Will Current Developments in Energy-Efficient Technologies be able to Essay

Will Current Developments in Energy-Efficient Technologies be able to address Concerns over Natural Resources Depletion - Essay Example Improving energy efficiency in the economy will lead to energy savings. Rising energy prices makes it necessary for business entities and household consumers to adopt efficiency in energy consumption (Blair, John and Gowan, 1993). Energy efficiency refers to both improvement in technology and changes in behavior. The paper evaluates whether current developments in energy-efficient technologies will be able to address concerns over natural resources depletion and if there is a need to adopt different routes for attainment of these objectives. DISCUSSION Several methods of increasing energy efficiency are being implemented in developed countries of the world. The potential of these methods, according to Kounetas and Tsekouras (2010) is to reduce consumption of fossil fuels through improved energy efficiency in buildings, transport and industrial processes is 17 to 33%. Key innovations in energy efficient technologies which can be adopted on wide scale are discussed below: ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN INDUSTRY many industrial processes require large amounts of heat and mechanical energy, which is mostly generated by fuel and electricity. In addition, some industries produce fuel from waste. Since the industrial processes are so varied, there are numerous ways to increase efficiency. They are often based on the specific technologies and processes of each industrial plant.   There are some typical processes and energy services, which are found in the industry very often (Kounetas and Tsekouras, 2010). Conventional electricity generation by  steam power plants, which escapes from the heat produced as waste heat is typically at least 30% to 60% efficient at best.  Efficiency of this industrial process has been improved in recent years through  combined utilization of heat and power, are used both for heat and electricity, it uses up to 90% of the energy. Improved boiler and burner can operate at higher temperatures and burn less fuel at the same time.  T his makes them more efficient at lower  pollutant emissions.  Another method adopted to increase efficiency is the use of  porous burners  and suitable  catalysts (Mulder, 2005). These reduce combustion temperature resulting in lesser formation of  nitrogen oxides  and lower enthalpies  consumed through which considerable amount of heat energy can be saved that increases energy efficiency. In industrial processes, many electric motors run at constant speed. Adoption of energy efficient technology in this process involves installation of an electronic  speed controller to  adapt energy output of the motor to the load.  This can help achieve energy savings of 3% to 60% depending on the type of engine use (Thiruchelvam, Kumar and Visvanathan, 2003). Industrial processes also use  compressors to create  compressed air  for production of tools, sand blasters and sprayers.  The energy efficiency of this technology is being improved by 20 to 50% through the in stallation of speed controller and sealing  of leaks  through of preventive maintenance (Mulder, 2005). Automation one of the major utilization of energy at global level is for transportation through automobiles.  Energy efficient technology is being adopted in this sector of energy consumption as well. This energy efficient technology replaces the usual internal combustion engine vehicles to create environmentally friendly electric-car (Blair, John and Gowan, 1993). These electric-cars can be recharged at special charging stations.  Such an approach to energy usage considerably solves the problem of a low efficiency of hydrocarbon engine by

Business Risks in the Pharmaceutical Industry Essay

Business Risks in the Pharmaceutical Industry - Essay Example Manufacturers of generic pharmaceutical products in countries like Asia and Latin America are challenging the company's patents and trademark protection. 2. Exchange rate fluctuations are a major concern for a company with headquarters in the U.K., operations in 45 countries, 64,200 employees of whom 60% are based in Europe (AstraZeneca, 2005, p. 16), 49% of sales from the U.S. and Canada, and 30 manufacturing sites in 20 countries buying and selling raw materials from different sources using a variety of currencies (AstraZeneca, 2005, p. 14), although they are minimizing this to avoid currency fluctuation effects. The company reports in U.S. dollars, so a stronger dollar will have a negative effect on its bottom line due to lower dollar revenues on sales in foreign currencies. Although AstraZeneca mitigates currency risk, it does not "seek to remove all such risks (AstraZeneca, 2005, p. 155)." The company, with a $1.1b fixed interest rate debt, is exposed to interest rate risk due to fluctuations in market interest rates. By converting fixed interest debt to floating rate (AstraZeneca, 2005, p. 91), every one hundred basis point (on e percent) rise in interest rates means the company pays $11m more. 3. Uncertainties of developing new products from the Research and Development (R&D) pipeline affects not only AstraZeneca but the whole pharmaceutical industry, which spends an estimated $1 billion over at least ten years to launch a new drug (KPMG, 2005, p.6), which includes losses incurred in developing drugs that do not even reach the market. Companies need to launch new drugs to replace those with expiring patents, marketing exclusivity or trademarks (Bate, 1997, p. 230-231). 4. AstraZeneca is the 9th largest pharmaceutical company in the world (Fortune, 2005) and competes with bigger companies with more resources for R&D and marketing. It also competes with biotechnology companies developing similar products. Increasing regulations in Europe, the Americas, and Asia (Clifford and Flochel, 2005) that put caps on drug prices directly or indirectly lead to low revenues and margins. 5. The company is at risk of paying higher taxes if existing U.K.-recognized double tax treaties are revoked for any reason. Fortunately, these treaties are holding but the risk of being taxed more than once for the same revenue is real. 6. AstraZeneca had a product liability scare in 2004 with Crestor, an anti-cholesterol drug. As the recent experience of Merck with Vioxx has shown, adverse publicity depresses the stock price and wipes out a portion of potential revenues (Bate, 1997, p. 287-288). 7. AstraZeneca's reliance on other companies for raw materials and services expose it to supply chain risks. If these third parties do not deliver, the company suffers stoppages in production, late deliveries, and lost revenues as the market switches to similar drugs. 8. The pharmaceutical i