In other news below:
-- Emerson wins $13 million contract to digitally automate Korea's largest coal-fired power plant
-- Invensys to supply Foxboro automation network for Kuwait Oil Co. modernization project
-- Invensys asset management solution named 'Breakthrough Product of the Year'
-- Novazone targets ozone disinfection solution at NW Food Manufacturing & Packaging Expo
-- Ernst & Young says real estate capital likely to relieve infrastructure woes
-- Uganda gets major grant from African Development Bank
-- ADF grants Ethiopia $62 million to finance rural water supply and sanitation
-- ICC Institute focuses on architectural, engineering aspects of International Building Code
-- AquaCell signs agreement with Winn-Dixie for water cooler installations
GL&V expands presence in water treatment market by acquiring new technologies
MONTREAL, Jan. 9, 2006 (CNW Telbec) Management of Groupe LaPerrierre & Verreault Inc. (GL&V) is pleased to announce that the company has acquired certain assets of the Paper Chemical Systems Unit of Metso Paper Inc., located in Raisio, Finland. The acquisition primarily covers the intellectual property rights associated with a number of products in the wastewater treatment field, including two new-generation technologies, i.e the dissolved air microflotation system and the FlooBed® bioreactor, more than 500 units of which have been installed thus far.
Focusing on its core pulp and paper equipment manufacturing business, Metso Paper, Inc. decided to divest this portion of its operations and selected an industrial partner specializing in water treatment - GL&V's Water Treatment Group - capable of leveraging these technologies' full potential and ensuring their support, after-sales service and marketing worldwide.
Richard Verreault, president and Chief Operating Officer of GL&V, indicated that this is the Water Treatment Group's third acquisition since the beginning of the current fiscal year after those, in April and November 2005 respectively, of the business of Jones & Attwood Ltd. and of Brackett Green Ltd., specializing in the design, manufacture and marketing of municipal and industrial water treatment equipment. On an annualized basis, these acquisitions have almost doubled the size of the Water Treatment Group, set up in 2004.
"Like the two previous acquisitions, our latest acquisition is consistent with GL&V's determination to integrate state-of-the-art technologies in the industrial and municipal water treatment sector, one of the principal spearheads of its international growth strategy. "By completing our technological portfolio, the acquisition of the cutting-edge, high-performance and competitive dissolved air micro flotation system and FlooBed process brings a host of advantages to our Water Treatment Group.
First, it strengthens our positioning not only in the pulp and paper industry, but also in various other sectors where such technologies might be applied, including municipal water treatment. Secondly, the transaction with Metso Paper, Inc. consolidates our presence in certain geographical regions, including in Europe, Asia and Latin America, and gives us access to some types of industrial infrastructure construction or upgrading projects where we had little presence until now. What's more, it enables us to integrate a highly qualified team who will focus on optimizing these technologies' potential through our international sales, engineering and outsourcing networks."
Founded in 1975, GL&V (www.glv.com) is a world leader in liquid/solid separation technologies used in a large number of industrial, municipal and environmental processes. Its Process Group (Dorr-Oliver Eimco) offers a broad range of products and services intended for metal and ore processing, as well as industrial and environmental processes used in various other sectors such as chemicals and petrochemicals, food processing, pulp and paper and energy. The Water Treatment Group is focused on the development and worldwide marketing of process equipment in the treatment of drinking water and wastewater. Through its Pulp and Paper Group, GL&V also specializes in the design and marketing of equipment for various stages of pulp and paper production. Finally, GL&V Manufacturing specializes in the production of large custom-made parts for external customers involved mainly in the pulp and paper and energy sectors, as well as GL&V's other units. GL&V is present in 40 countries on six continents and has more than 1,700 employees.
Metso Paper Inc. (www.metsopaper.com) is a subsidiary of Metso Corporation (www.metso.com), a global technology corporation serving customers in the pulp and paper industry, rock and minerals processing, energy industry as well as in selected other industries. In 2004, the net sales of Metso Corporation were approx. EUR 4 billion, and it has some 23,000 employees in more than 50 countries. Metso's shares are listed in the Helsinki and New York Stock Exchanges.
