted to semi-automated or automated functions.' 'Put simply, this strategy, if successful, would incentivize procurements that operators would not have made without the government's intervention,' asserted TTD President Greg Regan in comments filed with the FRA.'In other words, the federal government would be subsidizing the near-future elimination of jobs.' Responding to TTD's concerns, FRA pointed out that the waiver does not set precedents and will expire upon the closeout of the grant award, estimated to be April 2028. In addition, because the ICTF will serve international container traffic that passes through the Port of Mobile, Alabama, the waiver will help ASPA 'promote American jobs by supporting the transportation needs of Central Alabama's growing manufacturing, agricultural, and retail industries,' the agency stated. Port of Mobile enters fourth phase of $104M container terminal expansion $231M rail project to connect Port of Mobile to central Alabama Port of Mobile awarded $300M for infrastructure, intermodal improvements Click for more FreightWaves articles by John Gallagher. The post Feds approve waiver for Alabama rail project amid automation concerns appeared first on FreightWaves.
BBC News
12-06-2025
- Automotive
- BBC News
Delays as A50 in Derbsyhire shut after lorry overturns
A main road in Derbyshire is shut to allow the recovery of a lorry which left the road and Highways said the A50 eastbound between Ashbourne and Sudbury closed shortly before 04:00 BST on said this was a "complex recovery operation" requiring two cranes and heavy duty recovery have been advised to expect delays and take alternative routes.
Engadget
31-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Engadget
'28 Years Later' used 20 iPhones in tandem for some wild shots
It's no secret that 28 Years Later used iPhones to shoot parts of the film. Now its director, Danny Boyle, has discussed the use of iPhones for the film in more detail with IGN . The first film in the franchise, 28 Days Later , was shot on digital video, giving it a homemade feel. Boyle explained that he and writer Alex Garland got the idea from the fact that home video cameras were common at the time, and people would've shot videos with them if an apocalypse had indeed happened. Those cameras, of course, have since been replaced by smartphones. The movies used three special rigs for the iPhone sequences: One for eight cameras that one person can carry, another with 10 and another with 20. "I never say this, but there is an incredible shot in the second half [of the film] where we use the 20-rig camera, and you'll know it when you see it," Boyle told IGN . He described the 20-iPhone rig as "basically a poor man's bullet time," which is a visual effect that uses multiple cameras to freeze or slow down time. Think the scene in The Matrix , wherein Neo dodged bullets in super slow motion. Doyle said that the 20-camera rig can be attached to cranes or dollies and give you 180 degrees of vision of an action. In editing, you can choose from any of the footage each iPhone takes to, say, move between perspectives or jump forward and backward. For 28 Years Later, the team used the rig for violent scenes to emphasize their effect. "For a moment the audience is inside the scene, the action, rather than classically observing a picture," Doyle explained. In addition to the iPhones, the filmmakers also used drones, cameras attached to actors and even farm animals to achieve an immersive feel for its 2.76:1 widescreen aspect ratio. They decided on the aspect ratio to create a sense of unease, since you'd have to keep scanning the screen to see potential threats coming from the sides.
