Quit Kudzu Before It Takes Over

Kudzu is nearly anywhere you search in lots of components of the U.S. It covers trees, structures, fencings and also telephone poles-as high as 7 million acres. It spreads out at a price of 120,000 acres a year.

” Kudzu is a frustrating creeping plant that can expand as long as a foot in 24 hrs,” claims Lance Walheim, Bayer Advanced™ ™ yard professional, that created guide “Lawn Care for Dummies” and also is a normal factor to Sunset publication. “If left unmanaged, it can take control of as well as choke trees that have actually taken years to expand.”

In 1876, the Japanese presented the fast-growing creeping plant to the United States at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. In the 1930s, the U.S. Soil Conservation Service chose the creeping plant aided protect against dirt disintegration and also established 85 million kudzu plants. The federal government provided farmers $8 an acre to grow the creeping plant and also it removed.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture proclaimed kudzu a weed in 1972. The National Park Service states the weed triggers even more than $100 million a year in damages.

“There’s a factor kudzu is nicknamed ‘the creeping plant that consumed the South,'” states Walheim.

Just how can you eliminate kudzu prior to it takes over your lawn? It’s currently offered in a ready-to-use gallon container that consists of an integrated embedded sprayer. Specific hard-to-kill weeds might call for a repeat application if regrowth takes place.

Kudzu is virtually all over you look in several components of the U.S. In the 1930s, the U.S. Soil Conservation Service made a decision the creeping plant aided protect against dirt disintegration and also created 85 million kudzu seed startings. The U.S. Department of Agriculture proclaimed kudzu a weed in 1972. Exactly how can you eliminate kudzu prior to it takes over your backyard?

Manchester United right-back Ona Batlle produced her ninth assist of the WSL season, the joint-highest in the division alongside Chelsea’s Guro Reiten, when she made a powerful run down the right flank after collecting the ball inside her own half and played a perfect cross to the far post where Leah Galton supplied the finish to make it 1-1. However, Daly’s second – a skilful finish from a Maz Pacheco ball in from Villa’s left – restored the home side’s lead before half-time.

Daly’s double took her on to 17 league goals for the season and level with Manchester City’s Bunny Shaw in the race for the Golden Boot, and the former Houston Dash forward’s all-round performance epitomised her impressive first season as an Aston Villa player after signing for the WSL club last summer.

The Euros-winning England star almost had a hat-trick when she smacked a close-range stake onto the bar shortly after the break, in a break from some second-half Manchester United pressure, but the visitors found a way to equalise when Hannah Blundell’s deep cross from the left went all the way through to Nikita Parris, whose header was only helped into the net by Hannah Hampton. Villa then upped their game again and were crestfallen when Turner rose to head in the winner in the dying embers of a red-hot match.

Skinner refused to get drawn into any discussion around his side’s title chances, adding only: “We can’t control anybody else’s fate, so we’ve just got to focus on us. Tottenham are not going to be easy, then we’ve got Man City, and then we’ve got Liverpool. Three hard games, but we’ve navigated one of the hardest ones tonight.”

Villa were furious at the last-gasp decision to award Manchester United the free-kick from which they won the game, where Pacheco was adjudged to have fouled Vilde Boe Risa near the corner flag. Even the most ardent Manchester United fan would surely admit it was ‘a bit soft’. Carla Ward, whose ever-improving team remain fifth in the table, said: “The lineswoman was a yard away and said no foul. The ref was 30 yards away and said foul. It’s a tough one to take. We were excellent right through the 90 minutes. We’re hurting tonight, but my players have been absolutely outstanding.”

Match details

Aston Villa (4-2-3-1): Hampton 5; Mayling 6, Patten 7, Turner 7, Pacheco 7; Staniforth 8, Littlejohn 6 (Lehmann 6, 63); Blindkilde Brown 7, Dali 6, Nobbs 7; Daly 8

Subs not used: Allen, Boye-Hlorkah, Leat (gk), Magill, Keitley

Yellow cards: Staniforth, Littlejohn, Nobbs, Pacheco

Manchester United (4-2-3-1): Earps 6; Batlle 7, Le Tissier 6, Mannion 6 (Turner 7, 87), Blundell 7; Zelem 6, Ladd 6; Parris 7 (Thomas 5, 77), Toone 6 (Boe Risa 6, 90+1), Galton 6 (Garcia 6, 77); Russo 6 (Williams 6, 77)

Subs not used: Riviere, Tounkara, Cascarino, Baggaley (gk)

Yellow cards: Zelem

Referee: Lisa Benn (Sussex)

Ever since missionaries started building churches out of mud 400 years ago in what was the isolated frontier of the Spanish empire, tiny mountain communities like Cordova relied on their own resources to keep the faith going.

Thousands of miles from religious and lay seats of power, everything from priests to sculptors to paint pigments was hard to come by. Villagers instituted lay church caretakers called “mayordomos,” and filled chapels with elaborate altarpieces made of local wood.

Today, threatened by depopulation, dwindling congregations and fading traditions, some of their descendants are fighting to save these historic adobe structures from literally crumbling back to the earth they were built with.

“Our ancestors put blood and sweat in this place for us to have Jesus present,” said Angelo Sandoval on a spring day inside the 1830s church of St. Anthony, where he serves as mayordomo. “We’re not just a church, we’re not just a religion — we have roots.”

These churches anchor a uniquely New Mexican way of life for their communities, many of which no longer have schools or stores, and struggle with chronic poverty and addiction. But it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find the necessary resources to preserve the estimated 500 Catholic mission churches, especially since most are used for only a few services each year.

“When the faithful generation is gone, are they going to be a museum or serve their purpose?” said the Rev. Rob Yaksich, pastor of Our Lady of Sorrows in Las Vegas, New Mexico, which oversees 23 rural churches. “This old, deep-rooted Spanish Catholicism is experiencing serious disruption.”

‘It’s our job now’

In the hamlet of Ledoux, Fidel Trujillo is mayordomo of the pink-stucco San Jose church, which he keeps spotless even though few Masses are celebrated here regularly.

