Category: TROTEC

Trotec Trade Division – we provide industry, the commercial and the private sector with a portfolio of product solutions for climate conditioning and measuring technology. Because we believe in getting things done!

New Year’s resolutions

Posted on by Elena Kramer

And again another year is drawing to a close. Many people take that as an opportunity to draw balance: What did the past twelve months bring? Did we achieve the goals we set ourselves? Did we manage to stick to the resolutions we made last year around that time of year? What do we want to achieve in the year to come?

New Year's resolutions at Trotec

For me personally, 2010 has been an extraordinarily eventful and exciting year. I graduated from university, found a job which really exceeds all my hopes and expectations and which allows me to do everything I enjoy most, I get to learn a lot of  interesting things every day and I get to know all kinds of people. I really cannot complain this year – and can only hope that this run of good luck will also continue in 2011!

For our company, this last year has been equally packed with new developments and exciting events. We have continued to grow and expand, have found a lot of new colleagues to support the team and we have entered new markets. We moved into a new building, broke new ground in terms of the social media activities we engage in and we have managed to incorporate both the blog and the whole online presence of the Trotec Group under one roof. We have come very far, yet there is so much more to come…

Because whether it is in personal life or in the world of business, if you don’t go forward, you invariably go backwards. This is why we will continually strive to make our website even more informative and your shopping experience with us even more comfortable. To make your way of contact more direct and our communication with you more personal. These are our resolutions for the next year…and what are yours?

We wish you all the best for 2011! May the new year be filled with joy and happiness for you… and may all your New Year resolutions eventually become reality!

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Make sure that your next journey is a safe one

Posted on by Alfred Austin

Make sure that your next winter journey is a safe oneWinter is without doubt the worst time of the year for motorists. Roads can quickly become treacherous or even impassable and what started off as a normal journey to work or a friend’s place can suddenly turn into a nightmare. Hundreds of motorists found themselves trapped in their cars overnight and stranded in snowdrifts and snow flurries in parts of Scotland and the north of England when police had to close roads and shut off motorways which had become blocked because of heavy snowfall and temperatures as low as -20C.

But even a trip down to the shops, school or the local supermarket can end in an accident or even tragedy if you fail to take some precautionary measures and prepare yourself, and your car, for this bitterly cold and totally unpredictable time of the year.

Here are a number of valuable tips and some good sound hands-on advice that will help to get you through the winter and make sure that your next journey is a safe one.

  • Winter tyres: There is still a small percentage of the population who staunchly believe that they can make it through the whole year with the same set of tyres. Opponents of winter tyres are often quick to point out that we don’t get enough snow in these thar parts to warrant kitting your car out with winter tyres. Well, this year proved them wrong. Winter tyres are not just better on snow: due to the rubber compound used, they are also better when the road surface gets colder. In Germany there is legislation in place that clearly states that as of the beginning of this month all cars, buses, lorries and similar vehicles which are travelling through Germany have to be equipped with winter tyres when there is snow or slush on the roads or roads are covered with frost or ice. By failing to comply with this law motorists and other road users risk being fined anything upwards of 40 euros and also losing their insurance cover.
  • Tread depth: Don’t forget to check the tread depth of your tyres. The tread depth can seriously affect the way your car handles. Worn out tyres spell less grip, less performance and longer breaking distances. Current legislation requires a tread depth of at least 1.6mm across 75% of the tyre, and although some tyre manufacturers claim that their tyres function just as well with 1.6mm of tread as with 9mm, there are enough experts who recommend that you change your tyres when a minimum tread depth of 3mm has been reached. If you want to see if the tread depth is sufficient, all you need is a 10p coin or a euro, depending on which country you live in. If the tread covers the dotted rim of the 10p piece or the gold rim of the euro, then your tyre tread is within the legal limit.
  • Tyre pressure: Although most motorists know that it pays to check the pressure of the tyres on their car regularly, some uncanny hidden force still prevents them from doing so. Driving with underinflated tyres can put pounds on your petrol bill, increase the CO2 emissions of your car, cause your tyres to wear down much more quickly and most importantly of all they can seriously affect the way your car performs. Tyre pressure gauges at service stations are often unreliable and poorly serviced. That’s why it makes sense to invest in a digital tyre gauge and check your tyres fortnightly at least. And one more word of warning: be sure to check them when they are cold.
  • Clear visibility: Car windscreens have a tendency to mist up as soon as you get into the car when it is parked outside in winter. Do not under any circumstances set off until you have clear visibility as you are endangering your life as well as the lives of others. So what can be done to remedy the problem? Try laying out newspaper in the footwell of your car. The newspaper absorbs the moisture inside your car and stops it from settling on your windscreen. And don’t forget to stomp the snow off your shoes either before you swing into your car. The less snow, slush and moisture inside your car, the better.
  • Check your car battery: According to a renowned motoring association, problems with car batteries are one of the most common reasons why cars break down. And who wants to break down on a remote stretch of road or the hard shoulder on a motorway when the temperature dips to below zero? In winter you need to be able to rely on your car battery, because car batteries do overtime. Of course you don’t want to buy a new battery if you don’t have to. But remember: they power your fan, the electrics, the heating and your lights. Get wise and check to see how much life is left in your battery before the winter gets a firm grip on you.
  • Fill her up, please: Over the past few weeks the price of petrol has continued to rise steadily and many motorists are understandably reluctant to fill up their car and tie up their savings in a full petrol tank. But things can get worse. And being stuck on the side of the road at sub-zero temperatures because your car has run out of petrol is anybody’s nightmare. You really don’t need to top up your car every time you drive past a petrol station, but you should make sure that there is enough petrol in the tank, and one or two warm blankets in the back perhaps – just in case your luck ran out too.

