7 Organization Ideas to Create a More Productive Workspace

The organization of a company is a key element of a properly running office. Wasted time is one of the biggest expenses to a company and it’s usually because of improperly organized systems. If everything is convenient and properly in its place, the entire process will run smoothly. Fortunately, there are a lot of things people can do to improve office efficiency. 

Having a smooth-running office has lots of employee benefits as well. Everyone can be more productive and experience less frustration from poor organizational schemes or tedious and outdated tasks. 

Consider An Inserter

One such outdated task that is a major time-waster is inserting letters into envelopes. Lucky for you a folder inserter is an office machine that can do that job for you. This alone can save thousands on the payroll if your office relies on traditional mailings. 

Not only does an inserter do all the work more quickly and consistently than a person, but it also keeps highly skilled workers from wasting their time on menial tasks.  

Franking For Efficiency

Another way to speed up mailings and deliveries of all types is to employ a franking machine. The franking machine is a piece of office equipment that calculates and prints postage information on letters or package delivery labels

Franking machines have a scale and everything. You just put your letter or package on the scale, enter your shipping details, and the franking machine will print a label with postage included. Depending on the model, different levels of automation are available. You can send a shipping manifest via computer and stack it up against your letters, the machine will do the rest.   

MailMark Rates Are Better

When you use a digital postage machine like a franking machine you gain some other benefits as well. MailMark is one such benefit. It’s a service offered by Royal Mail and when using it, you get the best postage rates available today. It’s also convenient for a lot of other features. MailMark is the most convenient form of postage while also being the cheapest. 

There are a lot of other ultra-modern features that come with MailMark postage and they will do a lot for your company. Those features are discussed further down. 

Utilize Enhanced Tracking

Digital postage systems like MailMark also come with enhanced tracking services for your letters and packages. That’s because each postage glyph contains information including the recipient address, return, and tracking number. 

This makes processing and delivery faster at every level of the system. Whether you’re loading trucks at the plant, sorting or delivering as a postal worker, or checking out your package delivery dates, having a digital glyph with all pertinent information ensures that the package gets to its destination. 

 

Use Online Resources

If you’re having trouble with teamwork and staff productivity, it’s probably due to some gaps in the information flow at your office. That can surface at any point in the hierarchy if someone is communicating poorly. If you make sure everyone has a collaborative whiteboard for each project, people can have a visual focus that outlines each aspect of a project.

Workers can check it out for inspiration, to find their next task, and add their own ideas. People can discuss issues through a collaborative workspace and managers can use it as a centralized point of focus. 

Integrate A Management Platform

Another option is to use a management platform. There are many kinds of online workspace platforms available nowadays. Microsoft Teams is a telecommunication app that organizes people by teams and allows you to assign tasks and communicate with each team. This creates a virtual workspace that everyone can contribute to and use for meetings.  

There are lots of choices to choose from and it’s important to try out more than one if you want to find the perfect solution to your workspace needs. The best platform for you may not be the best for everyone else.

Assess Employee Capability

Make sure you’re using your employees correctly. If an employee’s talents go untapped, it’s the fault of the manager and their inability to properly evaluate staff capability. A bad manager just wants to fill seats with people that meet the minimums and accept minimum pay. However, finding positions or tasks that utilize the strengths and avoid the weaknesses of employees shows mastery of staff management. 

This also tends to improve morale as people are more satisfied with their job and are recognized for their abilities. And this leads to better outcomes and improved productivity. Happy workers in positions that suit them are the ideal outcome of every workplace.

Creating productivity is about removing bottlenecks in work and idea flow. Improving communication, reducing menial tasks that eat time, and providing quality tools are the best ways to eliminate the bottlenecks that threaten your office’s efficiency. 

TIER and Luna announce strategic partnership agreement. #micromobility #TIER #Luna

Europe’s leading e-scooter operator TIER and Irish micromobility tech platform Luna have announced a strategic partnership to explore the piloting and deployment of computer vision and smart city technology on shared e-scooter fleets, across Europe and the Middle East. In response to today’s announcement, Luna will also create 15 new full time jobs to assist with the work on these pilot projects. These jobs will cover computer vision/AI, hardware, IoT and project management roles in Ireland.

