Representing an AGV vendor is often a conflict of interest. The end-user customer’s interests may not align with the AGV vendor’s interests. The only way to avoid these conflicts is a vendor agnostic approach to automation. As a sales manager for several automated guided vehicle (AGV) companies there was an intention: sell AGVs. Performance was measured by number of vehicles sold per month, per quarter, per year, year over year, and at a measured profitability.

The historical perspective is easy to grasp. Automated product movement is a well-established, easily understood concept. It is so familiar and normative that many in the material handling sector consider conveyance technology little more than a commodity. That is a wild over-simplification. Conveyor solutions are developed from dynamic and complex challenges which require safe, ergonomic, tested and proven products, developed by creative people with a focus on lean manufacturing continuous process improvement.

Deregulation (better described as re-regulation) came later to Ontario's energy sector than for example to the UK where it happened in the 1980s. The Energy Competition Act of 1998 (ECA) had as its ultimate goal the creation of a competitive market in the electricity and natural gas industries.

The 30-year agreement between Russia’s Gazprom and China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) was formally signed by Russia’s President Vladimir Putin during a summit in Shanghai between the leaders of the two nations.

Russia has been keen to find an alternative energy market for its gas as it faces the possibility of European sanctions over the crisis in Ukraine and while no officially price has been given for the Russia-China deal, it is estimated to be worth over $400 billion.

Adjusted pre-tax profit for the year to the end of March was £461 million, up eight percent on the £428 million the company posted a year ago. Meanwhile, revenue rose by 17 percent to £2.33 billion.

Overall retail sales rose by 15 percent and contributed 70 percent of total revenue. While footfall remained weak, the number of customers buying goods, and their average spend, both increased.

Facing off with a screaming, unreasonable, irrational customer represents the ultimate test of any employee’s service skills.  It can take you to your breaking point if you’re not careful.  Staying grounded and above the fray requires you to find inner strength, and persevere beyond the initial difficulties.

Dealing with irate customers is one of the most pressure-packed experiences you will ever encounter on any job.  During every confrontation it is important to remember:

The US telecommunications firm plans to pay $48.5 billion in cash and stocks in order to gain access to DirecTV’s 40 million digital TV customers in the US and in Latin America. The deal would also give AT&T a new source of revenue beyond its traditional telecommunications business.

With nearly all 543 seats declared by the morning of May 17 the Bharatiya Janata party (BJP)'s victory in India's general election was secure as Narendra Modi arrived in New Delhi. The BJP announced that he would not formally take office until after Tuesday, however speculation as to the implications of this landslide for India's economy is already rife.

Modi faces overwhelming challenges on the economic front, though his victory comes at an auspicious time, with a background of world economic recovery and a strengthening currency

The country’s GDP rose 1.5 percent in the January-to-March period, against a revised 0.1 percent in the prior quarter. The figure, led by a rise of 2.1 percent in consumer spending, beats previous forecasts of 1.0 percent growth and came ahead of a sales tax increase introduced at the beginning of April. Capital spending by businesses also outperformed, rising by 4.9 percent, which was more than double analyst expectations.