“Our ‘antepasados’ (ancestors) did a tremendous job in handing over the faith, and it’s our job now,” Trujillo said in the characteristic mix of Spanish and English that most speak in this region. “I much prefer coming to these ‘capillas’ (chapels). It’s a compass that guides where your heart really belongs.”

Each mission church is devoted to a particular saint. When New Mexico’s largest wildfire last spring charred forests less than 100 yards from San Jose church, and Trujillo was displaced for a month, he took the statue of St. Joseph with him.

“Four hundred years ago, life was very difficult in this part of the world,” explained Felix Lopez, a master “santero” — an artist who sculpts, paints and conserves saint figures in New Mexico’s unique devotional style. “People needed these ‘santos.’ They were a source of comfort and refuge.”

In intervening centuries, most were stolen, sold or damaged, according to Bernadette Lucero, director, curator and archivist for the Archdiocese of Santa Fe.

“Saints are the spiritual go-to, they can be highly powerful,” said Victor Goler, a master santero who just completed conserving the altarpieces, or “reredos,” in Las Trampas’ mid-18th century church.

On a recent Sunday at Truchas’ 1760s Holy Rosary church, Lopez pointed out the rich decorative details that centuries of smoke and grime had hidden until he meticulously removed them with the absorbent inside of sourdough bread.

“I’m a devout Catholic, and I do this as meditation, as a form of prayer,” said Lopez, who’s been a santero for five decades and whose family hails from this village perched on a ridge at 7,000 feet (2,100 meters).

Faith that support will come

For the Rev. Sebastian Lee, who as administrator of the popular Santuario de Chimayo complex a few miles away also oversees these mission churches, fostering local attachment is a daunting challenge as congregations shrink even faster since the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I want missions to be where people can taste culture and religiosity. They’re very healing, you’re soaked with people’s faith,” Lee said. “I wonder how to help them, because sooner or later one mission is not going to have enough people.”

The archdiocese’s Catholic Foundation provides small grants, and several organizations have been founded to help conservation efforts.

Exposed to rain and snow, adobe needs a fresh replastering of dirt, sand and straw every couple of years lest it dissolve.

That makes local buy-in and some kind of ongoing activity, even just funerals, fundamental to long-term preservation, said Jake Barrow, program director at Cornerstones, which has worked on more than 300 churches and other structures.

But with fewer priests and fewer faithful, taking some rural missions off the church’s roster might be inevitable, said the Rev. Andy Pavlak, who serves on the archdiocese’s commission for the preservation of historic churches.

Not everyone agrees. Running his hand over the smooth adobe walls he restored at the 1880s Santo Nino de Atocha chapel in Monte Aplanado, a hamlet nestled in a high mountain valley, Leo Paul Pacheco argued that the answer might hinge on the faith of future generations of lay people like him.

“They still have access to the same dirt,” Pacheco said as the adobe walls’ sand particles and straw sparkled in the sun. “They will provide.”

Overcoming Amazon Vendor Central Obstacles

In addition to being the most popular online marketplace in the world, Amazon remains one of the largest retailers, buying products from wholesalers and then selling them directly to consumers. The company’s supply of products comes via its Vendor Central program. However, overcoming Amazon Vendor Central obstacles presents a different slate of challenges for participating companies compared to their Seller Central counterparts. 

Exclusivity, inventory management, pricing, stability and service are all concerns for novice and experienced Vendor Central sellers alike. In some cases, they turn to an Amazon consulting expert for help optimizing their business and avoiding the pitfalls of selling to Amazon. Others opt to remain a direct-to-consumer seller or transition from Vendor Central to Seller Central, where margins are often higher, and brands have more control over the entire sales process. If you’re leading an Amazon business of any type, a clear grasp of Vendor Central can be vital to making sure your company is headed in the right direction. 

What is Amazon Vendor Central?

Unique from a traditional Amazon seller account, Amazon’s Vendor Central platform is the interface brands use to sell products directly to Amazon rather than to the consumers shopping in the marketplace. Amazon is then responsible for listing, selling and shipping the products. The Vendor Central model, commonly referred to as first-party or 1P selling, is an opportunity for companies to establish a relationship with Amazon and sell its products at wholesale prices. However, this model is an invite-only program and is usually limited to larger brands with $10M or more in revenue on the Amazon marketplace. 

For the few businesses that become eligible, the 1P option has some attractive advantages. First, it’s easy to understand. Since it’s similar to any other relationship between a vendor and retailer, a brand does not need internal Amazon expertise. It’s also purchase-order based, so the brand receives large purchase orders from Amazon, which then pays for the inventory. Also, as a retailer, Amazon will often accept lower profitability than a Seller Central (Third-Party or 3P seller), as they compete with Walmart and other retailers on price. 

The 1P model is often a good fit for low-priced and highly competitive Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG). It can also work well for heavy products with high shipping costs, brands that sell through many distribution channels, and brands that do not attempt to enforce a MAP program. 

For other brands, the downside of operating with a 1P model can make it a less appealing option than the Amazon Seller Central route. By selling to a retail intermediary, a seller is giving up margin, making 1P far less profitable for premium quality brands in many cases. 

It’s also clear that Amazon provides little guidance to its vendors. For example, the platform does not assist in overall strategy, brand positioning, merchandising, or provide technical support. Instead, Amazon simply buys the products. The retailer is also very aggressive at negotiating lower costs from their 1P suppliers by tacking on co-op advertising fees, return fees and chargebacks. And it’s not unusual for Amazon to disregard Minimum Advertised Pricing (MAP) guidelines to sell products for less than a supplier expects. 

Getting an Invite to Amazon Vendor Central 

As mentioned, access to Vendor Central is limited to the companies that are invited to participate by Amazon. It is an exclusive program that typically targets merchants with a record of success within Seller Central or other direct-to-consumer sales channels. 

