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Friday, May 17th, 2013
There are many things to do in Cape Town, but no visit is complete without ascending to the top of Table Mountain. This mountain, one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature, along with Devil’s Peak and Lion’s Head dominate the city, rising 3562 feet above the city. It is part of Table Mountain National Park which creates a wilderness with significant bio-diversity in the middle of an urban area of over 3.5 million people.
The mountain get its name from the seemingly 2 mile level plateau at its top.
While it appears level from the ground, trust me it is not.
There 5 well marked trails on the mountain top and many viewing platforms from where you can see Cape Town, Camps Bay, and much of the Cape Peninsula.
There are numerous routes to hike up Table Mountain, none of them easy. We took the Cable Car, which been in operation since 1929. It ceases operations when the winds are too strong. Michelle and her friends had previously hiked up the mountain. She was kind enough to ride the cable car with us when we visited.
One of the other fascinating things about Table Mountain is it’s biodiversity. It has over 2,200 types of plants that are unique to Table Mountain. The Cape Floral Region is one of 6 recognized Floral Kingdoms and contains many unique plants, found nowhere else.
There is also much history surrounding the mountain. Including the original inhabitants who grazed their cattle on it’s slopes and the first European to climb Table Mountain (Jan van Riebeeck). Even bungee jumpers, para gliders and base jumpers have used Table Mountain. Needless to say, we took the cable car back down.
Tags: Mountain, Nature, South Africa, Table Mountain
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Thursday, May 16th, 2013
Those of you who know me well would never accuse me of being a “foodie”. While it is true that I am a complete “coffee snob”, many times I would prefer a slice of Pizza at Costco over a gourmet meal. Not that I do not like to eat. Those of you who know me are well aware of my weight struggles and my working with the people at Beaumont Hospital’s Weight Control Center. Needless to say, imagine my surprise at finding myself at Cape Town’s famous The Test Kitchen run by Chef Luke Dale Roberts. Last year The Test Kitchen was ranked the 61st best restaurant in the world.
My wife Gail and I are spending several weeks in Cape Town, South Africa visiting our daughter Michelle who is studying at the University of Cape Town (UCT) for a semester. Students tend to eat cheaply and quickly. Michelle has found several wonderful Farmers Markets to buy fresh ingredients to cook at home. One of them is located at The Old Biscuit Mill, in Woodstock. Also located there is The Test Kitchen.
The Test Kitchen offers a 3 course, 5 course or a la carte menu, as well as a vegetarian 3 course and a la carte menu. Gail ordered the Grilled Scallops which came with asparagus, tofu miso suke, braised scallop dressing, miso on toast, braised shitake, raw shitake. Michelle had a vegetarian tofu with 3 types of red cabbage. We all three shared a dessert. The presentation was as beautiful as the food was delicious. Here are some photos.
Should you ever find yourself in Cape Town South Africa, I recommend highly that you try to get a reservation at The Test Kitchen. Here is a tip, while dinner reservations are booked several months in advance, you can often get a lunch reservation only a few weeks ahead of time.
Tags: Cape Town, Farmers Market, food, South Africa
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Wednesday, April 10th, 2013
Red Tide is the scourge of west coast Florida beaches. For the many years I lived there, this almost yearly algae bloom would kill thousands of fish which would then wash up on the Gulf Beaches and stink. This year the Red Tide has added a new victim, the slow moving, graceful and beloved manatees of the Florida West Coast.
Apparently, Red Tide algae can be toxic when consumed by manatees, as it causes them to become paralyzed. The paralyzed manatees eventually drown as they cannot return to the surface for air. According to the Tampa Tribune, authorities believe that approximately 200 Manatees were killed this year by Red Tide. Even though the bloom has dissipated, manatee deaths can continue for several months as the toxins settle onto the Sea Grass, the manatees major food source. manatees are on the Federal endangered Species List and have been protected by Florida Law since 1893. The deaths this year have reduced the manatee population by approximately 10%.
As any Floridian can tell you, manatees are wonderful mammals. They are gentle vegetarians that can reach up to 13 feet long and weigh up to two tons. They are distantly related to elephants and aardvarks. Manatees have also been known to body surf or barrel roll when playing. They have no major predators, but their biggest foe is us! According to Save the Manatee Club, “Florida’s West Indian manatees have no natural enemies, and it is believed they can live 60 years or more. As with all wild animal populations, a certain percentage of manatee mortality is attributed to natural causes of death such as cold stress, gastrointestinal disease, pneumonia, and other diseases. A high number of additional fatalities are from human-related causes. Most human-related manatee fatalities occur from collisions with watercraft. Other causes of human-related manatee mortality include being crushed and/or drowned in canal locks and flood control structures; ingestion of fish hooks, litter, and mono-filament line; and entanglement in crab trap lines. Ultimately, loss of habitat is the most serious threat facing manatees in the United States today. There is a minimum population count of 4,834 manatees, as of January 2011.”
Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo has managed to rescue about 10 of the Manatees affected by Red Tide toxins. All have survived and 4 were recently released into a sanctuary away from the Red Tide and speeding boat propellers.
Tags: environment, Florida, Ocean, Red Tide
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Monday, April 8th, 2013
Earlier this month, 27 EU heads of mission to the Palestinian Authority signed a report that recommended strict labeling of settlement products, thereby encouraging a boycott similar to that imposed on South Africa during Apartheid. According to reports, EU officials are urging member states to label goods produced from Israeli settlements in the West Bank as either “Produce of the West Bank (Israeli settlement produce)” or “Israeli produce of the Occupied Palestinian Territories”.
Without going into a further Geo-political argument about whether the Israeli Settlements in the West Bank are legal (under the Original League of Nations Mandate) or illegal (under current UN resolutions) the actions by the EU do little to help a complex problem and may hurt many of the people it was intended to help. For example, Psagot Vineyards and many other West Bank businesses employ thousands of Palestinians. In these business, Palestinians and Jewish settlers work side by side.
