Robert Lloyd - a Sir Gar Blog of random news . . . and some Clecs!

Major work is underway in Carmarthenshire to support the council's climate change strategy and reduce the soaring cost of its energy bills. Council chiefs are committed to cutting the Authorities carbon emissions and slashing its £5 million annual energy bill. Over the last year the County Council has secured over a £1 million from Salix Finance ( part of the Carbon Trust) to invest in energy efficiency schemes in its schools, libraries, museums, leisure centres, depots and offices - with spending being prioritised at the larger, most energy intensive sites. The work comes ahead of a new carbon tax being introduced next year which will be levied on the carbon emissions emitted by large organisations such as Carmarthenshire County Council. Starting in 2012, allowances will need to be purchased to cover each tonne of carbon emitted. The more pro-active an organisation is in reducing its energy consumption the fewer allowances it will have to buy in the following year. Simply taking

Q and A on the HPC Wales project - Part II

Here are some Q&As on the HPC Wales high performance computer project (see earlier posts on this blog for more information) - Can’t industry access existing HPC facilities in Wales? Some of the business in Wales will have their own in house HPC facilities, but may want to use HPC Wales for further staff training and skill development or for specific research projects using academic expertise. They are almost the easy targets for HPC Wales A great many more need help in understanding what HPC could do for them in terms of efficient product development and innovation. Access for business to the main UK HPC facilities such as HECToR or the Met Office is available but many would not know how to access the processes and applications and in reality these major UK facilities mainly cater for Academic researchers. HPC Wales will be unique in helping to open up HPC facilities to a wide range of business who would not be able to access from their current knowledge and experience base. The t

Pembrokeshire welcomes HPC Wales hub

The announcement that the HPC Wales high performance computer project will have one of its two strategic hubs based on the Pembrokeshire Science and Technology Park has been welcomed in the county. Councillor John Allen-Mirehouse, Deputy Leader of Pembrokeshire County Council and Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Economic Development said: “To be playing a major part in this £40 million project to bring the latest computing technologies to Wales is exciting. “For a number of years the County Council has been developing a good working relationship with Swansea University. This has encouraged the University to locate their part of this project on the Pembrokeshire Science and Technology Park. “This will involve creating a very high bandwidth link to the Science Park and basing a significant amount of hardware in Pembroke Dock. “HPC Wales is a world class project that will help Welsh Universities to conduct leading edge research but more importantly it will also provide high powered com

Latest 'View from Richmond Park' column

Latest 'View from Richmond Park' Carmarthen AFC column from the Carmarthen Journal - Carmarthen Town Executive board member Paul Ashley Jones declared the Swansea City Fans Forum held at Carmarthen Town's Richmond Park Community Centre a resounding success. He said: "The turnout was fantastic and I know that the Swansea City Supporters Trust Board, the manager and both players were very impressed with the set up and thoroughly enjoyed the evening." The evening started with a formal question and answer session followed by the opportunity to meet Brendan Rogers together with players Alan Tate and Stephen Dobbie. Fans also had the opportunity to take photographs and obtain autographs. --------------------------------------------- Richmond Park will be hosting two matches as part of the UEFA Under-19s women’s football tournament. Match details are - Thursday 31st March: Iceland v Turkey, Parc y Scarlets, Llanelli, kick off 2pm. Germany v Wales, Parc y Scarlets, Llanel

Wynne Evans concert review

Wynne Evans: Lyric Theatre, Carmarthen You can tell Wynne Evans, the most famous tenor in Britain, has come a long way. If you can tease the Mayor of Carmarthen in his home town, then you must be doing well. “Why is it that there’s a sign outside Pontrhydyfen, saying ‘Home town of Richard Burton, Ivor Emmanuel and Rebecca Evans?” Wynne asked during his homecoming concert at the Lyric Theatre in Carmarthen. “I mean, come on, Mr Mayor,” the singer joked, with a heavy hint that Carmarthen needs some extra showbiz gloss to the roadsign that declares it to be the oldest town in Wales. When you’re No1 in the classical album charts, appearing on most of the TV breakfast channels and part of one of the most successful advertising campaigns in history, you can afford to take liberties with civic protocol. The singer already has the unofficial ‘freedom of Carmarthen’ as one of its favourite sons, which is why he chose the Lyric Theatre as the venue for a concert which doubled up as album launch

