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news, people, new membranes, mergers and acquisition - archive 2005
DEGREMONT, SUEZ Group, win a USD 260 million contract to design, build and operate a wastewater treatment plant in Qatar Dec. 14th, 2005 - ZENON Environmental will be providing its proprietary ZeeWeed membranes for tertiary treatment. >>more... BWT posts sales and earnings increase after three quarters Nov. 30th, 2005 - Consolidated BWT Group sales rose in the first nine months of 2005 as against the previous year from Euro 355.3 million to Euro 361.9 million (+1.8%). >>more... Polypore Announces Third Quarter And Year To Date Results November 9, 2005 - Polypore, Inc. announces net sales for the three months ended October 1, 2005 of $105.8 million compared to net sales of $117.5 million in the third quarter of 2004. >>more... ZENON Makes Progress on Manufacturing Line but Reports Loss for Third Quarter November 8, 2005 - ZENON, the leading innovator of membrane-based water filtration technologies, is on track to resolve its manufacturing problems but reports shortfall in both revenue and earnings as a result of production delays. >>more... New Siemens Membrane Diffuser for Wastewater Treatment Delivers Air in Wider Operating Range November 1, 2005 - The Envirex Diamond edition membrane diffuser from the USFilter unit of Siemens improves oxygen transfer and lengthens diffuser operating life in biological wastewater treatment systems. >>more... DuPont Fuel Cells Delivers Major Advance for Membrane Durability Oct. 26, 2005 - New Chemically Stabilized Polymer Extends Membrane Lifetime 7x >>more... Promotion of novel wastewater technologies by the EU: 6 Mio Euro Funding for the development of membrane bioreactor technolgy Oct. 24th, 2005 - The European Commission has decided to boost the development and application of European membrane bioreactor processes for municipal wastewater treatment through financing two projects within the scope of its 6th Framework Program >>more... ZENON Environmental Inc. - conference call on Tuesday, November 8, 2005 ZENON Environmental Inc. (TSX: ZEN and ZEN.NV.A) will be holding a conference call to discuss the company's third quarter 2005 financial results for the period ended September 30, 2005. >>more... Sale of aaflow systems GmbH & Co. KG to Westfalia Separator Filtration GmbH Sept. 2005 - The Membraflow Group was taken over by the GEA Group AG effective 1 October 2005 and trades under the name Membraflow GmbH.. >>more... Aquatech awarded contract for 5th Coal Power Plant Sept., 2005 - Aquatech International Corporation, a leading supplier of custom engineered water treatment equipment, recently received a contract for a complete water treatment system from Bechtel Power Corporation for the planned expansion of the Oak Creek Power Plant >>more... Army Selects Koch Membrane Purification Units Aug 8th, 2005 - Koch Membrane Systems, Inc. (KMS) has been selected by MECO of New Orleans, Louisiana to supply ROMIPURE hollow fiber ultrafiltration (UF) membranes and FLUID SYSTEMS TFC spiral reverse osmosis (RO) elements for use in the U.S. Army's Lightweight Water Purification units (LWP)... >>more... GE and Pall Form New Global Strategic Alliance June 13th, 2005 - GE Infrastructure, Water & Process Technologies and Pall Corporation today announced an expansion of their strategic alliance to bring innovative water technologies to the global marketplace. The companies will combine their advanced membrane technologies and separation solutions to cover more applications and markets, including desalination, water reuse and municipal water. >>more... DEGREMONT, SUEZ Group, win a USD 260 million contract to design, build and operate a wastewater treatment plant in Qatar DEGREMONT, SUEZ Group, win a USD 260 million contract to design, build and operate a wastewater treatment plant in Qatar The State of Qatar Public Works Authority awarded DEGREMONT a contract to design, build and operate for 10 years the country's largest wastewater treatment facility. The 135,000 m3/d plant, located twenty kilometres west of Doha, is