Acrow Named Exporter of the Year at New Jersey International Trade Awards

Award recognizes Acrow’s continued growth in international markets

Acrow’s CEO, Bill Killeen, accepts NJITA Export Award (Image Credit – Chris Krusberg)

Acrow’s CEO, Bill Killeen, accepts NJITA Export Award (Image Credit – Chris Krusberg)

PARSIPPANY, N.J., June 06, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Acrow, a leading international bridge engineering and supply company, is pleased to announce it was named Exporter of the Year at the New Jersey International Trade Awards (NJITA) ceremony on May 17 at the Galloping Hill Golf Course in Kenilworth, NJ. The awards honor excellence by New Jersey companies that have worked diligently to expand their exporting efforts, thus contributing to job creation and enhancing the state’s economic landscape.

The NJITA is a program of the New Jersey District Export Council (NJDEC). Regional District Export Councils (DECs) are organizations of leaders from the local business community, appointed by a U.S. Secretary of Commerce, whose knowledge of international business provides a source of professional advice for local firms. Closely affiliated with the Commerce Department’s Export Assistance Centers, the 61 DECs throughout the country support the U.S. Government’s export promotion efforts.

“We are delighted to be recognized by NJDEC for our continuing work in international markets,” said Mark Joosten, President and COO of the Acrow Group. “Acrow has been serving the transportation and construction industries since 1951, and our bridge solutions are now found in more than 150 countries across the globe. Our success in exporting not only supports jobs here in the United States, but also helps the communities we serve globally to access opportunity and expand prosperity through high-quality, sustainable bridge infrastructure.”

Added William Killeen, CEO of the Acrow Group, “Whether navigating urban highways, rural roads, or emergency conditions, people depend on safe, reliable passage in pursuit of education, healthcare and economic prosperity wherever in the world they live. Our mission to build bridges, connect people and leave positive legacies in local communities will continue to evolve in response to the needs of government agencies and contractors worldwide, and this award commemorates our achievement to date in pursuit of that aim.”

About Acrow
Acrow has been serving the transportation and construction industries for more than 70 years with a wide range of modular steel bridging solutions for permanent, temporary, military and emergency use. Acrow’s extensive international presence includes leadership in the development and implementation of bridge infrastructure projects in over 150 countries across Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Middle East. For more information, please visit www.acrow.com.

Media contact:
Tracy Van Buskirk
Marketcom PR
Main: (212) 537-5177, ext. 8; Mobile: (203) 246-6165
tvanbuskirk@marketcompr.com

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Getinge Selects Anaqua to Provide Single, Centralized IP Management Platform

Global medical technology company will use Anaqua’s AQX to help consolidate and coordinate the management of all its IP assets

BOSTON, June 06, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Anaqua, the leading innovation and intellectual property (IP) management technology provider, today announced that global medical technology company Getinge has selected Anaqua’s AQX in order to consolidate the management of all its IP assets onto a single, centralized platform.

Founded in Sweden in 1904, Getinge provides hospitals and life science institutions in 133 countries with products and solutions that aim to improve clinical results and optimize workflows.

Anna Maria Lagerqvist Gahm, Head of IP & Digital Law at Getinge, said: “With our extensive range of products and solutions for intensive care, cardiovascular procedures, operating rooms, sterile reprocessing, life science and digital healthcare solutions and our strong international presence with operations in more than 40 countries worldwide, it was important to be able to improve the efficiency and coordination of our IP management by consolidating onto a centralized platform. AQX enables us to do that, while also providing highly integrated functionality in key areas such as analytics and invention management.”

Bob Romeo, CEO of Anaqua, said: “Getinge focuses on helping its customers save lives through the products and solutions it develops, and on achieving its goal of becoming the world’s most trusted and respected medtech company. We are delighted to be supporting Getinge on that journey by helping manage and protect the company’s valuable IP assets. Anaqua continues to invest in offerings to meet and exceed the ever-evolving demands of the world’s most innovative life science companies.”

