What's the Score?
The Cleveland Indians are in first place — at least in terms of home-field entertainment.
Just in time for opening day, Daktronics installed a $7 million light emitting diode (LED) display system at Jacobs Field — the largest at any professional sports facility in North America.
The main scoreboard display, which measures 36 feet high by 149 feet wide, is fully programmable to display live video, instant replays, scores and player statistics. It can show multiple images on split screens, so fans can keep an eye on out-of-town baseball games or other Cleveland sporting events while they’re watching the action on the field.
The LED technology makes a “night-and-day difference,” according to Mark Steinkamp, spokesperson for Daktronics. “The new system is bigger, brighter and more colorful than the old cathode ray tube system.”
www.daktronics.com
Don't Do Windows
PPG Industries’ mailroom may soon be flooded with thank-you letters from grateful cleaning ladies. The company’s new self-cleaning glass virtually eliminates the most dreaded of household chores — window washing.
SunClean™ glass is made with a durable, transparent coating of titanium dioxide (TiO2) that is applied to hot glass during the manufacturing process, where it forms a strong, durable bond with the glass surface. The photocatalytic property of the coating is triggered by the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) light, which slowly breaks down and loosens organic dirt.
The coating also causes water to sheet (rather than bead) across the surface of the glass. When rain or a light spray of water hits the window, the water carries away the loosened dirt. This helps the window dry quickly with minimal spotting or streaking.
www.ppgsunclean.com
Bigger is Better
Q: What is taller than a school bus, bigger than a locomotive and heavy enough to smash five trucks into a heap occupying the space of one?
A: The new Advantage 600 landfill compactor made by Al-Jon Inc.
The heaviest of its kind in the world, this machine wields twice the compaction force of its predecessors.
“If we’d had these machines 25 years ago, three- quarters of the world’s landfills could still be operating now,” according to Kendig Kneen, Al-Jon president and active NAM member.
These behemoths have brain as well as brawn. Optional hydraulic landing gear lifts the entire machine off the ground so crews can change its 12,000-pound steel wheels. Automatic fire suppression systems detect and extinguish blazes. And an on-board laptop computer can diagnose and repair mechanical problems.
www.aljon.com
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