In other news below, see:
-- N.H. utility to implement Neptune's field service automation suite
-- Spartan Environmental appoints Quest as S. Texas representative
-- Underground Solutions chosen by Clay County, Fla., and Disney World
-- Itron's new Knowledge Center opens in Oakland
-- N.J. American Water to enhance delivery of water in Gloucester County
-- PureTech Systems opens new office in Phoenix
-- Moyno appoints new VP of finance
-- Vulcan Industries Inc. to close its doors
Tetra Tech awarded $43 million clean water protection contract
PASADENA, CA, Aug. 23, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Tetra Tech Inc. signed a $43 million, 5-year contract with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Wastewater Management to support efforts in protecting and restoring the nation's waters and watersheds.
This indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract expands Tetra Tech's technical and programmatic support for the EPA's clean water protection program that began in the 1970s. The contract will support the agency's expanding programmatic responsibilities under the Clean Water Act. Tetra Tech will provide its technical expertise to the agency as it utilizes the watershed approach to address challenging water pollution problems, promote the use of innovative technologies, and address the nation's growing wastewater infrastructure needs.
The mission of EPA's Office of Wastewater Management (www.epa.gov/owm/) is to support the Clean Water Act by promoting effective and responsible water use, treatment, disposal and management and by encouraging the protection and restoration of watersheds.
Tetra Tech (www.tetratech.com) is a leading provider of consulting, engineering and technical services. With nearly 8,000 associates located in the United States and internationally, the company supports commercial and government clients in the areas of resource management, infrastructure and communications. Its services include research and development, applied science and technology, engineering design, program management, construction management, and operations and maintenance.
N.H. utility to implement Neptune's field service automation suite
PLANO, TX, Aug. 23, 2005 -- Neptune Technology Group Inc., and its wholly owned subsidiary DB Microware, announced Aug. 18 it has reached an agreement with Public Service of New Hampshire to implement the FieldNet® utility field service automation suite.
Public Service of New Hampshire (PSNH), serving more than 475,000 customers in New Hampshire, agreed to implement the entire FieldNet field service suite, encompassing meter reading, field service, and rerouting. PSNH expects to gain the same value that its parent company garnered when it implemented the Neptune software suite more than seven years ago. PSNH also decided to take advantage of the latest edition to the FieldNet offering -- the CE8640 tablet computer with the electric ERT and R900 RF compatible AMR radio -- for all of its field hardware requirements.
With FieldNet, PSNH will have a best-of-breed meter reading system that is also capable of supporting future AMR deployments, providing long term field service automation, and providing mobile meter reading capabilities.
Dan Comer, Director of Customer Service for PSNH states, "PSNH is very pleased to be implementing the FieldNet system for our meter reading and meter order processing. This change will align PSNH with the other Northeast Utilities companies, and it will position us well for a potential future AMR implementation, and improve our ability to reroute our meter routes. We are looking forward to building a strong partnership with Neptune Technology Group."
Charles (Chuck) C. DiLaura, president of Neptune Technology Group Inc., said "We are delighted to extend our tremendous relationship with Northeast Utilities to its subsidiary, Public Service of New Hampshire. Neptune offers our customers the power of choice in the metering systems they use. We are committed to ensuring that PSNH realizes all of the benefits gained from the valued relationship started with Northeast Utilities."
FieldNet by DB Microware is an integrated route control, meter reading and automated service order package which utilizes the latest software and hardware technologies available. With the addition of Neptune's AMR capabilities, FieldNet also provides complete AMR capability. DB Microware has built all of its software using the latest technology and an architecture that provides customization to meet the unique needs of each client. DB Microware is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Neptune Technology Group Inc.
Public Service of New Hampshire (www.psnh.com) is the Granite State's largest electric utility, serving more than 475,000 homes and businesses throughout the state. PSNH employs more than 1,200 people who work and live in New Hampshire, and contribute in many ways to the communities where they reside. It's a solely owned subsidiary of Northeast Utilities (www.nu.com).
Formed in 1926, PSNH has grown to comprise three fossil fuel-fired generating plants and nine hydroelectric facilities, jointly capable of generating more than 1,110 megawatts of electricity. As a wholly-owned subsidiary of Northeast Utilities -- a utility holding company based in Connecticut -- PSNH is an integral part of New England's largest electric system. This ample and diverse supply of energy provides the foundation for continued economic growth and prosperity in New Hampshire
Neptune Technology Group Inc. (www.neptunetg.com), a pioneer in the development of Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) technology nearly 40 years ago, is a leading provider of data collection systems, reading more than 38 million meters per month. Since 1892 Neptune has continually focused on the evolving needs of utilities -- revenue optimization, operational efficiencies, and improved customer service. Neptune continues to broaden its focus beyond automatic meter reading and metering to include service orders and meter asset management and to extend this capability to electric and gas utilities as it further integrates with DB Microware and its alliance partners. Neptune provides utility automation software touching over 50 million connected customers throughout North America.
