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SF Mayor Newsom signs green building legislation

Mayor Gavin Newsom today signed what's being touted as the"nation's most aggressive green building legislation"requiring all new and renovated office buildings to meet minimumgreen standards by 2009 and the highest green standards by 2010.

    The mayor signed the legislation following a tour of the newlyrenovated Matarozzi/Pelsinger Builders headquarters at 355 EleventhSt. in the city's South of Market neighborhood. That building isthe first to receive priority permitting for green building. Underthat program, projects seeking the highest rank of Leadership inEnvironmental Design -- or LEED Gold -- certification get"front of line" privileges during the building permitapplication review.

    Matarozzi/Pelsinger renovated the building for its headquarters andwill occupy the second floor and half of the first floor. Arestaurant is planned for the remainder of the first floor. GastArchitects will occupy additional space in the building.

    The building required significant structural upgrades to make itearthquake-safe. And the roof of the building will include 30-kwsolar panel system and a "living roof" or garden. Thebuilding was designed to make use of natural air ventilationincluding operable windows. Other green accoutrements include solar panel flooring, radiant heating floors, bicycle parking, anddedicated parking spots for alternative-fuel vehicles.

Emcore cuts loss despite manufacturing delays

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.,

    Emcore Corp., a maker of components for communications gear and solar panels, nearly halved its loss for the latest quarter despitetroubles in the solar-panel business.

    The company lost $7.7 million, or 10 cents per share, for thefiscal third quarter, which ended June 30. That compares to a lossof $14.6 million, or 29 cents per share, in the same quarter lastyear, the company said late Thursday.

    Revenue rose 70 percent to $75.5 million.

    Excluding nonrecurring charges and stock-based compensationexpense, the loss was 4 cents per share. Analysts polled by ThomsonFinancial, on average, had expected a loss of 3 cents per share onthat basis, and revenue of $78.5 million.

    Revenue from photovoltaics used in solar panels rose 30 percent,but the gross margin was negative 3 percent. The installation of anew manufacturing line was delayed, and the production volumecouldn't absorb the added overhead costs.

    The Albuquerque-based company expects revenue from solar panels forsatellites to rebound in the next few quarter.

    The company's fiber-optics and legacy datacom units did better,with revenues up 94 percent and 144 percent, respectively.

    Emcore's order backlog declined to $109 million at the end of thequarter from $158 million at its start, partly because of thepending acquisition of a large solar-panel customer meant it wasunable to commit to further purchases.

    Shares of Emcore fell 45 cents to $4.01 in premarket tradingFriday.

    Copyright 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This materialmay not be published broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed

County considers $3M in solar panels

County considers $3M in solar panels

By Michelle Durand, Daily Journal Staff

A $3 million solar panel project atop the county government centerin Redwood City will provide clean, renewable energy and recoup itsinitial cost in as little as four years, according to a reportcoming before the Environmental Quality Committee next week. Thecounty would spent $500,000 toward a 330-kilowatt solar project,offsetting the remaining cost with a $1.5 million federal grant anda $1 million state loan. If energy prices continue increasing by 7percent or greater annually, the county could break even on theinitial cost in as little as four years. Approving the project is“the smart thing to do” because it promotes cleanenergy and lets the county lead the way in environmentalprotection, according to Supervisor Mark Church who will presentthe report to the Environmental Quality Committee at its Aug. 12meeting. The county is allocated $1.5 million for a solar projectthrough the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Bill of2009. The legislation remains unsigned so although the county isincluding it in penciling out the solar project’s cost, thereis yet no guarantee the funds will come through. Without such afederal grant, the county would need to pony up $2 million andpayback would take 18 years. Even so, according to the staffreport, the county’s use of solar power would reduce theamount of electricity it would have to buy at peak rates.Currently, the cost of solar electricity isn’t competitivewith utility power because installing panels is so expensive. Ifenergy costs rise at least 7 percent, as expected, solar powerbecomes significantly more attractive. The county pays an averageof 99 cents per kilowatt-hour plus ad addition nickel for peakdemand periods. Solar power would be created during peak periods,thereby offsetting the county’s higher costs. The report alsolooked at a larger 1-megawatt solar project for the county parkinggarage but such an undertaking carries a $9 million price tag,requiring a a $4.5 million or $6 million county contribution andpayback timeline of 15 to 17 years. The facility would be splitinto two 500-kilowatt solar projects to cover all the parkingspaces at the county center and the San Mateo Medical Center. As analternative to buying and installing its own solar project, thecounty could enter into a power purchase agreement with a firmwhich would do both in return for federal tax credits. Suchsymbiotic systems are used by the Bay Area Rapid Transit Districtand the Fresno/Yosemite Airport. The federal tax credit programexpires at the end of 2008, however, so the county must jumpquickly if it wishes to go this route. The solar panel proposal isthe latest green effort by the county aimed at saving money and theenvironment. In October, the county committed to the Cool CountiesDeclaration which seeks to reduce the carbon footprint 80 percentbelow current levels by 2050. In late May, the Board of Supervisorsasked for more information about a potential program encouragingresidents to install solar panels on their homes. A cost analysisand other details will return to the Board of Supervisors at alater meeting. The Environmental Quality Committee meets 1 p.m.Aug. 12 in the Board of Supervisors conference room, 400 CountyGovernment Center, Redwood City. Michelle Durand can be reached bye-mail: michelle@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200ext.

Beware Fake Solar Equipment Invade Market

Osbert Tindimwebwa of Uganda Solar admits that the market isflooded by sub-standard solar panels and the habit is goingunchecked. He urges the Uganda National Bureau of Standards tocrackdown on the fake solar panels. He also cautions prospectivebuyers to be on the look out for the genuine dealers.

    "The industry needs some regulations, but sadly, even our umbrellaorganisation, the Uganda Renewable Energy Association is in limbo.It died out as soon as the donor project phased out. It is now afree-for-all business," he says.

    Tindimwebwa explains that the unscrupulous perpetrators oftentarget the premier solar panels, which they take to Nasser Road andduplicate stickers to increase the price of the solar panels. Hesays they mainly add labels, say for the 14 watt panels are changedto 40 watts. The 50 watt panels are also changed to 100 watts andthen sold to unsuspecting customers.

    "They tell customers that the 100-watt panel can work for sixhours, but when the customer reaches the village, the panels cannotstand the time. Interestingly, when they go to report the anomaly,these fellows insist on funny clauses in sale agreement, therebycheating the customers what rightly belongs to them. A professionalcompany cannot engage in such practice," he notes.

    He advises that if solar panel customers want genuine products,they should contact the Private Sector Foundation of Uganda (PSFU)ask for the solar companies operating under the Business UgandaDevelopment Scheme Energy for Rural Transformation.

    He says the companies under this umbrella undergo stringentscrutiny and have their operations checked every year. They(companies) are also required to have professional people to selland install the panels. What is more, PSFU has a data base on allinstallations made in the country as proof.

    Tindimwebwa explains that when it comes to inverters, the fakedealers mainly sell the square-wave inverters, while genuineoperators deal in the pure sine-wave inverters.

    "Not any equipment can run on the pure-sine wave and modifiedinverters, but they operate seamlessly on pure sine-waveinverters."

    Chirag Dalwadi, the technical support manager of Seven Hills Impex,agrees that that dealing with recognised brands is one way to avoidfake equipment.