Yaakov Berg, founded Psagot Vineyards near Jerusalem almost a decade ago. Psagot now produces around 120,000 bottles of wine each year. Berg stated that “I didn’t kill anyone to take this land, I paid for it, and I provide good jobs for Palestinians that pay three or four times what they could earn elsewhere.” Berg’s wines have won several prizes in competitions abroad, including in France, and the winery has been a financial success. According to Berg, his Palestinian workers would receive NIS 1,000 (about $262) for they same work in Ramallah. At Psagot Vineyards they receive five or six times as much with insurance and social benefits. This is true for many other businesses in the area.
As an entrepreneur and an owner of a company that employs 20+ people of different races, ethnicity’s and religions, it seems to me that paying a decent wage, providing decent benefits, respecting each other and working together does more for the cause of peace and reconciliation than all the labels and boycotts put together. The EU should look to its own problems with the economies of Greece, Spain and Cyprus and the Euro instead of undermining a growing economy that employs Israeli’s and Palestinians alike in a misguided attempt to punish a whole region for the current failure of the Middle east Peace Process.
Here are some photos that I found online that showcase the Israeli wine industry. Enjoy!
Tags: Europe, European Union, Isreal, Isreali, Isreali wine, Palenstine, West Bank, wine
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Thursday, February 21st, 2013
My daughter-in-law Jessi Rivera at the Big Ten Baquet
This years Michigan Grape and Wine Conference was held at the Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center on the Campus of Michigan State University in East Lansing, MI. Those of you who know me know how much I love the other big state university (Hint: colors are Maize and Blue) that my daughter attends and that I attended. But, I have to admit that the conference exceeded my expectations in every respect.
First I need to complement the organizers, starting with Linda Jones, Karel Bush and Sherri Goodreau, the members of the Michigan Grape and Wine Industry Council Industry Council and the members of the Michigan Grape and Wine Conference Planning Committee.
Our sister company, miwinebarrel was the Keynote and Big Ten Banquet Sponsor. That meant that Maxi’s Creative Director and miwinebarrels’ COO, Joshua Rubin had to give a speech about our company. He gave a short introduction on our family history (think prohibition, bootleggers and Sicilian Spaghetti) and our numerous summer vacations that included visiting wineries in the Old Mission and Leelanau Peninsulas.
I also have to comment on how good the food was at the Hotel and Conference Center. The lunch buffet was better than any conference I have been to.
“The Kellogg Center is home to an extraordinarily diverse, talented team of culinary professionals as well as a large support staff comprised of many students from MSU’s The School of Hospitality Business. With over 400,000 visitors coming through our doors annually, it is not unusual for our dedicated kitchen and banquet staffs to serve an average of 1500 meals per day, requiring a great deal of organization, planning, and most importantly, team work. The Kellogg Center also hosts a multitude of special events including the popular Visiting Chef Series, now in its 14th year, which brings award winning chefs from across the country to the hotel for interactive cooking”
The first night of the conference again had a Tour de Vin at the Welcome reception. I must give a shout out to all the of wineries that had exceptional wines in the tasting, although there were too many to mention them all:
Chateau Fontaine had a wonderful Woodland White, made from Auxerrois, a little known grape variety in this country, originally from France.
Here are some more photos from the event:
Interesting Star Trek Label from Gravity Winery
Our Keynote Bill Oliver from Oliver Winery explains how a small sleepy winery can be turned into a thriving establishment with distribution in 22 states!
Tags: Conference, Michigan, Michigan Wines, Trade Show, wine
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Tuesday, January 15th, 2013
I just spent another week in one of our favorite places, Sarasota, Florida. The weather was great and everyone had a wonderful time. My wife Gail and I lived there from 1978 until 1983, and have been visiting there every year since then. There have been many changes, new developments, buildings, hotels, shopping centers, etc. We have lost many of the old family stores and restaurants to have them replaced by newer fancier ones.
However, by far the greatest change that I see from year to year are the beaches themselves. This year it was even more pronounced due to the effects of Tropical Storm Debbie that swept through the area June 26, 2012. Ten to 30 feet of sand were eroded from beaches in Sarasota County.
Erosion of beaches is nothing new. There has been several attempts to replenish the beach and there is an official presentation on the City of Sarasota’s website about the Lido Beach Restoration.
As much as I love the beach, the fallacy behind any beach restoration or replenishment is that we can “fix” a naturally occurring process, the ever changing relationship between water, wind and sand. According to the Center for Ocean Solutions, coastal erosion is a natural process along the world’s coastlines that occurs through the actions of currents and waves and results in the loss of sediment in some places and accretion in others. Erosion is considered to to be sporadic and episodic. There can be large scale erosion in only a few hours with a severe storm (episodic) and different areas can erode at different rates even during the same event (sporadic).
Here are examples of erosion in the Florida Panhandle at Navarre Beach due to two hurricanes. The upper photo was taken on July 17, 2001, the middle photo was taken on September 17, 2004, one day after the landfall of Hurricane Ivan, and the lower photo was taken on July 12, 2005, two days after the landfall of Hurricane Dennis. This is a clear example of the episodic nature of beach erosion. (Click image to enlarge)
Scientific American stated in its EarthTalk column that coastal erosion in any form is usually a one-way trip. Man-made techniques such as beach nourishment—whereby sand is dredged from off-shore sources and deposited along otherwise vanishing beaches—may slow the process, but nothing short of global cooling or some other major geomorphic change will stop it altogether. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that between 80 and 90 percent of the sandy beaches along America’s coastlines have been eroding for decades. In many of these cases, individual beaches may be losing only a few inches per year, but in some cases the problem is much worse.
According to Stephen Leatherman (“Dr. Beach”) of the National Healthy Beaches Campaign, building a bulkhead or seawall along one or a few coastal properties may protect homes from damaging storm waves for a few years, but could end up doing more harm than good. “Bulkheads and seawalls may accelerate beach erosion by reflecting wave energy off the facing wall, impacting adjacent property owners as well,” writes Leatherman, adding that such structures along retreating shorelines eventually cause diminished beach width and even loss.
Other larger scale techniques like beach nourishment may have better track records, at least in terms of slowing or delaying beach erosion, but are expensive enough as to warrant massive taxpayer expenditures. Beach nourishment is the process of adding new sand to the beach profile in order to restore it to some former width. This is usually accomplished by dredge and fill operations with sand pumped onto the beach from an offshore source, such as sand bars or shoals. Beach nourishment is only feasible at the community level as large sectors (e.g., miles of the shore) must be nourished to be economical viable. In the early 1980s, Miami Beach was restored at the cost of $65 million along this 10-mile strand of shore.