While there’s no set method for obtaining an invite, there is a way to stand out among the businesses in contention and increase your chances. Essentially, brands interested in joining the Vendor Central program should focus on dominating the marketplace as a Third-Party Seller Central brand. An Amazon seller that has demonstrated a consistent ability to keep products in stock despite high demand and that has a stellar reputation among buyers is the most likely to catch the attention of Amazon. 

In some cases, manufacturers that focus primarily on the wholesaler market can also be tapped by Amazon for a Vendor Central account if they can make an impression at a trade show or product fair. In either scenario, an invite will depend on the potential Amazon sees in a particular product. High-demand, low-cost items that will move quickly are the most appealing. 

Unfortunately, companies invited to the Vendor Central program should not expect to have the opportunity to negotiate the terms of the relationship. Most of the time, Amazon will make an offer for the vendor to accept or decline. While a prominent brand with an established following may be able to seek adjustments, other companies will have to determine whether the offer is worth considering as is. Once an agreement is made, sellers will be able to create and access a Vendor Central account that will be used to manage the new relationship. 

Fulfilling Vendor Central Orders

Companies with an active Vendor Central account can expect to receive purchase orders from Amazon, typically weekly. In cases where demand for a product is exceptionally high or outpaces expectations, purchase orders can arrive even more frequently. This is because Amazon prefers to regularly order smaller quantities of products to limit the risk of taking on inventory that they cannot sell. 

Since Vendor Central ordering is automated, new 1P sellers may have to wait longer than expected to receive their initial order from Amazon, and it may be smaller than anticipated. However, as a product establishes a history and proves its ability to move out of Amazon’s stock and to shoppers, orders will likely grow. 

As mentioned, the Vendor Central model means that Amazon is responsible for getting the products into the hands of its customers. As a 1P seller, your responsibility is to fulfill the purchase orders placed by Amazon and provide bulk shipments of your products according to Amazon’s requirements. Therefore, running out of stock on Vendor Central products can be a costly problem if not handled appropriately. Unavailable items, whether it’s a temporary or permanent issue, need to be marked accordingly in the Vendor Central dashboard to prevent Amazon from including them in their purchase orders. Placing inventory on backorder or a substantial number of cancellations can result in an expensive Amazon chargeback, which is a fee for not being able to provide the products ordered. 

Fortunately, the Vendor Central features allow brands to access a broad range of information to help them manage their relationship with Amazon. In addition to providing a place to upload images, costs and details about products, 1P sellers can submit current shipment information related to orders from Amazon. The Vendor Central hub provides valuable reports about product sales, inventory forecasts and consumer behavior. For an experienced Vendor Central seller, these metrics can be an extremely useful tool to optimize sales and keep the brand in good standing with Amazon. 

Vendor Central Pricing Challenges

The simplicity of a 1P relationship may be most evident when it comes to pricing. As an Amazon 1P vendor, products are sold to the online retailer at a wholesale price. Amazon can then set the retail price that customers will pay without consultation or approval from the vendor. Typically, this lack of price control is less attractive for products with high retail margins. 

Amazon may also ask its vendors to reduce prices on certain products via the Vendor Central dashboard. Upon receiving such a request, businesses must choose whether to accommodate the reduction in full, lower the price partially, or discontinue selling that product to Amazon. 

It’s also important to note that Amazon does not always follow Minimum Advertised Pricing (MAP) guidelines and may sell products for less than a supplier expects. Amazon’s primary concern is providing competitive pricing to shoppers, and a MAP agreement limits their flexibility. The best way to minimize the chances of a sale that violates MAP is to avoid overstocking Amazon with your products and to police pricing at other sales channels carefully. There’s little doubt that Amazon will reduce prices below the MAP to clear its inventory or to avoid being undercut by a competing marketplace. 

Advertising your Vendor Central products

While it may seem surprising, Amazon advertising plays a critical role for Vendor Central sellers. Even though Amazon is responsible for the product listing and selling a vendor’s products, demand is what keeps the orders coming. For this reason, many Vendor Central participants undertake serious advertising campaigns to promote the products that Amazon is buying from them and selling to shoppers. 

While there were previously significant differences between the advertising options for vendors and sellers, Amazon has tried to consolidate its advertising services recently. Currently, Amazon PPC and other advertising tools for Vendor Central are much the same as those offered to Amazon’s Seller Central brands. Sponsored Product Ads, Sponsored Brands and Amazon Display Advertising are all viable options for both vendors and sellers in the Amazon marketplace. 

Although an Amazon Brand Registry account is not a requirement for Vendor Central, it is worth mentioning that it is required to take advantage of Amazon marketing. Also, while advertising as a vendor is optional, it can significantly boost product sales and add more stability to a vendor relationship with Amazon. This can be especially true when attempting to ramp up demand for new products that customers are unfamiliar with and can benefit significantly from an Amazon ad campaign.

Getting help with your Vendor Central account

Much like 3P sellers, 1P sellers can struggle to receive consistent account support from Amazon. Trying to resolve problems or find clear answers to complicated questions can be a frustrating experience. In some instances, a vendor manager is assigned to new vendors, at least temporarily, and can ease some of the headaches. However, this is not always the case, and these experts often move on to other clients after a certain amount of time. As a result, smaller vendors are regularly left to fend for themselves when trying to navigate Vendor Central successfully. 

An outside Amazon consultant is an alternative worth considering for vendors that find the relationship difficult to manage. An Amazon expert will likely have the knowledge or connections to troubleshoot issues or avoid them in the first place. In addition to helping Vendor Central sellers navigate many of the challenges mentioned above, they provide brands with a reliable point of contact for their Amazon questions and optimization. 

The Vendor Central vs. Seller Central Decision

E-commerce is continuing to evolve. As brands compete in a larger and more competitive environment, it is more important than ever for brands to control their own destiny on the Amazon platform. Unfortunately, this isn’t easy to achieve when a retailer sits between the brand and the end customer. 

While each Amazon business will need to approach the question according to their unique circumstances, we expect the long-term trend will be for brands to sell directly on Amazon to increase margins, control their brand, manage the customer experience, and have better access to data. 