    He says dealing with the world renowned Su-kam widely respected inthe field of inverters, batteries and solar systems has done thetrick. The products are hard to duplicate.

    He says they have realised that power generation needs are uniqueand cannot be met by the ordinary inverters or generators, which iswhy the Su-Kam sine-wave inverter takes the entire spectrum ofneeds in the most cost-effective manner.

    "It supplies the highest quality power to run expensive andsensitive household appliances. Its user friendly operations andlow maintenance costs are added advantages," he explains

    He says whereas solar is expensive at installation, it turns cheapin the long run. This adds up, considering the lifespan of thegenuine inverters and solar panels is more than 10 years.

    "They have proven that they work without disturbance and eventhough they are fairly higher-priced than similar items on themarket, satisfied customers have always referred others," Dalwadisays, adding that they have since permeated into areas where thereis no electricity.

230000 homes get solar power

By Mizan Rahman

    DHAKA:

Millions in Bangladesh are taking to solar power to light up theirhomes at night.

    Officials said, over 230,000 rural households in Bangladesh havebeen brought under the solar power system in last five years by theInfrastructure Development Company Ltd (IDCOL).

    Executive Director of IDCOL, a company under the Ministry ofFinance, Ehsanul Haque yesterday told newsmen that they aim toinstall 1mn Solar Household Systems (SHSs) solar panels by 2012 tohelp government achieve its target of providing electricity to allby 2020.

    SSHS system, containing photo voltaic panels, battery, chargecontroller, solar lamp and switch, is a convenient mode for supplyof power for small electrical loads such as lights, radio, cassetteplayers and black and white TV, he said.

    Although only available for a few hours in a day, the SHSsprogramme has positively changed the rural economy, he said.

    SNow they are using SHS for income-generating activities andworking hours have been increased for small businessmen, weavers,tailors, hair dressers, and makers of handicraft items, IDCOLchief said.

    In addition, the use of TV and radio has enhanced rural people"saccess to the outer world. Many women opined that they were feelingmore secure at night after installing SHSs, Ehsanul said.

    IDCOL has been implementing the solar electrification programme inremote areas far from the power grid since 2003 through 15 NGOs andMicro Finance Institutions (MFI) including Grameen Shakti and BRACwith the financial support of different development partners.

    World Bank and KfW (German development financing bank) haveprovided $51mn and 9.68mn euro respectively as loans while GlobalEnvironmental Facility (GEF), KfW and GTZ (German technicalcooperation agency) gave $4.8mn, 4.6mn euro and 2.7mn eurorespectively as a grant for the programme, IDCOL sources said.

    Among the SHSs providing NGOs, Grameen Shakti makes the lion"sshare of solar panels produced in the country.

    SSo far, we have installed 170,000 solar panels with an averageper month installation rate of 8,000 panels and it is beingincreased at a fast pace, Head of International Cooperation andDevelopment Department of Grameen Shakti, Dr M S Islam said.

    NGOs are providing a wide range of Solar Photo Voltaic (PV) panelsfrom 30 watts to 120 watts. A 50 watt PV panel can run four LEDlights and one black and white television, he added.

    The price for the whole SHS system including PV, battery, wire andother accessories ranges between 21,000 taka and 70,000 taka andconsumers can purchase a solar home system for cash or get credit.

    SRecently, we started producing a 10-watt panel costing 8,500taka targeting the poorest families, he said. SA 10-watt panelcan run two to three lights.

    To get credit, a customer has to pay a minimum ten to 15% of thetotal cost as down payment. The rest can be paid within two to fiveyears.

Solar panel project unveiled on Ore. highway interchange

Associated Press - August 8, 2008 9:25 AM ET

    PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - Solar power is hot right now in Oregon.

    This week, the Oregon Department of Transsportation unveiled thecountry's first solar panel project on a major US highway.

    The solar panels have been installed at the interchange ofInterstate 5 and Interstate 205 near Tualatin.

    The goal is for the panels to start generating electricity by theend of the year.

    The panels will account for 28% of the energy needed to powerlights that illuminate the interchange at night.

    Early next year, the department will seek proposals for similarhighway projects generating 2 million kilowatt hours annually.

    That's an amount that could feed 182 homes, or about 4.5% of ODOT'sannual energy use.

    Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. Thismaterial may not be published, broadcast, rewritten orredistributed.

Solar panels law makes greens see red

go renovations, get new heating systems or have roof repairs.

    To give the regulation teeth, a fine of ?1,000 (785), awaitsthose who do not comply.

     Critics say the rule constitutes an attack on the rights ofproperty owners. The regional government in Giessen has stepped inand warned that it will overturn the rule.

     In response, city officials in Marburg say they will take theircase to administrative court, or all the way to the Hessian statecapital, where they will try to get the state building code changedto protect their ordinance from officials in Giessen.

     In the middle of this political chess match sit homeowners such asGoetz Schoenherr. From his balcony, Schoenherr can see the town'sfamous hilltop Gothic castle, as well as two of its threepower-generating wind turbines. On his roof, a  solar panel glintsin the sunlight. He uses it to heat his water, allowing him to turnoff his boiler for roughly six months of the year  a boon forhis wallet but a decision he said he made for the environment.

      And yet Schoenherr opposes the new law.

      Schoenherr had hoped to re-insulate his home, but to do so andsatisfy the solar regulation he would have had to install a largersolar panel. It would have cost him close to 4,000.

       "That leads, in my case, and I would think in other cases as well,to people saying: 'Well, let's just not reinsulate the roof,'"Schoenherr said. "So it's absolutely counterproductive."

       Officials in Giessen agree. "We have no problem with the use ofsolar energy," said spokesman Manfred Kersten, "but this was apoorly constructed ordinance."

       Germany is one of the world's champions of reducing greenhouse gasemissions and promoting renewable energy. Thanks to hefty federalsubsidies, the country is by far the largest market forphotovoltaic systems, which convert sunlight into electricity.

       Marburg, a historic university town where the Brothers Grimm oncestudied, is a model of enlightened energy production andconsumption. In addition to the wind turbines and solarinstallations, the town's utility company buys hydroelectric powerfrom Austria, is converting its fleet of buses and other vehiclesto natural gas, and even lights footpaths with solar-powered lamps.

       "Marburg is already a leader when it comes to the use of solarenergy, but up until now they've always tried to convince peoplerather than forcing them," said Hermann Uchtmann, the oppositionpolitician behind the "green dictatorship" charge. He is a chemistat the local university, who once built a solar-powereddesalinisation plant for the town's sister city of Sfax, Tunisia.

        "It's unfortunate that they decided to compel people, because Ithink you breed opponents that way rather than friends of solarenergy," Uchtmann said.

        But restricting the measure to new constructions would not gavegone far enough for the politicians behind it.

        "We have a serious energy problem with the older homes," Marburg'sdeputy mayor Franz Kahle said. To make a real leap forward, hesaid, a dramatic step was necessary.

        "Before, solar installations were the exception and their absencewas the rule," Kahle said. "We want to get to the point where theopposite is the case."

Implementation Strategy for the California Ocean Protection .