There have been over 8 beach nourishment projects on Lido Beach at a cost of over $12 Million Dollars. However, the beach continues to erode. Here are pictures I took last week showing significant recent erosion on Lido Beach.
With the expected rise in sea levels and the increase in both the frequency and severity of storms being attributed to global climate change, one can expect that coastal erosion will continue to increase. The U.S. government’s Environmental Protection Agency states that if sea levels increase by one foot, would erode most of Florida Beaches 100 to 200 feet. They also believe that sea levels could rise as much as 3 feet over the next 100 years. The cost to replenish the lost sand would be $8 Billion.
While it is understandable that areas with expensive homes and condominium projects and whose economic base is dependent on tourism will continue to spend large sums on beach replenishment projects. While this may be futile in the long run, short term it still allows for a wonderful beach experience as these photos from last week will show.
Also, if you didn’t click the “sand” link earlier in the article, take a second to check out this cool slideshow. It gets up close with what our beaches are made out of, Sand of course!
Click here to view the slideshow.
Tags: beach, Enviroment, Erosion, Florida, Lido Beach, Nature, Ocean, Sarasota, Tropical Storms
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Friday, December 28th, 2012
The only constant is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today. No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be. — Isaac Asimov – “My Own View” in The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction (1978)
There has been much discussion lately of the need to reinvent your business model. Everyone from the Harvard Business Review, Entrepreneur Magazine and American Express consistently post articles dealing with corporate reinvention. They tout successful examples such as Apple, PayPal and Burberry. Unsuccessful companies that used to dominate their respective industries litter today’s landscape and bankruptcy courts, including such household names as Hostess, Polaroid and Borders.
Here at Maxi Container we have taken a long slow look at corporate reinvention and have made over our company significantly in the last 10 years. In doing so we have focused on our core competencies, looked for new markets, addressed bottlenecks in our management and operation, strengthened our fiscal controls, upgraded our truck and trailer fleet and adopted a wide range of new technologies to allow us to work smarter, faster and mobile with an emphasis on enhancing the customer experience and adding value to our products and services.
Some of the changes are internal and there is no need for discussion. Two of the biggest, our entry into new markets with our mirainbarrel and miwinebarrel subsidiaries, will be discussed in future posts. Our new e-commerce platform, which will debut in the future is another major reinvention.
However, one of the most interesting, challenging and rewarding changes has been cloud computing. This is a much overused term and can be defined in many ways. Here we use a combination of private and public cloud storage, networking, desktop virtualization, and software as a service to tie all of our various desk top computers, smart phones, tablets and laptops into a coherent whole. Furthermore, all of our data is encrypted for privacy, protected from viruses and continually backed up. The service is scalable so as we add personnel or locations it is easy to tie them into the existing cloud and network infrastructure. Much of the credit for our adoption of this technology goes to my son, Joshua Rubin, Creative Director at Maxi Container, Inc.
As a result, any Maxi Container sales person or operations person has complete access to any and all information necessary to do their jobs at all times from anywhere. We use our private cloud and various apps such as, shared Outlook Calendars, Evernote, Dropbox, Adobe EchoSign and Kibits (a new collaborative app for android and iPhone) to create a truly collaborative workplace that increases our efficiency and creates additional value for the customer.
Quotes for unique products can be electronically signed and archived and are available 24/7, not just during office hours. Sales personnel have complete access to customer pricing and purchase history whether in the office, their vehicle, or on-site at a customer’s location. Purchase Orders can be processed in a variety of ways including email or Electronic Data Interchange. Payments can be made on mobile devices, PayPal or Credit Card . Several customers are using Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) to place orders and receive invoices and ACH transactions for payments. Checks are scanned in so they are credited to the customer’s account and deposited in the bank the same day as received. Our goal is to eventually equip drivers and warehouse personnel with mobile devises that move this efficiency and customer value throughout our supply chain.
This move has not been without bumps and bruises along the way. There were the inevitable glitches, issues with data capacity and learning curves. We are still experimenting with how best to use our new tools and collaborative environment. However, every day brings more and more examples to light of how we can enhance the customer experience through collaborative work and cloud computing. You may never see it, but it will affect every aspect of our business as we move forward with our reinvented business model.
(Note: my apologies to the Rolling Stones for the use of their lyric from their 1965 hit, “Hey You Get Off of My Cloud” in the headline of this post. I just couldn’t resist, especially as it speaks to the encryption and privacy necessary for cloud computing to work. I am sure that this was the furthest thing from Keith Richards mind when he wrote the song.)
Tags: apps, business, cloud, computers, Tech
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Wednesday, December 5th, 2012
A Typical Stage Deli Sandwich
Today, I am mourning the passing of a New York Legend. The Stage Deli, long a famous hangout of Broadway Stars, politicians, reporters, sports stars, reputed mobsters and tourists (including me), closed it’s doors a Midnight on November 30, 2012. According to its website, regulars included Mayor LaGuardia, Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe, Jack Benny, George Burns and Gracie Allen. Later Wilt Chamberlain and Oscar Robertson struggled to fit into its seats, but Billy Martin and Reggie Jackson fit in just fine. Yankee catcher Thurman Munson, also frequently visited the Stage, as did Liza Minnelli and Carol Channing. More recently Leonardo Di Caprio, Meryl Streep, Ben Stiller, Matthew Broderick and Harvey Fierstein were frequent visitors. I first visited the Stage Deli in 1978, when a bowl of Matzo Bowl Soup, a cheese sandwich and a beer set me back over $20.00. While there I ran into former school friends who were in New York seeking fame and fortune on Broadway.
According to the New York Times, one of the current owners, Paul Zolenge, cited the cost of doing business in New York. The landlord erected scaffolding in front of the restaurant a year ago, he said, and even though it came down in September, “we lost a whole year.” The rent had gone up several times in recent years, Mr. Zolenge said, and with the lease ending in a few months, he and his partner Steve Auerbach were expecting another increase. “We just couldn’t afford to keep it going any more,” he said.