Lamphey Court in Best Hotels book

It’s described as one of Pembrokeshire’s best kept secrets, but it won’t be for much longer. For the Lamphey Court Hotel has secured an entry in the AA book of Britain’s Best Hotels. The stunning Georgian parkland mansion is one of only two hotels in Pembrokeshire to make it into print in the AA book. “We are, of course, delighted to be featured,” said the hotel’s manager, Phil Thomas. Mr Thomas, 44, has recently arrived at Lamphey Court with an extensive CV working at leading hotels throughout the UK. He is one of a number of new faces eager to put the Lamphey Court Hotel firmly on the map for destination hotels. Tom Mansfield, 31, has also recently started work as the new Head Chef, following a career which took in the 5 star St David’s Hotel, Cardiff Bay, the Newbridge Inn owned by TV and radio star Chris Evans and the 3 AA Rosette La Grousse D’ail Restaurant in Oxford. Mr Thomas added: “We have an exciting team building here at Lamphey Court Hotel and we aim to be one of the premie

Four charities to benefit from Mayor's races

Funds raised as part of the Carmarthen Mayor’s Fun Run and Children’s Races this year (May 2) will be distributed to four very worthy local charities: Tŷ Hapus Family Centres Tŷ Ni Family Centre is a welcoming place where parents with young children can call in for a cup of tea and a chat. Playleaders provide activities for the children while parents can take part in courses if they wish. We are open in the school holidays (tel: 01267 222443). Tŷ Hapus on the Park Hall estate is open most afternoons for families to pop in and play. Two year olds can attend the Flying Start Nursery which runs every morning. Parents can take part in courses and there is an after school and holiday club (tel: 01267 223020). Glangwili Therapeutic Day Services Unit The Therapeutic Day Service, which is co-located with the Carmarthen Crisis Resolution Team, was developed to offer our service users evidence based, therapeutic interventions and treatment. The aim of the service is to help people deal with the

In the news today . . .

Welsh Icons spotlight on Michael Sheen joining Healing The Wounds as a patron - http://ning.it/hmtxU2 Healing The Wounds new treatment course featured on Welsh Icons website - http://ning.it/g3tlin Splendid story on Page 2 of the Llanelli Star on the BNI business breakfast networking club (Thurs morning at The Diplomat). Nice photo of the Swans Fans Forum at Carmarthen Town AFC in the Carmarthen Journal today. 'View from Richmond Park' Carmarthen Town AFC column in the Carmarthen Journal today. The new Clay Shaw Butler 'Looking after business' column is in the Carmarthen Journal today. Ann Thomas writes. Lead story on the Carmarthen Journal business page is EMC Electrical Services and their plan for a new HQ in Carmarthen. Brewer Simon Buckley's 'Iechyd Da' column is in the Carmarthen Journal newspaper today. Nice couple of stories about Carmarthen tenor Wynne Evans and his recent successes in the Carmarthen Journal today. Good spotlight on the Carmarthen Ma

Minister announces expansion of Bwcabus

Deputy First Minister Ieuan Wyn Jones visited Carmarthen to announce the expansion of Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion’s award-winning Bwcabus service. The service, which provides on-demand transport for people living in rural parts of the Teifi Valley, will expand later this year to the surrounding areas of Lampeter, Llanybydder, Felinfach and Llangeithio. The Deputy First Minister said: “We are announcing the extension of the Bwcabus service into new areas of the Teifi Valley in both Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion. “It is revolutionising public transport in rural west Wales – helping people to access key services, travel to work and take up training and other educational opportunities – which is an important asset to these communities in these tough economic times. “It’s already carried over 10,000 passengers, three months ahead of schedule – helping increase use of public transport in the area by more than 40 per cent.” Service user Adeline McGill Brown, of Rhydowen, said: “Bwcabus ha

Building trade taster rolls out to Trimsaran

People living in Trimsaran and Burry Port may be among the next to benefit from a unique project offering a taster of the building trade. Building Your Own Future in Sir Gar, which is run in partnership by Carmarthenshire County Council’s Property Services division, Communities First, Coleg Sir Gar and Carmarthenshire Construction and Training Association Ltd (CCTAL), offers community-based taster courses covering topics including carpentry, plumbing, tiling and plastering. Run over a period of six weeks, participants can gain practical basic skills in order to tackle simple DIY jobs at home, as well as getting a taste of what it would be like to take part in a construction course at college. They will also help take part in a carpentry-based project for donation to their local community and visit a local construction project to see qualified tradesmen at work. The project is currently being run in Communities First areas with funding secured from the Swansea Bay Deprived Area Fund (DA