Fortunately, brands can control their Amazon channel and choose the model best for them in this fast-changing industry. But, brands need to understand the necessary steps and have realistic expectations when switching from a retailer-based model to direct sales. When planning this switch, your Amazon product listings, Amazon storefront, and overall demand on Amazon should stay constant, if possible. 

Find the right path to Amazon success

Amify’s clients enjoy a long-term partner with more than a decade of experience helping premium brands achieve their Amazon goals. If overcoming Amazon Vendor Central obstacles is proving more challenging than you expected, or a consumer-direct 3P sales model seems appealing, industry-leading expertise can be the first step to growing your business. Our results-oriented approach and up-to-the-minute Amazon listing services can outperform the competition and unlock your product’s full potential. Contact us today to learn more.

Chita Rivera catapulted to fame playing Anita in the 1957 musical “West Side Story” on Broadway.

But please don’t confuse the 90-year-old diva with the actress Rita Moreno, who played the same role in the 1961 film.

When people tell her that they loved her in the movie, “I straighten them out,” Rivera writes in her new memoir, “Chita” (HarperOne).

“Then [I] politely say, ‘I was the original Anita.’”

Still, she admits she felt a “pang of resentment” when she saw Moreno on screen in a replica of the ruffled purple frock that Rivera made famous.

“How dare she?” Rivera seethed. “That is my dress!” 

Kissing her “cute” co-star Dick Van Dyke on stage every night in the Broadway smash “Bye Bye Birdie” helped lessen the pain.

“Those sorts of things can be a perk of acting,” she writes.

“But you can’t get carried away.”

Rivera sometimes did get carried away, although never with Van Dyke (they were too busy cracking each other up). 

Fortunately, the wildly entertaining “Chita” — which she wrote with Patrick Pacheco — does not scrimp on the love affairs (most notably with Sammy Davis Jr.), the struggles (acting alongside a troubled Liza Minnelli in “The Rink,” at the height of the younger actress’ drug problems) or the celebrity anecdotes (Judy Garland was wonderful; John Lennon, a jerk).

Rivera, after all, is a performer who consistently gives her all on stage, whether wailing over her slain boyfriend in “West Side Story” or tangoing with Antonio Banderas in “Nine.” (About that: “I blindfolded him with a purple scarf and at one point whipped my leg up on his shoulder — and left it there. Then he kissed it. At each performance, I would turn to the audience with a look that said, ‘Eat your heart out!’ ”)

It’s only fitting that the three-time Tony winner would throw herself into writing her memoirs as well.

She knows what her audience wants. 

Dolores Conchita Figueroa del Rivero — stage name: Chita Rivera — was born in 1933, in Washington, DC.

Her beloved father, a Puerto Rican jazz musician who played saxophone and clarinet, died when Rivera was just 7.

Her widowed young mother, a secretary at the Department of Defense, struggled to raise her five children.

Still, she paid for the tomboyish Dolores to take ballet classes, mostly to get her out of trouble. 

But Dolores excelled at dance.

At 15, her teacher took her to New York City to audition for the prestigious School of American Ballet, where she had to stop in the middle of a set of furious fouetté turns when blood began seeping through her satin toe shoes.

She made a good impression anyway: The great choreographer George Balanchine took her aside, gave her some encouraging words, and dressed her wound himself.

A few months later, she was living with relatives in the Bronx, taking classes at Balanchine’s famed school.

(Later, she took a jazz class with none other than Marlon Brando, who spent much of the hour in the corner playing bongos and looking sultry. “The Wild One was wildly flirtatious with everyone, and the girls were beside themselves,” she reports.)

Rivera had a cheekiness that separated her from the rest of her classmates.

When an instructor pushed her under a piano, she stood up, dusted herself off, and laughed in his face; he never did that again.

Still, she thought she was destined for a career in the corps de ballet until at 19 she accompanied a friend on an audition for the national touring company of “Call Me Madam” and got cast instead. 

“I grew up fast,” Rivera writes of the tour.

“After all, Elaine Stritch — blond, beautiful, brassy — was the lead.”

Stritch conducted an affair with a co-star, toted a coffee mug filled with whiskey during rehearsal, and refused to wear a bra.

“I worshiped her,” Rivera writes.

Dolores followed in her heroine’s footsteps.

She changed her name to the more showbiz-friendly Chita Rivera and worked her way up from shy chorus girl to commanding leading lady with droves of male admirers.

In “West Side Story,” director Jerome Robbins forbade the actors playing the Puerto Rican Sharks to socialize with those playing the Jets.

That didn’t stop Moreno, who ended up having a passionate affair with a handsome Italian Jet named Tony Mordente. (Robbins forgave them — Chita was one of his “favorites” — and even hosted their wedding reception during the show’s run at his townhouse.)

The second she and Mordente separated, she fell into bed with her “Bajour” co-star Gus Trikonis.

“You try standing in front of a gorgeous, bare-chested man singing love songs to you night after night,” Rivera writes, in defense.

When “West Side Story” composer Leonard Bernstein personally asked her to audition for the role of Anita, Rivera had just ended an affair with Sammy Davis Jr., whom she met in the Broadway production “Mr. Wonderful.”

At first, she was skeptical of this “nightclub singer” trying to make it on the Great White Way, but as one of her friends put it, “Talent is an aphrodisiac.” 

Still, the romance was tumultuous.

Davis was extremely damaged and traumatized from the racism and violence he experienced touring the South with his father as a child entertainer.

He still had to deal with it.

Because Davis was black, not every place in New York welcomed them.

One night, after being rejected from the ritzy El Morocco, Davis picked up the black newspaper The Amsterdam News, which had a cartoon accusing Davis of wanting to be white.

“Why can’t they just let me live my life? What do they want from me?” Davis cried.

Then, Rivera narrates, “Sammy, trembling with rage, took out his glass eye and held it in his fingers … ‘Here! Here! Is this what they want?!’ he yelled. He tossed the eye into an ashtray.”
“I moved to embrace him,” Rivera continues.