The announcement comes as part of an Enterprise Ireland trade mission to Germany where Tánaiste, Leo Varadkar T.D. met with representatives from Luna and Tier in Berlin. The meeting was to further understand the nexus between Ireland and Germany within the e-mobility and automotive industry, and the future role of shared e-scooter schemes in Ireland once the required legislation is passed.

The strategic partnership builds on the Dublin pilot which is taking place across DCU’s five campuses, and which also involves the Insight SFI Research Centre for Data Analytics. TIER and Luna are exploring the option of partnering in Paris and examining the possibilities of how vision-enabled e-scooters can assist the Mayor’s Smart City ambitions, using high fidelity and high frequency imagery captured by a portion of TIER’s fleet of 5,000 scooters there.

In addition to Paris, both companies are also exploring partnering in the Middle East with Smart City stakeholders, to examine the potential for bespoke computer vision solutions to tackle local issues around safety, infrastructure optimisation, as well as current and future municipal governance requirements. Additional pilot projects are also being explored in Spain amongst other locations, but details on these locations are yet to be finalised.

Another element of today’s announcement is that there will be a further collaboration with various digital mapping platforms, which will look at how TIER riders and computer vision on scooters can be utilised to capture more accurate and up to date mapping data, that will assist the deployment of micromobility schemes in cities on a global scale. Existing mapping platforms scan cities maybe once or twice a year, whereas scooters can capture and infill additional street level data on a daily basis.

Finally, as part of the strategic partnership, TIER and Luna are also embarking on a technical integration project to examine how the Luna computer vision hardware can be embedded into TIER vehicles at the point of manufacture. This will allow Tier to develop a next generation e-scooter that allows the current Luna standalone computer vision tech to integrate more deeply with the vehicle, similar to how Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) tech has evolved in the automotive industry.

Speaking at the announcement of this strategic partnership, Tánaiste (Irish Deputy Prime Minister) and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Leo Varadkar T.D. said: “I’m really happy to see this strategic partnership between Irish company Luna and Europe’s leading e-scooter operator TIER. Ireland is introducing a new law to allow for the legal usage of scooters on our roads in our towns and cities, as they become an increasingly popular option for commuters. Luna will hire 15 people as a result of the partnership, which will help build on the current pilot project that is taking place in DCU. These kinds of innovative partnerships can provide Ireland with a ‘second mover advantage’, helping us avoid some of the safety and other teething issues of earlier e-scooter schemes elsewhere. With this in mind it’s reassuring to see TIER, not only bringing advanced technology to solve some of the challenges we will no doubt also face in Ireland, but also to see them working with Irish stakeholders such as the NCBI and the Irish Wheelchair Association, through their recently established Safety Board.” 

 

Matthias Laug, CTO and Co-Founder of TIER, said: “We are already working closely with Luna in Dublin, and this broader strategic agreement allows us to expand the scope and ambition of our partnership. We see computer vision as a valuable tool in our mission to change mobility for good and to lead the way towards seamless, sustainable and safe micro-mobility. Alongside our world-leading parking capabilities with Fantasmo, this powerful collaboration with Europe’s leading computer vision and edge AI startup in the scooter space, allows us to explore the full potential of this exciting technology on our fleet. Luna thinks about cities in the same way as we do, and we look forward to jointly developing new solutions that address some of the key smart city challenges our city partners are identifying, from pavement riding to infrastructure monitoring and from litter alerts to road condition reports.” 

Andrew Fleury, Co-Founder & CEO, Luna said: “Luna is thrilled to be partnering so closely with TIER across multiple geographies in the EU and Middle East. Cities and stakeholders everywhere are looking towards smart technology to help find solutions to some of the operational challenges that are holding the shared scooter industry back from fulfilling its potential. TIER is embracing Luna technology, even at this early stage of its evolution, in order to pioneer the future of micromobility, and deliver safe and sustainable services that not only do the basics of looking after rider and pedestrian safety, but also look to the future where scooter fleets act as mobile sensor networks in the smart cities of tomorrow. The rate of industry advancement is astonishing in the shared scooter sector, and TIER is very much to the fore in this regard, having already developed an innovative Energy Network infrastructure for its user swappable batteries, as well as pioneering the deployment of Augmented Reality parking technology. Luna sees TIER as a natural partner in our mission to keep people safe and make cities smarter, and we’re excited to see how the partnership develops over time.

 

We were also excited to announce the expansion of our team with the creation of 15 brand new jobs over the coming months especially in the presence of the Tánaiste, who responded positively to the work we are currently undertaking in the micromobility sector.”