I think that another factor figured into the Star’s demise. While some letters and bloggers stated a decline in quality or the long running competition with the Carnegie Deli down the street, I think that the general societal change in eating habits also took its toll. According to Save the Deli Blogger, David Sax, foods like pastrami and kishke (beef intestine casings stuffed with brisket fat or chicken fat, matzo meal, onions and carrots) are delicious, but they’re not health food. As much as I love good Jewish Deli food, the last time I stepped foot into a deli (other than Zingerman’s in Ann Arbor) was several years ago on a family holiday to New York. And even then, we went to the Carnegie not the Stage.
Times and tastes change, but I will remember a more glamorous time, when the Stage Deli was the toast of New York.
Tags: deli, Economy, food, health, health food, New York
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Monday, December 3rd, 2012
The owners of the S.S. Badger, the last coal fired ship on the Great Lakes are at it again. Since 2008, they have known that their permit to dump over 500 tons of coal ash annually into Lake Michigan would be expiring this month. Yet they have done nothing to resolve the issue. Instead they have asked the EPA for a permit extension while they study a possible conversion to Liquefied Natural Gas.
Now, according to the New York Times the owners of the ferry have enlisted friendly congressmen to bury in a Coast Guard re-authorization bill now in final negotiations between the House and the Senate:
Curious language saying a “qualified vessel” shall continue to operate for its entire lifetime, “without regard to any expiration dates” on the permit it operates on.”
Since the S.S. badger was placed on National Register of Historic Places by the U.S. Department of the Interior in 2009, the language in this bill would allow it to continue to dump over 4 tons of coal ash per day into Lake Michigan without a permit.
While the re-authorization bill does not reference the S.S. Badger by name, the enumerated qualifications — including that it be nominated for or on the list of National Historic Landmarks — apply to only one vessel, the Badger. As the Times points out, Republicans supposedly put an end to special-interest language slipped into bills to benefit projects or employers in their districts when they took control of the House last year. However, the sponsors of that language, two Republican representatives, Tom Petri of Wisconsin and Bill Huizenga of Michigan, say it is not an earmark because it does not mandate the expenditure of any federal money.
I may not be able to parse the nuance of congressional political speak as to what is or isn’t an earmark, but to me, the James Whitcomb Riley’s adage regarding looking and walking like a duck applies. Here is a piece of legislation that is slipped into a Coast Guard re-authorization bill that only applies to one entity and that would overrule the EPA permitting process. To me, that’s an earmark. The hypocritical argument that it is not an earmark because no federal dollars are expended does not take into account the cost of cleaning up the 500 tons of coal ash that the Badger dumps each year.
Apparently at least one Senator, Richard J. Durbin, Democrat of Illinois, agrees with me. The Times quoted him as saying:
“If it walks like an earmark and talks like an earmark, it’s an earmark.”
Hopefully the Senate will stand firm and prevent the S.S. Badger from making a mockery of the EPA permitting process and finally take the steps necessary to either store the 4 tons of coal ash they create each day until it can be offloaded or convert to diesel power as have it’s competitors. No business should be protected from competition and allowed to continually pollute the Great Lakes because of it’s historic nature. We didn’t know better, or have better options than coal when the S.S. Badger first sailed on Lake Michigan. We know better now.
Let’s hope the Senate does the right thing and scuttles the offensive language.
Tags: Enviroment, EPA, Great Lakes, Lake Michigan, SS Badger
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Monday, November 5th, 2012
Businessweek Cover
In the wake of the severe damage to the East Coast from Hurricane Sandy, Bloomberg Businesseek took the unprecedented step to state categorically the “Superstorm” and the destruction and loss of life from the storm, was directly related to Global Warming”. The magazine lists the toll from Sandy as follows:
“At least 40 U.S. deaths. Economic losses expected to climb as high as $50 billion. Eight million homes without power. Hundreds of thousands of people evacuated. More than 15,000 flights grounded. Factories, stores, and hospitals shut. Lower Manhattan dark, silent, and underwater.”
In the article Businessweek cited:
- Jonathan Foley, director of the Institute on the Environment at the University of Minnesota
- Eric Pooley, senior vice president of the Environmental Defense Fund
- Mark Fischetti of Scientific American
- Climate scientists Charles Greene and Bruce Monger of Cornell University
George Lakoff, professor of linguistics at UC Berkely states that Global Warming was the systemic cause of the storm. Systemic causation is much more difficult to understand. He states:
A systemic cause may be one of a number of multiple causes. It may require some special conditions. It may be indirect, working through a network of more direct causes. It may be probabilistic, occurring with a significantly high probability. It may require a feedback mechanism. In general, causation in ecosystems, biological systems, economic systems, and social systems tends not to be direct, but is no less causal. And because it is not direct causation, it requires all the greater attention if it is to be understood and its negative effects controlled. Above all, it requires a name: systemic causation.
Many commentators and most Climate Change deniers seize upon the more commonly understood direct causation to say that there is no proof that Climate Change caused the recent droughts or that the warming of the ocean caused Hurricane Sandy to be more destructive than previous storms. Instead, if you look at the concept of systemic causation, there is little doubt that the warming of the oceans, and many other factors attributed to Global Climate Change, contributed to the increase in the strength of the storm, and to the loss of life and the billions of dollars in damage.
We need to take off our blinders and recognize that human activity has consequences. We believe in a sustainability model that reduces our carbon footprint while continuing to enjoy the benefits of our post-industrial, highly technological society. For example, I drive a hybrid SUV. It gives me all of the room and comfort of an SUV, but gets over 30 miles a gallon. Here at Maxi we recycle everything we can. Also, throughout the life cycle of our steel, plastic and fiber drums, and our IBC’s we preach reuse. It takes significantly less energy and carbon to clean a drum or IBC for reuse than to scrap the old and make a new one.
But there are many simple things that each of us can do to help reduce our contribution to Global Climate Change. There is a great list from Millie Jefferson, producer, Weekend America®, here are just a few of them:
- Buy organic, local or fair trade goods. (Maxi buys fair trade coffee and tea)
- Pay attention to packaging (That’s what Maxi Container is all about. Packaging matters.)
- Ditch bottled water (see my numerous earlier posts about the evil of bottled water. Maxi uses filtered water for drinking, coffee and tea.)