Belfast Telegraph
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Belfast Telegraph
New stage to debut at 2025 AVA Festival on Titanic Slipways
The two-day event kicks off on Friday with a new stage, The Dock. Watch: AVA Festival returns to Belfast Event organiser Sarah McBriar said: 'It's looking amazing, we've got so many new additions to the festival this year and sunshine is forecast for Friday.' The Dock features layered platforms for dancers, a Funktion-One sound system supplied by Hertz-U Audioand a custom audiovisual rigfrom Visual Spectrum Studio. She added: 'It's a mixture of dancing and live shows, it's that kind of an amphitheatre-style stage as well, and we have built lots of shipping containers and scaffolding stuff around it. 'So, it's still got the industrial feel of AVA, but the intimacy of an epic stage.' The Dock is an 'homage' to Belfast. She explained: 'I think that's what we've always done, both with who we programme and who we book, but also, like, the scenery and the location. 'It's an amazing site here on the slipways, and the fact that we've got the Titanic (museum) and the cranes as a backdrop. We've got the city, the water, the boats come in, the sunsets over the city... it's a gorgeous location.' This year's festival promises 'something for everyone'. Ms McBriar added: 'If you're into bands, we've got Chalk, we've got obviously Underworld playing live, and Overmono, all the way through to lots of local acts like DJ Time of the Month, Reger, Mark Blair... and also, if you're into techno, we've got 9x9. 'So yeah, it's pretty much like a massive bill. But I think also just the atmosphere and the people and the crowd and the energy... you know, even if you're not massively into the music, it's also just the atmosphere and the whole experience.' The AVA team is working hard to ensure festival-goers enjoy a quality experience. She said: 'We've got 'chill out' spaces, a really cool hospitality space with Wing It, lots of amazing local food traders, a new Be Perfect bus, where people can go and get a facial, and then obviously all the amazing stages as well. 'You can chill, you can dance, you can rave, you can get lots of amazing drinks from our bars.' AVA will run from Friday to Saturday with tickets still available online. 'Our weekend tickets are actually really close to selling out. So if you haven't already got your ticket, get onto it ASAP,' she said. 'And then we've got a handful of day tickets remaining.'
Korea Herald
26-05-2025
- Business
- Korea Herald
XCMG Opens 7th XCMG International Customer Festival, Strengthening Collaboration with Global Partners
XUZHOU, China, May 26, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- XCMG Machinery ("XCMG", SHE: 000425) has successfully hosted the 7 th XCMG International Customer Festival (the "Festival") from May 20 to 23 in Xuzhou, China. More than 2,000 customers from over 80 countries and regions as well as 60 journalists from both home and abroad gathered in Xuzhou, China, to celebrate and witness the largest edition of the Festival to date. Yang Dongsheng, chairman of XCMG Group and XCMG Machinery, expressed his gratitude and respect to the partners from all over the world. "As the old saying goes, 'Nothing, not even mountains and seas, can separate people with common goals and ideals.' Every breakthrough and leap forward in XCMG's globalization journey is full of the trust and entrustment of our global customers; it's the cohesion of everyone's wisdom and contribution and a chapter of the times we grow together." XCMG lined up 16 top-selling cranes, which heralded the beginning of a new journey with global partners. 2,500 drones drew the "SOLID TO SUCCEED" manifesto with the night sky as canvas, mapping the blueprint for building a greener future for all during its opening ceremony. XCMG also showcased groundbreaking products and green technologies, including the pure electric unmanned excavator XE215E and electric loader XC968-EV, both utilize XCMG's self-developed algorithms and AI models and are equipped with multi-line LIDAR, cameras and deep learning computing units that are extensively configured in the intelligent equipment to achieve truck positioning, path planning and accurate loading. At the opening ceremony, Yang Dongsheng presented six golden keys to deliver a batch of high-end hoisting machinery, intelligent and digital mining and road equipment. The interactive experience zone with 12 programs of the Festival was set up close to the actual working conditions of customer experience projects, including excavating machinery, road machinery, shoveling machinery, truck-mounted cranes, fire trucks and the city's operating platforms. Rooted in more than 190 countries and regions, XCMG, as a leading construction machinery brand, has made remarkable achievements in product technology, intelligent manufacturing, brand building, international market development and more. Against the backdrop of profound changes in the current global economic landscape and accelerated restructuring of the industrial chain and supply chain, XCMG is actively responding to the challenges and grasping opportunities, showing strong resilience and vitality in development. Li Qi, vice president of China Machinery Industry Federation, noted in his speech that XCMG has set a benchmark for the transformation and upgrading of the construction machinery industry. "We hope that XCMG will continue to play a leading role in the industry, strengthen in-depth cooperation with global partners, and make greater contributions to the development of the global construction machinery industry," said Li Qi. From the Simandou iron mine in Guinea to the Future City in Saudi Arabia, from the wind farms in Europe to mines in Indonesia, XCMG is committed to responding accurately to the market demand, and each solution originates from the in-depth insight into the local regulations, standards and operating habits, constantly breaking through the boundaries of the construction machinery to build a future of shared success.