Esri Ireland creates a digital map of all libraries around Ireland for International Literacy Day #InternationalLiteracyDay

Esri Ireland, the market leader in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), has created a digital map of all of Ireland’s libraries to celebrate International Literacy Day today.

Built using Esri’s ArcGIS digital mapping system, the map details the location of all of the libraries around Ireland as well as their coordinates. The map intends to highlight the facilities available for the public while promoting lifelong learning.

International Literacy Day, created by the United Nations, is celebrated to highlight the importance of literacy as a matter of dignity and human rights. 773 million young people and adults are affected by non-literacy worldwide. The theme for 2021 is “Literacy for a human-centered recovery: Narrowing the digital divide”. This aims to highlight the importance of literacy and digital skills and how technology can enable inclusive learning.

Click on the image below to access the map..

 

World Premiere of Continental’s GreenConcept Tyre

Continental is unveiling its innovative Conti GreenConcept tyre concept at this year’s IAA MOBILITY. This conceptual study by the premium tyre manufacturer leverages both current and emerging technological approaches to the engineering of sustainable tyres for passenger cars, as yet another example of Continental’s wide-ranging activities in pursuit of sustainability. The goal of Continental’s integrative and sustainable concept: minimising resource consumption throughout every stage of the tyre’s value chain. As such, the study addressed everything, from the sourcing and procurement of raw materials, on to the various stages of production and even on to ways of extending the tyre’s service life.

Continental’s development engineers and materials experts rose to the occasion and found innovative solutions for each of these three challenges. The result: a tyre that consists of a particularly high percentage of traceable, renewable, and recycled materials, has an innovative, lightweight design that conserves valuable resources, and an extended service life thanks to a renewable tread.

“Conti GreenConcept underscores our commitment to becoming the most progressive tyre company in terms of environmental and social responsibility by the year 2030, and this ambition applies to every single stage in the value chain,” commented David O’Donnell, responsible for Continental’s global tyre original equipment business, adding: “The way we see it today, sustainably sourced raw materials, lightweight design and tread renewal are the key ingredients in making future generations of tyres more sustainable. Our concept study exemplifies Continental’s ongoing efforts to fully transition its global tyre production to sustainable materials.”

Over 50 percent sustainable raw materials used

Of all raw materials used in the making of Conti GreenConcept, more than half are either from renewable sources or recycled. For all of its tyre production plants, Continental is aiming to fully transition to sustainable raw materials by no later than 2050. The premium tyre manufacturer defines “sustainable” as all materials that originate from closed-loop cycles, that have no harmful effects on people or the environment, and are responsibly sourced as well as climate-neutral across their entire supply chains.

Conti GreenConcept also consists of 35 percent renewables. Among the bio-materials used are natural rubber from dandelions, silicate from the ash of rice husks, vegetable oils and resins, all leading to a significant reduction in materials from crude oil. In addition to natural rubber, Continental’s global tyre-production plants are already making widespread use of various other materials such as recycled rubber or vegetable oils. For Continental, it has long been a top priority not only to use sustainable materials in making its tyres, but also to further the cultivation and processing of such materials. For example, together with partners at its site in Anklam, Germany, Continental is conducting intensive research into the use of Russian Dandelions. The goal is to be able to grow natural rubber in the immediate vicinity of the company’s tyre plants so as to both lower carbon emissions from long-distance transport and to conserve valuable resources.

Rollout of “ContiRe. Tex” technology: polyester from recycled PET bottles

Conti GreenConcept also consists of 17 percent recycled materials, namely reclaimed steel and recovered carbon black, plus – in an industry first – polyester from recycled plastic bottles for the tyre’s casing. Continental is planning the gradual rollout of its ContiRe. Tex technology by 2022, thus paving the way for the manufacture of tyres using polyester yarn from recycled PET bottles. The recycling process does this without the usual intermediate chemical processing steps, and the resulting polyester yarn is then made functionally capable of handling the high mechanical forces to which tyres are subjected. As a part of the upcycling process, used PET bottles get a new life as polyester high-performance material. Conventional passenger car tyres each consist of roughly 400 grams of polyester yarn. In manufacturing a set of four tyres, a total of over 60 recycled PET (polyethylene terephthalate) bottles can be reused. The use of recycled polyester marks another major step by Continental on the road to circular manufacturing for all of its tyre products.