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Among other recent headlines:
• Emerson wins $13 million contract to digitally automate Korea's largest coal-fired power plant -- PlantWeb digital plant architecture to maximize efficiency, minimize environmental impact at Yonghung Thermal Power Plant -- AUSTIN, TX, Jan. 9, 2006 -- Emerson Process Management, a business of Emerson, has been awarded a $13 million contract to install its PlantWeb® digital plant architecture in Units 3 and 4 of the Yonghung Thermal Power Plant. Yonghung, which is owned by Korea South East Power Co. (KOSEP), serves the Seoul metropolitan area and surrounding cities and is the largest coal-fired plant in Korea, with a current generating capacity of 1,600 megawatts...
• Invensys to supply Foxboro automation network for Kuwait Oil Company infrastructure modernization project -- Oilfield gathering center plant expansion will employ new high speed fault-tolerant mesh technology to integrate multiple generations of I/A Series automation systems -- FOXBORO, MA, Jan. 9, 2006 -- Invensys Process Systems has been selected to supply a new I/A Series mesh network-based Foxboro (www.foxboro.com) automation system for updating and expansion at two Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) crude oil gathering centers in the Burgan fields of southeast Kuwait. KOC's goals for the modernization project are to increase production capacity, improve safety and environmental practices, enhance water treatment and decrease gas-flaring. The overall project also includes gathering centers at several other oil fields...
Also see: "Invensys asset management solution named 'Breakthrough Product of the Year'"
• Novazone targets environmentally friendly ozone disinfection solution for Northwest Food Manufacturing and Packaging Exposition -- LIVERMORE, CA, Jan. 9, 2006 -- Novazone, a leading provider of innovative ozone-based solutions to improve the freshness and safety of food and water, today announced it is scheduled to present at the Northwest Food Manufacturing and Packaging Exposition (www.nwfpa.org) in Portland, Ore., on Monday, Jan. 16 at 10:30 a.m. PT. David Cope, chief marketing officer, will present Ozone Disinfection Solution for Fruits and Vegetables. In addition, Novazone will be exhibiting at the exposition to be held Jan. 16-18, 2006...
• Ernst & Young says real estate capital likely to relieve infrastructure woes NEW YORK, Jan. 9, 2006 -- Commercial real estate expertise -- and perhaps even U.S. institutional real estate capital -- may provide both capital and creative solutions for the growing global issue of infrastructure development and rebuilding, according to the global leader of Ernst & Young's real estate group. Dale Anne Reiss, New York-based leader of Ernst & Young's global real estate practice, says that infrastructure issues are so important in the U.S. and other major economies, they could end up dominating real estate planning and investment decision making for years to come. As evidence of this, she points to work now under way in New Orleans, as well as the $222 billion plan proposed last week by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to upgrade California's aging infrastructure over the next 10 years...
• Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. extends operating agreement in Barbados -- Company to continue supplying irrigation water for golf courses on island -- GEORGE TOWN, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, Jan. 9, 2006 -- Consolidated Water Co. Ltd., which develops and operates seawater conversion plants and water distribution systems in areas where natural supplies of water are scarce, announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, DesalCo. (Barbados) Ltd., has renewed its agreement with Sandy Lane Properties Limited ("Sandy Lane"), and extended such contract through Jan. 19, 2007. Under terms of the agreement, DesalCo will continue to operate a seawater desalination plant that provides irrigation water for three golf courses on the Sandy Lane Resort in St. James, Barbados. The plant and property are owned by Sandy Lane, and DesalCo has operated the plant since January 2001. DesalCo also designed and constructed the seawater reverse osmosis desalination plant, which produces up to 1.3 million U.S. gallons per day of irrigation water from seawater...
• Vigilistics Software for dairy, food processors accomplishes Bioterrorism Act compliance -- Manufacturers also achieve economic benefits -- COSTA MESA, CA, Jan. 9, 2006 -- Vigilistics, a company serving the dairy and food processing industries, announced configurable software for tracking, tracing, and analysis of process manufacturing. Developed for seven global leaders in dairy and food manufacturing, Vigilistics software provides auditable records for Bioterrorism Act and FDA compliance, improves energy use, reduces product loss, and provides production data for ERP enterprise systems...
• Uganda gets major grant from African Development Bank -- KAMPALA, Uganda, Jan. 8, 2006 -- The African Development Bank has given Uganda two grants amounting to $84 million to support large-scale projects in the water and education sectors. An ADB representative, Benedict Kanu, said during a recent press conference that the bank on Dec. 19 approved giving $56 million to finance rural water and sanitation programs and another $28 million to support the education sector. This is the first major grant provided to Uganda since several donor countries, including Britain, Sweden, Norway and Ireland, significantly cut their financial support to Uganda citing public administration and political concerns. Anxieties over bad governance, corruption and the detention of opposition political leaders are believed to be behind their decision...