About Getinge

With a firm belief that every person and community should have access to the best possible care, Getinge provides hospitals and life science institutions with products and solutions that aim to improve clinical results and optimize workflows. The offering includes products and solutions for intensive care, cardiovascular procedures, operating rooms, sterile reprocessing and life science. Getinge employs over 11,000 people worldwide and the products are sold in 133 countries.

About Anaqua

Anaqua, Inc. is a premier provider of integrated intellectual property (IP) management technology solutions and services for corporations and law firms. Its IP management software solutions, AQX and PATTSY WAVE, both offer best practice workflows with big data analytics and tech-enabled services to create an intelligent environment designed to inform IP strategy, enable IP decision-making, and streamline IP operations, tailored to each segment’s need. Today, nearly half of the top 100 U.S. patent filers and global brands, as well as a growing number of law firms worldwide use Anaqua’s solutions. Over one million IP executives, attorneys, paralegals, administrators, and innovators use the platform for their IP management needs. The company’s global operations are headquartered in Boston, with offices across the U.S., Europe, and Asia. For additional information, please visit anaqua.com, or on LinkedIn.

Company Contact:
Amanda Glagolev
Director, Communications
Anaqua
617-375-5808
aglagolev@anaqua.com

GlobeNewswire Distribution ID 8852728

Ai-Media to Launch AI-Powered Automatic Captioning Solution to Asian Market at BroadcastAsia

Ai-Media at BroadcastAsia 2023 in Singapore

Ai-Media at BroadcastAsia 2023 in Singapore, June 7-9

SYDNEY, Australia, June 06, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Ai-Media, the leader in technology-driven live captioning, transcription, and translation solutions, is excited to announce its presence at BroadcastAsia in Singapore, where it will unveil its ground-breaking LEXI 3.0 automatic captioning solution to the Asian market.

Previously launched to the North American market at NAB Show 2023, LEXI 3.0 is the new and improved version of Ai-Media’s flagship automatic captioning solution. Powered by AI, LEXI 3.0 is the world’s most accurate and advanced automatic captioning solution, delivering results that rival human captions at a fraction of the cost.

During the BroadcastAsia, Ai-Media will also showcase its comprehensive range of captioning technology that boasts seamless integration with LEXI 3.0. Among the featured products is the new LEXI Viewer, an innovative HD-SDI device that empowers event organizers to effortlessly enhance accessibility by streaming captions to in-venue displays.

Additionally, Ai-Media will highlight its range of captioning encoders that ensure high quality distribution of audio and video via its iCap Cloud Network, the world’s largest, most secure caption delivery network. This includes iCap Alta, the broadcast industry’s leading IP encoder that provides efficient virtualized workflows for MPEG-TS and SMPTE-2110. Ai-Media will also showcase iCap Encode Pro, the HD-SDI encoder trusted by major TV networks worldwide that offers low operational cost & low-latency display.

BroadcastAsia will take place from 7 to 9 June at the Singapore EXPO in Singapore. Attendees can meet the Ai-Media team and discover its range of end-to-end broadcast captioning solutions at booth 6C3-08 in Hall 6.

Ai-Media’s Chief Sales Officer, James Ward said:

We are excited to launch LEXI 3.0 to the APAC market. AI-powered technologies are creating operational efficiencies and cost savings across countless industries and with Lexi 3.0 it is no different. LEXI 3.0 consistently delivers over 98% accuracy, meets all global regulatory requirements, enables customers to increase their reach and has cost savings of around 80% versus human captioning. We’re also able to leverage our decades of broadcast experience to ensure our captioning solutions are interoperable across different workflows, video standards and regions.

About Ai-Media

Founded in Australia in 2003, technology company Ai-Media is a global leader in the provision of high-quality live and recorded captioning, transcription, and translation solutions. The company helps the world’s leading broadcasters, enterprises and government agencies ensure high accuracy, secure and cost-effective captioning via its AI-powered LEXI automatic captioning solution. LEXI captions are delivered to millions of screens worldwide via Ai-Media’s range of captioning encoders and its iCap Cloud Network – the world’s largest, most secure caption delivery network. Globally, Ai-Media delivers 8 million minutes of live and recorded media monthly. Ai-Media trades on the Australian Stock Exchange (AIM). For more information, please visit Ai-Media.tv.