designed for reuse of the treated water. The facility will serve 500,000 people and is scheduled to come online mid-2008. The DBO (Design, Build, Operate) contract, DEGREMONT's first for wastewater treatment in the Arabian Gulf, is worth USD 260 million which includes USD 180 million for the design and construction of the plant and USD 80 million for its operation. The contract will be performed as a 50/50 joint venture between DEGREMONT and its Japanese partner MARUBENI Corporation (civil works) and its operation is also awarded to DEGREMONT-MARUBENI, on a 70/30 basis, for a 10 year period. DEGREMONT‘s strategy is to expand its core business from plants conception and construction to plants operation for large cities. Under this contract, DEGREMONT-MARUBENI will refubish the existing plant and build a new and complete sewage treatment facility. DEGREMONT process is based on several stages of treatment in order to deliver high quality effluent standard: primary treatment by step screening and grit removal, activated sludge secondary treatment and a final state-of-the-art treatment associating sand filtration and ultrafiltration membranes. Sludge will also be extensively treated by thickening, aerobic digestion and dewatering. ZENON Environmental will be providing its proprietary ZeeWeed® membranes for tertiary treatment. ZENON's ZeeWeed® ultrafiltration membranes ensure that all the treated water is of superior quality and pure enough for re-use in agricultural irrigation. Although this isn't ZENON's first such order in the Middle East, it will be the largest tertiary plant in the area. More and more countries in the Middle East are turning to water reuse to ensure sound water resource management. Within SUEZ Environnement, Degrémont is the water treatment plant specialist. In 2004, the work of 3,800 men and women in over 70 countries generated revenues of 0.8 billion Euros. SUEZ Environment, a SUEZ business line, provides equipment and services that protect the environment and deliver the essentials of life. Its activities include drinking water production and distribution, wastewater collection and treatment, and waste treatment and recovery. Backed by its experience in the water and waste cycles, SUEZ Environment has a wide-ranging portfolio of know-how providing a sustainable solution to the requirements of local authorities and businesses. SUEZ Environment employs over 72,780 people worldwide and in 2004, generated turnover of 11.4 billion euros. ZENON is a world leader in providing advanced membrane products and services for water purification, wastewater treatment and water reuse to municipalities and industries worldwide. With over 450 ZeeWeedinstallations in more than 45 countries, ZENON employs over 1,400 people who operate from offices in 17 countries. Canada's Top 100 Employers ranked ZENON in their top 100 list for the last six years. An S&P/TSX Composite company, ZENON Environmental Inc. trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbols ZEN and ZEN.NV.A; and on the OTC under the symbols ZNEVF and ZNEAF. Additional information is available at ZENON's web site www.zenon.com. Press contact : DEGREMONT : Sabine Rous : + 33 1 46 25 61 60 - Pierre-François Moizan : +33 1 46 25 63 68 ZENON : Andrew Benedek : +1-905-465-3030 - Nazeli Clausen : +1-905-465-3030 Extension 3055 BWT posts sales and earnings increase after three quarters Sales: € 361.9 million, +1.8% y.o.y. Consolidated BWT Group sales rose in the first nine months of 2005 as against the previous year from € 355.3 million to € 361.9 million (+1.8%). The Aqua Ecolife Technologies segment recorded a decline of 0.4% to € 233.8 million. The Aqua Systems Technologies industrial segment, which was legally spun off after the end of the third quarter on November 8 and floated on the Vienna Stock Exchange under the name "CHRIST WATER TECHNOLOGY AG" grew by 7.9% to € 127.6 million. The Fuel Cell Membrane Technologies segment generated sales of € 0.5 million (PY: € 2.2 million). In the third quarter, sales totaled € 116.0 million, thereby rising by 3.0% as against 2004 (PY: € 112.6 million).
