Electrical Gems #150 | Page 8

NEWS ¢ WANT TO SHARE SOME NEWS FROM YOUR PATCH IN TIME FOR THE NEXT ISSUE? EMAIL: EDITOR @GEMCELL.COM.AU CONNECTED IT’S A DATE CATCH UP ON WHAT BRIGHT SPARKS AROUND THE WORLD ARE INVENTING, MAKING AND RESEARCHING. TECHNOLOGY & GADGET EXPO, MELBOURNE It’s a couple of months away, but you need to plan a three-day trip away well in advance. Discover for yourself the latest home tech trends, and enjoy a few nights in Melbourne, too. When: 28-30 June 2019 Where: Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre Info: tge.melbourne ALEXA, CAN YOU PASS ME THE… The annual Las Vegas consumer electronics event CES didn’t disappoint this year, with a whole host of new tech on show. The ‘high- light’ was the new Kohler Numi 2.0 smart toilet. Dynamic lighting is one feature – as is a built-in Alexa. Don’t write it off just yet – at the very least it’s a far more hygienic way of accessing the internet, music, audio books and podcasts than playing with your phone while you’re sitting on the toilet. Which is what you do now. Don’t you? Just admit it. BATTERY POWER They may be better known for batteries, but at February’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Energizer launched 26 mobile phones. Twenty six. Talk about not holding back. Wonder what the battery life is like? SHOUTABOUT Who: Ashley Flegg, owner, True South Electrical, Elwood, Vic. What: Winning Middy’s 2018 Nick Middendorp Small Business Award. “It was a huge surprise to win the award – it was the first year Middy’s had ran the campaign, and we were the major prize winner, winning $10,000. I entered after receiving an 8 GEMCELL.COM.AU APR – MAY 2019 Hum-free operation Group mounting saves space QUOTE OF THE ISSUE “THE HOUSE WAS LITERALLY PERFECT NOW. INSTEAD OF BEING THRILLING, IT SUDDENLY SEEMED DEPRESSING.” LIANE MORIARTY, WHAT ALICE FORGOT. Built-in protective circuit Tool free to save time THE POWER OF WASTE Project Plant-e, a research group at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, has created the Plant Microbial Fuel Cell, which can generate electricity by placing an electrode near plant roots to capture the electrons released as a waste product. email inviting us to enter, however I never thought we’d win. “Three other contractors won runners-up prizes worth $5000 each, too. It was a great confidence boost, and a sign our company is moving in the right direction. It was a nice reward for the team, too – we shared a portion of the winnings!” 7.1 % — ESB and EN installation contactors A new, wider range of contactors take noise reduction to new levels THE YEAR-ON-YEAR GROWTH OF THE VALUE OF THE AUSTRALIAN HOME RENOVATIONS MARKET ABB’s hum-free installation contactor designs offer a wide range of ratings from 16 A to 100 A. With an innovative AC/DC coil design that eliminates hum, a broad selection of common accessories as well as manual and automatic versions, ESB..N contactors cover all your needs in both domestic and residential applications. Find out more at: abb.com/lowvoltage