Parcyrhun gets picnic tables boost

Picnic table and bench sets have been donated to Parcyrhun Community School Garden and Pantyffynnon Social Club, thanks to a group of people who have taken part in a unique construction taster project. Pantyffynnon Communities First was one of only a few groups in Carmarthenshire to run the Building Your Own Future in Sir Gar project, which aims to provide people with basic skills in carpentry, plumbing, tiling and plastering. They constructed the bench sets as part of their carpentry session, and are now proud to see them being used by the local community. Carlie Whittle, a volunteer at Pantyffynnon Communities First and a participant on the course, said: “I really enjoyed the hands on experience that the course gave me. I was able to take away with some fantastic practical skills, and items I actually produced. I look forward to seeing the community using the benches, knowing that I worked with others to make them.” Building Your Own Future in Sir Gar is a partnership project led

New Master's degrees at Aberystwyth

Aberystwyth University is offering a set of new Master’s level degrees that will prepare students for careers taking on some of the most crucial global problems. All three MSc degrees, offered through the University’s Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Studies (IBERS), offer direct career opportunities in fields linked to the environment and food and water security. The new degrees have been designed to develop experts who will be able to devise innovative strategies and novel solutions to deal with a range of new challenges facing agriculture and food and water supply across the world. The graduating students will also have new skills and expertise to transfer knowledge and adapt the latest research to the needs of industry, government and communities worldwide “These degrees are taking advantage of the world-class research and expertise within IBERS and some of our partner institutes and departments within the University,” says IBERS Director, Professor Wayne Powell. “T

Michael Sheen joins Healing The Wounds

Acclaimed Hollywood star Michael Sheen has given his support to the Healing The Wounds charity which helps treat sufferers of PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder). The actor has agreed to become a patron of the charity. “It’s a wonderful gesture,” said Healing The Wounds charity secretary Carol Richards. “We met Michael the other day and he was very interested in the work of the charity. “He was delighted to accept our invitation to become one of our patrons and we are sure that he will help us put the charity firmly on the map in Wales.” Sheen is currently working on a production of the Passion Play in his hometown of Port Talbot over Easter. He is famous the world over for his film roles, which include playing Tony Blair, David Frost and Brian Clough. Carol Richards added: “Michael Sheen is a big box office star and a person who obviously cares very passionately about his home community in Wales. We are all looking forward to working with him in Healing The Wounds. The Healing The W

Carmarthenshire warning on bogus census workers

Residents in Carmarthenshire are being urged to be on their guard against bogus census workers who may try to falsely obtain personal details. Official census workers will be out and about visiting householders who have not filled in their forms. The Carmarthenshire Community Safety Partnership, which includes the council and the police, is warning residents not to allow unauthorised people into their homes. Official census workers will always show their 2011 census photo identity card and they will not ask for any personal details such as bank account numbers, national insurance details, or credit card numbers. Any suspicious visitors should be reported to police. Councillor Pam Palmer, the council’s executive board member for public protection, said: "Generally, the only time people will receive a personal visit from census staff is where they have failed to return the questionnaire. Even then, they will have a clear role to assist and advise and should not be asking for any per

Reminder on school transport for parents

Parents in Carmarthenshire are being urged to make sure they have applied for transport for their children moving up to secondary school in September. Children are usually eligible for free school transport if they live more than three miles from their designated or nearest secondary school. The criteria is set by the Welsh Assembly Government. Transport applications forms were included with the package of information issued to parents of year six children as part of the transfer process for children moving from primary to secondary schools. Executive board member for transport Councillor Philip Hughes said: “This is now the last chance for parents to make sure their children’s school travel arrangements are in order. “It is a massive logistical operation and the support of parents is vital as they must make sure applications are made in good time.” Anyone who may have forgotten to submit their application is being advised to do so immediately, or risk not being able to get on the scho

Healing The Wounds holds first treatment course

The Healing The Wounds charity has held its first treatment course for sufferers of PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder). And the course has been hailed as a resounding success by charity officials. The leader of the Lib-Dems in Wales, Kirsty Williams AM, was on hand for the ‘passing out parade’ for four PTSD sufferers who spent four days attending a treatment course in Bridgend. “It’s great to get the chance to find out more about the work of Healing The Wounds and to see at first hand the service that they offer and how people suffering from PTSD can benefit from their help,” she said. The Healing The Wounds treatment course was held at the Heronston Hotel in Bridgend, while the charity continues its search for more permanent premises. “The first people to benefit from our treatment course were a serving TA soldier and three former soldiers who have all suffered through PTSD,” said Healing The Wounds executive director Kevin Richards. The course was staged by Mick Stott, of Quantum