California's Ocean Protection Council (OPC) staff today released

An Implementation Strategy for the California Ocean ProtectionCouncil Resolution to Reduce and Prevent Ocean Litter.This is a 23 page final draft open for comments, thatcontains the strategy to reduce and eliminate ocean litter bybanning plastic bags and containers statewide. Recommendations alsocall plastic toys for plastic manufacturers to recover and dispose of theirproducts and for product user fees to be assessed.If you read this report, you will find out how serious the problemsour ocean has from litter, how it affects fish and marine mammals,and why it is so important that California take bold action.Action will not come without strong opposition from the plasticsindustry. This report sets the stage for action that will have farreaching benefit for ocean healthbut only once it has beenadopted by the OPC. (1) institute a statewide prohibition on single-useplastic bags and polystyrene takeout containers; and (2) imposefees on other packaging.OPC staff is seeking comments on the draft in writing by August.Staff will incorporate changes to the draft based on commentsreceived. The OPC is also soliciting public comment during itsmeeting September 11 at 9 a.m. in Half Moon Bay.Just take a look at how the report begins in describing the currentsituation off California coast and you will recognize what isat stake:Ocean litter also commonly referred to as marine debris is a persistent and growing problem worldwide. In the Southern Ocean, the amount of plastic debrisincreased 100 times during the early 1990s. These are just a fewexamples of an expanding body of research that demonstrate that,despite the MARPOL international treaty prohibition on dumpingplastics at sea, debris in the oceans is increasing at an alarmingrate. This is due to the fact that 80% of the debris comes fromland-based sources, particularly trash and plastic litter in urbanrunoff, and the generation of trash and waste is increasing.SDuring the last 10 years, the Southern California Coastal WaterResearch Project (SCCWRP) and the Algalita Marine ResearchFoundation (AMRF) have conducted studies to identify and quantifyocean litter in 4 marine habitats: the beach, the ocean bottom, theocean water column, and the ocean surface. The ocean bottom isdominated by larger material, such as fishing gear and beveragecontainers. The water column contains mostly plastic fragments,small enough to be suspended by ocean currents. The ocean surfacecontains fragments and whole items of floating plastic trash. Thebeach environment contains a combination of different materialsthat differ in size and composition according to distance from thewater edge. The environmental impacts associated with oceanlitter will vary by habitat with aesthetic issues being moreimportant on beaches, and food web concerns being more significantfor the small surface.

Local businessman collecting toys for 'furry soldiers'

Stephen Harrison, COO of Tallahassee-based Seva Technologies, cameface to face with an opportunity while flying north for aconference recently. He struck up a conversation with a soldierreturning to Iraq whose partner is a dog. No, really, a dog. TheDepartment of Defense uses canines to sniff out explosives. It isquite a dangerous operation, as you might imagine.Anyway, Steve wants to help get these plastic toys furry soldiers some thingsthat will make off-duty life more pleasant for them and theirpartners. He suggests things like tennis balls, squeaky toys andsoft Frisbees, but please don't send any treats because our caninetroops have dietary restrictions.Anyway, Steve is willing to collect the supplies and pass themalong to the military for battlefield distribution at his SevaTechnology offices, 1618 Mahan Center Blvd., Suite 102. You canreach him with questions at (850) 391-4832.By the way, Air Force spokesman Oscar Balladares said there areabout 1,750 furry soldiers in service for us, so it's unlikely theyget enough toys and tennis balls to go around Next, I bring you a story about that plastic "toy" most of ushumans carry with us. It's yet anotherwhat-were-they-thinking-in-this-age-of-ID-theft story.At dinner Friday our friends dutifully presented their plasticmoney to pay the bill. Seems the card fell through a crack in the counter and then throughan opening in the outdoor deck where all the restaurant's checks gofor payment. And in the darkness, the card could be neither seennor retrieved.The friends were advised they would have to come back the next day"when we can see it while it's light outside."Happily, all turned out to be as it seemed, and the friends wereable to be there when the card was unearthed. And, of course, paythe preceding night's bill.Note to local restaurateurs: when you lose the customer's creditcard, it is considered good form to give the meal away at nocharge. As it is, everyone who hears the story (complete with thename of the establishment) is stopping to think whether they shouldgo there.Contact Business Matters Editor Steve Liner at (850) 599-2238 or sliner@Tallahassee.com.

Yuen green creations are not for sale

To add a fun element to her warriors, she has humanised Pokok bytelling people that it was him who made all the green items.The five dolls in tennis ball containers are assembled using oldsocks, tennis balls, strips of old clothes and toilet paper tubes.I put each warrior in a capsulated case to tell people that theair outside is contaminated and so they can only survive in thesterile air, although they really want to come out, Yuen said.Her creations under the I Am Not Junk series are not for sale atthe moment, although many people find them cute and useful.I decided to take away the element of greed because I feel that ifyou want to do something good, it should come from the heartwithout expecting plastic toys anything in return.It started as a hobby, I didnt think much about how it wouldimpact the environment in a positive way. But it has become moremeaningful now by saving more things from ending up in landfills.I am doing what I love without receiving money, and it has led meto many opportunities, she said.Yuen recently exhibited her creations at the No Plastic Bag Concertby The Recyclists and people approached her to ask how she made theitems displayed.I dont mind sharing my knowledge at all. I am glad that I havemet my objective, which is to inspire more people to save theenvironment! she said.Yuen is going to give out her bookmarks at her mini exhibition atthe arts and culture event at Menara Hap Seng every Sunday inAugust.Visitors can also meet Pokok and ask him any questions by writingthem down on paper and placing them in his notebook. He willrespond via email or snail mail, Yuen said.Yuen said developers and other organisations could maximise theirresources by reducing waste and transforming them into premiumgifts.Instead of wasting money giving away diaries or notebooks andcreating demand for more trees to be chopped down, they could usescrap materials on site and turn them into decorations andstationery, or even create a new product line to add value to theirbusinesses, she said.Her future plans include creating soft toys of endangered animalswhich die as a result of trying to eat plastic bags, producing anebook to illustrate ways of turning junk into art, and utilisingher knowledge in remedial therapies to come out with her ownskincare products. I am also experimenting on how to make rubber stamp ink fromjuices of fruits and vegetables, she said.Yuen  http://closetcrafty.blogspot.com

Lego: a toy of gentle genius

The fact that Lego is still the top toy in Britain after the best part of half a century shouldcome aslittle surprise. Children everywhere might be bombarded with theidea that they're meant to be products of the all-consumingdigital-electronic-computer-txt msging-iPod world, yet nothing, itseems, beats the elemental pleasure of placing bricks together andcreating worlds of their very own. plastic toys When those bricks fit togetheras precisely and as enjoyably as Lego's do, and offer the sheervariety of plastic-bricky joy as the latest Lego sets do, then thegently instructive pleasure is simply all the more.Lego is one of those toys that adults can happily play withalongside children without getting bored. It is a toy of gentlegenius and one that goes to prove that very many of us, of allages, in a country devoted to not making things and shutting up itstraditional manufacturing industries as plastic toys quickly as commerciallypossible, enjoy making things.If the Lego experience was played out on a wholly adult,manufacturing scale, we would still be happily making locomotives,ships, aircraft and Brunel only knows what, rather than muddlingour way disgruntledly through an economic life given overincreasingly to shopping and, if not shopping, then stackingshelves and buying cars to fill up with costly petrol to drive to supermarkets to shop some more. Making things makes uscontent and even happy and Ole Kirk Christiansen (1891-1958), a Danish carpenter and inventor of Lego appears tohave known this intuitively.Lego, from the Danish "leg godt", or play well, has done ratherwell since the company was founded in 1934, making wooden buildingbricks for children, turning to plastic in 1949. The richest personin Denmark today is Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen grandson of Ole, and Lego's CEO from 1979 to 2004. Some 20million bricks are made each year not in China, or at least notyet anyway and each brick connects with every other made, tothe same scale, since the plastic technology was perfected in 1963.Lego likes to say that sufficient bricks have been made since 1963for every person in the world to own more than 60; that means someof you out there must own thousands.While it's true that Lego has been cashing in on fashionable filmtie-in and other crazes in recent years, creating toys based on Star Wars, Harry Potter and other heavily marketed children's favourites, the basic bricksstill allow, and encourage, fresh generations of children to thinkand play and to make things for themselves.