Another part of the Conti GreenConcept sustainability equation is the special mix of materials made possible by COKOON – a technology for the eco-friendly bonding of textile reinforcements with rubber compounds, as developed by Continental in partnership with Kordsa. In the spirit of open-source collaboration, the two partners have been making this technology available to all tyre industry players on a free-of-charge basis since 2019.

Smart vehicle concept based on a resource-saving, lightweight design

Besides its high percentage of renewable and recycled materials, Conti GreenConcept also raises the bar in terms of innovative lightweight technology. The tyre weighs just 7.5 kilogrammes, making it up to 40 percent lighter than conventional tyres. This weight reduction was made possible by an optimised tread pattern, a special sidewall and a new casing design with a weight-optimised core. All in all, the design choices made, lead to significantly lower resource consumption and more sustainable driving.

Thanks to its lightweight design, Conti GreenConcept is particularly destined for use in next-gen smart vehicles, equipped with sensors and resource-saving drives. By predictively monitoring their surroundings, the sensors in such vehicles give drivers the input they need for anticipatory driving, which in turn makes it feasible to use increasingly lightweight and resource-friendly tyres.

Even lower rolling resistance thanks to materials optimisation

Conti GreenConcept’s specially designed tread offers a greater margin of safety than conventional tyres with the same tread depth. The materials used in the tread were also optimised, thus further reducing the tyre’s weight and, in turn, lowering rolling resistance. In-house measurements reveal that Conti GreenConcept’s rolling resistance is to about 25 percent lower than class “A” – i.e. the best possible rating – under the EU Tyre Label system. Low rolling resistance means lower energy consumption, thus leading to a measurable improvement in terms of environmental impact. In the case of internal combustion vehicles, this means greater mileage and lower carbon emissions; for electrical vehicles, it results in extended range. Continental’s calculations – which have been validated by leading vehicle manufacturers – show that a 25 percent reduction in rolling resistance can lead to up to a six percent greater range for electric vehicles.

Special tread strip capable of multiple renewals

The natural rubber used for the Conti GreenConcept tread compound is 100 percent Taraxagum natural rubber. As a special capability, the tyre concept can be retreaded multiple times, with a minimal investment in terms of both time and materials. The green-coloured tread baseline marks the transition from tread to casing. Undamaged casings can be reused several times. This means the valuable raw materials that are built into it can be reused. If a tread is renewed three times, for example, this halves the amount of material used for a casing, as seen in terms of its total mileage. “Conti GreenConcept delivers maximum performance in terms of both flexibility and sustainability, enabling modern mobility to truly hit the streets,” commented O’Donnell.

Moreover, a latest-generation Continental sensor inside the tyre, makes predictive driving possible by means of continuous monitoring of temperature, pressure and tread depth. This gives drivers added input so they can make well-informed choices, thus promoting resource-friendly driving.

Conti Green Concept

Continental are also supplying sustainable tyres for Volkswagen’s ID. LIFE concept car
In addition to the GreenConcept tyre, Continental is exhibiting at its booth at IAA MOBILITY 2021, the ID. LIFE by Volkswagen, which will feature yet another Continental concept. The eco-friendly tyre engineering technologies used in making the tyre for Volkswagen are ready to make their way into series production in the near future. Engineered on the basis of Continental’s standard EcoContact 6 tyre, the concept tyre scores with very low rolling resistance (EU label “A”), leading to extend range for the ID. LIFE. Thanks to the targeted use of renewable and recycled materials comprising of 37 percent of its overall materials, the concept tyre makes a significant contribution to resource conservation across the entire value chain. The responsible sourcing of raw materials helps to minimise environmental impact and potential human rights infringements.

The sidewalls of EcoContact 6 tyres bear the slogan “Responsibly Sourced Rubber” as a way of emphasising Continental’s wide-ranging efforts to ensure the transparent and traceable sourcing of natural rubber. Among other renewable raw materials used are silica from rice grain husks, vegetable oil and vegetable resins. Recycled rubber and the eco-friendly COKOON bonding system for textile reinforcement, recently launched for Continental’s series production, are also part of the picture.