Aberystwyth team back from Antarctic expedition

A team from Aberystwyth University and the University of Leeds has just returned from the Antarctic Peninsula with exciting new information regarding the recent behaviour of the giant Antarctic Ice Sheet. The Antarctic Ice Sheet is of exceptional interest to geoscientists due to its size and northern location, which means that it reacts quickly and dynamically to climate change. The team of four has just spent seven weeks in a field camp on the Ulu Peninsula, part of the James Ross Island, and mapped in detail an area of 600 km2. One of their major efforts was dedicated to examining the distribution of “erratic” rocks that can be used to demonstrate that the Antarctic Ice Sheet expanded and then retreated across James Ross Island, probably around 12,000 years ago. According to Principal Investigator, Professor Neil Glasser from the Institute of Geography and Earth Sciences at Aberystwyth University, the term “erratic” describes rocks and boulders that have been moved from their origina

It's the end of free black bags in Carmarthenshire

Householders in Carmarthenshire will no longer receive a free roll of black bags -saving £135,000 a year. Full council agreed to cease the provision of free black bags as part of its budget for the coming year. A recent public consultation showed that there was strong support for the move with 64.5% of people in favour. One roll of 52 black bags was delivered annually to every household in the county along with two rolls of blue bags, usually during March/April. As a result of this decision, a blanket delivery of blue bags will no longer be made but will be delivered on request instead. Executive board member for the environment Councillor Philip Hughes said: “A recent survey with the public revealed that two-thirds of people supported the move to stop the provision of free black bags. “We are now recycling more than ever and residents can have as many blue bags as they need. However, I would like to stress that the blue bags can only be used for clean, recyclable materials. I hope hou

Blue-winged Teal in Llanelli

There have been twitchers (birdwatchers) galore out at Sandy Water Park lake at Llanelli's Millennium Coastal Park all weekend and today. The attraction? A Blue-winged teal which has arrived from North America. Find out more and see a picture at the following site: South Wales Birding: Blue-winged Teal,Llanelli

In the news . . .

Whoops . . . forgot to do my wrap of what was in the news last week - Thursday's South Wales Evening Post Business page put the spotlight on EMC Electrical Services and the company's plan for a new HQ in Carmarthen. Spotlight on Jan Molby celebrity dinner date for Carmarthen Town AFC in the Carmarthen Journal. 'View from Richmond Park' Carmarthen Town AFC column in the Carmarthen Journal. Spotlight on Ammanford businessman's hunger strike bank protest in the Carmarthen Journal. Spotlight on Carmarthen Mayor's races in the Carmarthen Journal. South Wales Evening Post business page puts spotlight on Fujitsu-HPC Wales super computer project. (Weds) Splendid feature and pic of the Fujitsu-HPC Wales supercomputer partnership in the Western Mail. (Weds) Welsh Icons spotlight on EMC Electrical Services new HQ - http://ning.it/gqDNgH South Wales Evening Post splash Ammanford businessman hunger strike story on Page 1. (last Monday) Ammanford businessman hunger strike sto

Pictures from Swans Fans Forum at Carmarthen

Pictures from the Swansea City Fans Forum held at Richmond Park, Carmarthen - From Swansea City Fans Forum

Women's internationals at Richmond Park

Carmarthen Town AFC's home ground of Richmond Park is playing host to two UEFA Women's U19 Internationals - Saturday 2nd April: Germany v Turkey, Richmond Park, Carmarthen, kick off 3pm Tuesday 5th April: Turkey v Wales, Richmond Park, Carmarthen, kick off 6pm Admission is free. More on the club Notice Board https://sites.google.com/site/hysbysfwrddydretownnoticeboard/merched-d19---women-s-u19