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Media Contact:
Fiona Habben
Senior Marketing Manager – Global
Fiona.habben@ai-media.tv

GlobeNewswire Distribution ID 8852879

UPDATE — VERSES, DENTONS US and SWF, Announce Collaboration on Landmark Industry Report “A Path to Global AI Governance”

Figure 1

The Road to Autonomy – Executive Summary

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 05, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — VERSES AI Inc. (CBOE CANADA:VERS) (OTCQX:VRSSF) (“VERSES” or the “Company”), a cognitive computing company specializing in the next generation of artificial intelligence (“AI”), announces the release in June 2023 of an AI industry report titled “THE ROAD TO AUTONOMY: A Path To Global AI Governance”.

The report combines the legislative expertise from Dentons, the world’s largest multinational law firm, and the AI acumen of VERSES with the guidance on technical standards from the Spatial Web Foundation to provide an in-depth analysis of the legal and key legislative trends from across the world on the state of AI regulation and recommendations for a path forward for government regulation of AI.

The report aspires to pioneer a fresh approach for legal practitioners, government regulators, and lawmakers, to keep pace with the rapid technological advancements and to guide their adaptation. The critical aspect of the report is to promote the adoption of standards for what VERSES considers “law as code.” The objective is to encode laws and legal principles into an understandable, machine-readable language that will facilitate the comprehension and autonomous compliance of AI systems with legal frameworks and social norms.

The report analyzes the unprecedented challenges presented by the emergence of AI and autonomous software, devices, and vehicles addressing fundamental questions like, “How can governments regulate AI systems that are on a path to regulating themselves? How can humans stay in the loop to ensure AI alignment with human values, principles, and laws, while guaranteeing fair and equitable services for all individuals and communities? And, how do we encode and enforce AI laws directly in AI systems themselves?

The report critically examines the transformative power of rapidly evolving technologies such as AI systems and their impending impact on legal, regulatory, and government sectors and accentuates the crucial need for developing and adopting standards that foster the understanding, governance, and interoperability of AI and autonomous systems. The report underscores the role of these technical standards in shaping dynamic and effective laws to regulate, oversee, and contemporize AI activities.

The goal of the report is to provide governments, regulators, and legislators with a pragmatic framework that not only informs but also provides a roadmap for policymaking, legislation, and compliance efforts in the field of AI. This is relevant to the flourishing autonomous vehicle industry, while also serving as a fundamental guide for all future AI-driven systems. Emphasizing the urgency of a globally unified, forward-thinking approach to AI governance, the report signals the vital need for standards development and deployment as the world navigates the pathway to Autonomous Intelligent Systems (“AIS”).

Significantly, the report points to the instrumental role of sociotechnical standards, as demonstrated by the work of the Institute of Electrical And Electronics Engineers IEEE P2874 Working Group. This initiative from the world’s largest association of technical professionals, underscores the importance of aligning AIS with human values and reducing the risk of harmful behavior.

The report also highlights the European Commission’s Flying Forward 2020 (“FF2020”) project for successfully implementing these standards. Led by VERSES and running on its KOSM platform, the FF2020 project featured autonomous AI-powered drones executing various tasks, such as medical supply delivery, building security inspection, and large crowd monitoring, all while adhering to local laws. The project exemplifies how the seamless integration of standards for AI with Urban Air Mobility and current legal and regulatory frameworks could improve the implementation of AI-powered services at city scale and beyond.

The report envisions the application of these standards to a host of sectors, including healthcare, education, finance, supply chain and more, paving the way for a smarter world with AI seamlessly operating behind the scenes.

AI is advancing at an unprecedented pace, raising concerns about the direction of its future trajectory. As AI evolves towards autonomous systems, the need for regulation becomes critical. We must address the challenge of regulating self-regulating AI to ensure alignment with human values and prevent potential risks. By implementing global technical standards and establishing an international AI regulatory framework, we can harness the immense benefits of AI while safeguarding against its potential perils,” stated VERSES CEO, Gabriel René.

