New regulations now being proposed by the U.S. Department of Transportation would severely restrict the way lithium-ion batteries and equipment containing them are transported, packaged, and labeled – a move that could cost power-tool-users and manufacturers millions of dollars in add-on fees, according to the Rechargeable Battery Association (PRBA).
Last year might have been one of the worst in automotive history, but that didn't prevent a trio of U.S. truck manufacturers from scoring top overall automotive sales figures for their best-selling pickups. And although the annual sales list perennially includes the Ford F-150 pickup – the world's single best-selling model among all types of vehicles, including cars – this time around Big Blue shared the accolades with General Motors and Dodge.
In January, just days before the big North American International Auto Show in Detroit, when automakers reveal their hottest vehicle introductions and innovations for the year, Dodge Trucks announced that a gas-electric hybrid version of its recently re-engineered Ram 1500 pickup was in development and would roll out 'sometime in 2010.'
Tradesmen are problem-solvers. We all have 'Aha!' moments – those instants of clarity and understanding when you see the solution to your problem, right in front of you. Burt Weinstein has made a career of such moments. The big difference between him and the rest of us is that he patents his solutions and turns them into innovative products that help solve everyone else's problems. 'Inventing is simply identifying a need and then fixing it,' he explains. 'The trick is to identify the need.'
New Heavy-Duty Dodge Rams / What's That Beater Worth?