“His entire body tensed. He turned away in embarrassment.”

Their affair petered out after that, but the two remained close until Davis’ death in 1990.

He would even joke to Rivera’s daughter: “You know, you could have been mine! … You should have been mine!”

In recent years, the term connected vehicles has perhaps become most associated with technologies such as vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication and autonomous vehicles.

But, while these developments are still many years from becoming a reality in the UK, many fleets are already using connectivity to improve operations, most commonly through vehicle tracking and telematics.

Telematics, particularly, can have wide-reaching benefits for a fleet.

“Simply put, implementing an effective telematics solution can deliver tangible benefits in a number of key areas, not least safety, productivity and efficiency,” says Paul Wilson, sales and marketing director at Trakm8.

“Telematics software can be used to collect data from individual drivers, giving fleet operators data-rich insights into a host of driving habits, including harsh acceleration, over-revving, harsh braking, over-cornering and engine idling.

“By identifying such habits, fleet managers are better able to offer training opportunities to drivers, specifically tailored to the areas they may need more guidance and support.

“Such training can significantly improve a driver’s individual performance and drive tangible results for the fleet as a whole.”

Connected systems provide real-time feedback to fleet decision-makers about driver location, performance and any incidents.

Connected cameras

Some fleets take this further by using video telematics, where dashcams are combined with a telematics system to provide instant notification and footage of any incidents.

Speedy Asset Services, for example, used to have separate telematics and camera systems, which meant its telematics provider Masternaut would email it if there had been an incident, and if the fleet team wanted to see the footage they had to take the memory card out of the VisionTrack camera and upload it into a computer.

Following an upgrade from VisionTrack which saw footage uploaded to the cloud and accessed through an online portal, Aaron Powell, head of fleet at Speedy, got his two suppliers to speak to each other.

“Now we simply get an email from Masternaut to say there’s been an incident and here’s the footage,” he says.

Other fleets have taken this even further: FM Conway (see case study) has cameras fitted with artificial intelligence (AI) to pre-emptively identify incidents or potentially dangerous driver behaviours, while Ringway Jacobs uses its connected vehicle technology to also protect lone workers.

The construction company last year fitted dual-facing dash cams to an initial 163 vans and specialist vehicles, and these were connected to its Peoplesafe Pro system.

This allows both audio and video to be viewed by Peoplesafe’s alarm controllers in the event of any alarm being raised on the Pro mobile app, which could be an injury, illness, collision or incident of aggression.

“Our aim is to always provide a safe working environment for our employees and we are committed to adopting industry best practice technology and processes,” says David Bonehill, head of fleet at Ringway Jacobs.

“This latest initiative will not only increase compliance of our own lone worker processes, but also extend and enhance the levels of protection we can provide our drivers.”

Drivers scan a QR code using the app to register their ID and this automatically enables controllers in the Peoplesafe Alarm Receiving Centre to access both audio communication and video footage, as well as incident data when an alarm is raised.

Bonehill says the combination of mobile app and video also means that access to emergency help is much faster and more efficient than calling 999.

Artificial intelligence

The use of AI, which is essentially creating machines which are able to solve problems and make predictions based on data supplied to them, also has a growing impact of technologies used by fleets.

This includes improving road safety, says Geoff Cross, managing director of Centrad, which is developing a range of AI camera products.

“Over the coming years there will certainly be a shift in the marketplace with regards to vehicle CCTV camera products on offer,” he adds.

“Although the vehicle CCTV cameras will still play a significant role in providing real-time incident detection and deterrence, the use of AI with such products will greatly enhance their ability to proactively prevent accidents from occurring.

“This is particularly prevalent with driver-facing AI cameras, which are able to detect high-risk behaviours and alert both the driver and the fleet manager in the event of fatigue or distractions.

“Through being enhanced with AI, such products can therefore be used to effectively flag up incidents before they occur by detecting behaviours and facial cues, rather than simply just reacting to accidents which is an issue with standard systems.

“With the next level of vehicle safety technology available we have the power to prevent accidents and risky driving which will not only have a positive impact on the bottom line for fleet operators, but, more importantly, will vastly improve the safety of their drivers and other road users.”

Hazard identification

VisionTrack’s NARA (notification, analysis and risk assessment) cloud-based software package uses deep learning algorithms to allow any connected vehicle camera solution to automatically identify different types of vehicles, cyclists and pedestrians.

The company says it can also distinguish between collisions, near misses and false positives that can be generated by harsh driving, potholes or speed humps.

“With traditional video telematics solutions, commercial fleets can be experiencing hundreds of triggered daily events,” says Richard Kent, president of global sales at VisionTrack.

“NARA proactively removes false positives and monitors driver behaviour without the need for human involvement.

“This will enable fleets to deliver more efficient working, while not compromising on road safety.”

During the testing phase, VisionTrack found a 1,100-strong logistics fleet was generating an average 2,000 priority videos a week, which, the company says, would typically take someone more than eight hours to review.

He says NARA reduced the time taken to review events that require human validation was reduced to just minutes per day.

AI is also being used in other fleet applications, such as route optimisation software.

In this, the AI systems can analyse large volumes of data and identify patterns such as traffic and can then use this information to create optimised routes that factor in time, distance and cost-efficiency considerations.

Over-the-air software updates

A further way connectivity is helping reduce downtime is through over-the-air software (OTA) updates.

New vehicles are increasingly being launched with the ability to receive tem, which can reduce or eliminate the need for physical visits to dealerships or service centres.

The rise of electric vehicles and the increasing complexity of modern vehicles means the need for software updates has become increasingly crucial as it allows for the correction of issues, the addition of new features, and the improvement of existing ones, says Pedro Pacheco, senior analyst at automotive analysts Gartner.

Regular software updates can prevent hacking and other security threats, ensuring the safety of passengers and the protection of personal data.

The downloads are received via a wireless network connection and can happen when the vehicle is being used, but they usually need to be stationary for the software to install.