Conti GreenConcept and the concept tyre supplied to Volkswagen for its ID. LIFE concept car, serve to underscore Continental’s ambitious goal of becoming the most progressive tyre company with regards to ecological and social responsibility, by the year 2030. As an initial step in this direction, the company’s zero-emission mobility business is on track to becoming completely carbon-neutral by 2022. This is an important milestone on the road to becoming fully carbon neutral, and will also help Continental’s customers to meet their own decarbonisation targets. By 2050 at the latest, Continental intends to be manufacturing its tyre products using 100 percent sustainably produced materials, and thus achieving full climate neutrality throughout all of its supply chains.

Continental develops pioneering technologies and services for sustainable and connected mobility of people and their goods. Founded in 1871, the technology company offers safe, efficient, intelligent and affordable solutions for vehicles, machines, traffic and transportation. In 2020, Continental generated sales of €37.7 billion and currently employs around 233,000 people in 58 countries and markets. In 2021, the company celebrates its 150th anniversary.

The Tires business area has 24 production and development locations worldwide. Continental is one of the leading tyre manufacturers with more than 56,000 employees and posted sales of €10.2 billion in 2020 in this business area. Continental is a technological leader in the area of tyre production and offers a broad product range of cars, commercial and purpose-built vehicles, and two-wheelers. Through continuous investment in research and development, Continental makes a significant contribution towards mobility that is safer, more cost-effective and more ecologically efficient. The portfolio of the Tires business unit includes services for the tyre trade and fleet applications as well as digital tyre management systems.

NUMARICS: Switzerland’s First Fully Digitalised Startup & SME Accountant. #Fintech #NUMARICS

Swiss fintech start-up Numarics enables startups, SMEs and freelancers to do their accounting effortlessly and 100% digitally. With this strong business model, the founding team confirms the innovative strength of Switzerland as a business location.

Accounting, payroll, tax returns, invoicing, document management and much more are now streamlined via the Numarics ecosystem on the web or via app. Numarics has made the onboarding process incredibly simple – start-ups and SMEs can be activated on the platform in just a few minutes. Instantly, all the critical, administrative activities that are crucial to running a successful SME can be done in a digital and streamlined way via the Numarics app.

For entrepreneurs who want to organise their accounting seamlessly, independently and mobile.

The founders of Numarics believe that focusing on the core business leads to success – entrepreneurs focus on their key business and Numarics takes over administration and fiduciary services via the digital ecosystem.

Numarics was developed by experts from the fields of accounting, digitalisation, artificial intelligence and auditing. The founders have developed a digital and highly innovative ecosystem that is specifically tailored to the needs of entrepreneurs. With a consistent mobile-first approach, Numarics is Switzerland’s first accounting solution for startups and SMEs that can be completely controlled via a mobile app.

“Switzerland is a safe haven for businesses, and start up hubs like in Zurich are booming. It is simply outdated to still do your business administration with expensive accounting software and manually operating accounting providers. Numarics is the first digital accountant on the smartphone, providing an innovative ecosystem for Swiss startups,“ says Dominique Rey, Swiss Certified Public Accountant and CEO & Co-Founder at Numarics.

Users focus on their business – Numarics does the rest.

Co-founder Kristian Kabashi is an expert in the digitisation of business processes and is instrumental in digitising competent and reliable fiduciary services at Numarics. The digital expert believes that technology should be used to dedicate oneself to creativity by handling repetitive, administrative tasks technologically. In the process of developing Numarics, he has focused on the experience: “The experience of accounting up to now has been the same as a visit to the dentist. You know you have to do it, but it’s just no fun,” Kabashi says, adding, “With Numarics, running a business becomes the easiest thing in the world. Our users do their business, we do the rest.”

Numarics works and learns via intelligent algorithms. Each booking process is broken down from one minute to a few seconds. Documents are scanned with the mobile phone and categorised by setting filters. The app then learns from recurring expenses and income and consequently automates itself more and more, becoming faster and faster.

Kristian Kabashi and Dominique Rey

The founders are committed to creating a digital SME solution that is easy to use and absolutely transparent in terms of costs. Numarics is available for startups from only CHF 149 /month – the package includes all fiduciary services and financial administration for startups and SMEs: document management, accounting, financial statements, tax returns, VAT and payroll. Tax advice is provided via push notifications in the app. In the affiliated Numarics Academy, top experts such as Numarics Board Chairman and Professor for Finance Volker Doberanzke teach business management in free webinars.

