Organizations such as the above are devoted to the industrial age goals of ever increasing productivity and efficiency, selling at the highest price and manufacturing at the lowest cost.
Amazon, instead, wants to be the online equivalent of Wal-Mart, with so much sales volume that it has the buying power and efficiency to sell the same products available everywhere, but at low prices, and still make money.
Dubbed "NEMA Premium"–a standard created last year by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association for motors between 1 hp and 200 hp these motors offer a few extra percentage points of energy efficiency and sell for roughly 25% more than motors meeting minimum federal standards.
The gas tax fits that description, but its value has declined over the years: governments are reluctant to raise taxes to meet rising costs in a sluggish economy, and the tax itself will continue to erode as vehicle manufacturers embrace fuel efficiency and sell more electric or alternative fuel vehicles.
North America alone accounted for 42 deals worth some $3 billion.Michael Butler, the boss of Cascadia Capital, a Seattle-based investment bank which specialises in sustainable industries, says one reason investors are attracted to the sector is that it makes little use of expensive physical assets (most products energy-efficiency firms sell have a significant software component).
The cuts faced from 2010-15 were met by efficiency savings, selling buildings, and losing civilian staff.
Such was the superior efficiency of selling things via the Internet that brick-and-mortar stores would be unable to compete on price, choice or even service.
There is some worry that all these efforts may be pushing philanthropy in the wrong direction, toward a point where donors become obsessed with projected impacts, overly taken with data-driven efficiency, too sold on the idea that financial and social investment are roughly equivalent.
The goal is to bring transparency, simplicity and efficiency to selling one's home.
Stung by Chinese gains, many executives have decided that Mexico must sell efficiency, flexible engineering and quick turnaround time, not just cheap labor.
