And that makes 3 - Toyota bails out

[Goose]

Anyone remember a few years back when the price of barley went up because the Yanks started making ethanol out of it, maybe 5 years ago if I recall.

which is precisely why regional biodiesel makers that rely on palm oil for feedstock went bust...

 

[DJ_L3ThAL]

Dont worry I over heard a conversation about this recently

Quote by bottle blonde pretend glamour " Yeah...we where going to get solarpanals to cut down the power bill....but they make the roof look ugly "

Bet she could suck a d.......

 

[peas_and_corn]

cold fusion.

Doesn't fusion use (heavy) hydrogen and produce helium? (Plus energy)

I wonder how quickly they fry. It might even be as simple as some of those sharp pins around the tower edge to stop them landing in the path of the collector beams.

After the first sentence I thought you were going to recommend using rosemary

 

[wombil]

Bring on a single world currency. I can see bankers and currency traders leaping out of highrise office building.

How can I get a good seat to watch this?

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

Dont know. But you can sit with me and we can share some homemade beers,jeerky,salami, cheese and bread and watch em jump.

 

[wide eyed and legless]

If global currency ever happens we will all be dead and buried, and our children and grand children for that matter.
As for a renewable energy I am confident that there is a solution, probably so simple that no one has thought of it yet.
But say there was a simple solution,how would governments react. Germany has mothballed power stations to cover the carbon emission set by E.E.U. and the effect of people turning to solar, because of this gas prices in Germany are rising to make up the shortfall from electricity revenue.
Another possible source in the near future.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geothermal_power_in_Australia

 

[Online Brewing Supplies]

On my last visit to Lithuania, they were importing nuclear generated power from outside their boarders .
whilst maintaining a "green" profile they were still using nuclear power, just not generated on their turf.
These countries are so close to each other that having your own infrastructure makes little sense, so cheap nuclear power makes sense if only from a financial aspect.
Solar makes little impact in a country like Lithuania, just not enough sun.

 

[wide eyed and legless]

This year I grew some Giant Russian cucumbers and when anyone has asked me where I got the seeds I tell them Chernobyl.

 

[Online Brewing Supplies]

Cucumber vodka ??
Is it possible ?

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

If global currency ever happens we will all be dead and buried, and our children and grand children for that matter.

Why is that.

 

[wide eyed and legless]

Plum Brandy is, some of the BBC documentary is Cooking in the danger zone 15 kilometres from Chernobyl.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwStrnqsIwo

 

[wide eyed and legless]

Why is that.

How could it work? Prime example Euro, would you like your taxes bailing out other countries.

 

[komodo]

I heard and read here and there that that the people building these cars on the assembly line, process workers for want of a better word, were on $50 per hr. Now if that is true then no wonder they have all gone to the wall. And thank you Abbot for not propping them up any longer.

I've not got the time or patients to read the rest of the tripe in this tread - but seriously I employ guys working under an AMWU EBA. No ******* way are they on $50 an hour. If they were I wouldn't put up with the bull shit I put up with if I could get that kind of money working the on the workshop floor. They might COST $50 an hour by the time the employer accounts for annual leave, sick leave, leave loading, workcover (or equiv) insurance, any top up insurances, PPE, training etc etc. But there is NO way they are taking home $50P/H even gross.
My boys in the workshop earn no way near $50 an hour. I charge them at $87 an hour and I make less than $5 an hour out of them performing a full tilt and I'm betting I pay better than Toyota/holden/ford do.

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

My old employer used to charge $90hr...I got 25 of that. The rest was taken up in general overheads,vehicles, fuel etc.

 

[spog]

My old employer used to charge $90hr...I got 25 of that. The rest was taken up in general overheads,vehicles, fuel etc.

As a self employed chippie I couldn't agree more with what you said.
The cost's of fuel,rego,insurance,licences,clearances,repairs,replacement s,testing and tagging every 3 month's the list seems to be endless,all this has to be allowed for and the cost passed down the line.
Also super,sickness and accident cover,long service,holidays etc etc,and the building industry being flat as it is here doesn't help.
Though it could be a lot worse,just have to soldier on and hope things pick up soon.
Cheers....spog..

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

One of his pet hates was when a customer says " yeah but I can buy that part for $x cheaper". They dont understand the time it takes ordering, pick/delivary, holding stock etc

 

[wide eyed and legless]

Well if I was getting less than $5.00 per hour nett from the $87 I was charging, I would expect to have at least 20 guys working for me to make it worth the effort of employing them.

 

[komodo]

^ I have about 30 & that's how its works - total of the tape. And we hope they don't **** up cause when they do it costs $. Or when there's no work and the boys are sweeping the floor that costs $ with 0 income.
Problem is you'd think doubling your number of employees would double your capacity. Its simply not the case. For a double the employees you might get a 1.5-1.7x increase in productivity. More employees = more headaches. Sometimes I think I'm a kinder teacher not a manager.
Last financial year we broke even and this year we look to be making a loss unless things pickup dramatically. Regardless of how much work you're doing most of your overheads don't vary that greatly. Sure materials costs are lower and your consumables are down. But general electricity bills remain fairly stable, estimators are still working, rent remains the same, licencing remains the same, 3 month testing of equipment (irrespective of if its been used or not), water, rates, gas etc all remain fairly stable but your turn over is down. Eventually something has to give.

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

Kind of interesting. Know a bloke who has a long reach excavotor for cleaning dams. He was telling me he make more from running 1 machine than he didwhen he had 10 ( dozer, grader,roller etc )

Sometimes more is not better

 

[wide eyed and legless]

That's the problem with being an employer, there is never a happy medium regarding work coming in, my brother who is a roofing plumber has been working for a roofing contractor for a number of years, but it was the better times that almost sent them to the wall,labour force went up to around 150 and they ended up loosing money.
His boss has now declared a workforce of 70 would be his maximum, there are about 35 there at the moment and my brother tells me that they are going to have to take cuts such as travel allowance and site allowances etc just to stay employed.
Better to make some minor sacrifices and be employed.