Technology-Manufacturing-Energy Industries

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Technology-Manufacturing-Energy Industries
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Headquarters: TME Arcology, Dome 1B7, Stonozka, Xanadu, Titan
Nationality: Scolopendra
Specialty: Utilitarian products { Artificial Sophont Flavors (Ylf, Hyooman); basic consumer goods; space systems manufacturing}
Storefront: TME Industries designs
Motto
"A Little Bit of Everything"

Overview

Technology-Manufacturing-Energy (TME) Industries is quite easily the largest, most influential corporation in the Federated Segments of Scolopendra after the fall of the ScoloMart megacorporation, Technology-Manufacturing-Energy (usually shortened to TME) Industries plays a key role in general systems applications for both civilian and military sectors in Scolopendra and beyond. It is the Federated Segments of Scolopendra's only remaining true megacorp that builds everything from spoons to DropShips, all with a flair for the resiliently utilitarian, odd in that it thrives in an environment hostile to such entities.

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TME-187 Loki-class utility DropShip
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It is probably only through its ingrained corporate mentality of service to the state and people--arguably an extension of the philosophy behind Andrew Carnegie's "Gospel of Wealth"--that it manages to sustain its position in the Federated Segments. Most Triumvirate of Yut Combined Services starships and equipment are designed by a combination of TME Industries, KarmaCorp TechSystems, and Zero-One Monocorporation.

TME Industries is also notable for pioneering Artificial Sophont Flavor, a completely artificially synthesized collection of various chemicals that taste just like several sapient species both human, metahuman, and non-human. Developing this humanely required perusal of open-source genomes and lots of lab-cultured muscle tissue. The most popular flavors are Hyooman and Ylf, but there are also Sakklah, Dwagon, and a few others.

History

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Corporate Insignia.
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TME Industries started out before The Break as a Mediterranean Scolopendran firm specializing in mining the Asteroid Belt for resources, a lucrative trade in the resource shortage crises common in Earth-That-Was. The profits from this venture was immediately transferred into making the corporation live a bit more into its name, primarily in quietly constructing research stations far away in the Asteroid Belt to come up with new forms of propulsion and energy production technology, as well as manufacture them in areas with even less microgravity than Earth Orbit. These stations were kept quiet, given their vague similarities in concept to TriOptimum Corporation's ill-fated Citadel Station in orbit around Saturn, but continued to produce better-refined fusion plants and even invented the Scolopendran model of the now ubiquitous gravitic drive.

After The Break, TME Industries was the only corporation to actually stay more or less intact as it was primarily offworld, not sharing the fate of Earth-That-Was. It immediately followed its national-service instincts and supported the new colony on Titan with its industrial strengths until the colony could become more self-sufficient. These were the years that the Scolopendran economy staggered back from collapse, a long and difficult progress marked by the rise of new corporations such as ScoloMart to take advantage of emerging markets. These new corporate groups were eventually swallowed by ScoloMart--with only TME Industries notably remaining separate--until they were forcibly fractioned off during the Al Thinniyan Affair, where it was proven that Ardan interests were attempting to manipulate the legislative branch of the Scolopendran government via funds filtered through ScoloMart.

A cultural backlash of anti-corporatism followed, essentially destroying those corporations tainted by being in ScoloMart's "trust"--TME Industries survived, it is believed, for two reasons. First, its public relations, while never shining, at least made it clear that TME Industries existed to serve the nation of Scolopendra as well as turn a profit while doing so; second, that TME Industries indeed played (and still plays) a great role in supporting the Scolopendran economy and therefore mutual support was (and still is) the mutually beneficial option.

Today, TME Industries looks to grow to new markets inside and outside the Triumvirate, especially through trade pacts such as KIST.

Business Model

TME Industries, like any good megacorporation, attempts to make everything. On the other hand, it is well understood that anyone who tries to do everything cannot do any one particular thing extremely well. Therefore, the TME Industries business model is a mix of generality and specifics--there are some core competencies that TME tries to be a leader in, several areas of emphasis that are brought up by unique products, and a utilitarian base-end model run on everything else, with constant experimentation to find new markets to emphasize or lead in.