Spartan Environmental appoints Quest as S. Texas representative
MENTOR, OH, Aug. 23, 2005 -- Spartan Environmental Technologies, a distributor and manufacturer of chemical oxidation and disinfection equipment, has appointed Quest Technologies, Inc., of Friendswood, Texas, as its industrial representative for South Texas, including the Texas Gulf Coast.
Spartan's product line includes a full range of ozone generators, odor control systems and a proprietary electrolytic system for the removal of organics from water.
Quest provides custom designed, engineered and manufactured automated chemical feed systems, fire pump controllers, tanks, mixers and pumps to industry.
Anthony Sacco, Marketing Director for Spartan said, "Spartan is happy to welcome Quest as its representative in the South Texas industrial market. Quest brings extensive experience in water treatment, especially cooling towers, as well as the capability to design and deliver complete chemical feed systems. We are looking forward to serving the water treatment needs of industry in South Texas."
"We are pleased to bring Spartan to the Texas Gulf Coast," said Richard Prentice, President of Quest Technologies. "The Spartan product line broadens Quest's ability to offer oxidation solutions to industrial water and wastewater applications."
For more information, see www.spartanwatertreatment.com or www.questeam.com.
Underground Solutions chosen by Clay County, Fla., and Disney World
PITTSBURGH, Aug. 23, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Underground Solutions Inc. (UGSI) will supply its patent pending Fusible C-900 and Fusible C-905 piping systems to Clay County, Fla. This contract for 22,000 lineal feet of piping systems will be utilized by the county to install via horizontal directional drilling, potable water, reclaimed water and wastewater lines. This represents the largest single contract for C-900 and C-905 to date.
UGSI also announced a contract to supply the C-900 piping system to Disney World. It will be utilizing the company's patent-pending technologies to install new drinking water, reclaimed water and wastewater pipes underground utilizing horizontal directional drilling methods which allow the gasketless piping system to be installed without digging and disturbing the surface area.
The company has completed numerous installations of these piping systems throughout Florida. Major municipalities that have completed Fusible projects include: Jacksonville Electric Authority (8 projects); Gainesville (3 projects); Cape Canaveral (2 projects); Clay County (2 prior projects); Eustis (2 projects); Disney World (1 project - Sept. '05); Winter Park (1 project) and Center Hill (1 project), Cocoa Beach (1 project - Oct. '05). Several additional Florida municipalities are working with Underground Solutions on future Fusible PVC and Duraliner projects that are currently in the planning and design stages.
Underground Solutions will be establishing the Company's first "company-owned" Technical Service Center within the next several weeks in the Orlando, Florida area. This facility, which will be the prototype for additional regional Technical Sales/Service Centers that the Company intends to establish in key markets across the United States over the next 6 months, will include UGSI technical sales and support personnel and specialized equipment. These are being established in order to assist Underground Solutions' customers and Certified Contractors in the sales and installation of the Company's complete line of proprietary infrastructure systems, including Duraliner, Fusible C-900 and Fusible C-905. With the opening of our Technical Service Center in Orlando UGSI will have available in stock within the Southeast, an inventory of over $500,000 of our Fusible PVC products ready for immediate delivery to our customer's jobsite.
Mark Smith, UGSI's President & CEO stated, "After 5 long years of developing our technologies and introducing them to the water infrastructure industry, Underground Solutions is now positioned to systematically establish a physical presence and grow our business nationally. Our Orlando, Florida based Technical Sales/Service Center will be the first of many 'company-owned' centers and our plan is to successfully integrate our centers with strong partners throughout the United States and around the world."
Underground Solutions (www.undergroundsolutions.com) is a full service infrastructure management and trenchless pipeline rehabilitation company. It has developed and continues to develop unique and proprietary technologies focused exclusively on the underground infrastructure rehabilitation/replacement industry. UGSI's products developed and successfully introduced into the market to date include Duraliner™, Fusible C-900™, Fusible C-905™ and Fusible PVC™.