These tips – or better still golden rules – can all change the outcome of your next journey this winter. Please be sure to follow these precious guidelines so that you reach your destination safe and sound!

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Ho, ho, ho, ho…!

Posted on by Alfred Austin

We wish you a very merry Christmas and a happy new year!Christmas is a special time of the year. For Christians it is a time to celebrate their faith and remember their God. And for millions of “Submarine Christians”, men and women who feel drawn to God but prefer to wear their religion more loosely, it is once again time to resurface and join in the celebrations. Yet even those who do not aspire to be any kind of Christian and who perhaps believe in other forces, powers or values beyond those of the Church often find themselves caught up in the Christmas Spirit and festive cheer.

In fact there are some people who look forward to Christmas all year round. And for others it would appear to come as a complete surprise.

Whereas your average Christmas shopper is inclined to shop around sensibly whilst set on getting the most for his or her money when buying Christmas gifts for their friends, family and loved ones, last-minute shoppers can be best be compared to a legion of haunted souls pursuing a lost cause. For them  Christmas is not a joyous occasion, filled with warmth, tradition and goodwill. It is a nightmare which culminates with shopping staff asking them to proceed to the checkouts and the shops closing on Christmas Eve although they have still got far from all their presents.

Ahhh, you say to yourselves. So this is where we extol the virtues of our high-quality products and skillfully manoeuvre you, the reader, to our fine selection of powerful but affordable oil and electric heaters, sophisticated, state-of-the-art, easy-to-use dehumidifiers and a prime portfolio bulging with machines and measuring equipment designed both for professional and home use – but far from it. Because Christmas is not just about buying it is also about giving. And although some of the models in our renowned TTK S-series, for example, would undoubtedly make someone happy and achieve a great deal more than just putting a smile on someone’s face, we really should spare a thought for the true values of Christmas and stop to take stock and look back so as to be able to look forward.

Christmas can bring out the best in people. It reminds them that there are others who are more needy, who perhaps call for their care and attention. It can be a neighbour, a relative, a member of your extended family or your community who feels especially lonely or forlorn. By remembering them this Christmas you too can show true Christmas Spirit. Because there is more to Christmas than swamping the shops, hitting the high street and splashing out on the internet for that all too elusive ideal gift. Of course we all like getting presents. And buying and giving them can be fun too. But this isn’t really what Christmas is all about. Christmas is about sharing and helping and being together with the people you care about.

Oh, and don’t forget to share your Christmas dinner with the birds! Heavy snowfalls have made it even more difficult for birds to forage for food. Your kitchen scraps and Christmas meal leftovers can provide them with what they need to survive the cold winter days. Just make sure it’s not salty and not more than a day’s worth of food, otherwise you might end up attracting some ravenous little rodents and other visitors who you won’t want to see in your garden.

So whoever you are, wherever you are – we at the Trotec Group wish you all Frohe Weihnachten, Joyeux Noel, Feliz Navidad and a Very Merry Christmas. May your Christmas be a good one.

Merry Christmas Everybody!