Inflatable plastic toys gaining popularity

Inflatable plastic toys gaining popularit.By Zakir Hassnain.PESHAWAR: Chinese inflated toys have flooded local marketsand are in great demand due to hot weather.Both adults and children enjoy relaxing in toy swimming poolsfilled with water to beat the sizzling heat while small childrenrest in water-filled homes, chairs, ducks, lions, fish, aeroplanes, and other such floating toys.Local shopkeepers and roadside toy sellers purchase inflated toysfrom Karkhano markets, a few kilometers from Peshawar, which arefamous for smuggled goods. Roadside sellers have a variety ofinflated plastic toys and do a roaring business in hot season..I have a variety of swimming pools at reasonable prices rangingfrom Rs 450 to Rs 1500 and they are for both adults and kids,Ijaz, a roadside seller, told Daily Times.Ijaz, a young boy and resident of Mansehra, Hazara, said he boughtplastic toys from Kharkhano markets. Most Chinese plastic toyscome from Lahore to Karkhano markets in containers and hugestocks, he said.Ijaz said inflated toys were used only in summer and were of no usein winter. We dont have any customers in winter for water-filledtoys. However, rocking toys for kids give us little business, hesaid.I save Rs 20 to 50 on a small piece. Large swimming pools give agood profit, he said..Ijaz charged customers extra money for air pumps. He said customerswere given one glue sticker free of cost for punctures. He saidplastic toys lasted for two to three years if properly handled.Tanvir Ahmed, another roadside toy seller on Sher Shah Soori Roadin front of the railway station, said he had left school. Myfather has given me money to do this business. Sometimes I purchasetoys from Karkhano market shopkeepers on credit. They trust me,said Tanvir, 14.Sometimes we dont have a single customer for two or three daysand its really disappointing, said Kashif, anther roadsideseller. Kashif said Karkhano shopkeepers increased prices ofinflated toys in summer.Home National

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How do you Choose Safe Toys?

Your toy shopping could be a bit more limited next year.The US house and senate have reached a deal on new toy safetylegislation. This, after a year of a number of toy recalls.The new law would ensure that toys don't have lead in them or thatthey don't have certain toxins found in some plastic.It could come up for a house vote this week.News Three is on your side with what you need to know.It's certainly not the worst place to clock into every day, MainStreet Toy Shop. Just ask the owner, Gladys Griffin, “I kindof keep the kids active and playing while moms playing.”A self described big kid, Gladys Griffin say she loves workinghere, but lately aside from the little ones she's been answeringsome grown-up questions from the parents.Says Griffin, “They ask about lead paint. They want to makesure we're not carrying things with lead paint in them.”Griffin says over the past year - she's gained a new awarenessabout lead and she's learning about new proposed laws that mayaffect her plastic toys .Griffin says, “If its been recalled, I look around make sureI don't have anything on the shelf, I pull it right away.”So what do the experts say when it comes to cleaning off theshelves?Dr. Richard Mansfield, a local pediatrician says to steer clear oflead. But he says when it comes to toxins and plastic, congress maybe being a bit cautious.Says Mansfield, “I think data is young. I don't think we havesignificant data to say one way or another, its always best safethan sorry so limiting that can be a proven step.”And even though the shelves at Main Street Toy Shop may look alittle different in the future , they'll still be full.And Gladys Griffin won't stop playing, she'll just be playing it -alittle safer.So what should you look out for if your in the market for sometoys? We're on your side with some safety tips.Dr. Mansfield says to look for non toxic labels on toys, he saysalso - to avoid toys made with lead. Also important - to read theguideline on age requirements. And the Georgia Department of HumanResources tells us that if you want to play it extra safe, look fortoys that are made in the USA.

Health Canada recalls plastic toys

The toy guns and binoculars were made in China and imported bySymak Sales Co. Inc., St.-Laurent, Que.Health Canada is also recalling 164, 15.2 cm tall horseshoe magnetswhich have a red plastic coating on the handle end.The department says the surface paint on the magnet also containsdangerous levels of lead.The plastic toys magnets were sold between March 2003 and April 2008 in Alberta,Saskatchewan, British Columbia, Ontario and Manitoba at EducationStation, Helping Hands Tools for Parents, J & M Kool Ltd.,Kidsource Inc., Dynamic Learning Toys and Supreme Learning Productsstores. The magnets were manufactured in China by Dowling Magnetsof Sonoma, California.Health Canada is advising parents the recalled toys shouldimmediately be taken away from children and safely disposed of.To date, it has not received any reports of illness or injuryrelated to the use of these toys.Canwest News Service 2008

Ban Weighed On Children's Toy Ingredient

What Is All The Fuss About Chemicals In Toys?by Jon Hamilton.House and Senate lawmakers this week moved toward banning sometypes of phthalates, a family of chemicals found in many softplastic children's toys. Here, a look at where phthalates are foundand the health concerns they raise.What are phthalates.They're chemicals widely used to soften plastics such as vinyl.Manufacturers use hundreds of million of pounds of phthalates eachyear in productsincluding children's toys.What kinds of toys are they found in.They're found in a variety of soft toys, including some rubberducks, bath books and soft vinyl blocks. However, about a decadeago, companies voluntarily removed phthalates from toysspecifically designed to be chewed by children, such as teethingrings and rattles.What are the health concerns?Phthalates are part of a group of chemicals called "endocrinedisruptors." Some of these chemicals act like a hormone in thebody; others block the effect of the body's own hormones. Healthconcerns center on what happens when children chew on toyscontaining phthalates, and small amounts get into their bodies.Just handling toys isn't a problem. There are more than a dozenphthalates in common use. Studies have shown that some of thesephthalates can cause reproductive problems in rodents, but theeffect on humans is under much debate.Why are lawmakers acting now?The Consumer Product Safety Commission has come under fire in thepast couple of years amid a rise in recalls of unsafe products,including imported toys that contained lead paint. Both the Houseand Senate have bills to revamp the Consumer Product SafetyCommission. The Senate version called for banning some phthalatesin children's toys as part of the commission's overhaul. The Houseversion did not. House and Senate lawmakers, who met to reconcilethe two bills, told reporters that they had agreed in principle toadopt the ban. The final bill still needs to go to a vote.If you're a worried parent, what should you do with toys that maycontain phthalates?That depends on whether your children are mouthing or chewing onthose toys. A 2003 study by the CPSC found that most children spentonly a few minutes a day mouthing soft plastic toys, and that afterage 2 children pretty much stop putting these toys in their mouthsat all.Will toys containing phthalates be recalled?Some consumer groups want that to happen. But there is no languagein the current legislation to suggest a recall. The ban would applyonly to toys sold after it becomes law.Is the ban likely to meet resistance?Some companies that make the plastic, like Exxon Mobil, havelobbied against the legislation. They say the science suggestingthat children are at risk from phthalates is weak. President Bushhas said he opposes the ban, but he has not said he would veto thebill.

