SWATCH تبدأ العام الجديد برؤية واضحة

لا داعي لإخفاء أي شيء مع مجموعة SWATCH CLEAR COLLECTION الشفافة الجديدة

بيل، يناير 2022

 

مع دخولنا عام 2022، نرغب جميعاً في أن نبدأ هذا العام مع رؤية واضحة، وهذا ما ترغب به Swatch أيضاً. وكبداية كل عام جديد، تكون هذه الفترة هي المثالية للتخلص من جميع المعوقات وضوضاء العالم الخارجي ونسيان جميع المشاكل السابقة، والبدء بالتخطيط والتركيز على ماهو قادم في سبيل اتخاذ القرارات المستقبلية الصحيحة في العام الجديد!

ومع كون الشفافية توجه مميز في هذه الفترة، لكن Swatch كانت سباقة في هذا التوجه عندما أطلقت تصميمها الشفاف المميز والجذاب للمرة الأولى في ساعة Gent في عام 1985. ولكن هذه المرة، مع خمسة تصاميم رائعة تشمل مختلف المقاسات لمجموعات العلامة التجارية. كما ستتوفر ساعة BIG BOLD الشفافة المزودة بخاصية SwatchPAY!‎ أيضاً في عدد من البلدان محددة.

بتصميمٍ بسيطٍ جداً، تعود مجموعة Swatch CLEAR الجديدة إلى التصميمات الأساسية مع لوحة بسيطة تتناسق مع الشكل المميّز للعقارب بألوانها الأساسية. وستمنحك تصميمات CLEAR المصنوعة من مواد حيوية مظهراً يوحي بقوة المسؤولية.

استمتع بالوضوح التام مع ساعة CLEARLY BOLD، ذات التصميم الجريء في عالم الشفافية. تأتي العلبة الشفافة للساعة بتصميم جريء وقوي بقطر 47 ملم، وتحوي قرص شفاف بحلقة فضية اللون ومؤشرات سوداء وعقارب ملونة. ولإرضاء تطلعات الأشخاص الذين يرغبون في عمليات دفع أسهل دون تلامس، تأتي ساعة CLEARLY BIG BOLD مزودة بخاصية SwatchPAY!‎ المتكاملة مع شريحة الاتصال قريب المدى المخفية التي تعمل بطريقة مشابهة للبطاقات المصرفية. 

 

يمنحك تصميم ساعتي CLEARLY GENT وCLEARLY NEW GENT مظهراً يوحي بالمسؤولية بفضل الزجاج والعلبة (بقطر 34 ملم و41 ملم) المصنوعين من مواد حيوية. تجذب اللمسة النهائية اللامعة للعلبة والسوار والإبزيم، الأنظار تجاه هذا التصميم الشفاف.

 

أما ساعة CLEARLY SKIN فهي الطراز الأنحف من مجموعة Swatch الجديدة ولا يمكن الشعور بها أثناء ارتدائها. تأتي الساعة بقرص شفاف وشعار Swatch منقوش باللون الأصفر على الزجاج. أما العلبة ذات القطر 34 ملم فمصنوعة من مواد حيوية ولا يمكن ملاحظتها على المعصم. 

 

سواء أكانت شفافة أم لا؛ الأمر يرجع لك. تتوفر المجموعة عبر الإنترنت وفي متاجر Swatch اعتباراً من 5 يناير 2022. تتوفر ساعة The Clearly BIG BOLD المزودة بخاصية SwatchPAY! في بلدان مختارة اعتباراً من 5 يناير 2022.

 

AUC FACULTY, STUDENT RESEARCH ON STRENGTHENING CERAMICS PUBLISHED IN TOP-TIER ACADEMIC JOURNAL

December 29, 2021, Cairo – Mostafa Youssef, assistant professor of computational materials science and engineering in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at The American University in Cairo (AUC), and Mohamed Abdallah '21, a double major in mechanical engineering and physics, have published their research on an innovative technique for making ceramics more durable in the prestigious Physical Review Materials, a top-tier journal in materials physics. Youssef and Abdallah focused on identifying a model that demonstrated how certain defects in ceramics move when exposed to electrical fields. “We collected previous models from literature starting from the 1940s all the way to 2020,” Youssef explained. “And we made a computer simulation – basically, we brought a little piece of ceramic on the computer, applied an electric field and saw how the defects move.”