We are thrilled to collaborate with VERSES on this report, as the challenge of regulating AI raises complex and often novel questions of law for our clients and regulators. We hope this report provides a new way of thinking about AI regulation, and provides important insights to key stakeholders who are wrestling with new AI regulatory frameworks and are trying to strike an appropriate balance between innovation and moderation,” said Peter Stockburger, Partner at Dentons US LLP.

In summary, the report calls for a safe, effective, and inclusive journey down the “Road to Autonomy,” ensuring that future AI systems are not just technically advanced but also aligned with the best interests of humanity, both now and in the future. With AI influencing every sector, this insightful report offers pragmatic recommendations for a more secure, innovative, and integrated AI-driven future. The full report will be available on the VERSES, DENTONS, and Spatialweb.org websites in June 2023, with the executive summary already available for preview.

The Road to Autonomy - Executive Summary

About VERSES

VERSES is a cognitive computing company specializing in next-generation AI. Modeled after natural systems and the design principles of the human brain and the human experience, VERSES flagship offering, GIA™, is an Intelligent Assistant for everyone powered by KOSMOS™, a network operating system enabling distributed intelligence.  Built on open standards, KOSM transforms disparate data into knowledge models that foster trustworthy collaboration between humans, machines, and AI, across digital and physical domains. Imagine a smarter world that elevates human potential through innovations inspired by nature. Learn more at VERSESLinkedIn, and Twitter.

About Dentons 
Dentons is designed to be different. As the world’s largest global law firm with 21,000 professionals in over 200 locations in more than 80 countries, Denton’s can help you grow, protect, operate and finance your business. Denton’s polycentric and purpose-driven approach, together with their commitment to inclusion, diversity, equity and ESG, ensures they challenge the status quo to stay focused on what matters most to you. www.dentons.com

About the Spatial Web Foundation 
The Spatial Web Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to the development and ethical use of technology, specifically in the creation and implementation of the Spatial Web protocol. The foundation’s core initiatives include developing open standards and protocols, promoting interoperability, and educating the public and policymakers. The foundation supports transparency and accountability in the development and use of technology, promotes responsible innovation, engages in dialogue and collaboration with various stakeholders, and adopts a proactive approach to addressing emerging ethical challenges. Ultimately, the Spatial Web Foundation seeks to create a more inclusive, accessible, and equitable internet that empowers individuals and communities to connect, create, and thrive.

On Behalf of the Company 

Gabriel René
VERSES Technologies Inc.
Co-Founder & CEO
press@verses.io

Media and Investor Relations Inquiries 

Leo Karabelas
Focus Communications
President
info@fcir.ca
416-543-3120

The NEO has not reviewed or approved this press release for the adequacy or accuracy of its contents.

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GlobeNewswire Distribution ID 8852483

GRA taskforce arrests managers of enterprises for tax infractions

The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) taskforce has arrested four managers of enterprises in Accra for not issuing tax invoices.

The companies are Buildmart Company Ghana in Adabraka, Bedarts Cold Supplies in Lashibi, Yat Ventures in Mamobi and Excellence Boutique at Spintex Road.

The managers were taken to the Customs Office at the headquarters for their statements before being handed over to the Criminal Investigation Department of the Police.

Mr Joseph Annan, Area Enforcement Manager of GRA, in charge of Accra Central, said the companies had not comply with Section 41 of VAT Act which mandated them to issue the tax invoice at all times.

He said the exercise was part of the Authority’s plans to ensure tax compliance and retrieve taxes due the state.

He said the Division had several options at its disposal to aid in revenue mobilization, including already existing initiatives such as auditing and test purchasing, among others.

Mr Annan said the test purchases conducted on 115 taxpayers that were sampled for a week revealed that a total of 93 taxpayers were not issuing the VAT invoice.

The figure, he stressed translated into a non-compliance rate of 80.9 per cent and said it was an offence for a registered taxpayer to fail to issue a VAT invoice for purchases made.