Lord Teverson launches Centre for European Studies

Lord Robin Teverson, Chairman of the House of Lords EU Sub-Committee on Foreign Affairs and former Member of the European Parliament has launched a new Centre for European Studies at Aberystwyth University. The Centre for European Studies is a cross-departmental, multi-disciplinary research-based teaching centre. Its vision is to be a world leader in the study and teaching of further European integration, and Europe’s relations with the outside world. The launch event saw Lord Teverson give a keynote address on the theme, ‘A Confident Europe in a Complex World’. Originally founded in 1996, the CES became a Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence in 2000 after receiving official recognition by the European Union. At the time, the Jean Monnet Centre was the only such Centre in Wales, and one of a select few in the UK. In 2010 it was decided to re-launch the Centre with a vision of ‘creating leaders for Europe’s future through world-class learning’. Dr Elena Korosteleva, Senior Lecturer in Europ

Robot arrives to boost Aberystwyth project

The Developmental Robotics Group, part of the Department of Computer Science at Aberystwyth University, has taken delivery of a state-of-the art humanoid robot, one of only four in the UK, as part of its work on a European research project. The “IM-CLeVeR” (Intrinsically Motivated Cumulative Learning Versatile Robots) project aims to develop new robot controllers based on ideas inspired by neuroscience and psychology. The project is funded by the European Union to the tune of 5.9m Euros with the Aberystwyth team receiving £760,000. The project involves 10 partner institutions from across Europe working in fields including robotics, neuroscience, developmental psychology and machine learning. It hopes that by using a multidisciplinary approach it will be able to make robots which can learn in more flexible ways than those programmed using traditional methods. Research in the Developmental Robotics Group is focused on identifying processes of development in infants and translating the

Aberystwyth Uni helps athletic performance

Research conducted at the Department of Sport and Exercise Science at Aberystwyth University has formed the basis of an investigation into natural ways to enhance athletic performance. It has shown that bovine colostrum (* see explanation below) can massively reduce gut permeability – otherwise known as ‘leaky gut syndrome.’ The findings, published in the March issue of the American Journal of Physiology-Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology, could have positive implications not just for athletes but also for sufferers of heatstroke. The project looked at athletes who were asked to run for 20 minutes at 80 per cent of their aerobic maximum, and at the end of the exercise, conducted at Aberystwyth University’s state of the art Sport & Exercise Science laboratories, changes in the subjects gut leakiness were measured using a urine sample – also determined were changes in the athletes’ core temperature. Under standard conditions, gut leakiness had increased by 250 per cent and tempe

Top award for IBERS in Aberystwyth

IBERS, the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences at Aberystwyth University, has won one of the first ever Excellence With Impact Awards from the BBSRC - the UK’s Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council. The winners and runners up were announced at a business networking event in London by Minister of State for Universities and Science, David Willetts MP. The Award recognises the greatest culture change achieved by a university department during the BBSRC Excellence With Impact scheme, which ran from 2008 -2010, with 20 university departments UK wide participating in the competition. It was developed to reward and esteem those university departments most active in embedding a culture that recognises and values the achievement of impact alongside excellent research. IBERS was established in April 2008 following the merger of the Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research, formerly part of the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Coun

Q and A on the HPC Wales project

Here are some Q&As on the HPC Wales high performance computer project (see earlier posts on this blog for more information) - What are the main objectives of HPC Wales? HPC Wales principle objective is to accelerate academic research and speed up innovation into markets. It will boost and support innovation and enterprise and provide the essential infrastructure, services and develop the high level skills to meet the needs of research and innovation in businesses. What sectors will it support? HPC Wales will help to meet the high performance computing capacity and skills needs of those priority research sectors identified by the Welsh Assembly Government (Digital and Creative industries, ICT, Environment and Energy, Bio and Life sciences, Advanced material and manufacturing, Financial and Professional Services), acting as a catalyst to bring technology to market quicker and to speed up economic development. It will also provide a cross cutting technology and research platform supp

Fujitsu, Wales and supercomputing

Fujitsu, Wales and supercomputing - Fast Facts Background to Fujitsu and supercomputing:  Supercomputer systems are built from groups of computers or consolidated compute capability which are designed lto perform complex calculations or deliver complex output. Using software, computing tasks are broken down in to parts and performed in parallel among computing nodes (processors) to accelerate calculation speed  Supercomputing is a subset of High-Performance Computing (HPC)  A supercomputer of the early 1990s, with a speed of 1 gigaflop (1 billion calculations per second), would have the same performance as a smartphone in 2011  In 1977 Fujitsu developed Japan’s first supercomputer, the FACOM 230-75 APU  Fujitsu is developing the ‘K Computer’, Japan’s next-generation supercomputer, with RIKEN, a leading scientific research institution under the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. This is a central part of Japan’s prominent initiative to establish the H

Hunger strike businessman takes fight to London