Youssef expressed that they are very proud that they made it [in the journal]. “This is a Q1 journal [Impact 3.99] from the family of the Physical Review series whose papers are permanently cited in Nobel Prize awards in physics and chemistry.” Q1 journals make up the top 25% of journals in an area of research.

In his courses at AUC, Youssef and his students explore different materials and their properties using simulations, modeling and theory. The professor had previously conducted research on a related problem in 2017 during his postdoctoral studies at MIT. 

There were five models in total from 1949- 2020, all of which Youssef and Abdallah carefully assessed until they could pinpoint which model was superior. The simulations themselves sometimes took months to finish, and if there were errors in the code that Youssef and Abdallah wrote, they would have to start again.

Prior work found that the air gaps in a piece of ceramic were eliminated when introduced to large electric fields, making the material denser and more durable. “Usually, people do this with very high temperatures using furnaces in a process called sintering,” Youssef said. “But this is quite expensive. And people are trying to find alternatives that are more cost-efficient.” 

Flash sintering is a promising alternative, as it succeeds in densifying ceramic materials faster and requires less heat than traditional sintering. High electric fields are also used to store information to novel types of Random Access Memory cards for computers that will push the current limits of memory speed.

Youssef and Abdallah continued in this area of study in 2019, after they had met the previous year when Abdallah took Youssef’s Numerical Methods course. “During my studies, I grew to appreciate how materials optimization can have a huge influence on the performance of devices or on creating new devices,” Abdallah said. “So maybe seven or eight months after the course, I got in touch with Dr. Mostafa to conduct research as an undergrad in this field.”

“One of the things that hit me during this time is that research is an iterative process,” Abdallah said. “It often doesn’t work out right away, so you need to be flexible and adaptable.”

Youssef admired the patience Abdallah demonstrated throughout the process, especially considering his status as an undergraduate student. “Many undergraduate students need to see something coming out immediately, after three or four months,” he said. “But Mohamed was patient. And I think this is a major quality in good research – patience.” 

Other challenges included securing resources for their research and continuing during the coronavirus pandemic. “These simulations need a lot of computational power. And we were very, very limited on the resources,” Youssef explained. “The other thing that was overwhelming for us was COVID. It took us a while to coordinate things and to see how the workflow could run.”

Even after the two finished their paper, they still faced what Youssef described as an “extremely rigorous” review from the academic journal. So rigorous, Youssef recalled, that Physical Review famously critiqued a paper written by Albert Einstein in the 20th century, which prompted the physicist to stop submitting his work to the journal.

Beyond taking pride in their work, Youssef and Abdallah also hope that their work inspires others, especially undergraduate students, at AUC and beyond to conduct their own research in this field.

“We need such a push for undergraduate research,” Youssef said. “Our undergraduate students are capable of doing high-quality research – it just takes a little bit of patience.”

Abdallah, who is now pursuing a masters at the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland, is grateful for the opportunity and guidance provided to him by Youssef. 

Youssef continues to lead AUC students in this field, reporting that there are two graduate students currently continuing his and Abdallah’s research. 

For regular updates from the University during coronavirus visit www.aucegypt.edu/coronavirus 

For more information about the university news and events follow us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/aucegypt and Twitter @AUC

Founded in 1919, The American University in Cairo (AUC) is a leading English-language, American-accredited institution of higher education and center of the intellectual, social, and cultural life of the Arab world. It is a vital bridge between East and West, linking Egypt and the region to the world through scholarly research, partnerships with academic and research institutions and study abroad programs. 

The University offers 40 undergraduate, 52 master’s and two PhD programs rooted in a liberal arts education that encourages students to think critically and find creative solutions to conflicts and challenges facing both the region and the world. 