- Energy proof your home. (this will save you money as well. Maxi switched its warehouse lighting from Metal Halide to induction, saving 50% on energy costs.)
- Use native plant species. (Maxi started MiRainBarrel to promote rain water harvesting and works with groups that promote native species for use in a rain garden.)
- Switch water heaters to vacation mode.
- Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. (The three R’s of Maxi are Reuse, Recondition,then Recycle)
We all have a part to play, we can all be a part of the solution. In absence of a national will to do the right thing and reduce the Climate Effects of our lifestyle, it is up to us as responsible citizens to step up and do, at a minimum, the little things that together can make a difference.
Tags: Climate Change, environment, Global Climate Change, Global Warming, Sandy, sustainability
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Tuesday, October 30th, 2012
Those of you in the metro-Detroit area may have seen some of our new tractors, trailers and box vans as they make deliveries. If so, you would have noticed how nice they look. They are new, clean, efficient trucks designed to increase our efficiency, lower our fuel costs and emit less pollutants. They are also part of our strategy to provide the best possible customer service, including our industry leading just-in-time delivery programs.
What makes these new trucks and trailers different from our existing fleet? It’s simple. We do not own them, we lease them. As pointed out in a recent article in the October 2012 issue of Fleet Maintenance the question of whether to lease or own your truck fleet differs for each company. However, due to our growth over the last few years, the acquisition of a new warehouse and our commitment to customer service, we found ourselves needing a significant amount of new delivery equipment. Maxi met many of the criteria for leasing of delivery equipment as outlined in the article:
- Our core competency is Industrial Packaging – not trucking.
- We were better off investing capital into our new warehouse, new computer technology and new products, not trucks and trailers.
- The value added services of a full service lease allows us to focus on customer service. When one of our new trucks needs service, it can be taken care of in the evening or over a weekend, not during the business day. If one of our leased vehicles needs extended service, we receive a replacement vehicle so our delivery schedule is not interrupted.
Our new trucks, tractors and trailers have been a great success. Our new trailers have GPS units that allow us to not only look at where they are, but we can track their utilization, turnover rates. As pointed out on the Xtra Lease web site trailer tracking allows us to:
- Find under-utilized trailers and put them to work faster
- Locate trailers easily for driver hook-up
- Increase supply chain visibility
- Keep customers updated on shipment status
- Lower fuel consumption spent searching for trailers
- Protect ourself from trailer and cargo theft
- Reduce number of trailers purchased with better utilization
- Gather detention data quickly to substantiate detention claims
- Monitor high-value shipments using sensors and alert
Since our new tractors, trucks and trailers are covered by full service leases we can spend more time delivery products and services to our customers and less time in the shop. It also helps us with the regulatory compliance required under new and stronger DOT regulations of CSA2010. On top of that, our drivers love them too. Here are some photos of our new trucks.
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Maxi’s New Tractor
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Maxi’s New City truck
Tags: Fleet management, GPS, Industrial Packaging, sustainability, Transportation
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Friday, October 5th, 2012
Gail Bennett on a Fall Walk
There are times I know that I am truly lucky to live and work in Michigan. One of those is when the trees in my neighborhood start to change color every fall. Usually, I am too busy to notice, driving frantically on the Metro-Detroit freeways between work and home. However, every week or so, my lovely wife Gail reminds me to slow and “smell the roses” or in this case, view the fall colors. Last weekend is was a long walk in a local park. Our home town of Farmington Hills, MI has done a very good job at preserving some of the “wild” nature of the area in a series of parks. One of our favorites is Woodland Trails, located just of Farmington Road across from the Orchard Ridge campus of Oakland Community College. This nature park, features a primitive-walking trail that winds through the 74-acre park. It includes meadows, hardwood forest, a pond, a river and creek just a few feet south of a very busy I-696. We spent a wonderful hour or so walking through the park. It was just the tonic needed to help me re-focus my energies on the important things in life, to stop and reflect on the beauty of the natural world and how lucky I am to be able to live in an urban area with such beauty a few minutes from my house.
Here are a few pictures. Take a minute and enjoy 
Tags: Fall, Farmington, Michigan, Trees, Woodland Trails
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Friday, October 5th, 2012
I have written before about the S.S. Badger, the last coal-fired ferry on Lake Michigan. (see my September 29, 2012 blog post. The EPA in 2008 gave the ships owners 4 years to comply with the Clean Water Act and stop dumping tons of coal ash into Lake Michigan. Instead of converting to diesel or some other fuel, the ship owners recently asked the EPA for a 5 year extension of their coal dumping permit citing the need to study a conversion to liquified natural gas. Now, they are stooping to greenwashing.
As reported by Dave Alexander at Mlive.com, the S. S. Badger has extended it’s sailing season to November 2, 2012, in order to ship parts for 60 wind turbines for G.E. The ferry owners claim that this is another reason why the EPA needs to extend their coal dumping permit allowing them to operate next year and beyond. Perhaps the irony of shipping wind turbine parts on the only coal fired ship on the Great Lakes, a ship that dumps tons of coal ash into Lake Michigan each year, is lost on Lake Michigan Carferry. However it is not lost on me and some other commentators.
No amount of greenwashing makes their failure to comply with the Clean Water Act, seeking landmark status, or other delaying tactics more palatable. As the Milwaukee Sentinel Journal stated in a recent editorial: Lake Michigan Carferry needs to find a way to keep the ferry running without adding more coal ash to the lake. This has been going on long enough. No one argues that coal-fired power plants should keep operating because the technology they use has a historic status. Pollution does not deserve protection.
I agree. No amount of greenwashing should save Lake Michigan Carferry and it’s S.S. Badger from having to comply with the same laws as its competitors. The coal ash dumping must stop at the end of this season. They can use the off season to convert to diesel or find a way to store the ash on board until they can safely unload it. Enough is enough.
What do you think about the S.S. Badger story, leave a comment below or carry it over to Twitter @MaxiContainer
Tags: Coal, Green, S.S. Badger
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Monday, September 3rd, 2012
Finally, Detroit residents will be receiving curbside recycling. Actually some are right now;this Labor Day weekend Palmer Woods residents had their recycling carts delivered. What began about 4 years ago has grown to about 10,000 Detroiters, and hopefully one day all of Detroit will be recycling.