A recent example of how OTA can reduce downtime is the global recall earlier this year by Volvo for its entire line-up of 2023 model year cars, amounting to 106,681 cars worldwide, including 10,197 vehicles in the UK.

Volvo says the issue lays in software within a braking control module and could mean that in “rare cases” a car’s autonomous emergency braking (AEB) might fail to activate when needed.

To remedy the affected vehicles, Volvo will update the software relating to the brake control module.

This will be done OTA for vehicles with that function, while all others will need to be taken to a dealer.

Infrastructure services company FM Conway has implemented a new artificial intelligence (AI) telematics system on its 1,000-strong fleet.

The installation is part of the company’s 10-year health and safety strategy, The Big Ten in 10, which prioritises the 10 biggest risks to life and uses digital and technological advances to implement safety-critical controls.

The telematics system analyses how the fleet is being driven via live data from the company vehicles, as well as providing in-cab prompts that help adjust unwanted driver behaviours.

By using AI cameras in the vehicle’s cab, the system pre-emptively identifies incidents or potentially dangerous driver behaviours and sounds an alert before recording a short clip of footage to be reviewed.

“The in-cab cameras can, for example, detect if the driver has picked up his phone or is looking at a map or has undone his seatbelt,” says Dave Conway, IMS and road safety manager at FM Conway.

“We are notified immediately so we can send a message to his boss, and his boss can call him on a hands-free transmission and say ‘put your seatbelt on’, or whatever.”

Just how To Find The Right Blogging Platform For Your Needs

The ideal system can make blogging a wind, as well as the incorrect system can make blogging a job. Locating the appropriate system isn’t constantly very easy, yet with a little bit of consideration and also a little bit of research study, you will certainly be on your means to discovering the best blog writing system.

A lot of extremely personalized blogging systems, like portable kind, are a little bit a lot more hard to utilize than really automated systems like wordpress. On the various other hand, if you are an expert internet developer with expertise of html or javascript, you will most likely discover the constraints of an easy to use system to be aggravating.

There is no such point as a blog writing system that is fairly the most effective system, since every blog writer has distinct demands. The blogging activity is significantly concerning uniqueness, so it makes lots of feeling that there would certainly be various systems offered that are created to satisfy the demands of various sort of people taking on various sort of tasks. This variety is a good idea, since it implies that you will certainly likely have the ability to locate a program that matches your degree of technological ability.

The reality that no 2 blog writers require the very same point from a blog writing system can make your search for the appropriate system a little bit complicated. There is no such point as the ideal system for everyone, so rather of looking for the “ideal” system, look for the finest system for your details standards.

Locating the best system isn’t constantly simple, yet with a little bit of reflection as well as a little bit of research study, you will certainly be on your method to discovering the excellent blog writing system.

The reality that no 2 blog writers require the exact same point from a blog writing system can make your search for the best system a little bit complicated. There is no such point as the ideal system for everyone, so rather of looking for the “finest” system, look for the finest system for your certain standards.

Das €1.000+100 FPS Main Event der PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) Festivals presented by Monte-Carlo Casino®️ 2023 ist am Final Table angekommen – €307.160 warten auf den Sieger.

55 Spieler sind in Tag 3 gekommen, mit Frederik Thiemer gab es eine große deutschsprachige Hoffnung. Für ihn war auf Platz 22 Schluss – €8.850 war die Belohnung dafür.

Auch für die DACH-Spieler Samuel Ju (Platz 19, €10.520), Otto Lemke (Platz 29, €6.680), Matthias Roth (Platz 32, €5.820) und Serge Badel (Platz 53, €5.050) mussten an Tag 3 ihren Traum aufgeben.

Die letzte Chance für einen Sieg aus Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz stellt Maksym Mamon dar. Er sitzt mit 2.625.000 Chips auf Platz 7 von 8.

Tomas Patka aus der Slowakei führt das Feld mit 16.350.000 Chips an. Er konnte sich auf PokerStars für $100 für das Turnier qualifizieren. Hinter ihm sitzt Daisuke Ogita aus Japan mit 13.725.000 Chips.

Alle Spieler vom Final Table haben €36.940 sicher, auf den Sieger warten €307.160. Um 12:30 Uhr geht es bei Blinds 125.000/250.000 weiter. Hier geht es zum Stream!

Chipcounts und Table-Draw:

Ergebnis:

Qualifier to EPT Main Event – ‚Win Your Seat @ 100,000 chips‘ – SEAT ONLY – Unlimited Re-Entry

FPS Main Event – Single Re-Entry Per Flight – 60 Minute Levels – Final Day

#19 (1/A)

EPT Main Event – Single Re-Entry Day 1/A

#16 (day 2)

EPT Super High Roller – Unlimited Re-Entry Day 2

FPS High Roller – Unlimited Re-Entry – 40 Minute Levels

Qualifier to EPT Main Event – ‚Win Your Seat @ 50,000 chips‘ – SEAT ONLY – Single Re-Entry

Qualifier to EPT Main Event – ‚Win Your Seat @ 50,000 chips‘ – SEAT ONLY – Single Re-Entry

Qualifier to EPT Main Event – ‚Win Your Seat @ 100,000 chips‘ – SEAT ONLY – Unlimited Re-Entry

#19 (1/B)

EPT Main Event – Single Re-Entry Day 1/B

NL Hold’em – Unlimited Re-Entry

EPT Super High Roller – Unlimited Re-Entry Final

#26 (day 1)

PL Omaha – Single Re-Entry Day 1

Hyper Turbo Knockout (€1,000) – Freezeout

Qualifier to EPT Mystery Bounty – ‚Win Your Seat @ 50,000 chips‘ – SEAT ONLY – Single Re-Entry

#19 (day 2)

EPT Main Event – Single Re-Entry Day 2

NL Hold’em – Unlimited Re-Entry

PL Omaha – Single Re-Entry Final

#31 (day 1)