He said the division would continue with the enforcement exercises with an eye on the implementation of the electronic invoicing system and other tax types.

The government has tasked the GRA with raising a revenue target of GHc 106 billion for the 2023 fiscal year.

Out of this figure, the Domestic Tax Revenue Division is expected to collect 70 per cent of the total revenue.

Mr Annan said the Authority would continue to embark on surprise exercises across the country to apprehend culprits evading tax.

He urged the public, especially customers who make taxable purchases, to always request and insist on their VAT invoices.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Urbanet presents 25 bicycles to female extension agents at Gushegu

Urbanet, a social impact organisation, has presented 25 bicycles estimated at GHc25,000 to 25 Female Extension Agents (FEVs) under the Northern Ghana Integrated Development Project (NGIDP) in the Gushegu Municipality.

The FEVs are expected to support Agricultural Extension Agents (AEAs) to enhance women farmers’ agricultural extension services in the Gushegu Municipality of the Northern Region, and work for colleague women farmers in their communities.

The beneficiary communities included Wantugu, Gbagu, Kpaatili, Gbambu, Nyensung, Kpana Yapala, Laligu, Zanteli, Zamashegu, Pulo, Pumo, Lunlua, Damdaboli, Yishie, Jinwoo, Prinkpamo, Yawungu, Bulgu, Naawuni and Kpugi.

The NGIDP seeks to contribute to rural poverty reduction in the country through economic development, adoption of environmentally-sustainable agriculture policies and practice, and greater access to social protection in Gushegu Municipal, and Mion, Central Gonja and Kpandai Districts.

Mr Yaja Robert Dawuni, Gushegu Municipal Chief Executive, speaking at the ceremony to present the bicycles to the beneficiaries at Gushegu, expressed gratitude to the partners for the support and said it would help monitor farms and identify challenges farmers faced regarding the crops and report same to the appropriate quarters for immediate solution.

It was organised by Urbanet in collaboration with ActionAid and Tree Aid with financial support from the European Union.

Mr Dawuni said the bicycles were for the communities to support efforts of AEAs to ensure that the farmers got enough yields and urged the beneficiary communities to focus particularly on activities that affected crop yield of the ordinary farmer, especially strange diseases, pests, and rodents.

Mr Iddrisu Adam, Project Coordinator of Urbanet said agricultural extension was a critical service to bring about sustained increase in productivity, incomes, and food security.

He said women farmers were confronted with serious challenges of inadequate and untimely access to extension services, adding that the average ratio of AEAs to farmers was 1:1,850 in the country as against Food and Agriculture Organisation’s recommendation of 1:500.

He said it was against this background that the NGIDP established the FEVs with women farmers drawn from 20 farming communities in the municipality to address the imbalances.

Mr Adam said three women from each community were trained by the Agricultural Department, and accordingly, awarded some tools, and certified to offer agricultural extension services to colleague farmers indicating that the FEVs were expected to work closely with the AEAs to enhance women’s participation in agricultural activities as well as boost agricultural productivity.

Braimah Mieli, one of the group magazias (leader) from Zanteli, who spoke on behalf of the beneficiaries, thanked Urbanet for the gesture and said aside using it for the purpose, it would be useful to them to run errands from one village to another as well as go to markets and attend other social gatherings.

Source: Ghana News Agency

Volta EPA launches 2023 World Environment Day celebration at Awudome Avenui

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the Volta Region has launched this year’s World Environment Day celebration in the Region at Awudome Avenui in the Ho West District.

The event featured a community sensitisation programme and a ceremonial tree planting exercise to kick off a series of programmes and activities across the Region to mark the Day.

Mr Hope Smith Lomotey, Regional Director of the EPA, said the Awudome Avenui community, which had been working with the Agency to develop its environmental wealth, was selected to host the launch for its efforts.

He said the community had been declared free of plastic pollution, and that its cleanliness and environmental attractiveness, when sustained, would be beneficial to the EPA on its mandate.

