ERMUSR MISC MEMO 02-12-2008 - Laserfiche WebLink

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® Who are the big winners in the recently adopted energy law? :Suppliers of components for fuel-efficient cars. Automakers will scramble to meet a 40% increase in average fuel efficiency by 2020. They'll snap up diesel engines from BorgWarner, Denso and Delphi. Turbochargers from BorgWarner, IHI Corp. and Honeywell's Garrett. Batteries for hybrids from Johnson Controls and Panasonic. Hitachi, TRW and others will see more orders for electronic and mechanical components. Lighting manufacturers. New efficiency regulations for lighting will effectively KO incandescent bulbs by the middle of the next decade. Lighting firms such as Osram Sylvania and Philips can expect huge demand for light emitting diodes, compact fluorescents and pinpoint halogens. Among smaller firms likely to benefit: Element Labs, an LED expert. Orion Energy Systems, a cutting-edge player in efficient fluorescents. And in the longer term...R&D leaders in cellulosic ethanol and other cutting-edge biofuels. The new federal alt-fuel mandate, which will require blending some 21 billion gallons of cellulosic ethanol in auto fuel by 2022, will be a boon to the likes of Abengoa Bioenergy of St. Louis and Poet of Sioux Falls, S.D. Plus Novozymes and DuPont will be busy selling the enzymes to break down cellulosic materials. Ethanol industry suppliers will hurt in the short term, however. Corn-based ethanol production is outstripping the pace at which blenders can mix ethanol into fuel. Meanwhile, ethanol makers are being squeezed by the sharp rise in corn prices. So times will be tough for a few years. An expanded FMLA, Family and Medical Leave Act, is coming soon. ~ After the new rules are signed into law early this year, employers will be required to provide up to 12 weeks' unpaid leave to immediate family members of reservists or National Guard members who are called to active duty. Workers caring for family members wounded during military duty are entitled to 26 weeks' unpaid leave. Workers' personal protective Qear will cost you as of Mav 15. Occupational Safety and Health Admin. regs will force firms to pay for it in manufacturing facilities, shipyards, marine terminals, longshoring and construction. OSHA sees 21,000 fewer injuries per year as a result. ® Keep your eve on the independents in the New Hampshire primary. They make up 44% of the state's eligible voters, and on Jan. 8, they can participate in either the Republican or the Democratic contest. They will help determine who wins the party nominations, boosting either Democrat Barack Obama or Republican John McCain. Independents will also provide clues to the Nov. elections. If most of them vote in the. Democratic contest, as happened in Iowa, it suggests they would also desert the GOP in the general election. And that would mean an across-the-board Democratic win later this year. Your very t ly, Jan. 4, 2008 THE INGER AS GTON' ITORS P.S. Learn how to manage employees with difficult personalities. We'll offer tips in a 90-minute interactive audio conference on Feb. 26. Register for it at www.krm.com/kiplinger or call 800-775-7654. Copyright 2008. The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc. Quotation for political or commercial use is not permitted. Duplicating an entire issue for sharing with others, by any means, is illegal. Photocopying of individual items for internal use is permitted for registrants with the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923. For details, call 978-750-8400 or visit www.copyright.com.