Order Book: € 174.5 million +53.8% y.o.y. Order Intake: € 412.7 million, +13.4% y.o.y. As of September 30, 2005, the order book of the BWT Group amounted to € 174.5 million, thereby increasing by 53.8% as against the same date of the previous year. Incoming orders grew by 13.4% to € 412.7 million. EBIT: € 22.8 million, +5.8% y.o.y. Consolidated earnings: € 15.8 million, +31.8% y.o.y. As a result of the turnaround in the AST segment in particular EBIT increased by 5.8% to € 22.8 million, accounting for 6.3% of sales (PY: 6.1%). The AET segment posted an EBIT margin of 9.4%; the margin for the AST segment was 1.1%. At € 21.8 million, earnings before taxes were up 7.9% on the previous year's figure of € 20.3 million. Consolidated earnings after minorities increased by 31.8% to € 15.8 million, earnings per share amounted to € 0.88 (PY: € 0.67). Cash flow from the result: € 23.5 million (PY: € 21.2 million) Gearing: 50.3% (PY: 60.3%) The rise in consolidated earnings increased the cash flow from the result by 10.8% from € 21.2 million to € 23.5 million in the first nine months, the cash flow from operations declined from € 20.1 million in the previous year to € 11.9 million. At around € 75.0 million, the net debt of the BWT Group remained constant as against the end of the last financial year, while gearing declined year-on-year from 60.3% to 50.3% as a result of the higher Group equity figure of € 149.1 million. Investments in tangible and intangible assets rose by € 2.2 million to € 6.9 million year-on-year. As of September 30, the number of employees in the BWT Group increased by 137 people year-on-year from 2,723 to 2,860. The rise in staff numbers in the AET segment relates largely to the expansion of servicing activities in France, while the focus in the AST segment was on the further internationalization of operations (Asia, South Africa, and the US). Outlook As forecast, BWT will generate sales of more than € 500 million and earnings of more than € 20 million. The increase in sales and earnings is driven by extremely encouraging developments and the successful turnaround in the AST segment, but is unfortunately muted by weak sales and declining earnings development in the AET segment. The BWT Management Board is forecasting a return to clear growth in the AET segment as well from the second half of 2006. Events after the balance sheet date On November 8, 2005, the spin-off of CHRIST WATER TECHNOLOGY AG from BWT Aktiengesellschaft became legally valid by way of its entry in the commercial register. CHRIST WATER TECHNOLOGY AG reports separately on the development of business in the first nine months in a pro forma interim report BWT AG - www.bwt-group.com - Walter-Simmer-Strasse 4, 5310 Mondsee, Austria Simone Spitzbart, Investor Relations, Tel. +43 6232 5011-1130 Polypore Announces Third Quarter And Year To Date Results CHARLOTTE, N.C. — November 9, 2005 — Polypore, Inc. announces net sales for the three months ended October 1, 2005 of $105.8 million compared to net sales of $117.5 million in the third quarter of 2004. Operating income for the third quarter of 2005 was $12.4 million compared with an operating loss of $6.8 million in the third quarter of 2004. Net income for the third quarter of 2005 was $1.7 million compared to the third quarter of 2004 net loss of $12.2 million. Operating income in the third quarter of 2005 included a $1.5 million restructuring charge primarily related to the relocation of research and development operations in Europe as part of the 2004 restructuring plan, while operating income for the third quarter of 2004 included a restructuring charge of $15.4 million related to the restructuring of certain production facilities in Germany as part of the 2004 restructuring plan. Net sales for the nine months ended October 1, 2005 were $330.9 million compared with $385.5 million for the pro forma nine months ended October 2, 2004. Operating income was $49.8 million for the first nine months of 2005 compared with pro forma operating income of $70.8 million for the same nine months in 2004. Net income for the first nine months of 2005 was $10.5 million compared with pro forma net income of $17.8 million in the first nine months of 2004. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (“Adjusted EBITDA”), which is a key measurement in our credit agreement, were $28.9 million for the third quarter of 2005 compared with the $31.1 million reported in the third quarter of 2004. Adjusted EBITDA was $133.2 million for the twelve months ended October 1, 2005. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are defined and reconciled to generally accepted accounting principles as noted below. Additionally, on September 30, 2005, Polypore made a prepayment of approximately $20 million in principal on the term loans under its bank credit facility, reducing the outstanding balance on its term loans to approximately $367 million as of October 1, 2005. Since the beginning of 2005, the Company has made approximately $45 million in prepayments on its term loans. “In the third quarter we continued to address several challenges as we work towards returning to growth,” commented Robert Toth, President and Chief Executive Officer at Polypore, Inc. “In our energy storage business, we continued to see solid revenues from our battery separator businesses. However, like most other industrial companies, we have experienced rising energy costs. We are addressing this by implementing price adjustments immediately or as soon as allowable under our contracts. In our separations media business, we continue to experience declines in demand for our cellulosic membranes for hemodialysis. While sales of our synthetic membranes for hemodialysis are growing, the pace is not sufficient to offset the decline in cellulosics. As we indicated previously, we are focusing resources on proactively managing this transition in the most profitable way.” Energy Storage Net sales for the Energy Storage segment for the third quarter of 2005 were $76.0 million, a decrease of $2.6 million from the third quarter of 2004. This decrease in sales is primarily related to changes in customer and product mix more than offsetting increases in volume. For the energy storage segment, gross profit for the three months ended October 1, 2005 was $26.8 million, an increase of $4.8 million from the same period in the prior year. Gross profit in the energy storage segment as a percent of sales for the three months ended October 1, 2005 increased to 35.3% from 28.0% in the prior year. The increase in gross profit during the three months ended October 1, 2005 is due primarily to a $5.0 million increase in cost of goods sold for the write-off of the purchase accounting adjustment for inventory that was sold during the third quarter of 2004. Raw material and energy cost increases have to date largely been offset by internal cost saving actions. Separations Media For the Separations Media segment, net sales for the third quarter of 2005 were $29.8 million, a decrease of $9.1 million from the third quarter of 2004. The decrease in net sales was attributable to a decrease in hemodialysis membrane sales related to the previously disclosed loss of a hemodialysis customer during the third quarter of 2004 and a decline in cellulosic membrane demand, offset somewhat by increases in synthetic membrane sales volumes. For the separations media segment, gross profit for the three months ended October 1, 2005 was $4.6 million, an increase of $0.9 million from the same period in the prior year. Gross profit in the separations media segment as a percent of sales for the three months ended October 1, 2005 increased to 15.3% from 9.5% in the same period of the prior year. The increase in gross profit was due primarily to a $5.0 million increase in cost of goods sold for the write-off of the purchase accounting adjustment for inventory that was sold during the third quarter of 2004. The impact of the purchase accounting adjustment was mostly offset by a decrease in production volumes associated with the decline in cellulosic demand resulting in higher production costs per unit as fixed costs were applied to lower production volumes.