The theme for this year’s celebration is ‘Beat Plastic Pollution,’ and the EPA is working with basic schools in the community together with a private waste management company to promote waste segregation.

He said plastic waste continued to deplete the quality of the environment, when indiscriminately disposed, and appealed to the community to continue to support efforts to reduce pollution.

The community had also benefited from some tree planting campaigns by the Agency, and the Regional Director said the promotion of the afforestation initiative would positively affect the environment and tourism appeal.

Mr Lomotey said the EPA had plans to introduce quails to the area, and hoped the project would be supported to make the mountainous enclave further attractive.

Mama Gbeklui IV, Queenmother of the Community, commended the efforts the EPA and said, ‘the area has changed a lot.’

She said the community embraced the waste management programme and was hoping to profit from a plastic recycling initiative and assured of ‘increased improvement’ going forward.

The Queenmother appealed to the EPA and partners to provide waste bins for the community to be able to expand the sanitation management programme to all homes and establishments.

Executives of Wasteman, the private sanitation management company, at the launch, said it was educating school children on proper plastic waste disposal, which was crucial to recycling.

He hoped that they would be influenced to further transform the community.

Stakeholders at the event engaged the community in an open forum, which included students who contributed ideas and asked questions to support the initiatives.

EPA executives joined the community members and leaders at the local Methodist Basic School for the ceremonial planting to launch the celebration, and the community received 200 wood tree seedlings to be set out to mark the Day.

The UN has chosen the fifth day of June as World Environment Day, and Mr Lomotey told the GNA that some activities including planting of trees had been laid out for the celebration, and that there would be educational programmes on plastic waste throughout the week in the various Municipalities and Districts.

The Regional Director said through the collaboration with Wasteman, a total of 56 schools in the Region had received plastic bins totalling 120, to promote improved waste management.

Source: Ghana News Agency

AngloGold partners EPA to enhance environmental sustainability on plastic waste

AngloGold Ashanti, Obuasi mine, has partnered the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other stakeholders to enhance environmental sustainability on plastic waste management at Obuasi.

The partnership forms parts of AngloGold’s 10-year Socio-Economic Development Plan (SEDP) on Environmental Sustainability which seeks to treat plastic waste as a valuable resource rather than waste.

Mr. George Owusu-Ansah, Senior Sustainability, Environment for AngloGold Ashanti, disclosed this in a speech delivered at a durbar to mark World Environment Day in Obuasi.

This year’s World Environment Day is focusing on tackling plastic pollution through a campaign dubbed, ‘Beat Plastic Pollution,’ which seeks to raise awareness, mobilise action, and promote environmental sustainability.

Mr. George Owusu-Ansah said plastic waste was one of the leading environmental challenges globally today and that AngloGold was making a positive contribution towards an enduring world by being responsible stewards of the environment in which they operate.

He said as a responsible stewards of the environment, the company had also impacted on the community through good waste management practices, pollution prevention and the release of treated water for public consumption.

The company has since the commencement of operations in 2019 streamlined operations on environmental management and has successfully been certified by the ISO 14001 Environmental Management System.

‘It is incumbent on the citizenry to collectively find sustainable solutions to reducing, eradicating or finding innovative ways to produce, consume and dispose plastic in order to safeguard the environment,’ he noted.

Mr. Prempeh Adarkwaa Yiadom, Obuasi Municipal Head of EPA, said it was estimated that forty per cent of plastics produced were utilised in industrial and domestic packaging universally.

He said plastics had a long duration of decomposition which could take centuries leading to a huge build-up of waste in the system and therefore urged the citizenry to take recycling methods seriously.

‘Choosing reusable items and reducing overall consumption of plastics can make a significant impact on the environment,’ he stressed.

Awards worth Ghc600,000 were given to Schools, individuals and organisations who excelled in the campaign against the disposal of plastic waste.

They received prizes such as laptops, tabletop computers, dustbins, shovels, wheelbarrows, school bags, books, flat screen televisions, T-shirts, amongst other items.

There was also an exhibition on plastic waste recycling by school children who turned most of this waste plastic into usable materials.

Source: Ghana News Agency