“Our goal is to get to a point where everyone in the city is recycling,”
Ron Brundidge, director of the Public Works Department.
In the suburbs of Detroit, recycling has been embraced my most communities, we have drop-off locations and curbside collection everywhere. Now finally Detroit will get to experience the joy of reducing waste through recycling. Education in schools and in the home is where it begins, hopefully a new generation of Detroiters will embrace the earth and environment. By practicing green ideals like recycling we can make change.
Source Article:
http://www.freep.com/article/20120825/NEWS01/308250050/Detroit-expands-curbside-recycling-to-Palmer-Woods-neighborhood?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|FRONTPAGE|p
Tags: curbside recycling, Detroit, Recycling
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Sunday, September 2nd, 2012
For anyone who has used the car-ferry between Luddington, MI and Manitowac, WI there are numerous benefits to the trip. The trip, by ferry, is 4 hours. By car it is 7.5 hours (not including stops). Travel by ferry has a nostalgic aspect to it. You get out of the car, walk around, get something to eat, gaze out at the beauty of Lake Michigan. There is a snack bar, a dinning room, video arcade and children’s playroom. When the weather is good, you can sun on a lounge chair on the deck. It sounds idyllic, so what can be bad.
Usually, any form of mass transit is better environmentally than using your own car. This is not the case with the S.S. Badger. The Badger is the last coal fired ship on the Great Lakes. It dumps 4 tons of coal ash per day into Lake Michigan. According to environmental groups, the ashes contain lead, mercury and arsenic and potentially could contaminate the drinking water supply of over 10 million people.
In 2008 the E.P.A. gave them 4 years to comply with the Clean water Act. Now the owners of the S.S. Badger filed for a 5 year extension of their permit to dump coal ash in Lake Michigan. They are basing their request on the complexities of conversion to liquefied natural gas at a cost of over $8 million, even though LNG is not readily available in the Michigan market.
The owners of the S.S. Badger have tried other tricks to prevent them from having to spend money to convert to a cleaner fuel. They tried having the ship declared a National Landmark and have pressed legislators in Congress from both Wisconsin and Michigan to grant it an exemption to the Clean Water Act rules.
As reported at MLive.com Alliance for the Great Lakes President Joel Brammeier thinks he has a simple solution to the Badger problems that will end the historic 50-year-plus coal ash discharges into the lake and keep the Badger operating and providing an economic boost to both states.
Instead of granting the Badger the five-year permit while Lake Michigan Carferry owners explore converting the 410-foot ferry from coal to liquefied natural gas, Brammeier made two suggestions.
• Convert the coal-powered steam ship – the only remaining one in the United States – to diesel engines.
• Develop a means to store the hot coal ash in the Badger’s hull to be offloaded and disposed after the ferry arrives in port.
Both these suggestions make more sense to me then trying a complex conversion to LNG. Diesel conversion has been done by other ship owners in as little as 6 months. Conversion to diesel could be completed in the off-season and be ready for next summer. The EPA does not need to grant a 5 year extension to keep the $40,000,000 impact to the port communities and the jobs this makes possible. Instead they should deny the permit and demand either a conversion to diesel or the storage of the ash on board until it can be safely offloaded at port for proper treatment.
Tags: Ash, Clean Water Act, Coal, Diesel, Great Lakes, Lake Michigan, Pollution, S.S. Badger
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Saturday, September 1st, 2012
A recent article by Tom Vanderbilt in Slate called the wooden pallet “the single most important object in the global economy. He claimed that 80% of U.S commerce is carried on pallets and that wood pallets account for over 46% of U.S. hardwood production.
While the average U. S. consumer may only know wood pallets from their local Sam’s Club, COSTCO, or garden center, as a distributor of industrial packaging, we at Maxi Container, Inc. know just how important are wood pallets. Almost all of our LTL shipments travel on wood pallets. We use wood pallets in our warehouse to help us properly stack the over 20,000 steel, plastic and fiber drums that we keep in stock. We also used old pallets to make our rain barrel stands that we sell at Green Fairs and through our mirainbarrel line of business.
However, after 20+ years in the industrial packaging business, I want to nominate another under recognized and often overlooked Unsung Hero of Global Commerce, the 55 gallon drum. According to industry statistics over 24 million steel drums were reconditioned in the U.S. in 2011. In addition as of 2009 another 21 million new steel drums were manufactured in the U.S. As large as these numbers are, they do not include, Europe or Asia (including the emerging markets of China and India) were millions more steel drums are made and reconditioned.
Acids, adhesives, fuels, foods, hazardous and nonhazardous waste, oils and lubricants, paints and coatings, pesticides, pharmaceuticals and solvents are just some of the many items that are routinely shipped in 55 gallon steel drums. They myriad items shipped in steel drums continues to amaze me. Almost every product I see and use, at some point, was in a steel drum. Apple, orange and other fruit juices, Vanilla Extract, motor oil, gasoline, paint, adhesives, Window Cleaner and cleaners of all types, fragrances, soybean oil, chemicals to numerous to mention, used batteries and ballasts, soap and peanut butter to just name a few. As the pictures show, for every wood pallet, there are 4 steel drums. As I often say, without the 55 gallon steel drum industrialized society would grind to a halt.
Tags: 55 gallon, Barrels, Drums, Industrial Packaging, Steel Drums
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Thursday, August 9th, 2012
Back in March we donated a steel drum to the University of Michigan School of Art and Design. Ten students and their instructor were going to visit Ghana this summer to help local villagers make charcoal in a more sustainable manner. They promised to keep in touch and they did. I received an email from U of M School of Art and Design Detroit Connections Coordinator Charlie Michaels recently giving me a link to their blog.
The students are spending 3 weeks in Ghana this August. They are staying and working in Nungua, a village outside of Accra, with a local NGO called Cross Cultural Collaborative – Aba House as it is known in locally. From following the blog they are not only making sustainable charcoal from corn cobs. They are learning to make paper out of sugar cane, watch local artisans make beads from found plastic articles and to play the local games with the areas children.
From looking at the blog, this seems to be an adventure of a lifetime for these students. Maxi is proud to have assisted them and we look forward to following their blog. GO BLUE! – even in Ghana.