If users need specific information, entrepreneurs can book consultations with certified experts at Numarics at the click of a button. Various banking institutions can be connected to the Numarics ecosystem to provide the user with a fully integrated financial experience.

“Expat founders regularly have different needs. They only understand Swiss regulations and tax requirements to a limited extent – also because there are many terms that translate differently. For these entrepreneurs, we want to make Switzerland more open as a start-up country,“ says Rey.

Tennis Manager 2021 takes centre court – launching today on Steam, Epic Games Store, GOG & Mac App Store

Rebound CG is delighted to announce the full release of Tennis Manager 2021 on PC and Mac and is now available for $39.99 // 39,99 € // £34.99 on Steam, the Epic Games Store, GoG and the Mac App Store.

After several months in Early Access and five major patches, the game has evolved greatly, achieving some impressive milestones. To date, Tennis Manager has reached its highest user score on Steam with +85% positive reviews, thousands of players, and millions of matches played (aces and double faults alike!);

Honoured with comparisons to the most successful management simulation, ‘Football Manager’ and a growing audience including a FIFA eSports World champ’ and amazing pro tennis players Gael Monfils top 10 ATP and Holger Rune world #1 Junior, there’s a real audience for Tennis Management simulation. All these sucesses are made possible by our community, whose feedback has been vitally important, helping us to finish the game that we were all working so hard to create.

Tennis Manager’s launch is a huge achievement and an important step moving forward for our small indie studio of 10 full-time developers and we continue our efforts on mobile, as we look forward to seeing tens of thousands of mobile players take a step onto the court in our new adventure.

Enter the Nightmare Realm as Crown Trick launches on Xbox One and PlayStation 4 today

Team17 and NExT Studios have announced the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 launch of adventure roguelike Crown Trick, following its launch on Nintendo Switch™ and PC in 2020. Crown Trick features unique synchronous turn-based combat so that enemies, and deadly traps only react when the player does. As Elle, a combination of skills, magical Familiar skills, weapons, and strategic thinking is required to escape the labyrinthian procedural dungeons of the Nightmare Realm alive.

Crown Trick key features:

  • Engaging strategic gameplay: Monsters and traps move only when the player moves; carefully thought-out strategies are key to escaping the labyrinthine dungeon
  • Fight how you want: Create and develop a unique combat style with 40+ active skills, 60+ passive abilities, 30+ usable items, and 170+ special relics, all of which create different ways to cut through enemy encounters
  • Learn from enemies: Gather elite ‘Familiar’ skills by overcoming enemies ready to unleash on others deeper in the dungeon
  • Different dungeons every time: The procedurally generated maze ensures players have unique experiences every time they enter The Nightmare Realm.

The Xbox One and PlayStation 4 versions of Crown Trick are currently available with a launch discount of 20%, making them $15.99/ €15.99/£12.79 until 13th September.

Crown Trick is also available now on Steam for PC  and Nintendo Switch™ for $19.99/ €19.99/£15.99.

 

PewDiePie and Crainer On Board to Serve as Mentors in Content Creator Simulator ‘Youtubers Life 2

Entire Team of Superstar YouTubers Will Appear in the Game to Inspire the Next Generation

For the past decade, PewDiePie – known as Felix Kjellberg to his friends – has been one of the most popular YouTubers on the planet, with more than 110 million subscribers around the world at last count hanging on his every word, for better or worse.

Who better, then, to pass on the fruits of his wisdom to the next generation of content creators?

Raiser Games and UPLAY Online are excited to announce that PewDiePie will be headlining a  cast of real life YouTubers who will all appear in forthcoming content creator simulator Youtubers Life 2. Taking on the role of guardians – or ‘Senpais’, as PewDiePie fans may be more accustomed to hearing – Kjellberg and a cast of 10 YouTubers in total will appear in the game in side-missions, offering players the opportunity to increase their knowledge and experience in specially set challenges.

Also joining the line-up will be CrainerLaurenzSideRubiusPalutenInoxTagWillyRexGermanLetsPlayVegetta777 and xFaRgAnxYoutubers Life 2 will offer aspiring content creators the opportunity to live out their YouTube dreams in relative safety when it launches on PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch later this year.

According to Sergio de Benito, Marketing Director at Raiser Games, working with some of the world’s most popular YouTubers should give players an example of the responsibility that comes hand in hand with wielding considerable influence.

