Oriented strand board (OSB) is a type of engineered wood similar to particle board, formed by adding adhesives and then compressing layers of wood strands (flakes) in specific orientations. It was invented by Armin Elmendorf in California in 1963. OSB may have a rough and variegated surface with the individual strips of around 2.5 cm × 15 cm, lying unevenly across each other, and is produced in a variety of types and thicknesses. Though it may seem intuitive to assume that the term "chipboard" refers to oriented strand board based on its appearance, and to contrast it against particle board, the two terms are treated as synonyms by the industry, with the "chips" in chipboard being of a size that a lay person would readily judge to be "particles".
Particle board, also known as chipboard or low-density fiberboard, is an engineered wood product manufactured from wood chips and a synthetic resin or other suitable binder, which is pressed and extruded. Particle board is often confused with oriented strand board, a different type of fiberboard that uses machined wood flakes and offers more strength.
Naftna Industrija Srbije is a Serbian multinational oil and gas company with headquarters in NIS building, Novi Sad, Serbia. NIS is one of the most profitable companies in Serbia and one of the largest domestic exporters. It employs around 11,000 people in Serbia and the region. As of May 2022, Gazprom Neft is the largest shareholder with 50% of NIS shares, followed by 29.87% owned by the Government of Serbia, 5% owned by Gazprom and rest by minority shareholders.
Societatea Națională de Gaze Naturale Romgaz SA Mediaș or simply Romgaz is the largest natural gas producer in Romania and one of the largest producers in Eastern Europe. The company is the country's main supplier and responsible for producing around 40% of the total natural gas consumption in Romania.
Borealis AG is an Austrian chemical company and is the world's eighth largest producer of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP). It is headquartered in Vienna, Austria.
Verbund AG, formerly known as Verbundgesellschaft or Österreichische Elektrizitätswirtschafts-AG, is Austria's largest electricity provider. Verbund covers around 40 percent of electricity demands in Austria and generates 90 percent thereof from hydro power. In addition, Verbund operates the supraregional power grid through its subsidiary APG. Verbund AG is listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange and in the ATX, the key index of Austrian stock-listed companies. The largest shareholder, at 51%, is the Republic of Austria.
The Agrana Group is a food company based in Vienna that produces sugar, starch, fruit preparation, juice concentrate and ethanol fuel. Agrana is mainly supplying to international food industry, with some minor end customer business. A known brand is Wiener Zucker. Agrana runs around 50 facilities with major production bases in Australia, Austria, Argentina, Brasil, China, France, Germany, Hungary, Korea, Morocco, Mexico, Poland, Romania, South Africa, Ukraine, United States.
Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Romania has increased dramatically. In 2006 net foreign direct investment was inbound US$12 billion. Cheap and skilled labor force, low taxes, a 16% flat tax for corporations and individuals, no dividend taxes, liberal labor code and a favorable geographical location are Romania's main advantages for foreign investors. FDI has grown by 600% since 2000 to around $13.6 billion or $2,540 per capita by the end of 2004. In October 2005 new investment stimuli introduced – more favorable conditions to IT and research centers, especially to be located in the east part of the country, to bring more added value and not to be logistically demanding.
In 2012, Romania's largest trading partner was Germany, followed by Italy. Romania's main exports to Germany were insulated wire, cars and vehicle parts, whereas its main German imports are cars and vehicle parts. The principal Italian imports to Romania include hides, footwear parts, medicaments, telephones and vehicle parts. Romania's chief exports to Italy included leather footwear, cars, telephones, tobacco, men's suits, seats and iron pipes.
Südzucker AG is a German company, the largest sugar producer in the world, with an annual production of around 4.8 million tonnes.
On 3 April 2017, Standard Industries acquired Braas Monier Building Group. As of June 2017 and in combination with Icopal, a manufacturer of waterproofing membranes and flat roof membrane systems, Braas Monier became BMI Group.
The Fântânele-Cogealac Wind Farm is the largest onshore wind farm in Romania and in Europe, with installed nameplate capacity of 600 MW from 240 General Electric 2.5xl wind turbines. The wind farm has been built for the ČEZ Group.
Romania is the 38th largest energy consumer in the world and the largest in South Eastern Europe as well as an important producer of natural gas, oil and coal in Europe.
Arena Națională is a retractable roof football stadium in Bucharest, Romania. It opened in 2011 on the site of the original National Stadium, which was demolished between 2007 and 2008. The stadium hosts major football matches including home matches of the Romania national football team, and usually Romanian Cup Final. With 55,634 seats, it is the largest stadium in Romania.
Arpechim Refinery was one of the largest Romanian refineries and one of the largest in Europe, located in Pitești, Argeș County, and had both refining and petrochemical capacities. It was closed in 2011. The refinery has two processing modules with a nominal capacity of 6.5 million tonnes/year. Now only one of the two modules is operating with a capacity of 3.5 million tonnes/year or 70,000 bbl/d (11,000 m3/d). The facility is connected by pipeline to the oil fields in the Oltenia Region and to the Port of Constanţa. The refinery produces around 60% of all the bitumen used in Romania.
Alples is the leading middle price furniture manufacturer in Slovenia. It was established in 1955 as Medzadružno lesno industrijsko podjetje Češnjica in 1955 and renamed to its current name in 1969. Its headquarters are located in Železniki. It has 330 employees and a revenue of 30 million euros. The factory’s main production program is furniture made of chipboard, covered with melamine foil.
HS Timber Group is an Austrian private company operating in the wood processing industry, lumber trading and bioenergy production.
China Machinery Engineering Corporation (CMEC) is a construction and engineering company, forming one part of the China National Machinery Industry Corporation (Sinomach) group of companies. A specialization of CMEC is construction of power projects in generation, transmission, and distribution.
INTERPRINT is one of the world´s leading decor printers. Interprint decorate the surfaces of numerous materials in the segment of derived timber products, including living room, kitchen and bathroom furniture, laminate flooring and for interior furnishing in trains, ships or in the recreational vehicle industry.
After the restoration of independence, economically, the years after the independence can be divided into two main periods in Azerbaijan. The period of 1991–1995 was characterized by economic chaos and regression. The period after 1996 is known for an increase in macroeconomic stability and dynamic economic development. Azerbaijan was upgraded by 18 points and ranked 51st among 133 countries and led the way among CIS countries in the World Economic Forum's (WEF) Global Competitiveness Report issued for 2009–2010. As stated in United Nations Conference on Trade and Development's (UNCTAD) report, Azerbaijan's direct investments abroad in 2016 totaled $533 million, significantly up from $232 million in 2010.