EPT Mystery Bounty (€1,000 Mystery Bounty) – Unlimited Re-Entry Day 1

PLO Hi/Lo – Single Re-Entry

Hyper Turbo Knockout (€1,000) – Freezeout

#19 (day 3)

EPT Main Event – Single Re-Entry Day 3

NL Hold’em – Unlimited Re-Entry

#31 (day 2)

EPT Mystery Bounty (€1,000 Mystery Bounty) – Unlimited Re-Entry Day 2

#36 (day 1)

NL Hold’em – Single Re-Entry Day 1

#35 (day 1)

Seniors (50 years or older) – Single Re-Entry

Qualifier to EPT High Roller – ‚Win Your Seat @ 100,000 chips‘ – SEAT ONLY – Unlimited Re-Entry

Hyper Turbo Knockout (€5,000) – Freezeout

#41 (1/A)

Mystery Bounty (€500 Mystery Bounty) – 30 Minute Levels – Unlimited Re-Entry

Qualifier to €1,650 Mystery Bounty – ‚Win Your Seat @ 50,000 chips‘ – SEAT ONLY – Single Re-Entry

Qualifier to EPT High Roller – ‚Win Your Seat @ 100,000 chips‘ – SEAT ONLY – Unlimited Re-Entry

NL Hold’em – Single Re-Entry Final

Seniors (50 years or older) – Single Re-Entry

EPT Mystery Bounty (€1,000 Mystery Bounty) – Unlimited Re-Entry Final

#19 (day 4)

EPT Main Event – Single Re-Entry Day 4

#42 (day 1)

EPT High Roller – Single Re-Entry Day 1

H-O-R-S-E – Single Re-Entry

#41 (1/B)

Mystery Bounty (€500 Mystery Bounty) – 20 Minute Levels – Unlimited Re-Entry

Qualifier to €2,200 Deep Stack – ‚Win Your Seat @ 50,000 chips‘ – SEAT ONLY – Single Re-Entry

#19 (day 5)

EPT Main Event – Single Re-Entry Day 5

#42 (day 2)

EPT High Roller – Single Re-Entry Day 2

Mystery Bounty (€500 Mystery Bounty) – 30 Minute Levels – Unlimited Re-Entry

#46 (day 1)

€2,200 Deep Stack – Unlimited Re-Entry Day 1

#47 (day 1)

€550 NL Hold’em – Unlimited Re-Entry Day 1

#48 (day 1)

NL Hold’em – Unlimited Re-Entry Day 1

Hyper Turbo Knockout (€1,000) – Freezeout

NL Hold’em – Unlimited Re-Entry

NL Hold’em – Unlimited Re-Entry Final

€2,200 Deep Stack – Unlimited Re-Entry Final

€550 NL Hold’em – Unlimited Re-Entry Final

EPT High Roller – Single Re-Entry Final

EPT Main Event – Single Re-Entry Final

€2,100 6 Handed – Unlimited Re-Entry

€5,150 6 Handed – Unlimited Re-Entry

Last Chance Super Hyper Turbo – Freezeout

06.05.2023 18:50

EPT Super High Roller Final Table

13:00 CEST

In today’s rapidly evolving technology landscape, Pacheco Information Technologies has become a significant player in product optimization. This detailed article will help you understand how their transformative solutions have enabled organizations to achieve substantial improvements in their product lifecycle. We will delve into the importance of product optimization, the contribution of Pacheco Information Technologies in this area, and numerous examples to illustrate their impact.

Importance of Product Optimization

Product optimization is a crucial aspect of any business that aims to deliver products that cater to the needs and preferences of consumers. It involves multiple iterative stages throughout the product lifecycle. Each stage focuses on enhancing the product’s performance, design, user experience, and overall impact. The ultimate goal of product optimization is to maximize customer satisfaction, increase profitability, and gain a sustainable competitive advantage.

Some essential factors contributing to the importance of product optimization are:

• Consumer expectations are always rising:Customers want improved features, higher quality standards, and better user experiences in products.
• Dynamic market conditions:Companies need to adapt to evolving market trends, customer preferences, and emerging technologies for sustaining their competitive advantage.
• Reduced time-to-market: Optimized products enable organizations to reduce their time-to-market, which ensures an early mover advantage in a competitive landscape.

Pacheco Information Technologies: An Introduction

With a mission to enable organizations to excel in product optimization, Pacheco Information Technologies has become a leading provider of transformative technology solutions. Established by a group of experienced IT professionals, the company offers a range of innovative, forward-thinking software and services that assist organizations in all stages of product optimization.

As a pivotal player in the industry, Pacheco Information Technologies is known for its commitment to continuous improvement, providing its clients with cutting edge solutions. Their methodology, driven by advanced data analytics and Artificial Intelligence (AI), enables organizations to deliver highly efficient, agile, and customer-centric products to market.

Key Solutions Offered by Pacheco Information Technologies

Pacheco Information Technologies offers an impressive suite of solutions geared towards product optimization. Some of their key offerings are:

1. Data Analytics: Gain insights into customer preferences and unmet needs while identifying product improvement opportunities.
2. AI for product development: Leverage AI-powered tools to enhance product features and create a more intuitive user experience.
3. Design Optimization: Develop and refine product designs to improve performance, meet customer requirements, and minimize production costs.
4. Quality Assurance and Testing: Ensure products meet stringent quality standards and are free from defects, leading to increased customer satisfaction.
5. Supply Chain Optimization: Streamline logistics and improve sourcing to reduce lead times, improve efficiency, and minimize costs.

The Impact of Pacheco Information Technologies on Product Optimization

The solutions provided by Pacheco Information Technologies have yielded substantial improvements in product optimization across multiple industry verticals. Here are some quantifiable impacts that clients have experienced:

Along with these quantitative improvements, companies working with Pacheco Information Technologies have also witnessed significant enhancements in customer satisfaction, brand reputation, and overall market share.

Examples of Pacheco Information Technologies in Action

To further illustrate the impact of Pacheco Information Technologies’ solutions, we present two concrete examples of their work.