Making Beads From Discarded Plastic
Making Charcoal in Ghana
Tags: charcoal, Ghana, Michigan, U of M, University of Michigan
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Wednesday, August 8th, 2012
Recently, the recycling authority serving my hometown of Farmington Hills, MI, the RRRASOC – the Resource, Recovery and Recycling Authority of Southwest Oakland County, went to single stream recycling. Single stream recycling is a system in which all recyclables, including newspaper, cardboard, plastic, aluminum, junk mail, etc., are placed in a single bin or cart for recycling. These recyclables are collected by a single truck and taken to a Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) to be sorted into various commodity streams for sale to markets, where it is processed into feedstock which can be used in the manufacture of new products. Here is a picture of our new 96 gallon cart, which is 82 gallons larger than our old bin.
Until recently, the predominant form of curbside recycling in the U.S was “dual stream” collection where each material type is kept in a separate bag or bin, and trucks have three or more compartments. The move to single stream recycling is a way to reduce costs. On the collection side, the use of a large roll-cart allows collectors to automate pick-up from inside the truck cab, and single-compartment trucks save labor and transportation costs. (See, Single Stream Uncovered by Clarissa Morawski, Resource Recycling, Feb. 2010). Due to the ease of use and larger bin sizes, cities often see an increase in recycling rates. In areas where single stream recycling is offered, participation is around 95%. Ann Arbor, MI had a 20% increase in recycling tonnage after implementing single stream recycling in 2010. Unfortunately, that 20% increase was 40% short of projections and caused Recycle Ann Arbor to request an increase of over $107,000. Ann Arbor’s single stream recycling system cost over $4.6 million to implement and, based on the overly optimistic projections, was expected to take 7 years to repay the costs.
The real complaint against single stream recycling is an increase in contaminants, causing a decrease in value for the recycled materials and an increase in the amount of previously recycled materials going to landfills. The Blue Heron Paper Company saw the level of contamination go from 3.3% in 1999 to 6.1% in 2005. This caused them to send over 11,000 tons of material to landfills in 2005, up from 5,200 tons in 1999. However, by implementing a consumer education program and investing in new technology at the material recovery facility, the Metro Waste Facility in central Iowa was able to keep contaminant levels to 3%.
Michel E. Hoffman of Wunderlich Securities points out one of the other possible downsides of single stream recycling. He believes that the move to single-stream recycling could have consequences. Hoffman says, “There are a lot of small- and medium-sized companies that will have to think about building single-stream MRFs. Some won’t have access to capital. Those who do have capital may not want to risk it. The alternative would be to sell to a larger competitor. So as single-stream processing matures, it may fuel a new wave of consolidation in the waste industry.”
The recession of 2008 has led to reduced city budgets. This has only sped the adoption of single stream recycling due to its lower costs. With this pressure on government to reduce costs, despite its mixed success, despite increased contaminants and increased consolidation (leading to less competition) it looks like Single Stream recycling is here to stay.
Tags: Farmington, Farmington Hills, Green, Green LIving, Michigan, Recycling, Recycling Containers, single stream, sustainability
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Wednesday, July 4th, 2012
Last month I spent some time in Alden, MI on the shores of Torch Lake. Unknown to many visitors who are there to swim and boat the beautiful waters of Torch Lake, right in the heart of town is a trail system through a wonderful natural area known as Coy Mountain Natural Area.
The Coy Mountain Natural Area dates back to 1885 when Reuben Coy decided to preserve a ridge forested in virgin hardwoods that towered behind his gristmill. It was the last remnant of the giant maples and beeches in a region that had been heavily clear cut by loggers.
The 11-acre tract remained in the Coy family until 1958 when Reuben’s daughter-in-law deeded the property to a group of trustees with the intentions of preserving Coy Mountain “for the use and benefit of the Villagers of Alden and the surrounding communities”. The trustees presented the land to Helena Township in 1985.
Additional land donations from local residents enlarged the park to it’s current 17 acres. The construction of the trail system was an Eagle Scout project with Alden Volunteers assisting to expand and complete the project and the Alden Lumber Company donating the materials. Other groups, from Michigan Youth Corps to Mancelona Public Schools, have put in their time to help preserve this mountain in the middle of this small Antrim County town.
While the town of Alden is 604 feet above sea level, elevations in the Coy Mountain Natural Area get as high as 775 feet. While the 171 foot climb over the 1.5 mile trail can be challenging at times, it is well worth it. Despite the fact that the last virgin trees in the forest were stolen around 1993, the American Beech, Sugar Maple and Hemlock that make up most of the forest are breathtaking.
While Torch Lake is the main attraction in town, if you are heading to northern, MI and find yourself in Alden, definitely take the time to hike the Coy Mountain Preserve.
nature, tree stump
ground cover
Gail
Rick
Look at the beauty
Gail 2
Nature, tree
Tree tops
Tags: Coy Mountain, Forest, Michigan, Mountain, Northern Michigan
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Wednesday, July 4th, 2012
We are extremely busy this time of year, between all the green fairs and festivals, plus our workshops. Many weekends are surrendered to the cause of green living, reducing ones carbon footprint by installing a rain barrel.
After visiting California recently I started to realize that based on climate and water usage you may not need a rain barrel. Then I thought, well what would it hurt to have one anyone. And all I could come up with is that it couldn’t. There is almost no reason in my mind as to why you wouldn’t benefit from saving even just one barrel of water when you can save up enough rain. Then this all got me thinking about the many various uses for the extra water. Contrary to the many skeptics, rain barrels can be useful no matter who you are. The water can be used for many different uses, some of them are:
- Washing your car
- Washing your hair
- Watering House Plants
- Watering Outdoor Plants / Flowers
- Watering your lawn (using a Rain Barrel Pump)
- Reduce Stormwater Runoff
- Promote Rain Gardens and/or Ponds
- Washing the dog?
Let us know what you use your rain barrel for, leave us a comment below or Tweet us @MaxiContainer
***Under no circumstances do we recommend drinking rain water from your rain barrel. You don’t know whats on your roof… but Water Treatment tabs are handy to have and cheap… here’s a few on Amazon.com – keep them around in case of emergency, to turn your rain water into a drinkable source of water.