Berforts Group buys UK's first Nipson VaryPress 200 SED

The Berforts Group has responded to a growing demand for itsshort-run educational and academic book printing service bybecoming the first UK printer to invest in the Nipson VaryPress 200SED.

The print and mail company took delivery of the single-engineduplex machine at its Harlow site and is anticipating a low unitprint cost, especially on high pagination documents.

Managing director Gerald White said: "We are at the start of arevolution for short-run digital book printing – it'scomparable to when the print industry moved from hot metal tolitho."

The Nipson VaryPress 200 SED will enable Berforts to print on arange of coated stocks that includes plastics, polyester, foils,thermal sensitive and carbonless stocks.

John MacFarlane, general manager at Nipson, said: "The NipsonVaryPress range of printers allows our customers to be extremelycost competitive on print runs of up to 2,000 books. It's a veryefficient, flexible and high-quality method for printing digitalbooks or brochures."

Nipson's VaryPress 200 SED can print up to 70m a minute and, induplex mode, can output a 215mm print line on a web up to 252mmwide.

This allows for letter-sized and A4-sized documents to be printedon both sides by the single print engine.

White said: "Nipson's professional and personal service, pre andpost installation, has been excellent. Although my operators nowcomplain that the printer is extremely boring as it never breaksdown."

EFI Integrates Powerful Hagen MIS with Workflow and Scheduling ...

EFI Integrates Hagen MIS with Workflow and Scheduling Solutions inEFI Monarch

Graphic Arts Online, 7/29/2008 8:05:00 AM

Connect - Las Vegas - July 29, 2008 - EFI (NASDAQ: EFII), the worldleader in customer-focused digital printing innovation, todayannounced a new offering named EFI Monarch which combines Hagen(tm)OA's Print MIS toolset, the capabilities of Prograph®, apowerful workflow and planning solution, PrintFlow® dynamicscheduling, and Auto-Count® direct machine interface to deliveran end-to-end workflow and management solution that is unmatched inthe industry. EFI Monarch, available now, is targeted at largesingle and multi-plant operations.

Marc Olin, senior vice president/general manager, EFI AdvancedProfessional Print Software (APPS), said: "The printprovider's competitive edge and profitability depend on howefficiently they leverage assets and create new revenueopportunities while driving down costs. EFI Monarch helpsbusinesses thrive in today's market by maximizing profit potentialwith every job. Its integrated toolset delivers excellent ROI byaddressing every aspect of management and workflow control."

Hagen OA provides the core management system for Monarch, with EFIPrograph for advanced production planning and JDF control, EFIPrintFlow for dynamic scheduling and optimization, and EFIAuto-Count for shop floor data collection via direct machineinterface. This powerful combination of products delivers:

A comprehensive manufacturing management tool that utilizesa back

office financial system as its foundation.

Advanced visual planning.

Automated dynamic scheduling.

 Rules-based automation with user-defined rules architecturefor

managing resources and costs efficiently.Just in Time manufacturing - ability to modify productionplans based on real-time environmental conditions and then digitallydistribute new/modified instructions to the appropriate resourcesbased on inter/intra-plant optimized schedule.

Support for multi-language, multi-facility andmulti-currency.EFI customers can continue to utilize each of the four systemsseparately if they choose. Those who migrate to Monarch willbenefit from enhanced integration and automation in theirmanufacturing processes. New customers can take advantage of onecoordinated installation process.EFI Monarch was announced today as part of a new product strategyfocused on three solution sets as a result of the company acquiringPace Systems Group and their popular ePace print MIS portfolio (seeseparate press release). EFIPrintSmith(tm) will continue to serve the on-demand, copy shop,quick printer and small commercial shop. The new product, named EFIPace, will provide a fully-integrated, optimized solution for themiddle market, and Monarch will support large single andmulti-location organizations.EFI Monarch is on display for the first time at

Connect 2008, EFI's user conference taking place now through August 1 at theWynn Las Vegas. For more information, please visit

www.efi.comor contact 1-800-875-7117.About EFI

EFI (www.efi.com) is the world leader in customer-focused digitalprinting innovation. EFI's award-winning solutions, integrated fromcreation to print, deliver increased performance, cost savings andproductivity. The company's robust product portfolio includesFiery® digital color print servers; VUTEk® superwidedigital inkjet printers, UV and solvent inks; Jetrion®industrial inkjet printing systems; print production workflow andmanagement information software; and corporate printing solutions.EFI maintains 26 offices worldwide.

HP LaserJet P4015x Laser Workgroup Printer

What would you expect, if you were going to pay ?,000 for a monolaser printer? At that sort of price, you'd probably want a goodspeed, several feed trays, a duplexer, networking, PostScript aswell as PCL and a lot of expandability. HP ticks all those boxeswith the LaserJet P4015x, part of a new range of printers aimed atworkgroups of 10 to 15 people.

This printer is a lot taller than most mono lasers we've tested,but mostly because it comes as standard with a second paper tray.Since both trays can hold 500 sheets, it makes the machine quitehigh off the desk. There's a 100-sheet multi-purpose tray, too,which pulls down from the front of the printer.That's all of the standard paper sources but, optionally, theprinter can handle up to six trays, and one of these can be amassive, 1,500-sheet bulk tray. Other options include astapler/stacker, an envelope feeder and a special media tray, aswell as more memory and a hard drive for document storage.The control panel is neat and straightforward, with a key pad forsecure printing and a 4 line by 16 character, backlit LCD display,which includes access to tutorials on printing techniques, printedout from the machine's own firmware.One feature we've seen on quite a few recent lasers is a USB socketon the front, so you can print files from a flash drive. Sadly,there's nothing like this on the HP machine, though you can printsecurely by sending a file through its Gigabit Ethernet link andprinting only after you've reached the machine and entered a PIN.As well as the network interface, there's a standard USB 2.0 socketfor local connection to a PC.Given the 225,000 page-per-month duty cycle of this printer and thecapacity of its drum and toner cartridges, it's surprising howdiscreet they are. Fold up the front cover of the printer and youcan slide in a cartridge with a minimum of fuss - and it doesn'tdisappear deep inside the machine's mechanism.Software installation is also straightforward, with the drivers andsupplies monitoring utilities loading easily from CD. The driversupports duplex documents, booklets, watermarks, multi-pages persheet and prints at both 600dpi and 1200dpi resolutions.

Evolon textile digital printing exhibited at European Parliament

Evolon textile digital printing exhibited at European Parliament

July 29, 2008 (France)European deputies witness a brilliant example of textile digitalprinting possibilities during extiles: Material for theFuture Exhibition.

