Burrow Global, LLC Announces Organizational Changes Amid Steady Growth

Houston, Texas (PRWEB) November 28, 2011

International engineering, procurement, and construction firm, Burrow Global, LLC (Burrow), today announced organizational enhancements in the wake of steady growth and success throughout 2011. The new management structure is reflective of the company's dramatic growth and increased size and further positions the company to meet client needs.

Growth

Since being founded in November 2009, Burrow has quickly grown to include eight wholly owned subsidiaries and several strategic joint ventures located in five domestic offices (Houston, Beaumont, Port Arthur, Crystal City, and Clear Lake, Texas), one international office (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil), and two fabrication facilities (Crystal City and Henderson, Texas). Burrow is now a global player in the provision of engineering and construction services for industrial, commercial, and institutional clients and specializes in process automation, industrial buildings, turnaround management, heat tracing, plant commissioning, start-ups, and plant operations.

While acquisitions have played a major role in Burrow?s success, its organic growth has been even more impressive. In the spring of 2010, Burrow?s staffing levels peaked at 80 employees. Since then, the company has grown nominally to over 640 employees and expects to exceed 800 by January 2012 with continued growth for the foreseeable future.

Organizational Changes

As an initial step to further strengthen the company?s position in the Beaumont market, Dave Hill has joined the company as the President of Burrow Global Services, Beaumont Division. Mr. Hill has significant operations and business development experience from his 30 years in the construction and engineering field. In sync with Burrow's growth culture, Hill's background includes being part owner of a Baton Rouge engineering firm that grew from 30 to 300 employees in two years; starting that firm's first controls/automation group from scratch to become 70% of revenues in less than one year; and starting "Plant Engineering Services, LLC" in Baton Rouge, LA and Pasadena, TX for Fluor Corporation that grew from one person to over 150 in less than six months.

Reporting directly to Mr. Hill, Leroy Faulk has been retained as the Vice President and General Manager of the Beaumont Division. Mr. Faulk brings over 36 years of experience in various roles including President, Vice President of Operations, Manager of Projects, and Engineering and Operations for local engineering and construction firms.

Additionally, Burrow has engaged Doug Eckols as the Vice President of Quality at the parent company level. Previously, Mr. Eckols has served variously as Executive Vice President - Human Resources, Engineering and Business Development, and owner/founder in former companies in which Michael Burrow served as the Chief Executive.

Meredith Barnes, formerly Corporate Controller, has been named Chief Financial Officer and Vice President of Administration. Ms. Barnes will now oversee the day-to-day accounting and treasury functions, human resources, IT, and internal procurement services for all Burrow companies. She joined Burrow earlier this year and has more than 20 years of expertise in accounting for engineering and construction firms.

Ron Chapman has joined as the Civil/Structural Engineering Manager for the Beaumont Division. Previously, Mr. Chapman served as the structural engineering department head for another Beaumont firm and has over 34 years of experience in the industry. He has also worked as part of the management team in former Burrow-managed organizations.

Lastly, Donald Moyers, former Vice President of Demar Industrial Construction, a Burrow company, will assume the role of Vice President of the Plant Division for Burrow Global Construction. Mr. Moyers previously played an instrumental role in allowing Burrow to become a self-performing contractor in construction services. He brings more than 46 years of experience in refining & midstream sectors and will now consolidate the Demar Industrial Construction Division into Burrow Global Construction.

?Our plan to grow into an industry leader is rapidly coming to fruition,? said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Michael Burrow. ?These new appointments will build upon the strong foundation of top industry talent and leadership that has propelled Burrow to its current status as one of the fastest growing EPC firms in the country.?

About Burrow Global, LLC: Burrow Global, LLC is a full service, multi-discipline engineering, procurement, construction, and facility services firm with specialties in process automation, industrial buildings, turnaround management, plant commissioning, and start-ups. Founded in November of 2009 by CEO and Board Chairman Michael L. Burrow, P.E., Burrow Global is a privately held firm with a strategic acquisition model that enhances organic growth. With a clear vision for continuous performance improvement and a global priority for safety in execution, Burrow Global Companies have grown to include eight wholly owned subsidiaries and several strategic joint ventures. The group of companies currently employs a staff of approximately 640 technical and construction personnel and has a revenue run rate exceeding $ 130 million annually. http://www.burrowglobal.com

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DisplaySearch: LCD TV Shipment Growth Falls to Record Low in Q2?11 as Global TV Demand Softens Further

Santa Clara, California (PRWEB) August 25, 2011

Global TV shipments were soft in Q1?11 as the worldwide TV supply chain digested excess inventory, but growth was still up 1% Y/Y. In Q2?11, TV shipment growth turned negative, declining 1% Y/Y and falling more than 6% Y/Y in developed regions, which more than offset 3% growth in emerging markets according the latest DisplaySearch Quarterly Advanced Global TV Shipment and Forecast Report. Softer price declines and inventory pressure at retail due to lackluster consumer demand continue to put pressure on TV brands.