Tags: California, climate, Green, Green LIving, Michigan, rain barrels, Rain Water, summer
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Thursday, June 7th, 2012
My wife Gail and I decided to take a week off in Northern Michigan, enjoying the natural beauty and visiting the numerous wineries (some of which work with our sister company, miwinebarrel). We checked into The Inn at Torch Lake , a wonderful Bed and Breakfast in Alden, MI. While walking through town we came across the Spencer Creek Rain Garden.
Rain Gardens are nothing new to Maxi Container and mirainbarrel. As part of working with the Sierra Club Great Lakes Program we have learned quite a bit about rain gardens as a way, combined with our rain barrels of reducing storm water runoff into our streams, rivers and lakes. How surprised I was to see one, along a busy road, next to a bar, in Alden, MI. But, like many things, there is a story here.
As Priscilla Miller mentions in her article “The issue of storm water runoff from the roadway into the creek which flows into Torch Lake had been a concern of the Water Quality Protection Project for some time.” After a grant was acquired from the DEQ, the Alden State Bank, the Alden Bar & Grill, Bruce’s Excavating & Landscaping and the Alden Volunteers partnered with the Antrim Conservation District to build the Spencer Creek Rain Garden.
pThe Rain Garden reduces pollution of lakes and streams by using native plants to capture storm water and slowly filter into the ground so that it does not drain directly into the creek.
Here are some pictures of the completed Spencer Creek Rain Garden.
For more information on Rain Gardens please feel to contact Joshua@mirainbarrel.com or download the rain garden guide from the Sierra Club Great Lakes Program Sierra Club Rain Garden Guide.
Tags: Michigan, wine
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Monday, May 21st, 2012
It is funny how things work. You always hear the saying that “a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”. Or, in the environmental field that “one person can make a difference”. We nod our heads agreeing, but then we go on like before.
Here at Maxi Container and our sister site, mirainbarrel, we have decided that we are going to make a difference, one rain barrel at a time. There are so many reason why using a rain barrel to harvest rain water makes sense. The water is better for your garden, you help reduce pollution and storm water run off, you save money, etc.
But one thing leads to another. Last month we hosted the first Rain Barrels on the River Front with the Sierra Club Great Lakes Program and the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy. One of the attendees was Claire M. Galed. As it happens Claire is the Manager of the Huntington Woods, MI Department of Public Works. She contacted us and now, Maxi is teaming up with Huntington Woods to sponsor a rain barrel workshop for all Huntington Woods residents on July 22, 2012.
We are very excited to be working with Claire and Huntington Woods. Clearly, here is one person who is making a difference.
Download the flyer here
Sign up for the Huntington Woods workshop or any of our workshops at mirainbarrel.com/signup
Tags: Detroit Riverfront, events, Huntington Woods, rain barrels, Workshops
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Friday, May 18th, 2012
Recently I got the opportunity to be a special guest speaker at Johnson upper elementary thanks to Julie Thompson, leader of their PTA. One of my favorite things to do is talk to kids about water conservation, reuse, composting etc. The questions they ask are priceless and I also make sure to ask them a lot of questions too. In my day to day I forget sometimes what it was like in middle school. When your attend school dances and feel awkward and actually I “rebeled” as my parents would say, refusing to join any school teams but rather spend all my hours after (and sometimes during) school skateboarding. I still skateboard and it has given me a perspective that I would not otherwise know. When I arrive at the skatepark you have kids of all ages interacting it’s their park. Like it’s their park… This is our earth and we all have to take care of it. If we don’t teach kids the importance of green living then it will surely die. In a throw away society, water that just magically flows out the tap, soil which you buy at a store are winning. It’s time to change that, and change starts with the kids.
Tags: Composting, Green, Green LIving, rain barrels, schools, Water Conservation
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Monday, May 14th, 2012
Boy, have we been busy. Rain Barrel Season started early and the response has been overwhelming. On April 14, 2012 we partnered with the Sierra Club Great Lakes Program and the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy to host Rain Barrels on the Riverfront. Over 100 participants used Maxi Container’s Rain Barrel Kits to build their own Rain Barrels.
A week later, April 21 and 22, we were at the Grosse Pointe Live Green Fair, were our own Joshua Rubin was interviewed on Fox 2 News about our rain barrels. After the interview, people were waiting at our booth to purchase our repurposed rain barrels.
Upcoming events include, Chelsea Live Green Fair, May 19 and 20, Rochester Green Living Festival, June 22, 23, and 24, Wyandotte Green Live Fair, July 11, 12, 13, and 14, The Lavender Festival, July 13, 14 and 15 and the Farmington Founders Festival July 20 and 21, 2012.
April 28, 2012 found us at St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church in Livonia hosting a Rain Barrel workshop. Part of the proceeds were used to benefit St. Paul’s community outreach garden initiative to “Feed the Hungry.” Over 20 people participated and went home with their Rain Barrel helping to raise money for their community garden and to help protect the Great lakes by reducing pollution caused by Storm Water run-off.
Rick talks to the attendees at St. Paul's Rain Barrel Workshop!
May 4, 5, and 6th found us at the Plymouth Green Street Fair. This is usually one of the better green events and this year’s did not disappoint. After gloomy weather on Friday, Saturday and Sunday were bright and sunny, bringing thousand of people to Downtown Plymouth. In the past two years, we sold out of rain barrels at the Plymouth Green Street Fair, so we made sure to have extras. Interestingly, while we sold more rain barrels then in years past, it was our compost tumbler that sold out. Another big hit was our rain barrel stands made from wood reclaimed from used wooden pallets. We also introduced RainSaucers and our up-cycled steel drum benches.
We had a wonderful time at all of these events interacting with people interested in rain water harvesting and protecting our environment. If you have an event our are interested in setting up a fundraiser for your non-profit group, feel fee to give us a call at 1-800-727-MAXI or contact me at rick@maxicontainer.com.
Our setup at Grosse Pointe Live Green Home Show
I had a great time on my birthday at the Plymouth Green Street Fair
Our RainSaucer Garden
Tags: events, Green, Green Fairs, grosse pointe, Plymouth, rain barrels, RainSaucers
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