Evolon, the innovative, non-PVC printing substrate manufacturedFreudenberg Evolon, was recently selected by the organisers of the"Textiles: Material for the Future" Exhibition, to maximise thevisual impact of the four-day event at the European Parliament.In tune with the spirit of the exhibition, Evolon was used todemonstrate innovation and environmentally-friendliness in the areaof digital printing onto textile substrates.With a scene construction built by design company Carlin, theexhibition uided' Parliament members from a meeting room to theinstitution's hemicycle debating chamber.The 60m2 Evolon graphic comprised individual panels measuring up to2.5m high x 2m wide, which were linked together to form variousangles in order to maximise visual appeal.Optimized for digital printing, the flame-retardant certifiedEvolon was printed by French wide-format textile digital printer,Creajet.The team at Creajet printed the Evolon panels at 2m wide and usedsublimation inks to produce vibrant colours and sharp pictures.Thanks to its non-fraying edges and the ability to be hung orattached with plain double-sided tape, Evolon eliminates the needfor stapling, which made it very easy for the stand contractors towork with. As a result, joins were neat, wrinkle-free and clean.

As its high mechanical strength and ease of handling makes Evolon printing media easily transportable and re-usable, the eventorganisers expect to display the exhibition stand at otherprestigious events in the future.

Registered in the catalogue of the French Presidency as a majorevent, Textiles: Material for the Future' took place during thefirst plenary session of the European Parliament under the Frenchpresidency. The event attracted an estimated 5000 visitorsincluding European deputies, lobbyists and administrative staff.

Designed for a multitude of printing applications that includesigns, graphics and other digital printing projects, Evolon offersprinters a blend of three key success factors, namely impeccableprinted results, inspirational versatility and improvedeco-profile, in one media.

Thanks to its compatibility with an array of different digitalprinting technologies and inks, Evolon also delivers new benefitsabove certain other available substrates.

In addition to inkjet printing using water-based, solvent,eco-solvent and UV-cured inks, Evolon ensures high performance intransfer/direct sublimation applications.Evolon is supplied in weights from 100 g/m up to 180 g/m andcan be printed in widths of up to 2m. It can be sewn or convertedlike other traditional textiles without the requirement of aspecific machine.Freudenberg Evolon is ISO 14001 accredited and fully compliant withEuropean regulations on chemical products. The media also complieswith industry agreements for flame retardancy, namely: NFPA 701 inthe USA, CA1237 for California, M1 in France and DIN 4102 B1 inGermany.Headquartered in Colmar, France, Freudenberg Evolon is part ofFreudenberg Nonwovens.

Wausau Paper Corp. Q2 2008 Earnings Call Transcript

Wausau Paper Corp (WPP) Q2 2008 Earnings Call July 29, 2008 11:00 am ET

Executives Perry Grueber - Director of IR Tom Howatt - President and CEOScott Doescher - CFO

Dan Trettin - SVP - Printing and Writing Analysts Mark Wilde - Deutsche Bank Jonathan Lichter - Sidoti & Company Presentation Ladies and gentlemen thank you and welcome to the Wausau Paper 2008Second Quarter Results Conference Call.Now would like to turn the conference over to the Director ofInvestor Relations Perry Grueber. Perry GrueberThank you, Liya. Good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining usfor the Wausau Paper second quarter 2008 analyst and investor call.I am pleased to be here today with Tom Howatt, President and ChiefExecutive Officer of Wausau Paper and Scott Doescher, our ChiefFinancial Officer. I would also like to welcome Dan Trettin, ourSenior Vice President of Printing and Writing.This morning we will be discussing Wausau Paper second quarterfinancial results, which we announced yesterday afternoon. Tom willprovide a few opening remarks relating to the performance of thecorporation and initiatives in each of the three business units.Then we will ask Dan to provide commentary on the progress Printingand Writing is making against its profit recovery plan and uncoatedfree sheet market conditions in general.

Scott will then provide a summary of financial review and touch onoften asked for data points. Tom will then conclude our preparedremarks with a review of our outlook for the third quarter of 2008,after which we would be happy to address any questions you mighthave.

As usual, I would like to inform you that statements made duringthis conference call, other than those that refer to past eventsand results are forward-looking statements made pursuant to theSafe Harbor provisions of the Securities Reform Act of 1995. Suchstatements including those relating to expectations concerningearnings and price increases involve risks and uncertainties thatmay cause results to differ materially from those set forth duringthis discussion. Among other things, this risks and uncertaintiesinclude the risks and assumptions described in Item 1A and Item 7of the companys Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007.The company assumes no obligation to update or supplementforward-looking statements that become untrue because of subsequentevents.Now over to Mr. Tom Howatt. homas HowattHi, good morning. Second quarter results for Wausau Paper werereflective of the broadly weakening domestic economy and generallydifficult demand characteristics that each of the company businesssegments faces.

Away-from-home tissue market demand was essentially flat over thefirst half of the year, while uncoated free sheet volume wasreported to have declined by more than 7%. While public industriesare generally available for Specialty Products markets it is ourbusiness that most significantly impacted by economic cycles.Demand in core markets such as release liners and tape has beenfalling substantially under recessionary or near recessionarybusiness conditions.

Second quarter results also reflect this years surge in energycosts unprecedented levels with dramatic impact on freight,chemicals, boiler fuel and other input costs, while these costincreases are pressured margins in the short-term. Our continuedfocus on strategic markets coupled with actions we have taken overthe last several quarters to address underperforming areas of thebusiness, have set the tone for significantly improved futureresults.

The move away from commoditized grades in Specialty and Printingand Writing, combined with industry capacity closures, has resultedin solid pricing leverage in some markets with customers becomingmore concerned about lining with well positioned suppliers likeWausau Paper to ensure reliable supply.While the benefits of our strategic initiatives have been masked byeconomic weakness and cost pressures, our confidence in ourstrategy has reflected in our outlook for much improved thirdquarter earnings over second quarter levels with a potential foreach of our three businesses to be profitable during the quarter.For example, margins at our Towel and Tissue business increasedfrom first quarter level to nearly 10% in the second quarter,despite unrelenting increases in wastepaper, freight and parentrolls cost. We expect our third quarter price increase and therebuild of our toweling machine at Middletown delivered improvementin operating margins over the next several quarters.At Specialty Products, our growing presence in the higher marginfood service and food packaging markets coupled with reducedexposure to the commoditized segments of the release liner marketwill drive margin gains as the economy improves. Printing andWriting, will continue executing our profit recovery plan with agoal of achieving cost-of-capital returns by the end of 2009.

The initial phase of Printing and Writing s recovery plan sawcapacity reduction well executed by the business and has deliveredthe desired mix up upgrade with the elimination of commodity gradesand much improved pricing for the balance of our portfolio. We areon track to achieve breakeven results for the third quarter of thisyear as expected, and Dan Trettin is here today to comment further.Dan TrettinThank you, Tom. It’s a pleasure to be with you this morning. Iwill cover highlights of Printing & Writing’s financialperformance for the quarter and then provide some additional detailon success we are having related to our profit recovery planinitiated last year.Second quarter shipments up 66,000 tons were 29% below prior yearlevels. The result of anticipated volume reductions associated withGroveton mill closure.Net sales were $95.6 million compared with a $114.2 million lastyear, while average selling price improved 19% reflecting thesignificant product mix improvement and price increases achieved inrecent months. Input costs continued to climb with second quarterfiber and energy cost increasing $7.5 million as compared with lastyear.Printing and Writing recorded an operating loss excluding Grovetonclosure charges of $2.8 million as compared to $2.3 million lastyear and $4.9 million in the first quarter. The $2.1 millionsequential improvement reflects progress made with our profitrecovery plan and was achieved despite the execution of annualmaintenance outages at both mills in the quarter.