?Q2?10 was a very strong shipment growth period due to greater price erosion and more confident consumers, so the comparison of this year?s shipments to a year ago is tough, especially considering the surge of shipments in early 2010 due to anticipated demand related to the World Cup Soccer tournament,? noted Hisakazu Torii, Vice President of TV Research at DisplaySearch. Torii added, ?Due to weakening macro-economic conditions, similar to what happened during the global financial crisis of 2008-2009, the TV industry is becoming somewhat pessimistic and reducing inventory, especially in North America and Western Europe.?

LCD TV shipments worldwide grew at least 20% each quarter in 2010, but so far have only risen 9% Y/Y in Q1?11 and 6% Y/Y in Q2?11. The slowing growth has impacted both developed and emerging markets, with LCD TV units falling 5% and rising 19% respectively, both well below the rate of growth a year earlier. The main inhibitor to faster LCD TV price erosion, something that has a strong positive impact on consumer demand in the highly elastic TV market, has been the transition from CCFL to LED and slower component pricing declines. LED share increased from 18% of LCD TV shipments in Q2?10 to more than 43% in Q2?11, but still carries a 74% average premium across all sizes, though this is down from a 120%+ premium a year ago. Critical LED backlight cost breakthroughs have been slow to materialize.

Plasma TV shipments had shown surging growth in 2010, increasing a remarkable 30% Y/Y after negative growth in 2009. The boost in growth had a lot to do with market pricing advantages against LCD for similar sizes and consumers who continued to focus on price. LCD TV prices started to narrow the gap this year, and the premium for a 42? class CCFL LCD narrowed from 13% in Q2?10 to less than 1% in Q2?11 over plasma, which is having an impact. Plasma TV shipments fell 6% in Q2?11 after double digit growth throughout 2010.

By region, China was still #1 by a small margin over North America, each representing about 17% of global TV shipments. China had stronger growth, rising 10% Y/Y compared to a 6% decline in North America. The Asia Pacific region grew to #3 for the first time, surpassing Western Europe, where retail inventory remains a problem. Despite concerns about weak demand following the Great Japan Earthquake, shipments of TVs in Japan surged 40% as consumers replaced older TVs with newer digital tuner equipped models ahead of the July 24 analog broadcast cutoff.

LED Backlight Share Increases to 43% of LCD TV Shipments; 3D Accounts for 9% of Total TV Units and 23% of Revenues, About Twice as High as Previous Quarter

As TV brands and retailers continue to push for the transition to LED backlights in LCD TVs, due to both premium prices and better energy consumption, the growth in shipment share continues to rise, reaching 43% in Q2?11. 98% of LED-backlit LCD TV shipments were edge-lit models due to slimmer form factor, lower power consumption and lower cost. Japan and Western Europe have already surpassed 50% of LCD TV shipments as LED and China is nearly at 50%. Most other regions, including North America, have around 20-35% of LCD TV shipments as LED.

3D enjoyed a sizeable increase in market share during Q2?11, rising from 4% of shipments in Q1 to almost 9% in Q2. The growth in share signifies that manufacturers have greatly expanded the number of 3D-capable models and reduced the premium associated with the technology, giving consumers more choice. There have also been a wider range of new sizes, down to 32?, and in the case of LCD, lower frame rate models with 3D available. DisplaySearch estimates that about a quarter of 3D TV shipments use passive 3D technology and the remainder use active shutter glass technology.

Samsung Remains #1 Global TV Brand, Still Leading in LCD but Falling to #2 in Plasma Units

Samsung?s global flat panel TV revenue share was up slightly in Q2?11 to 22.6%, a substantial lead over #2 brand LGE. Samsung was the #1 brand on a revenue basis in almost every region, with the exception of Japan and China where domestic brands dominate, even surpassing LGE in Asia Pacific markets. Samsung was also #1 in LCD revenues and #2 in both plasma and CRT TV revenues. Samsung also regained the #1 LCD TV unit share position in Q2?11 from Vizio for the first time in over a year.

LGE was the #2 brand worldwide at 14.4%, nearly unchanged from the previous quarter. In terms of revenues, LGE was #3 in LCD TV and plasma TV, but led in CRT TV with more than double the revenue share of any other brand. Sony remained the #3 brand in global flat panel TV revenues during Q2?11, with a small increase in share. Sharp and Panasonic rounded out the top 5, trading share positions again compared to last quarter, mainly through the addition of Sanyo to Panasonic?s global TV business.

Samsung was the #1 global 3D TV brand overall, accounting for all technologies, with 35% of revenues. Within the 3D LCD TV category, Samsung overtook Sony for the top revenue share at 35% while Panasonic reclaimed the 3D plasma TV revenue share lead at 48%.

DisplaySearch TV market intelligence, including panel and TV shipments, TV shipments by region, brand, size, resolution, frame rate and backlight type for nearly 60 brands, rolling 16-quarter forecasts, TV cost/price forecasts and design wins can be found in its Quarterly Advanced Global TV Shipment and Forecast Report. For more information on this report, please contact Charles Camaroto at 1.888.436.7673 or 1.516.625.2452, or contact(at)displaysearch(dot)com or contact your regional DisplaySearch office in China, Japan, Korea or Taiwan.