Example 1: Electronics Manufacturer

An electronics manufacturer struggling with high production costs and low customer satisfaction approached Pacheco Information Technologies for assistance. The company leveraged Pacheco’s data analytics and AI solutions to streamline product design, identify inefficiencies, and optimize production processes. The result was a 25% reduction in production costs, 30% improvement in time-to-market, and a significant boost in customer satisfaction.

Example 2: Automotive Industry

Pacheco Information Technologies collaborated with an automotive company to address quality control issues and enhance product design. Utilizing Pacheco’s design optimization and quality assurance solutions, the company redesigned key product components and implemented rigorous testing processes. As a result, the automotive company experienced a 20% decrease in production costs and a 50% reduction in defective products, leading to increased customer satisfaction and revenue growth.

Conclusion

The compelling examples and wide-ranging impacts described in this article demonstrate Pacheco Information Technologies’ transformative potential in the realm of product optimization. From designing cutting edge products to ensuring robust quality assurance, organizations can rely on Pacheco Information Technologies for strategic solutions that drive success.

“Our ancestors put blood and sweat in this place for us to have Jesus present,” said Angelo Sandoval on a spring day inside the 1830s church of St. Anthony, where he serves as mayordomo. “We’re not just a church, we’re not just a religion – we have roots.”

These churches anchor a uniquely New Mexican way of life for their communities, many of which no longer have schools or stores, and struggle with chronic poverty and addiction. But it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find the necessary resources to preserve the estimated 500 Catholic mission churches, especially since most are used for only a few services each year.

“When the faithful generation is gone, are they going to be a museum or serve their purpose?” said the Rev. Rob Yaksich, pastor of Our Lady of Sorrows in Las Vegas, New Mexico, which oversees 23 rural churches. “This old, deep-rooted Spanish Catholicism is experiencing serious disruption.”

In the hamlet of Ledoux, Fidel Trujillo is mayordomo of the pink-stuccoed San José church, which he keeps spotless even though few Masses are celebrated here regularly.

“Our ‘antepasados’ (ancestors) did a tremendous job in handing over the faith, and it’s our job now,” Trujillo said in the characteristic mix of Spanish and English that most speak in this region. “I much prefer coming to these ‘capillas’ (chapels). It’s a compass that guides where your heart really belongs.”

Each mission church is devoted to a particular saint. When New Mexico’s largest wildfire last spring charred forests less than 100 yards from San José church, and Trujillo was displaced for a month, he took the statue of St. Joseph with him.

“Four hundred years ago, life was very difficult in this part of the world,” explained Felix López, a master “santero” – the artists who sculpt, paint and conserve saint figures in New Mexico’s unique devotional style. “People needed these ‘santos.’ They were a source of comfort and refuge.”

In intervening centuries, most were stolen, sold or damaged, according to Bernadette Lucero, director, curator and archivist for the Archdiocese of Santa Fe.

But how much these expressive sculptures and paintings still matter to local communities is evident where they survive in original form, as they do at the mission churches in Cordova, Truchas and Las Trampas on the road from Santa Fe to Taos.

“Saints are the spiritual go-to, they can be highly powerful,” said Victor Goler, a master santero who just completed conserving the altarpieces, or “reredos,” in Las Trampas’ mid-18th century church. “It’s important for the community to have a connection.”

On a recent Sunday at Truchas’ 1760s Holy Rosary church, López pointed out the rich decorative details that centuries of smoke and grime had hidden until he meticulously removed them with the absorbent inside of sourdough bread.

“I’m a devout Catholic, and I do this as meditation, as a form of prayer,” said López, who’s been a santero for five decades and whose family hails from this village perched on a ridge at 7,000 feet (2,100 meters).

Down the valley in Cordova, santero Jerry Sandoval also says a prayer to each saint before starting to sculpt their image. He then paints them with natural pigments and varnishes them with the sap of piñon, the stocky pine tree that dots the countryside.

He also helped conserve the centuries-old reredos at the local church, where many children come back for traditional Christmas and Easter prayers – giving hope that younger generations will learn to be attached to their church.

“They see all this,” Jerry Sandoval said in front of the richly decorated altarpieces from St. Anthony church. “Lots of people call it tradition, but we call it faith.”

For the Rev. Sebastian Lee, who as administrator of the popular Santuario de Chimayó complex a few miles away also oversees these mission churches, fostering local attachment is a daunting challenge as congregations shrink even faster since the Covid-19 pandemic.

“I want missions to be where people can taste culture and religiosity. They’re very healing, you’re soaked with people’s faith,” Lee said. “I wonder how to help them, because sooner or later one mission is not going to have enough people.”

The archdiocese’s Catholic Foundation provides small grants, and several organizations have been founded to help conservation efforts.

Frank Graziano hopes his non-profit Nuevo Mexico Profundo, which supported the Cordova conservation, can obtain the necessary permit from the archdiocese to restore the 1840s church of San Geronimo. Deep cracks break apart its adobe walls and bug nests buzz in a gaping hole by one of the windows.

The surrounding village is almost entirely depopulated, making it unlikely that the community will step in for the necessary upkeep. Exposed to rain and snow, adobe needs a fresh replastering of dirt, sand and straw every couple of years lest it dissolve.

That makes local buy-in and some kind of ongoing activity, even just funerals, fundamental to long-term preservation, said Jake Barrow, program director at Cornerstones, which has worked on more than 300 churches and other structures.

But with fewer priests and fewer faithful, taking some rural missions off the church’s roster might be inevitable, said the Rev. Andy Pavlak, who serves on the archdiocese’s commission for the preservation of historic churches.

“We have two choices: Either return to the community, or back to the earth they came from. We can’t save them all,” said Pavlak, who for nearly a decade ministered to 10 historic churches in Socorro County.

Running his hand over the smooth adobe walls he restored at the 1880s Santo Niño de Atocha chapel in Monte Aplanado, a hamlet nestled in a high mountain valley, Leo Paul Pacheco argued that the answer might hinge on the faith of future generations of lay people like him.