Master Meter bids for bigger share of water/wastewater markets

MANSFIELD, TX, March 10, 2005 -- Master Meter announced a new distribution agreement with Liquid Controls of Lake Bluff, Ill., for the sale of electromagnetic flow meters to the water and wastewater markets. This distribution agreement does not include residential water meters, AMR systems or other utility metering products, which will continue to be retained exclusively by Master Meter.

The agreement creates a strategic alliance combining the liquid-meter technology expertise of Liquid Controls as the mag meter supplier, with the substantial channel experience of Master Meter as the distributing agent. As a joint entity, both parties expect to gain a higher profile in the water and wastewater markets than each one had separately.

Mag meters provided by Liquid Controls for Master Meter distribution will be compatible with applications addressed by previous models provided by Master Meter. Implementation of the distribution agreement, including availability of a full line of mag meters for this market, took effect in February 2005. The product carries the trademarked name LCMag^® and will be sold throughout North America by the Master Meter distributor network.

Electromagnetic flow meters play an increasingly important role in flow measurement in many industries, including water and wastewater. Some of the superior flow-measurement attributes driving this growth include:
-- High accuracy;
-- Low pressure drop (which reduces the load and electrical demand on system pumps);
-- Clean-in-place (CIP) designs for sanitary applications;
-- Multiple process connections including sanitary, wafer, flanged, and threaded;
-- Broad selection of sizes from 1/8" through 72" for nearly any application from very low flow to very high flow, and including clear liquids or raw slurries.

The meters are especially suitable for both potable and raw water applications.

Incorporated in Texas in 1970, Master Meter (www.mastermeter.com) is one of America's few full line water meter manufacturers. Based in Mansfield, Texas, the company provides residential water meters, commercial meters and large meters for the utility, submetering and industrial flow measurement markets. It markets ancillary products for the same markets such as on-site meter reading, automatic meter reading (AMR), data collection devices and meter billing software. Recently, it introduced new meters and reading equipment that include leading edge technology such as new micro-miniature technology incorporated in the DIALOG 3G register.

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