birks history essays

birks history essays Canadas largest jewellery company has been built up over the years by five generations of Birks. The Birks tradition dates to 16th century England, where the Birks were engaged in the trade of fine silver. By the 17th century, they had also become master cutlers and were granted the oldest cutlery trademark on register in Sheffield, the home of silversmithing in England. The family emigrated to Canada in 1832. Today, close to 1,000 employees in 36 stores, 8 in the GTA area, and nine corporate sales locations skillfully manage and present the distinguished Birks product portfolio. Birks operations include traditional retail stores and a corporate sales division that sells recognition awards and gifting programs to corporate accounts. Birks also has a design studio, a fine jewellery factory that produces over 75% of the companys gold and platinum jewellery, as well as silver and watch factories, all located in the Montreal head office building. With this type of history and success there is not doubt that Birks has offered excellent service and products. However, their business operations, including management of the retail and corporate stores, has helped Birks to expand over England, Canada and now the States. In addition, Birks has been in business after so many years not only because of their quality of service and products but also due to their excellent management which has rewarded them with ongoing success. On March 1, 1879 in Montreal, Henry Birks opened his first retail store. At the age of 39 he had taken the first step into a future that was to lead to a century of unparalleled progress. The original store quickly became too small and in 1894 Birks relocated to the Montreal landmark building that still houses the companys head office. The distinctive nature of Birks jewellery can be traced to the founding of the jewellery studio at the head office location in 1887. The studio has r...

Equilibrium Constant and Reaction Quotient Example

Equilibrium Constant and Reaction Quotient Example In chemistry, the reaction quotient Q relates the amounts of products and reactants in a chemical reaction at a given point in time. If the reaction quotient is compared with the equilibrium constant, the direction of the reaction may be known. This example problem demonstrates how to use the reaction quotient to predict the direction of a chemical reaction towards equilibrium.Problem:Hydrogen and Iodine gas react together to form hydrogen iodide gas. The equation for this reaction isH2(g) I2(g) ↔ 2HI(g)The equilibrium constant for this reaction is 7.1 x 102 at 25 Â °C. If the current concentration of gases are[H2]0 0.81 M[I2]0 0.44 M[HI]0 0.58 Mwhat direction will the reaction shift to reach equilibrium?SolutionTo predict the direction of equilibrium of a reaction, the reaction quotient is used. The reaction quotient, Q, is calculated in the same way as the equilibrium constant, K. Q uses the current or initial concentrations instead of the equilibrium concentrations use d to calculate K. Once found, the reaction quotient is compared to the equilibrium constant. If Q K, there there are more reactants present that at equilibrium and reaction will shift to the right.If Q K, then there are more products present than equilibrium and the reaction will need to produce more reactants shifting the reaction to the left.If Q K, then the reaction is already at equilibrium and there will be no shift. Step 1 - Find QQ [HI]02/[H2]0Â ·[I2]0Q (0.58 M)2/(0.81 M)(0.44 M)Q 0.34/.35Q 0.94Step 2 - Compare Q to KK 7.1 x 102 or 710 Q 0.94 Q is less than K Answer:The reaction will shift to the right to produce more hydrogen iodide gas to reach equilibrium.