Also see: "ADF grants Ethiopia $62 million to finance rural water supply and sanitation" -- TUNIS, Tunisia, Dec. 21, 2005 -- The Ethiopian government will receive a grant of UA 43.61 million (about US$62 million) from the African Development Fund (ADF) to co-finance its rural water supply and sanitation program. The Board of the ADF, the concessionary lending arm of the African Development Bank Group, approved the grant during its regular weekly meeting in Tunis. The resources will be used to: provide new and rehabilitated water supply facilities; build latrines in schools, health centers and crowded settlements; raise awareness and build capacity in water supply and sanitation management, operation and maintenance; and support federal and regional government institutions responsible for the sector. Access to water supply and sanitation services is available to only 24% and 8% respectively of Ethiopia's rural population...
• PennWell introduces MP3 downloads (podcasts) to its TalkPoint powered webinar series -- NEW YORK, Jan. 6, 2006 -- PennWell Corp., a business-to-business media company providing print and online publications, conferences and exhibitions, research, databases, online exchanges and information products to strategic global markets and TalkPoint (www.talkpoint.com), a leading provider of Web-based audio and video conferencing solutions, today announced that all of PennWell's online webinars will offer the option of downloadable audio content in MP3 format. PennWell delivers webinars through its publications' individual websites, which number over 40. The sessions are designed to distribute relevant information to their customer base, while also providing sponsorship and lead generation opportunities. All the PennWell webinars are based around timely discussions conducted by industry authorities on important, industry-specific topics...
• ICC Institute focuses on architectural, engineering aspects of International Building Code -- FALLS CHURCH, VA, Jan. 6, 2006 -- Architects, plan examiners, engineers and other industry professionals need to be aware of key requirements in the 2006 International Building Code (IBC) to effectively design and review building projects. The Design Professional Institute, March 21-22 in Sacramento, Calif., is an opportunity to learn how to design code-compliant projects specific to accessibility and usability, means of egress, wind loads, materials, fire resistance and fire protection requirements in the 2006 IBC...
• Water Pik Technologies agrees to be acquired by The Carlyle Group, Zodiac -- Water Pik Technologies stockholders to receive $27.75 per share in cash transaction equity valued at $380 million -- NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. & PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 6, 2006--Water Pik Technologies Inc. and The Carlyle Group have signed a definitive agreement for Water Pik Technologies to be acquired by Coast Acquisition Corporation, a newly-formed corporation 80% owned by The Carlyle Group, a global private equity investment firm, and 20% owned by Zodiac S.A., an industrial company listed on the Paris Stock Exchange. Under the terms of the agreement, Water Pik Technologies, Inc. stockholders will receive a 31.2% premium over the average closing price for the last 30 trading days -- for an overall transaction of roughly $380 million...
• AquaCell signs agreement with Winn-Dixie for water cooler installations -- Expands 'Coolertising' program to Florida and the Southeast; Deal represents its first supermarket chain -- RANCHO CUCAMONGA, CA, Jan. 5, 2006 -- AquaCell Technologies announced that its AquaCell Media subsidiary has signed an agreement with Winn-Dixie Stores Inc. for installation of its patented self-filling water coolers. The roll out will be to 434 Winn-Dixie supermarkets with pharmacies. Winn-Dixie is one of the nation's largest food retailers, operating in a concentrated area in the southeastern United States...
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In earlier newsbriefs, see: "WaterBriefs: Homeland security stocks to benefit from new Senate chemical plant security bill" -- Also in this report (Jan. 5, 2006): Zenon obtains significant sales in December; Hydro-Clear filter keeps Ill. plant running like new; Westin Engineering awarded $7.8M Chicago controls contract; Blackburn & Assoc. receives slow sand filter patent; Advantica awarded Tempe, Ariz., water contract; Boenning & Scattergood, ISE develop new 'Water Index' investor option; Met-Pro Corp. receives China contract in excess of $850,000; Hatch Mott MacDonald acquires AWS Engineers & Planners Corp.; NuFlo Measurement Systems acquires ultrasonic meter manufacturer Caldon Inc.; New process unveiled to detect pathogens in food, water for use in the shipping industry; N-Viro announces settlement with former law firm; ADB loan for water project benefits 400,000 in western Afghanistan...
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