An independent, nonprofit, politically non-partisan, non-sectarian and equal opportunity institution, AUC is fully accredited in Egypt and the United States.

Tesla’s 2021 vehicle deliveries surge over 80%, projected to hit 1.5 million in 2022

 

Tesla's goal of pushing electric vehicles into the mainstream is gaining momentum with the company's steady growth in deliveries. As the EV manufacturer expands production, the number of delivered vehicles is also expected to hit record levels in 2022.

Data acquired by Finbold indicates that Tesla's 2021 deliveries stood at 936,172, growing 87.4% from 2020's figure of 499,550. In 2019, the company delivered 367,500 vehicles under different models.

Since the company began delivering electric vehicles in 2014, the highest annual growth was registered between 2017 and 2018 at 137.8%, from 103,100 to 245,200.

In 2014, 2015 and 2016 Tesla’s vehicle deliveries stood at 32,000, 50,000 and 76,200 respectively.

Based on the company's historical year-over-year percentage growth average between 2014 and 2021, Fibold estimates that in 2022 the vehicle shipments will for the first time surpass the one million to stand at 1,544,402, growing 64.9% from last year's figure. Additionally, the target will be influenced by operations at the new Texas and Berlin plants.

Significance of Tesla’s delivery numbers

The report highlights the significance of Tesla's vehicle delivery numbers and their impact on the market. According to the research report:


"Overall, Tesla deliveries are one of the most closely watched metrics for the company. The metric usually underpins the company's financial results and highlights the market's demand for electric vehicles."

In general, Tesla continues to increase its annual vehicle deliveries despite the EV industry facing challenges around the global supply chain and logistics related to the coronavirus pandemic.

However, the company is known to design its chips in-house to beat the semiconductor shortage, an advantage it has over other competing automakers. At the same time, Tesla has also reprogrammed software to use less scarce chips.

Read the full story with statistics here: https://finbold.com/teslas-2021-vehicle-deliveries-surge-over-80-projected-to-hit-1-5-million-in-2022/

The chart:

 

 

AUC PRESS PUBLISHES FIRST ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF POPULAR NOVEL BY PROMINENT EGYPTIAN WRITER IHSAN ABDEL KOUDDOUS

 

January 3, 2022, Cairo – The American University in Cairo (AUC) Press has recently released Ihsan Abdel Kouddous’s novel I Do Not Sleep, translated from Arabic by Jonathan Smolin. Published by Hoopoe, an imprint of AUC Press, the novel is the first prose work by the prolific Egyptian fiction writer to be made available in English.

“We are grateful to Jonathan Smolin for his skillful translation of Ihsan Abdel Kouddous’ masterful novel, I Do Not Sleep,” said Miriam Fahmi, AUC Press associate director. “Its publication is a great honor for AUC Press and Hoopoe and a fulfillment of our mission to publish inspiring writing from the Middle East.”


A story of revenge, betrayal, and desire, I Do Not Sleep shocked readers in the 1950s when it first appeared in Arabic, in serial form, in one of Egypt’s high-circulation magazines.


“Unlike Naguib Mahfouz, Ihsan employed simple vocabulary and sentence structure in a way that appealed to the widest possible readership,” writes Smolin in his translator’s introduction to the novel.


The novel’s main character, sixteen-year-old Nadia, who her father raises after her parents get divorced, is an indulged and petulant teenager who is determined to remain the only female in her father’s life. When she finds out one day that he has remarried without her knowledge, Nadia conspires to restore her rightful place, carefully plotting a family drama of misery, pain, and destruction.

Written as a letter, a confession, by now twenty-one-year-old Nadia, the novel explores the theme of good versus evil and lays bare repressed desires and seething jealousies while challenging traditional patriarchal norms with its portrayal of strong female characters.


“It is shocking that Ihsan Abdel Kouddous is still largely unknown outside of the Arab World,” adds Smolin. “When he began writing I Do Not Sleep in 1955, Ihsan was already considered Egypt’s most popular writer.” Abdel Kouddous published more than sixty books during his lifetime, including twenty novels and hundreds of short stories.


