GPS World - February 2008 - (Page 17)

THE BUSINESS » (Continued from page 16) months. The panel was evenly split between those predicting a strong or weak cycle. Both camps agree that the sooner the new cycle takes over the waning previous cycle, the more likely that it will be a strong season with many sunspots and major storms, said Biesecker. Many more sunspots with solar cycle 24 traits must emerge before scientists consider the new cycle dominant, with the potential for more frequent storms, NOAA said. The new sunspot, identified as #10,981, is the latest visible spot to appear since NOAA began numbering them on January 5, 1972. Its highlatitude location at 27 degrees North, and its negative polarity leading to the right in the Northern Hemisphere are clear-cut signs of a new solar cycle, according to NOAA experts. SURVEY & CONSTRUCTION Trimble Acquires Crain Enterprises In January, Trimble acquired privately held Crain Enterprises Inc. of Mound City, Illinois, in an all-cash transaction, the company announced. Financial terms were not disclosed. Crain manufactures accessories for the geomatics, surveying, mapping, and construction industries. Its product lines include tripods, bipods, leveling rods, measuring rulers, prisms, prism and GPS poles, stream gauges, and wire installation tools, as well as bags, packs, and sewn carrying cases for surveying and positioning instruments. The purchase of Crain allows Trimble to provide the necessary accessories that can be offered as part of its positioning products used in the engineering and construction markets, the company said. Crain and Trimble will also be able to leverage distribution channels. Crain will enable Trimble to augment its existing product lines by offering accessories along with its current equipment, according to Jim Veneziano, general manager of Trimble’s Construction Division. Accessories are often key to achieving total system performance, Veneziano said, so the acquisition will enable Trimble to better satisfy user needs. Steve Crain, president and CEO, and the staff of Crain Enterprises will join Trimble and operate as a wholly owned subsidiary as part of Trimble’s Engineering and Construction segment. www.gpsworld.com February 2008 | GPS World 17 http://www.hemispheregps.com http://www.hemispheregps.com http://www.gpsworld.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of GPS World - February 2008

GPS World - February 2008 Contents Out in Front Expert Advice Galileo's Second Coming Soon UPS First to Use ADS-B European Industry Group Galileo Validation 2008 Antenna Survey Tsumani Detection by GPS Classifieds Advertisers Index Seen + Heard

GPS World - February 2008

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