| Does Your Car's A/C Have You Hot Under the Collar?
TARRYTOWN, N.Y., Jan. 24 /PRNewswire/ -- MS -- When summer comes and it's time to switch on your car's A/C, it might not blow as cold as you'd like it to. In fact, it could even be blowing hot air. Some estimate that older vehicles can lose as much as 15 percent of their air conditioning refrigerant every year, leakage generally caused when the system is not used during the winter months. During these months, the system's small O-ring seals dry out resulting in refrigerant loss and deterioration in system performance. The good news is, bringing back the cool to your car's A/C and enjoying a sweat-free ride to work doesn't have to mean an expensive stop at the corner garage. Automotive air conditioning technology has produced a new generation of easy-to-use, do-it-yourself products that makes bringing the cool back to your car simple, easy and a lot less costly than that trip to the mechanic's.
Tomkins FY pretax 262.6 mln stg, up 7.3 pct; sees challenging year ...
(adds reaction, amends spelling of CEO James Nicol's name) LONDON, Feb. 21, 2008 (Thomson Financial delivered by Newstex) -- Engineering group Tomkins reported a 7.3 pct rise in pretax profits of 262.6 mln stg for the year to Dec 29, after new products and a focus on emerging markets helped offset economic weakness in US car and construction markets. Sales from continuing operations were 2.94 bln stg, down from 3.13 bln in 2006, it said, and the adjusted operating margin was 9.0 pct against 9.4 pct the year before. Adjusted operating profits, which exclude disposals, fell 11 pct to 264.7 mln. Net debt was 296.8 mln stg, against 403.0 mln in 2006, and the company said it is considering a share buyback of 5-10 pct. CEO James Nicol said the group, which makes components for cars and air conditioning systems and building products such as baths and windows, delivered a good performance after taking a number of 'self-help' measures to counter headwinds in its US automotive and construction end-markets.
Air conditioning unit sparks hotel fire
A heating and air conditioning unit sparked a fire Wednesday at a North Myrtle Beach hotel, said city public information officer, Nicole Aiello. The fire occurred around 9:51 a.m. at Peppertree by the Sea, 305 South Ocean Blvd. Two people were treated for injuries on the scene, and one was transported to Seacoast Medical Center. HORRY COUNTY Fire victim died of smoke inhalation, burns An autopsy performed Wednesday determined that smoke inhalation and severe burns killed a man who died in a fire at his office late Monday, Deputy Coroner Tony Hendrick said. The fire occurred in a building in the 4000 block of West U.S. 501. The victim's name is being withheld until his family, believed to live in Guatemala, is notified, Hendrick said.
German carmakers lead in reducing CO2 emissions
BMW AG, Volkswagen AG and other German carmakers cut carbon-dioxide emissions more than European rivals last year as they struggle to reach planned European Union targets. German brands sold domestically had 2 percent lower CO2 output last year, a greater reduction than French and Japanese models sold in Europe's largest economy, said Matthias Wissmann, president of the VDA German automobile manufacturers' association, at a briefing today in Berlin. The European Union plans a cap on carmakers that will force them to reduce CO2 emissions, a gas linked with global warming. The draft proposal, which is being negotiated this year among European lawmakers, will reduce the carbon emissions to an average 130 grams per kilometer (0.6 mile) for a manufacturer's fleet by 2012, with an additional 10 grams coming from improvements in tires, air conditioning and other vehicle parts.
Middle-class autoworkers cling to way of life amid benefit cuts
Just two weeks after his 18th birthday, Randy Horter started his first factory job, helping make clutches and air conditioning systems at an auto parts plant. Since then, the 49-year-old Chrysler line worker has cobbled together a career working at various manufacturing plants and made a nice, middle-class life with his wife, Candace, who works at the same Chrysler plant in Belvidere, Ill. The couple earns about $75,000 a year, unless one or the other is laid off. They own two used cars and their home. Between them, they raised five children, now grown, and were hoping to start preparing for retirement. .
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