Itron's new Knowledge Center opens in Oakland
SPOKANE, WA, Aug. 23, 2005 -- Itron Inc., a $500 million company and key technology supplier to energy and water providers and consumers worldwide, has unveiled its Oakland Knowledge Center, housed in its office location at 111 Broadway, Ste. 1800, Oakland, Calif. The center presents an interactive marketing experience designed to showcase the company's breadth of vision and product offerings.
This is the second such center opened by Itron. The original Knowledge Center is housed in Itron's Spokane Valley, Wash., headquarters. The Oakland center began when Itron relocated its software development headquarters from Alameda into a downtown Oakland skyscraper.
"We wanted our new location to showcase our end-to-end solutions for utility data, especially the software that manages and applies the data to optimizing business operations," said Philip Mezey, senior vice president for Itron software solutions. "The idea is to encourage industry executives, consultants and regulators to come tour our new facility and see our open, end-to-end solution for optimizing utility operations in action. It's a great embodiment of the vision we have of our product line."
The Itron Oakland Knowledge Center occupies a long wall inside the location's board room. Visitors can follow data as it originates at a meter, moves through a meter data collection system, resides securely in a meter data repository, and is shared with various applications that optimize operations such as billing, revenue assurance, outage management, field service, finances, forecasting, and distribution system design.
"This is the prove-it place for Itron's ability to completely integrate all the components of our product value chain," Mezey said. "It proves to the viewer the extent of our open architecture and robust interoperability. It shows we can integrate with other companies to provide the best meter data management solution around."
The company's first Knowledge Center plays host many legislators and regulators, as well as executives from investor-owned utilities, municipal energy and water providers, and rural electric cooperatives. Recently, Washington state senators Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray (D-Wash.) toured the center to learn more about energy issues facing the nation and how technology applies to issues addressed in the national energy policy.
Itron (www.itron.com) is a technology provider and critical source of knowledge to the global energy and water industries. Nearly 3,000 utilities worldwide rely on its award-winning technology to provide the knowledge they require to optimize the delivery and use of energy and water. The company provides industry-leading solutions for electricity metering; meter data collection; energy information management; demand response; load forecasting, analysis and consulting services; distribution system design and optimization; web-based workforce automation; and enterprise and residential energy management.
N.J. American Water to enhance delivery of water in Gloucester County
LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ, Aug. 23, 2005 (PRNewswire) -- New Jersey American Water is proud to announce the construction of a booster station and rechlorination facility in Mantua Township. The project will provide service in East Greenwich Township, Mantua Township, Pitman Borough and part of Harrison Township. Because New Jersey American Water has a strong commitment to supporting the regional water supply now and in the future in Southern New Jersey, the station will also enable service to other growing water needs in Gloucester County, including Glassboro, Elk Township, and the South Jersey Technology Park at Rowan University.
The water source for the $2.5 million project will be the Delaware River Regional Water Treatment Plant. New Jersey American Water built the Delaware River intake, water treatment plant and over 50 miles of transmission main in response to the over-pumped Potomac-Raritan-Magothy aquifer. Since the regional water system went on-line in 1996, numerous interconnections have been constructed and operated in Burlington, Camden and Gloucester counties to support the water needs for many local area water purveyors.
The booster station will provide for the delivery of adequate flows and pressures to areas in Southern and Western Gloucester County, while the rechlorination system will maintain water quality for existing and future water users in the area.
Construction is to begin at the end of August and is expected to be completed in early 2006.
A unit of American Water, New Jersey American Water (www.njawater.com) is the state's largest water utility. It serves over two million people in 176 communities throughout the state. American Water, a part of RWE's water division, serves 20 million customers in 27 states, four Canadian provinces, Puerto Rico and South America. More than 8, 000 employees provide water, wastewater and other related services. RWE's water division is the third largest water and wastewater services company in the world.
PureTech Systems opens new office in Phoenix
PHOENIX, AZ, Aug. 23, 2005 -- To meet the increased demand for its PureActiv wide-area surveillance solution, PureTech Systems Inc. has opened its new headquarters in Phoenix.
Contact information is as follows:
Pure Tech Systems Inc.
2075 W. Pinnacle Peak Rd., Ste. 120
Phoenix, AZ 85027
Tel: 602-738-2666
Email: [email protected]
PureTech is a developer of advanced wide-area surveillance and intrusion detection systems that provide life and asset protection for firms and governments with expansive outdoor and geographically distributed operations. Using Geographic Information Systems (GIS), advanced scene analysis, and policy-based detection rules and notification technology, the PureActiv solution equips security personnel with specific alarm information, including the exact location and type of security threat. This allows them to proactively manage the entire perimeter security system from one unified source.