As you may remember, we announced the three-part profit recoveryplan last October. The three elements of that plan were to minimizeour exposure to the commodity segments of the uncoated free sheetmarket, bring singular focus to our core products and brands andsystematically infuse capital into our ongoing manufacturingsystem, to enhance operational efficiency and improve theprofitability of these assets.

In December, we closed Groveton, a high cost facility therebyreducing our paper making capacity by 28%. Now properly sizedrelative to our markets, we selectively exited a substantial volumeof non-core lower margin business that was detrimentally affectingprofitability.

The second part of our recovery continues today. Our sales andmarketing teams are enhancing margin contribution from our premiumbrands such as Astrobrights, Royal and Exact to enhance branddevelopment and customer segmentation. Market response to-date hasbeen favorable and supportive of our efforts to refocus ourbusiness around recognized core competencies.

We are particularly encouraged by the improved pricing environmentfor uncoated free sheet papers, even though the industry demandacross the entire spectrum of grades has declined. One data sourcereports North American shipments declining 8% to the first fivemonths of 2008.

Currently, beginning the historically strongest quarter of theyear, we remain confident in our earlier guidance of achievingprofitability for the third quarter of 2008. The first initiativerelated to the investment phase of our profit recovery plan is theBrokaw dry fiber handling project. The anticipated returns of thisproject well exceed the corporations capital return threshold.This investment will reduce cost and improve both efficiency andsafety at the mill. As you know, the goal of the profit recoveryplan is returning this business to earning its cost to capital bythe end of 2009. We remain confident in our ability to do so. Iappreciate the opportunity to share a few comments with you. Wewill be more than happy to address specific questions during thequestion-and-answer session.Scott Doescher will now continue our presentation with a corporatefinancial review.Scott DoescherThank you, Dan. During the second quarter, we reported a grossprofit of $21.8 million or 7% of net sales, compared to a grossprofit of $32 million or 10% of net sales last year. Included incurrent quarter cost of sales were $1.2 million of charges relatedto closure of the Groveton mill and roll wrap operations inColumbus, Wisconsin and Jackson Mississippi.

Profit margins remained under pressure from escalating input costsas year-over-year fiber prices increased more than $14 millionincluding market pulp price increases of $8.8 million or 13%.Purchase Towel & Tissue parent roll price increases of $3.1million or 17% and wastepaper price increases of $1.6 million or30%. In addition, year-over-year energy prices increased $7 milliondriven by a $2.4 million or 43% increase in natural gas, a $2.6million or doubling the fuel surcharges on outbound transportationand an $800,000 or 50% increase in fuel oil costs.

The second quarter included $13.8 million of pre-tax chargesrelated to the December 2007 closure of the Groveton mill with $1.1million reflected in cost of sales and $12.7 million as arestructuring line item. The restructuring charges can be largelyattributed to expenses associated with utility agreements at thenow closed facility.

Additional pre-tax closure charges of approximately $2.1 millionare expected over the balance of 2008. In December we also soldSpecialty Products' roll wrap business and committed to the closureof our Columbus and Jackson facilities. Those closures occurred inearly July after all obligations under a transition servicesagreement were satisfied. As a result, the second quarter includeda pre-tax charge of $100,000 as a restructuring line item.Additional pre-tax charges of approximately $100,000 are expectedover the balance of 2008.As a percentage of sales second quarter SG&A expenses, net ofrestructuring charges were 7.1% compared with 6.7% of net saleslast year. A 37% tax rate was applied in the 2008 second quartercompared with 39.9% last year. Our balance sheet remained solid atquarter end as long term debt to capital ratio was 38%, up slightlyfrom the end of the first quarter. The company"s cash positionand existing credit facility provide sufficient liquidity withapproximately $77 million available for borrowing at quarter end.Capital spending through the first half of 2008 was $14.4 millioncompared with $13.1 million last year. Full year spending ofapproximately $50 million is expected in 2008 with the $31 millionrebuilding of a toweling machine at our Middletown mill and a $15million fiber handling and stock blending project at our Brokawfacility accounting for approximately $28 million of this total.We repurchased 480,000 shares during the second quarter at a costof $4 million. Since reactivating our buyback program in 2005, wehave reacquired 3.2 million shares at a cost of $32.8 million.Approximately 2 million shares remain in an earlier Boardauthorization and we plan to significantly reduce or eliminateshare repurchases over the next several quarters as we fund theMiddletown and Brokaw capital projects.In the second quarter, we sold approximately 900 acres oftimberland for an after-tax gain of $800,000. Since announcing oursales program in 2005, we have sold approximately 22,500 acres oftimberland for an after-tax gain of more then $20 million. Althoughthe pace of sales has slowed due to economic conditions, we expectto sell the 19,500 acres remaining in our program over the next twoyears.I'll now return the call to Tom to discuss our third quarteroutlook.Tom Howatt As we begin the third quarter, we see little reason to expect anear-term improvement in the domestic economy. Demandcharacteristics remain generally difficult and escalating inputcosts, show a little sign of easing. At the same time, our focus onstrategic markets coupled with actions taken to addressunderperforming areas of the business are paying dividends.We have achieved the early objectives of our Printing & Writingrecovery plan, mix improvement is gaining momentum on SpecialtyProducts and Towel & Tissue continues to produce above marketgrowth to the strength of its value added product initiatives. As aresult, we expect third quarter earnings to substantially improveover second quarter results and be in the range of $0.06 to $0.08per share excluding timberland sales gains and facility closurecharges.We would be please to answer any questions at this time.Question-and-Answer SessionOperator (Operator Instructions)And our first question is from line of Mark Wilde from Deutsche Bank. Please go ahead .Mark Wilde - Deutsche Bank Good morning. Tom Howatt Good morning, Mark Scott Doescher Good morning, Mark Wilde - Deutsche BankIs it possible to get a sense of what those two mill outages andPrinting and Writing would have cost you in the quarter?

Scott Doescher Yes, Mark, this is Scott. And if you take a look at the impact ascompared to first quarter it approaches $2 million. Mark Wilde - Deutsche Bank

So, without that you would have been, presumably you'd been EBIDTApositive in Printing and Writing, is that it?Scott Doescher

Yes, that's a fair statement.

Mark Wilde - Deutsche Bank

Yeah, okay, alright. And can you just, when you talk about theprofit improvement plan and you want to get the cost-of-capitalreturns by the end of '09. I think one of the key questions for alot of shareholders is, when you do that is that a plan, which hasyou sustainably it cost-of-capital returns going forward in thebusiness, because it’s really been a business is underperformedhere for several years?

Tom Howatt

Well, Mark, I’d say that's certainly our expectation. And I thinkif you take a look at the improvements is occurring at thatbusiness and presuming we would be able to achieve that. We"ve infact would have been able to accomplish it during perhaps in themost difficult of circumstances imaginable with energy costs atunprecedented levels, even since the recovery plan announcementlast October, natural gas, which impact this business unit has goneup dramatically.

I think when you look at the combination of declining marketplacein the current year coupled with those energy costs, those types ofheadwinds, I think being able to achieve the result we've targetedat this point in time would suggest that we have a solid businessmodel at this point.

Ultimately, I think what's important though, is to be able tocontinue to grow at the premium side of the business. That includessustaining a solid position with the merchant distributioncommunity and commercial print markets coupled with further successin some of the new channels that we are focusing on such as [endleaf]; scrap booking and various other similar type markets.