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A hundred different words for snow

Posted on by Alfred Austin

Myth: Eskimos have a hundered different words for snowSnow. We have had more than our fair share of it recently. Snow and ice caused huge disruptions and chaos throughout Europe lately when bitterly cold polar air masses rolling in from the Arctic Circle brought road traffic to a standstill and caused airports to be closed, fleets of aircraft to be grounded and trains to freeze in – or more exactly to – their tracks. And if the weather forecasters are to believed, there is more – much more – to come.

But although what we have been experiencing since the end of last month would have defied imagination as little as a few years ago when anybody wanting to put their money on a White Christmas would have been turned away by a bookmaker shaking his head pitifully because he did not have the heart to relieve a poor fool of his money, it is still next to nothing for the inhabitants of the cold north.

Eskimos, or Eskimoes, or Inuit, as we should perhaps be calling them, are used to snow – and lots of it. That’s why they have a hundred different words for snow. Or do they?

Well, first it depends on what you mean by Eskimo. There are several different peoples populating the Arctic north and each of them has their own different language. By saying that all these peoples have different words for snow would be the same as saying that Europeans also have a number of different names for snow – which does not really come as a surprise to anyone. What’s more the Aleutian languages these peoples speak are not comparable to European languages: they are built up differently. Such so-called polysynthetic languages have a stem word which obtains a different meaning by adding a certain suffix. This allows the Aleutian people to differentiate between snow that is lying on the ground, snow that is falling from the sky, snow that has started to melt, snow that fell yesterday, snow that has been piled up round the back of the house… We use additional words to describe the state of the snow or its whereabouts, which is why technically speaking we have far fewer words for snow than the peoples of the Arctic north.

But although we may have fewer words for snow, we are getting an extraordinary amount of it for this time of the year – along with plummeting temperatures and a high chill factor which are both contributing to making life that little bit more difficult.

So what can we do for you? Well, what we can do is help you to combat the cold and these blistering Arctic temperatures both at home and in the office with a fine selection of different heaters – oil heaters, electric heaters, hundreds and thousands of different heaters.

It would be interesting to hear what the peoples of the Arctic Circle would have to say to that …

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Online shopping? Sure thing!

Posted on by Elena Kramer

Doing your shopping online has some undeniable advantages. You can do it anytime, anyplace, without even leaving the comfortable warmth of your home or diving into the jostling masses of Christmas shoppers in the city centres and shopping malls. Very comfortable. And not to forget: The variety of products on offer is incomparably bigger than in any physical store, and the WWW allows you to compare prices from all around the world. Easy.

But how do you know that you really get what you pay for? The anonymity of the internet favours trickeries of all kinds, and the cases in which an unsuspecting customer is fooled out of his money are becoming, regretfully, more frequent each day. But fortunately, there are some straightforward ways you can find out whether an online shop in trustworthy or not – even before you place an order.  

An easy, yet very effective step towards checking the integrity of the shop you are dealing with is to just type the address of the webshop into a search engine. If complaints of unsatisfied customers or fraud warnings appear among the first results, this should make you cautious, at the very least. Also, you should always know who exactly you are dealing with. The legal notice ought to give you all the information you need concerning the owner of the company, including the physical address, telephone number and place of jurisdiction. Any reputable company should state a real address, and not just some anonymous POB, and be on call during regular office hours.

The most reliable hint, however, is the judgement of an unbiased authority. Trusted Shops is the leading organization for the accreditation of online shops in Europe, and their “Seal of Confidence” is about the highest distinction any shop can get. Because there are more than a hundred individual criteria you have to fulfil before your shop is even considered for such a seal. Because the experts from Trusted Shops verify on a regular basis that the high quality standards the consumer expects are constantly maintained. Because they do not only give their seal of approval, they also offer an extensive  buyer protection and customer service.

This makes sure that you – the customer – are always on the safe side when dealing with a certified shop. Like ours: Trotec24 proudly presents its new and hard-earned Seal of Confidence, which from now on shows our new customers what our regular customers already know: We live up to our promises. And that’s a promise.

Why don’t you come and see for yourself? Visit the Trotec24 online shop

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We warmly recommend: It’s time for the Christmas market again!