“Fame is a fickle beast and – like film stars, pop stars, and sports stars before them – YouTubers have spent the last decade finding out that, once you hit the big time, everything you do or say is under the microscope,” says de Benito. “We thought that having real life YouTubers in play was a must for Youtubers Life 2, because they are the only people on the planet who can, with some authenticity, pass on advice based on the highs and lows they’ve both enjoyed and endured whilst in the public eye. They really will be the players’ guardian angels.”

All of the YouTubers will appear in dedicated, specialised side-missions, challenging players to carry out fun tasks increasing their knowledge and experience in the process. They will act as the icing on the Youtubers Life 2’s considerable cake, adding an extra slice of realism to proceedings.

“It’s been really interesting working with the Youtubers Life 2 developers to make sure my likeness comes across in play,” adds Crainer. “I hope my subscribers get a real kick out of seeing me in the game.”

In Youtubers Life 2 you will be able to: –

  • Create content on different apps: NewTube, Glitch, and InstaLife.
  • Explore NewTube City throughout three different neighborhoods: The City Hall, Downtown, and the Port. Each one has unique stores, leisure centers, activities, and other Youtubers (NPCs) with whom we can build a social relationship.
  • Follow different trends triggered at different times, take pictures to Instalife, or record VOD and streamings on the way. The city is alive and will be a key to your development as a Youtuber.
  • Record your progress on your Drone – your closest, customisable friend who will follow you on your adventures.
  • New customisation options for your character and for your home. For the first time in the franchise, we will be able to customize our home and setup with our preferred style.

Raiser Gamers and UPLAY Online will have more to announce regarding Youtubers Life 2’s forthcoming launches in the months ahead.

Two leaders in the bicycle world are joining forces to offer an application that allows communities to better understand the practice of cycling in the city and thus improve the experience of cyclists.

On the occasion of the Velocity international trade show, Eco-Counter, the world leader in bicycle/pedestrian counting solutions and GéoVélo, the French leader in the development of location and navigation applications for bicycles, have joined forces to create the first solution that allows local authorities to gather data on the counting and location of cyclists.

To increase safety and encourage cycling, communities need good traffic data. And while the data provided by automatic counters give an overview of the evolution of bicycle traffic at strategic points in the city, cities now want a more detailed picture of what is happening throughout their territory: origin/destination, average speed & average distance, etc.

To do this, cities need to combine existing data (bike counts) with GPS traces, and more specifically, extrapolate traces with bike counts. That is how Eco-Counter and GeoVelo have decided to join their forces.

Several projects have already been carried out with this ambition through various applications, but the user sample is often biased or not large enough. This new solution allows communities to benefit from a complete view on bicycle traffic, with meaningful data.

Ronan BOUQUET, Managing Director of Géovélo, explains how the application addresses this need: “The Geovelo application brings together a wide variety of users. It is sufficiently engaging to have a representative and qualitative sample. The data extrapolation made through bicycle counts can then be done with a good level of confidence and provides unique information to urban planners.”

Enrico Durbano, CEO of Eco-Counter adds: “This partnership will allow us to offer our customers geolocated and anonymized user data, scaled with count data from our counters. The power of this solution will allow our customers new possibilities to exploit data and improve user experience.”

 

About Eco-Counter

Eco-Counter is an international company with a passion for data to understand pedestrian and cyclist traffic. Eco-Counter’s data are essential tools for planners to make good decisions.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, the company has been analyzing bicycle traffic in 13 countries around the world. The trends show a real “cycling boom” in all the countries studied, with +8% of ridership observed in Europe between 2019 and 2020, and +16% in North America, despite the successive lockdowns.

 

  • Location: Lannion, Brittany, France.
  • Experts in pedestrian and bicycle counting since 2000
  • 90 employees in Lannion, 15 in Montreal
  • 9 different nationalities
  • Over 20,000 counters installed in 55 countries
  • 2020 revenues: €14.8M, 13% growth
  • Deloitte Fast 50 Award (from 2010 to 2014)
  • Bpifrance National and Regional Award in 2013
  • Average annual organic growth > 30% over the last 5 years
  • Member of the OSEO Excellence community and the BPI France incubator
  • 15% of annual sales invested in R&D
  • Strategic Partnership on Vision with CEA lab
  • Ranked in 2017 and 2019 among the 50 best companies to work for (Great Place to Work Ranking)