So, I think a way of gauging our progress and the sustainability,this is going to be our ability to penetrate those markets anddrive that premium paper growth.

Mark Wilde - Deutsche Bank SecuritiesOkay. And Dan just also on Printing and Writing, I noticed that theindustry statistics for June in uncoated free sheet were quite abit better than we haven’t seen for last few months. Have youseen any real change in market trends that would tie-up with that?DanTrettinMark, this is Dan. Our volume is really been at expectation ormaybe better than expectations, really in the months of June andJuly. So, yes, I think that the performance has been better thanmaybe what has been earlier than year.Mark Wilde - Deutsche Bank SecuritiesOkay. And then just turning over to Specialty, I noticed you'vementioned in the release that you've taken some downtime at Otisand I wondered if you could give us a little color on that. Andthen maybe also just give us a sense of kind of the specific typesof products out of Specialty that really have been hit hardest. I'massuming part of this is some of the Specialty tape products andthings?

Dan TrettinYes, and let me take them in the order that you described them. Wedid take some market related downtime at the Otis facility in thesecond quarter, that amount to approximately 2500 tons of capacityfor the period. And quite frankly what we are simply doing ismatching up the capacity, that facility with the demand for coreproducts. The cost structure that facility is relatively high, itsfuel oil hired. So, we were really not in a position of consideringwhat I characterize is more commodity oriented fill-type grades.So, we have really controlled capacity to meet demand in coremarkets of that facility.With respect to the grades that are being most significantlyimpacted by the economic downturn. Clearly both of our largestmarkets, release liner and tape are under the rest during thisperiod. As you know, we have perhaps the emphasized release linermarket in favor of food service and food packaging grade, so we areseeing a decline in that market in part due to that reason, butthere is still weakness in those markets.Perhaps more significantly though is the weakness in tape marketsand we saw this is the time with last economic downturn at thebeginning of this decade, where this Specialty tape grades itcarried a highest margins in fact declined quite significantly andthat relates to the industrial economy, weakness in the automotivesector as well as than other grades within Specialty that are tiedto housing and other related construction markets.

Mark Wilde - Deutsche Bank SecuritiesOkay. And then Tom, if we could on Specialty that the guys at Boisehad put in that on that machine conversion over into release linerjust recently, have you seen much impact from that in yourbusiness. I know you planned a slightly different chunk of themarket?Tom Howatt Yes, and most certainly that capacity has shown up in the morecommoditized segments of the release liner market. And in fact,that's in part the reason for our strategy to move away from thosemore commoditized segments of the release liner markets, wherethere is limited price leverage despite the input cost increasesand again refocusing that capacity on food service and foodpackaging grades.Mark Wilde - Deutsche Bank Okay, very good. Thanks.Scott Doescher Thanks Mark.Operator And next we go to line of Jonathan Lichter from Sidoti &Company. Please go ahead. Jonathan Lichter - Sidoti & Company Good morning, guys.

Tom HowattGood morning, Jonathan.Scott DoescherGood morning, Jonathan.

Jonathan Lichter - Sidoti & CompanyWas there any growth in product that you still sold there in Q2?Tom HowattYes, there would been product that we had in our warehouse thatwould have been part of corestock business, Jonathan.Jonathan Lichter - Sidoti & CompanyDo you have any idea how much in terms of tonnage or any othermetric?
Tom Howatt

No. I really don’t know how much of that specifically was groupedin product.Jonathan Lichter - Sidoti & Company Okay. And then on the Towel and Tissue side, the tonnage gain isthere, is that new products that you're selling or are you gainingshare?Scott Doescher Right, I think it’ s fair to say that there is a modest share gainassociated with that 3% year-to-date volume increase, given thatthe fact that the market is relatively flat. We continue to havegood success with new product introductions, but I’d say themagnitude of that volume gain over the first half of that yearwould suggest there is some slight share gain.Jonathan Lichter - Sidoti & Company Okay. And how confident are you that the August price, increase inSpecialty Products will be enough to get to breakeven orprofitability in the later half of the year?Scott DoescherThere is a rather substantial as you might imagine, cost push inthe industry that’ s I think causing many competitors to look forways to move price. So, I think that there is fairly broad support,quite frankly across all three of our businesses at this time forimproved pricing.Based on our early read of the situation and the discussions we hadwith customers so far, we are quite confident of the August priceincrease and the fact that, we will have a profitable third quarterin Specialty Products.

Jonathan Lichter - Sidoti & CompanyAnd then finally just, when could be the share repurchases start upagain? Would it be after you completed the CapEx?Tom Howatt

Yes, maybe I’ll comment first and then Scott can perhaps addfurther comment. But as you know, when we have talked about use ofcash on long-term basis, we have always said that our focus is onprofitably growing the corporation and that’s really our numberone priority and in recent times absent and lack of good investmentalternatives, we have look to return value to shareholders throughthat share repurchase plan.

On a more near-term basis, we have a couple of very sound capitalprojects that we are focused on, whether there will be additionalcapital projects identified and approved, I think really isuncertain at this point in time. So, I think over the short-term you’ d see us likely suspending that repurchase program.Scott anything further or?Scott DoescherNo. I think you have covered at well, Tom. What I would also noteJonathan is that, over the last three years, we have spent betterthan $32 million on that share buyback program and we’ve reallydone that without increasing the leverage on our balance sheet.So, as Tom mentioned our focus now and our priority always has beenthe profitable growth of our businesses and our step away from therepurchase program in the near-term it just a reflection of thatpriority.Jonathan Lichter - Sidoti & Company Okay, thank you.Operator  (Operator Instructions) And we have a follow-up from Mark Wilde.Please go ahead. Mark Wilde - Deutsche Bank Yes, Scott I wonder if you can help us understand the carryover ofso many growth and charges into the second quarter. I know it wasreally close I think at the end of last year?Scott DoescherYes, Mark, that’s a very good question. What we did see isoperations at the mill in terms of the paper machines in Decemberof last year. But we continue to operate certain equipment as wesupported distribution from that facility. So, there were assetcosts that remained and continued into 2008, Mark, and those wentdown during the course of the first and the second quarter. And asa result, as part of our guidance and as part of our footnotesyou'll see that we just expect about $2 million, $2.1 million ofadditional closure costs through the balance of 2008.Mark Wilde - Deutsche Bank Okay. Very good, thanks.Operator And gentlemen we have no further questions at this time. You maycontinue.Tom Howatt As we begin the third quarter, we are confident that our focus onstrategic markets and product innovation, and our disciplinedapproach to operations, has positioned us for solid recovery overtime. We look forward to reporting our continuing progress againstthe goals we have established.We appreciate your taking part in today's discussion and yourinterest in Wausau Paper. We plan to release third quarter 2008results on Monday, October 27th. Our next scheduled conference callis slated for 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time on Tuesday, October 28th.Thank you for your participation.Operator Ladies and gentlemen this conference is available for replay after12:00 p.m. Central Time today through August 5th at midnight. Youmay access the AT&T replay service at any time by dialing1800-475-6701 and enter the access code of 930808. Once again thatnumber is 1800-475-6701 with the access code of 930808 and it isavailable after 12:00 p.m. Central Time today through August 5th atmidnight. That does conclude your conference for today. Thank youfor your participation and for using AT&T ExecutiveTeleconference. You may now disconnect.

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