For the most part, the TME Industries products that any given person will see are utilitarian, built solidly, and completely without flash. A TME Industries refridgerator will not check one's milk levels and order more from the Internet when it detects that the milk is getting low. It will, however, fit neatly into whatever parallelopiped-shaped space it is designed for, keep that milk cooled to a specific user-defined temperature, do it efficiently in energy costs and be simple to repair if it breaks, which is unlikely due to simple, robust construction. A TME Industries toaster will not look up recipes for a user or hook up to a user's PDA to look over a database of whatever bread the user puts into it and use that information to attempt to find the perfect toasting time; it will toast the bread until the timer reaches zero and it pops the bread back out. Additionally, it will have several easily removable screws so someone with limited electrical skill can open it up and fix it and a slide-in slide-out bread crumb tray so it can be cleaned easily. TME flatware is all pressed metal or hardened plastic; durable so that it is unlikely to bend or break but cheap so it doesn't matter whether it does or doesn't. This basic utilitarianism defines most, if not all, TME Industries' products--it may look sleek if it has to, but it will never be flashy.

Major Products and Contracts

With an increase in primarily carnivorous species in the markets of the Triumvirate, some of which having less stringent moral objections to the consumption of sentients (Sakkrans and Kzinti in particular), TME Industries wanted to capitalize on this without creating any sort of moral quandry. After a long period of study concerning spectrography, lab cultures, and donated medical cadavers, TME Industries perfected chemically-synthesized artificial flavoring that captures the taste of the musculature of various sentient species without actually causing (or having caused) any harm to said sentients. Current dominant flavors are Ylf and Hyooman.

A common "space truck" seen in the civilian and merchant fleets of a few nations that uses an expansion on the Mission Adaptable Mass concept first seen in the Loki-class. Rather than mounting a single pod, Centipedes are basically hauler tugs that can tow several 'trailers', each one specialized to fill a particular cargo role from passenger space to bulk chemical transport. In this way, a Centipede is probably analogous to a terrestrial train when it comes to payload adaptability.

  • Kitchen Products and Appliances

Nearly everything you could expect in a well-stocked kitchen. Stamped-metal flatware; shatter-resistant plastic plates, bowls, and cups; fondue pots; stoves; microwave ovens, convection ovens, toaster ovens; rotisserie machines; coffeemakers; et cetera.

The medium-sized insystem workhorse of several militaries and some corporations. Surprisingly fast and maneuverable for a ship its size, its primary draw is versatility--underslung Mission Adaptable Mass pods allow a single Loki to perform multiple missions concurrently.

  • Mission Adaptable Mass (MAM) pods (SASD, TDF, KSPA, TYCS, MIDF, SDF, CSS, Civilian)

There are various "stock" MAM pods, but all are modular and easily retrofitted to fulfill missions from flying laboratories to heavy vehicle transport.

  • Sub-Etha Machine Navigation (Weyr)

TME Industries also solved the "unsolvable" problem of coming up with an artificial automatic pilot system for Weyrian FTL drives by following their standard engineering design philosophy of Keeping It Simple. Using a proprietary (although reportedly very simple, as simple as it could be made and still work) algorithm, a Machine Navigation system can pilot a vessel through the layered subspace network Weyrian drives use for superluminal travel safely and, while still not as efficient as a well-experienced pilot, still relatively efficiently.

People/Places to Contact

  • Foods Division - TME Research Complexes, Nuha, Gauntlet, Titan
    • Aarti Adani - Business Operations
    • Vera Cook - Public Relations/Marketing
  • Orders Division - your nearest warehouse
    • Mike Charlie Papa - Subsentient Artificial Construct in charge of allocation and shipping
  • Shipbuilding Division - Dione Shipyard Complex, Saturn/Dione L5 Point
    • Mabutu O'Malley - Technical Sales

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