Posted on by Elena Kramer

Electric heaters to fight off the cold at German Christmas Markets
These days are certainly among the coldest first days of December since the beginning of the weather records – at least that is what they say in the weather forecast here. Now, who in their right mind would take that as the ideal opportunity to spend hours and hours outside, walking through jammed aisles and freezing their tails off? Well, we Germans do…

There is hardly a thing in winter that we look forward to as much as to our beloved Christmas markets. It is a tradition that goes back over 600 years in history and it has become one of the central elements of our Christmas culture. But also in other countries the “German Christmas Markets” are becoming increasingly popular. In Birmingham, Manchester or Edinburgh you can find such markets, and even Chicago or Denver have their own version of this traditionally German advent custom. The festive atmosphere, evoked by lush decorations, festive music and the illumination of the winter scenery, attracts people of all ages to stroll across the market, admire the diverse products the stall-holders have to offer and feast on seasonal specialties like gingerbread or roasted almonds. And, of course, the mulled wine – or glühwein as the locals like to call it – which is, by the way, the best remedy to fight off the biting cold.

But those of you who have to endure all day in the stalls, selling food or artisan craftwork to the jostling crowds, will need another solution to that problem. How about an electric heater? These convenient little devices keep you nice and warm in your market stall, so you can enjoy the atmosphere without getting frostbite or catching a cold. For this is probably the last thing you’ll need for Christmas…

For only €65.39 you can get yourself a super compact heater so that you are well- prepared for the Christmas market and any other outdoor activity … in the Trotec24 online shop!

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There’s just no way to overcome a deep-rooted prejudice – is there?

Posted on by Elena Kramer

Overcoming deep-rooted prejudices against craftsmen by using professional equipment

The craftsmen among our readers will know what I mean when I say that some of their customers still have some pretty outdated preconceptions with regard to their craft. But who on earth was this one particular craftsman – so unreliable, so clumsy and so inconsiderate – that even today craftsmen of all trades are still having to suffer the consequences?

When people call a carpenter, a painter or a tiler, they already have an image in their mind’s eye of utter chaos, noise and dirt and a total invasion of their privacy. Good service, respectful behaviour and up-to-date equipment are often not among the first things that cross the customers’ minds when they think about a craftsman’s pending visit … But this is exactly where you can benefit from this mess! Living up to high expectations is a hard thing to achieve – today’s customers are becoming harder and harder to please. But to exceed all expectations can be so easy when you amaze the sceptics among your customers with involvement, professional behaviour and friendly and accessible manners. And what is best of all: a satisfied customer is much more likely to recommend you to neighbours and friends!

Apart from such obvious things as punctuality, reliability or outward appearance, there is nothing that can make a deeper impression than professional equipment. And it doesn’t have to cost a fortune, because even a small investment can make a really big difference. Fumbling around with a folding rule, for example, can be make people look quite inept and it can be time-consuming, too – especially with a customer breathing down your neck while their trying to protect their valued possessions from potential harm. Yet it could all be so much easier: The BD15 laser distance meter can save you a lot of trouble and your customer from becoming a of bundle nerves. And one there’s another thing you can be certain of: whenever you use a state-of-the-art folding rule 2.0 you are showing your customers that you are keeping up with the times!

So no matter when or where the myth of the unreliable craftsman evolved – it’s about time to do away with it for good. But who am I telling … your customers will know that already!

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Do you know what a blokart is?

Posted on by Alfred Austin

Just a few weeks ago, the 51st International Boat Show in Hamburg, the Hanseboot 2010, played host to the First World Indoor Championships of an up-and-coming adventure sport which many people who have not yet experienced the thrill of setting their sails to the wind will probably never even have heard of – blokarting.

Blokarting is the name given to an exciting and relatively young sport from New Zealand which has taken fun-loving communities the world over by storm and is fast becoming one of the most popular sailing sports around.

The unique growth and success of the sport can be attributed to a number of things: First the blokarts themselves: the three-wheeled, compact, lightweight vehicles are relatively easy to assemble and set up and just as easy to stow away again and transport too. And with entry level models costing as little as £1500, they are also relatively affordable.

Second the blokarters: the sport is open to people of all ages. Learning how to handle the nippy little tubular steel racers is easier than one would think. Experienced sailors or yachtsmen do, of course, have an advantage, as they are already schooled in the art of putting their noses to the wind. But this does not mean that novices and newcomers do not quickly grasp what they must do in order to come to grips with what can only be regarded as a cross between a state-of-the-art gokart and a small sailing boat.

Third the location: you can quite simply do it nearly everywhere! The sport, which can either be practised as a recreational activity or on a competitive level, knows no bounds when it comes the type of surface on which the blokarts run. Sandy beaches, disused airfields, grass-covered recreational grounds or unused tarmaced car parks – they all provide the right environment for blokarters to carry out their passion for doing it from all angles. And at speeds of up to 25 to 40 km depending on the prevailing wind and weather conditions.

