QUEBEC CITY, PQ, Canada, Feb. 15, 2011 -- H2O Innovation Inc. ("H2O Innovation" or the "Company") and 3M Purification Inc. ("3M Purification") have teamed up to provide a mobile water treatment unit to Project HOPE to support its humanitarian assistance and health care programs in Haiti. H2O Innovation has designed, built and will deliver a trailer-based mobile water treatment system that will enable Project HOPE to produce drinking water from either surface, underground or brackish water sources. 3M Purification has provided funding for the purchase of raw material and equipment needed to build the unit, while H2O Innovation will donate the training required for the operation of the unit by Project HOPE's local staff. H2O Innovation's mobile water treatment unit is scheduled to arrive in Haiti in Spring 2011. The Company also provides an update on the first year of its sales representation agreement with 3M Purification and 3M Canada during which it has recorded the first orders for water treatment systems and membrane specialty chemicals.
"Just over one year after the terrible earthquake that devastated Haiti, humanitarian and reconstruction efforts are far from being completed. In this context, H2O Innovation is proud to team up with our sales representative 3M Purification to contribute in a sustainable way to Project HOPE's long-term health care development initiatives in Haiti. The rugged yet simple-to-operate mobile water treatment system provided by H2O Innovation and 3M Purification will help support Project HOPE's invaluable work in Haiti, where access to both health care and clean drinking water are far from universal," said Frédéric Dugré, President and CEO of H2OInnovation.
H2O Innovation mobile emergency water treatment system
Assembled and manufactured by H2O Innovation in its plant located in Ham-Nord, Quebec, the mobile water treatment unit is capable of producing enough potable water to ensure the daily operations of a field hospital, or to deliver a volume of drinking water equivalent to 35,000 bottles (500ml), every day.
Equipped with 3M Purification filters and cartridges, joining high performance with ease of replacement, the mobile unit is designed to be operated in the roughest conditions. Hitched to a pick-up truck or other vehicle, it can be moved around Haiti as needed. Equipped with a gasoline-powered generator, it can produce high quality drinking water in remote areas where electrical power supply is unavailable. H2O Innovation's mobile emergency relief water treatment unit can be built and ready to ship in only two weeks and, once deployed on location, can produce potable water in minutes.
The mobile water treatment unit is designed to be operated by Project HOPE's local staff, requiring only basic knowledge of water treatment science. H2O Innovation will donate operating training to Project HOPE's local team, covering both operating and maintenance of the unit.
Founded in 1958, Project HOPE (Health Opportunities for People Everywhere) is dedicated to providing lasting solutions to health problems with the mission of helping people to help themselves. Identifiable to many by the SS HOPE, the world's first peacetime hospital ship, Project HOPE now provides medical training and health education, as well as conducts humanitarian assistance programs in more than 35 countries. Over the past five decades, Project HOPE has demonstrated its ability to develop and permanently institute long-term solutions to pressing health problems, the true essence of helping people help themselves.
Update on the sales representation agreement with 3M Purification & 3M Canada
One year ago, H2O Innovation entered into a sales representation agreement with 3M Purification -- and subsequently with 3M Canada -- whereby 3M Purification and 3M Canada represent H2O Innovation's complete line of water treatment solutions in the U.S. and Canadian oil & gas and automotive assembly markets on a non-exclusive basis.
Over the course of the first twelve months of the agreement, the Company has provided multiple sales information and training sessions to 3M's sales teams. In turn, 3M Purification and 3M Canada's sales teams have generated a number of sales opportunities for H2OInnovation, enabling the Company to record the first sales of water treatment systems through the agreement. These first orders will see H2O Innovation deliver industrial process water production systems and equipment to both customers of 3M Purification and to its own manufacturing plants.
The Company has also recorded the first orders for its membrane antiscalants and membrane cleaners, which are marketed under the Professional Water Technologies brand. Furthermore, the business relationship between H2O Innovation and 3M Purification has enabled the parties to identify additional sales opportunities in high growth markets outside those covered by the initial agreement. The Company follows such additional sales opportunities on a case-by-case basis and is currently focusing on the rapid-growth mining industry, in North America and abroad, in which the Company has solid experience.
"As we embark on the second year of our sales representation agreement with 3M Purification and 3M Canada, we are satisfied to have secured orders in the first twelve months of the agreement and expect our relationship to generate additional orders for water treatment systems and specialty chemicals as we continue to build it. H2O Innovation is actively engaged supporting its external sales force, a network composed of over 20 North American wastewater equipment sales representatives and nearly 15 international distributors for its line of membrane pretreatment chemicals and cleaners," concluded Frédéric Dugré.
About H2O Innovation
Building on 10 years of experience, H2O Innovation designs, manufactures, and integrates state-of-the-art custom-built water treatment systems for the production of drinking water, the reclamation of water, the treatment of wastewater and industrial process water in the municipal, commercial, industrial, oil & gas, mining, and energy markets. Additionally, the Company offers complete operating and maintenance solutions for membrane filtration and reverse osmosis systems. H2O Innovation has approximately 100 employees and eight offices including three manufacturing plants in Canada and the United States and is a founding partner of H2O Innovation India, a joint venture based in Mumbai, India. Shares of H2OInnovation are listed on the TSX Venture Exchange (HEO) as well as on the NYSE Euronext Alternext Exchange (MNEMO: ALHEO). For more, visit www.h2oinnovation.com.
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