Many of Abdel Kouddous’ novels, including I Do Not Sleep, were adapted to feature films, such as the classic drama There’s a Man in Our House (1961), directed by Henry Barakat, starring Omar Sharif, Rushdi Abaza, and Zubaida Tharwat, and considered one of Egypt’s top 100 films. Radio plays and television series were also adapted from Abdel Kouddous’s work. Much more recently, in 2017, his two-part novel Don’t Put Out the Sun (1960) was turned into a Ramadan television series.


In his early years, Kouddous built his career as a high-profile and incendiary journalist for some of the country’s leading media outlets, including the political weekly magazine Rose El Youssef, founded and owned by his mother, and as editor-in-chief of various important publications. Later in his life, Abdel Kouddous turned to writing fiction after spending time in jail for speaking out against Nasser and the Free Officers.


The English translation of I Do Not Sleep is already attracting the attention of reviewers. Respected ArabLit blogger and literary critic Marcia Lynx Qualey calls the novel “fresh, unpretentious and irresistibly cinematic.”


For regular updates from the University during coronavirus visit www.aucegypt.edu/coronavirus

For more information about the university news and events follow us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/aucegypt and Twitter @AUC

MG Motor Continues to Make Its Mark on The Middle East with Astonishing Growth and Expansion

• In 2021 alone, 12 new MG Motor showrooms and service centres have opened and are fully operational 

• Expansion comes as a result of increased demand, market research and solid retail partnerships

• MG continues to ensure optimum customer satisfaction across all areas 

• Oman ranks first with the opening of six showrooms in 2021, followed by Iraq and the UAE

(29 December 2021, UAE) MG Motor has marked yet another remarkable milestone, with the British-born brand, opening 12 showrooms and other new facilities in 2021 as it continues its swift growth in the Middle East. The demand for MG cars has been steadily increasing – as a result the brand registered a record number of sales in the first three quarters of 2021, with outstanding growth of 60% in sales, and witnessing its highest recorded growth in market share to reach 3.8%.

The brand registered particularly strong growth in the Sultanate of Oman with sales up by 131% to help it to a solid market share of 5%, and ranking it fourth amongst the top 10 brands.  The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been the brand’s highest contributor in terms of sales volume in the Middle East, contributing 60% of MG’s overall sales in the region, with a market share of 4.6%.

While the world is still recovering from the pandemic and ongoing global uncertainty, MG has focused on an intensive network development and expansion plan to reinvigorate the brand’s strategy, partnerships and objectives and to maximise its accessibility to customers across the nine countries. 

MG, along with its partners in the Middle East, has been committed to offering a captivating experience for its current and future customers. With its partners’ support, it has succeeded in expanding its network in the region by increasing the number of showrooms from 28 in 2020 to 40 today, with plans to reach 41 before the end of 2021, whilst simultaneously increasing the number of service and spare parts centres. 

Tom Lee, Managing Director of MG Motor Middle East, commented: “I am so proud to watch MG Motor’s extraordinary growth in the region and I can attribute this to the efforts of the MG team as well as our partners who have been key in the continuous building, investment and development of the MG brand in the Middle Eastern region.  We pride ourselves on delivering quality products and services through an attentive approach, which comes as a result of strong staff training and loyalty. I’m excited to see what is in store for MG and to watch the brand continue to grow and thrive in the Middle East”. 

So far in 2021, MG’s distributor in Kuwait, Adel Alghanim, has invested $20 million in opening the brand’s flagship and largest showroom and service facility in the region. In Oman, MG’s exclusive retailer, Mohsin Haidar Darwish, has inaugurated a total of six showrooms in 2021 alone, increasing its total number to 11. In the United Arab Emirates, MG Motor’s new official distributor, Inter Emirates Motors, opened three new showrooms in three Emirates – Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Ras Al Khaimah – during March and April. A further showroom was recently opened in Al Ain City, and one more showroom is expected to open in December. MG’s growth in other regional markets such as Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan and Iraq remains strong. 