"Today is a very exciting day for PureTech Systems," said Larry Bowe, president of PureTech Systems. "We established our Phoenix headquarters as a direct result of our ongoing commitment to provide our customers with world-class products and services. All major functions of the business will operate from our Phoenix location including engineering, production, sales, marketing and customer support."
PureActiv is a robust wide-area surveillance solution for detecting security breaches at facility perimeters and in outdoor environments at airports, seaports, utilities, prisons, and other facilities with critical infrastructure. The system detects security threats according to the detection rules that security personnel establish and turns standard security cameras into intelligent detection sensors.
Upon detection of a threat, it notifies security personnel according to rules and schedules established by security managers. The system can send e-mails, pages and make phone calls with response and acknowledgement instructions. It can also take automated actions, such as locking doors, transmitting audible announcements, turning on lights and controlling other equipment.
Through an intuitive geographic map interface, security personnel can maneuver multiple pan-tilt-zoom cameras simultaneously at the remote location to assess the current situation. Security personnel can control the system from either a central monitoring location, or through a web browser. Video and alarm data are immediately archived for future investigations and for use as evidence. PureActiv was designed from the beginning to scale up to large systems using hundreds of cameras distributed across hundreds of geographically separated facilities.
PureTech Systems Inc. (www.puretechsystems.com) is a manufacturer of wide-area surveillance solutions offered to Fortune 1000 firms, utilities, ports, schools, prisons, and federal, state and local governments. The company serves national and international markets. PureTech is a wholly owned subsidiary of Pure Technologies Ltd.
Moyno appoints new VP of finance
SPRINGFIELD, OH, Aug. 23, 2005 -- Moyno Inc. has announced the appointment of Paul Reiss as vice president of finance. Reiss will be directly responsible for all financial matters at Moyno Inc., a unit of Robbins & Myers, and will be located in Springfield, Ohio. His responsibilities will include the financial oversight of the worldwide Moyno Group, including the United Kingdom, Mexico, Singapore and China.
Reiss has extensive experience in managing the financial function of industrial companies. He was most recently the vice president and controller at Chemineer Inc., also a unit of Robbins & Myers.
"I am pleased that Paul has joined the Moyno group," said Moyno President Alan Boyce, Ph.D. "Paul is an excellent addition to Moyno's senior management team and brings considerable depth and experience in financial matters to the company. Also, his knowledge of R&M financial systems and procedures has facilitated a smooth transition in Springfield."
Moyno Inc. (www.moyno.com) is a manufacturer and marketer of progressing cavity pumps, multiphase fluid transfer systems, grinders and controls. It has an extensive worldwide stocking distribution network that serves a wide range of industries including water and wastewater treatment, pulp and paper, chemical, food, pharmaceutical, mining, petrochemical and oil and gas recovery.
Vulcan Industries Inc. to close its doors
WINDSOR, CT, Aug. 23, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Thermodynetics Inc.'s subsidiary, Vulcan Industries Inc., as a consequence of the loss of sales and unpaid receivables following a damaging storm in Lower Michigan in early June, suffered significant losses and is unable to meet its obligations to its creditors.
Vulcan's largest customer has transferred its business elsewhere, and the remaining customer base is inadequate to cover operating and overhead expenses.
Vulcan's bank is not funding the cash shortfall and as a result Vulcan is unable to continue operations. The bank, as secured creditor, has set August 31 as the last day of operations while Vulcan finishes certain production runs for its other customers.
Although an auction or private sale of the machinery, equipment and inventory at Vulcan will be conducted, the sale of these assets is expected to be significantly less than the sums owed to the bank.
Thermodynetics Inc. (www.thermodynetics.com) has been engaged in the manufacture of high performance, high quality metal tubing and tubing assemblies to the heat transfer and other industries since 1972. The company specializes in enhanced heat transfer technology. These products are marketed worldwide for applications in the space conditioning, refrigeration, biomedical, aerospace, boiler, marine, food and beverage, plumbing, water heating and ice making industries.
***
In earlier newsbriefs, see:
-- "WaterBriefs: EU legislation to have domino effect on markets for ferrous sulfate" -- Also in this report (Aug. 22, 2005): ITT Industries creates Award for Excellence in Student Water Journalism; World Chlorine Council highlights public health value of chlorine; Mine discharge permit renewal in Fayette County, Pa., ruled unlawful; Atlanta kicks off Stockade sewer separation project; Latin America plastic pipe market forecast to reach $2.7B by 2009; San Antonio scraps plans to buy water from Alcoa...
###
