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Under a SuperTruck contract established with the U.S. Department of Energy, Volvo Technology of America, Inc. is scheduled to receive $19m (£11.5m) in federal funding to be used by the Volvo Group’s North American truck-related operations to improve the freight-moving efficiency of heavy-duty trucks and reduce greenhouse gases.



A team of highly skilled researchers and engineers in Greensboro, North Carolina and Hagerstown, Maryland will spend the next five years developing high-efficiency heavy-duty truck technologies aimed at moving more freight with less fuel, thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Improved truck aerodynamics and energy conversion efficiency – maximizing the output potential of the energy source – are two areas that hold great promise for Class 8 efficiency gains.







In achieving the SuperTruck program goals, Volvo will draw on established leadership and extensive experience in energy efficiency and reducing heavy-duty truck and engine diesel use. Volvo’s North American truck and powertrain operations have been participating in other DOE- funded heavy vehicle fuel efficiency efforts as well. Being an integrated manufacturer also improves the efficacy of product development and allows Volvo to optimize solutions across product platforms.



“We are delighted to receive this SuperTruck award that builds upon an already strong relationship with the U.S. Department of Energy,” said Ron Huibers, Volvo Trucks senior vice president, sales and marketing. “Freight transportation plays a vital role in our daily lives and the strength of our nation, so it’s essential that we step up our efforts to create the best, most efficient heavy-duty truck solutions possible. This public-private partnership is an important step forward as we continue to expand our technology leadership.”



“We appreciate the Department of Energy’s recognition of Volvo as a global technology leader,” said Peter Karlsten, Volvo Powertrain president, and senior vice president of technology for the Volvo Group. “Our partnership will help drive the development of technologies needed to maximize energy efficiency as we address the reality of a finite supply of petroleum-based resources.”



He added, “Volvo Trucks and Powertrain have committed the internal resources necessary to become fuel efficiency leaders in the Class 8 market and now we’re able to explore some planned fuel efficiency improving technologies earlier in our product development cycle than normally scheduled – and also investigate advanced technologies that normally would not be economically feasible.”



| Volvo

Dear sugar plums,

Yesterday I started telling you about our short trip to Warsaw and I promised today I would show you the places where we went for a short break. Now I have to admit that we are newbies when it comes to Warsaw - this was my second time in Warsaw (I do not count the multiple times in which I landed to Chopin Airport - trivia: the airport handles just under 50% of the countrys air passenger traffic in Poland) and my fiancee was here before a couple more times, but only in the city center, Embassy area also ;) So if you do know a better place in Warsaw or you have different opinions please do share!

I am perfectly aware of the variety of places one can wine and dine in Warsaw but we just went to these places by instinct/chance/need :) You will see below why and how ;)


We totally bumped into Charlotte by chance or instinct or the combination of the 2 :) I talked about Charlotte before so you know it is a place I like - and even my lovely fiancee agrees it is a very nice place and he started to love also the amazing creme brulee prepared there :) It is a sight for sore eyes and the taste is always excellent! The crust is just right (I always like to tap it and break it open, like it were ice, with the spoon...) and the cream is so smooooooooooooth and tasty... It simply melts into your mouth and feels like rainbows :)


Arriving at Charlotte at 7 am in the early morning, when they were just opening up was awesome! We were both a bit chilled so my fiancee had coffee and I had some really nice natural tea with lemon :) and of course the additional creme brulee - what?! did you think I would miss the opportunity to have one in Warsaw so I could compare with the one in Krakow?! No way!!! But guess what?! they are the same :) As tasty as I would have imagined :)


What I loved about the tea was the satchel in which the herbs resided. It was a real natural cotton-like satchel and you could see that there was nothing UN-natural about the tea <3

Check out the satchel!

Email	info@bistrocharlotte.com
Website	http://www.bistrocharlotte.com

One place that looked pretty nice though, turned out to be not that special as we would think: Delicja Polska. It is located near the Old City Center - Krakowskie Przedmieście 45. But I do not think I would go there again. We mainly went there because we wanted to stay outside, as it was such a warm and nice day, and my fiancee wanted to smoke. It was one of the few places with ashtrays so we picked it!


True, the place really looks pretty and I loved the table cloth and the arrangements and I also liked the small and colorful pillows places on each and every chair (see below picture).


My fiancee had a coffee (you know, as usual, as he just loves coffee - he is the only one in the house drinking it! I drink coffee only at weddings because I love the taste of it with milk in it...) and I had a fresh squeezed grapefruit juice.


The thing that bothered me was the presentation... I am not saying that the coffee and juice did not taste good or that they were not natural and so on... but for the money payed you would believe that they would make the presentation a bit more fancy...


Either way, we do not recommend that place but we do recommend Charlotte! All the way! :) Anytime!!!

With love,
The Creme Brulee Lover LadyBug :)

While reading How to Be a Fashion Designer by Marcarena San Martin, I learned a little about the evolution of luxury and how big of a role it is in the world of fashion. "The luxury industry moves more than 10 billion euros ($14 billion) a year"(46). I realized that in the world of fashion, luxury can be divided into 3 time periods, each with a different style (46).

Learning about the world of fashion, you notice that there are many stores, but are they really quality? For example H&Ms slogan is "Fashion and quality at the best price". It may not be as pricey as other luxury stores, but in the third time period of the evolution of luxury, luxury became something that was a trend by the global universe created by the media (46). For example, H&M or Ralph Lauren (46). Years after, many other brands started to create luxury items.

I also learned that in the 18th century, there was a type of luxury that was based on the beauty of the objects and the reputation of the house where they were from (46). This was a very classic type of luxury that needed to be showcased and visible all the time. For example, Hermes.

The last type of luxury was in the beginning of 1920. This was based off of the creator of the brand, for example this would be Coco Chanel. Chanel was, and still is a brand that many purchase just because the innovator was a fashion icon for them.

After reading chapter, I learned about luxury and its origins which really cleared up why people buy what they buy and why they go after luxurious items.

QOTD: Were you aware of why people buy luxurious items before reading this? 

Dear friends,

It seems indeed the postman always rings twice :)


I just received a lovely package from the "Etsy Poland Team" :) I entered one of their giveaways and I won my first polish handmade bracelet :) I got to choose between 3 really cute models and even though this one has a orange bracelet I rather love the symbol it holds: the puzzle piece :)

Why? Well... maybe I find Poland as piece of the puzzle that is my heart and it really speaks to me much more than the other 2 options I had, who were as cute as the one I just received! :) You can find the GiveAway HERE :) The bracelet is made by MageBraids and you can find her shop on Etsy HERE :)


So here is the inside of the package! :) I can hardly wait to wear it, it is so darn cute! Thank you again Etsy Poland Team and MageBraids :) I will be definetely check you out again ;))

Yours truly,
The Puzzled LadyBug :p

(for anyone owning a Dodge Ram