As MG also closely monitors the market and customer service trends, the brand has managed to fill the gaps within both product and brand perspectives; and as such, market research and monitoring plays a vital role towards the brand’s growth and success.  MG prides itself on being a leader in the delivery of customer satisfaction, and its partners in the region pursue a parallel vision to deliver utmost comfort and peace of mind to customers. 

All MG cars share the brand’s reputation for delivering premium finishes at non-premium prices. These offerings extend to all MG showrooms’ experience through an exceptional customer journey at every stage of the purchasing and after sales process. MG is also committed to maintaining the same competitive pricing strategy that has proved successful across the region. Customers can choose from an impressive range of excellent models from the British-born brand, and all retail models come with the best-in-region manufacturer warranty of six years or 200,000 kilometres. 

’إم جي موتور‘ تتابع مسيرة تألّقها في الشرق الأوسط خلال نمو وتوسّع مذهل

• في العام 2021 وحده، تم افتتاح 12 صالة عرض ومركز خدمة جديد لدى شركة ’إم جي موتور‘ وكلّها تعمل بطاقتها الكاملة

• التوسّع يأتي نتيجة للطلب المتزايد وأبحاث السوق الدقيقة والشراكات القوية مع الوكلاء

• ’إم جي‘ تستمر بضمان تحقيق أعلى مستويات رضى العملاء في مختلف المجالات

• عُمان تحتل المرتبة الأولى عبر افتتاح ست صالات عرض في 2021، وتبعها العراق والإمارات

(29 ديسمبر 2021، الإمارات العربية المتحدة) حقّقت ’إم جي موتور‘ إنجازاً بارزاً آخراً مع قيامها بافتتاح 12 صالة عرض ومنشأة جديدة في 2021، متابِعة بذلك النمو السريع للعلامة التجارية بريطانية المنشأ في الشرق الأوسط. ويشهد الطلب على سيارات ’إم جي‘ زيادة ثابتة، ونتيجة لهذا سجّلت العلامة التجارية أرقام مبيعات قياسية خلال الفصول الثلاثة الأولى من 2021، محقِّقة بذلك نمواً ممتازاً في المبيعات بلغت نسبته 60 بالمئة لتستمتع بأعلى نمو مسجَّل لديها في الحصّة السوقية مع الوصول إلى نسبة 3.8 بالمئة.


ولقد سجّلت العلامة التجارية نمواً قوياً بارزاً في سلطنة عُمان مع ارتفاع المبيعات بنسبة 131 بالمئة، مما ساعد بزيادة الحصّة السوقية لتصل إلى 5 بالمئة وتعزيز موقعها في المرتبة الرابعة بين أول 10 علامات تجارية. كما كانت المملكة العربية السعودية المساهم الأبرز من ناحية حجم المبيعات في الشرق الأوسط مع تسجيل نسبة 60 بالمئة من مجمل مبيعات ’إم جي‘ في المنطقة، واكتساب حصّة سوقية قدرها 4.6 بالمئة.


وبينما لا يزال العالم يتعافى من تداعيات جائحة ’كورونا‘ وفي ظل عدم الاستقرار المستمر على الصعيد الدولي، ركّزت ’إم جي‘ على التطوير المكثَّف لشبكتها وخطّة التوسّع الطموحة لأجل إعادة تنشيط استراتيجية العلامة التجارية وشراكاتها وأهدافها بتعزيز قدرة وصولها إلى العملاء حتى أقصى حد في الدول التسع التي تنشط بها في المنطقة.


وتلتزم ’إم جي‘ بالتعاون مع وكلائها في الشرق الأوسط بتوفير تجربة متميّزة لعملائها الحاليين والمستقبليين. وعبر الدعم من الشركاء، نجحت بتوسعة شبكتها في المنطقة عبر زيادة عدد صالات العرض من 28 في سنة 2020 إلى 40 اليوم، مع وجود خطط للوصول إلى 41 قبل نهاية 2021، وفي الوقت ذاته زيادة عدد المراكز الجديدة للخدمة وقطع الغيار.