Professional blokarters, like those who converged on Oostende in Belgium to take part in the regular world championship, can even reach speeds topping 100 km an hour. For them the indoor championships at the Hansaboot were an unusual challenge and a totally new experience. The stiff breeze which they needed for the competition was supplied by 15 of our largest and most powerful wind machines. Because that’s what we are good at. Making wind.

So if this article has whet your appetite perhaps you might want to see if this new sport is something for you. Or perhaps you are more interested in our wind machines. Or the other products in our comprehensive series. There’s something for everyone at Trotec.

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The key to learning is a good night’s sleep

Posted on by Alfred Austin

The key to learning is a good night's sleep

That sounds just too easy to be true…but apparently it really is! A good night’s sleep does not only do you good from a health point of view. Research carried out by a team of scientists from the Harvard Medical School shows that it also helps you to improve the way you store the information that you have acquired during your waking hours by cataloging the data, facts and figures you have gathered and linking them to existing bits of memory.

The results of the study, which were published in the “Journal of Neuroscience”, underscore just how important a good night’s sleep is. But first of all a number of things have to be observed which can all make the difference between a good and a bad night’s sleep:

  • Try to stick to regular bedtimes. This might sound relatively unexciting, but it could easily become a healthy habit. Routines such as this can help you to relax and make it easier for you to find the sleep you much need.
  • Alcohol may make you feel sleepy, but it does affect the quality of the sleep you are getting. The more moderate your alcohol intake, the more invigorating your sleep.
  • Some people are tempted to save on what they consider to be less essential items like a good mattress, the right pillow and quality bed linen. It would be better if these consumers followed the advice given by companies specialising in bedding products and invested in a good night’s sleep.
  • Bedrooms should not be too cold. Some people turn off the heating to save money. But they are not saving in the long run. Cold, clammy rooms provide ideal breeding grounds for mould and pave the way for costly renovations and repairs. The ideal temperature in your bedroom should be somewhere between 16 and 18 C.
  • Keep a close eye on the relative humidity in your rooms. The best way to do control the humidity during the drier winter months is to use a humidifier. Humidifiers add moisture to the room air and prevent your mucous membranes from drying out and becoming susceptible to colds and viruses. And because the humidifiers are equipped with an easy-to-remove, easy-to-clean, air filter which filters dust, pet hairs, pollen and other airborne contaminants out of the air, this makes them ideal for allergy sufferers too.

So if the key to learning is a good night’s sleep, then you really should do something to ensure that that’s what you are getting. Like changing one or two habits and investing in one or two things which could enrich your life. Like a humidifier from Trotec.

Lesson learnt.

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The sweet smell of summer

Posted on by Elena Kramer

dehumidifiers to help you get rid of the musty smell in your laundry roomAutumn is here at last. You need only look at the calendar – or out of the window. So make the most of the last sunbeams. The days are getting shorter and shorter – and the weather isn’t going to get any better!

During the darker autumn and winter months, we all miss the warmth, the vibrant colours and the very unique smell that we all associate with summer. Freshly mown grass, sun lotion or the smell of fresh laundry can all evoke that summer feeling and light up any gloomy autumn day. But clothes which can no longer hang out to dry in the sunshine and have to be dried in a damp laundry room can often develop a lingering musty smell. No matter what detergent you use, a moist indoor climate is bound to frustrate any effort to maintain a “fresh summer breeze” throughout the long winter months. Laundry rooms in particular are prone to such problems because of the extra humidity which comes from the washing machines and spin dryers. This can quickly result in damp clothes, ugly stains on walls and an unpleasant musty smell. These early signs call for immediate action, because this can easily lead to mould forming, especially in smaller rooms with insufficient ventilation. A dehumidifier can help you to control the indoor climate and create the conditions you want while working against high levels of humidity and preventing mould and that particularly pungent smell that goes with it.

Comfort air dehumidifiers like the TTK 70S and the TTK 75S, for example, are ideal for everyday use: the ultra compact devices fit in any nook or corner and are able to maintain constantly low levels of humidity in just about any room. At the same time, the built-in air filter makes sure that the air in the room is clean and free of  dust, pollen and pet hairs – which is a relief, and not only for allergy sufferers!

And because winter is already well on its way, TROTEC has three campaigns with bargain-priced dehumidifiers in store for you…

So it’s goodbye summer, roll on winter!  And a perfect indoor climate all year round – with air conditioners, humidifiers and dehumidifiers from Trotec. The company that cares.

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