About DisplaySearch

Since 1996, DisplaySearch has been recognized as a leading global market research and consulting firm specializing in the display supply chain, as well as the emerging photovoltaic/solar cell industries. DisplaySearch provides trend information, forecasts and analyses developed by a global team of experienced analysts with extensive industry knowledge. In collaboration with The NPD Group, its parent company, DisplaySearch uniquely offers a true end-to-end view of the display supply chain from materials and components to shipments of electronic devices with displays to sales of major consumer and commercial channels. For more information on DisplaySearch analysts, reports and industry events, visit us at http://www.displaysearch.com. Read our blog at http://www.displaysearchblog.com and follow us on Twitter at @DisplaySearch.

About The NPD Group, Inc.

The NPD Group is the leading provider of reliable and comprehensive consumer and retail information for a wide range of industries. Today, more than 1,800 manufacturers, retailers, and service companies rely on NPD to help them drive critical business decisions at the global, national, and local market levels. NPD helps our clients to identify new business opportunities and guide product development, marketing, sales, merchandising, and other functions. Information is available for the following industry sectors: automotive, beauty, commercial technology, consumer technology, entertainment, fashion, food and beverage, foodservice, home, office supplies, software, sports, toys, and wireless. For more information, contact us or visit http://www.npd.com and http://www.npdgroupblog.com. Follow us on Twitter at @npdtech and @npdgroup.

Lauren Leetun, APR

SAVVY Public Relations

407-592-7923

media(at)displaysearch(dot)com

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txtNation See Fast Growth in Direct Operator Billing

(PRWEB) December 22, 2011

On the back of enabling their first market for Direct Billing in Ireland earlier this year, many more countries have followed where txtNation have network connectivity, enabling the facilitation of direct payments to customers mobile phones, complimenting the already popular Premium SMS billing.

Michael Whelan, txtNation Director quotes, "2012 will be very interesting for Direct Operator Billing, as it's really starting to take off. Direct Billing is technically advantageous but also commercially very attractive, two things in telecoms that don't always co-exist. Quite simply, Direct Operator Billing is an innovative and exciting way of billing customers.?

txtNation claim that one in five new service providers is applying for Direct Billing set up via their in-house approval process and state clearly it's important that service providers also understand that an approval process for Direct Operator Billing is required and it cannot be seen to be doing something that Premium SMS billing can already do.

Whelan, "What we are seeing now, is only the start of this new wave of mobile payments. Direct Billing provides an attractive alternative to P-SMS Billing for both mobile operators and service providers looking to monetize their channels. The nature of DOB is far superior to other billing systems - one click and your done.?

txtNation are clear with their claim that Direct Operator Billing will not lead to cannibalisation of P-SMS or other mobile payment alternatives, as DOB will be used for different purposes. i.e. where it technically fits and commercially is viable.

According to analysts at Strategy Analytics, in a report earlier this year, the firm asked consumers in the U.S. and Western Europe to rate their interest level for the mobile payment options available. Top of the list was Direct Carrier Billing, listed above competitive billing systems, including that of iTunes, where pre-registration is required.

txtNation are already seeing more transactions than in previous months through this billing technology and realise that in the long run billing options that suit the requirements of both the 'customers and business' with enriched security will only work and be around for the long term.

Adam Williams, txtNation Networks Co-ordinator quotes, "Slower developing markets, that have historically been satisfied with the Premium SMS model are now looking to realise the potential of alternative billing mechanisms - for example, Direct Operator Billing. It's an extremely fluid situation. Just last week a major Belgian operator informed us that they intend to launch operator billing in Q1/Q2 2012, something that seemed very unlikely just six months ago. 2012 could be a game-changing year for the industry."

txtNation is backing Direct Billing for the long term and investing in its success.

You can find out more about txtNation, its Mobile Billing solutions and more on accepting Direct Operator payments by visiting http://www.txtnation.com/about/call/, emailing sales(at)txtnation(dot)com or calling +44 (0)1752 484 333. Latest news can be found on txtNation's blog at http://blog.txtnation.com.

About txtNation

txtNation is an outstanding multi award-winning solutions provider across mobile billing and messaging platforms. Focussing on sophisticated, ease-of-use solutions designed and supported by knowledgeable technical and customer support teams, txtNation have consistently proved itself one of the most efficient and cost effective messaging, billing and content providers in the business. txtNation's global reach means that we can facilitate mobile messaging services and products via the SMS Gateway across North America, Europe, Australia and Africa. txtNation have developed strong partnerships with many major industry leaders to ensure our solutions are compatible, well-connected and adequately secure. txtNation have well over 7000 clients large and small on every continent who are already experiencing the outstanding advantages which txtNation has to offer. txtNation's products and services increase customer acquisition, improve loyalty and build trusted brands and awareness through direct, personal, easy, and immediate communications.

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