وفي تعليق له على هذا الموضوع، قال توم لي، المدير التنفيذي لعمليات ’إم جي موتور‘ في الشرق الأوسط: "أنا فخور جداً برؤية النمو الاستثنائي الذي تتمتّع به ’إم جي موتور‘ في المنطقة، ويمكنني التأكيد أن هذا يعود إلى الجهد الكبير الذي يبذله فريق ’إم جي‘ بالإضافة إلى شركائنا الذين يلعبون دوراً أساسياً مستمراً في مسيرة البناء والاستثمار والتنمية الدائمة لعلامة ’إم جي‘ التجارية في منطقة الشرق الأوسط. ونحن نعتزّ بتوفير منتجات وخدمات عالية الجودة باعتماد توجّه يُولي الكثير من الاهتمام والعناية، وهذا نتيجة للتدريب القوي للموظَّفين وما يتمتّعون به من ولاءٍ عالٍ. وأنا متحمّس لرؤية ما يخبئه المستقبل لصالح ’إم جي‘ ومشاهدة مَضِي العلامة التجارية بالنمو والازدهار في الشرق الأوسط."


تجدر الإشارة إلى أنه حتى هذه الفترة من 2021، استثمر وكيل ’إم جي‘ في دولة الكويت، شركة ’عادل الغانم للسيارات‘، مبلغ 20 مليون دولار أمريكي لافتتاح صالة العرض ومنشأة الخدمة الأبرز والأضخم للعلامة التجارية في المنطقة. وفي عُمان، دشّن وكيل ’إم جي‘ الرسمي في السلطنة، شركة ’محسن حيدر درويش‘، ما مجموعه ست صالات عرض في العام 2021 وحده، مما رفع العدد إلى 11 صالة عرض. أما في الإمارات العربية المتحدة، فقد قامت شركة ’إنتر إميرتس موتورز‘، وكيل ’إم جي موتور‘ الرسمي الجديد، بافتتاح ثلاث صالات عرض جديدة في ثلاث إمارات شملت أبوظبي، دبي ورأس الخيمة وذلك في شهرَي مارس وأبريل. ولقد جرى مؤخراً تدشين صالة عرض إضافية في مدينة العين، ومن المتوقَّع افتتاح صالة عرض أخرى في شهر ديسمبر. كما تحافظ ’إم جي‘ على نموّها القوي في باقي الأسواق الإقليمية مثل قطر، البحرين، الأردن والعراق.


ومع مراقَبة ’إم جي‘ الدقيقة للأسواق والتوجُّهات فيما يتعلّق بخدمة العملاء، تمكّنت العلامة التجارية من ملء الفراغات من ناحية المنتَج وما يخصّ العلامة التجارية؛ وبالتالي تلعب أبحاث السوق ومهام المراقَبة والمتابَعة دوراً محورياً في تعزيز نمو ونجاح ’إم جي‘، التي تفخر بكونها رائدة في تحقيق رضى العملاء. كما إن شركاءها في المنطقة يتمتّعون برؤية موازية مع السعي لتوفير أعلى مستويات الملاءمة وراحة البال للعملاء.


تتشارك كل سيارات ’إم جي‘ سمعة العلامة التجارية في توفير لمسات نهائية راقية بأسعار معقولة، وهذا ينطبق أيضاً على كل صالات العرض التي توفر تجربة عملاء استثنائية عند كل مرحلة من عملية الشراء أو خدمات ما بعد البيع. كما تتميّز ’إم جي‘ بالتزامها بالحفاظ على استراتيجية التسعير التنافسية الناجحة ذاتها التي أثبتت فعاليتها في المنطقة. ويمكن للعملاء الاختيار من ضمن مجموعة واسعة من الطرازات الرائعة التي تقدّمها العلامة التجارية بريطانية المنشأ، وتأتي كل الطرازات المشمولة بمبيعات التجزئة مع ضمان من المصنِّع هو الأفضل في المنطقة بحيث يمتدّ حتى ست سنوات أو مسافة 200,000 كيلومتر.