* The pro forma amounts result from combining the income statement amounts for the period
prior to acquisition with amounts subsequent to the acquisition. The pro forma results of
operations for the nine months ended October 2, 2004 include adjustments for depreciation,
amortization and interest expense associated with the May 13, 2004 acquisition by and merger with
PP Acquisition Corp. and the related income tax effect of these adjustments. The pro forma results
exclude non-recurring costs of $5.3 million for the write-off of in-process research and
development costs and $18.5 million for the sale of inventory that was written up in purchase
accounting for the acquisition.
Polypore, Inc. - Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (in thousands)
* Derived from audited consolidated financial statements EBITDA EBITDA represents net income before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. EBITDA is not a recognized term under generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) and does not purport to be an alternative to net income as a measure of operating performance or to cash flows from operating activities as a measure of liquidity. Additionally, EBITDA is not intended to be a measure of free cash flow for management’s discretionary use, as it does not consider certain cash requirements such as interest payments, tax payments, debt service requirements and capital expenditures. Management believes that such non-GAAP information is useful to investors because it provides meaningful information to assess the Company’s core operations and perform financial analysis on comparative periods and peer group data. This non-GAAP information also is used by management to assess the Company’s core operations, allocate resources and make strategic decisions. Our calculation of EBITDA may not be comparable to the calculation of similarly titled measures reported by other companies. The following is a reconciliation of EBITDA to net income for the periods indicated. Reconciliation of EBITDA
($ in millions)
Reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA*
($ in millions)
* Under our senior credit facility, compliance with the minimum interest coverage ratio
and maximum leverage ratio tests is determined based on a calculation of adjusted EBITDA in which
certain items are added back to EBITDA. These items include non-cash charges, impairments and
expenses other than depreciation and amortization, cash charges resulting from the acquisition of
and merger with PP Acquisition Corp. (the “Transaction”) that arose within six months of the
closing of the Transaction, restructuring and acquisition integration costs and payments under an
operating lease agreement that is intended to be refinanced.
Polypore International, Inc. - www.polypore.net - 13800 South Lakes Drive, Charlotte, NC 28277, USA Mark Hadley, Investor Relations Manager of Polypore, Tel. +1 704-587-8886 ZENON Makes Progress on Manufacturing Line but Reports Loss for Third Quarter OAKVILLE, Ontario, November 8, 2005 – ZENON, the leading innovator of membrane-based water filtration technologies, is on track to resolve its manufacturing problems but reports shortfall in both revenue and earnings as a result of production delays. “Our third quarter financial results are very disappointing,” stated Andrew Benedek, ZENON Chairman and CEO. “We have had a significant setback in converting the manufacturing line for our ZeeWeed® 1000 membrane product, but we are continuing to make progress each day on resolving these issues. We are now delivering good quality product to our customers and hope to achieve our targeted capacity by year end.” Revenue for the quarter fell 2% from a year ago to $57.6 million, resulting in a net loss of $4.7 million or $0.14 per share. On a year-to-date basis, the company reported a net loss of $2.1 million or $0.06 per share. more >> ZENON III/2005 Results.pdf ZENON Environmental Inc. - www.zenon.com - Corporate Headquarters, 3239 Dundas Street West, Oakville, Ontario L6M 4B2, Canada Nazeli Clausen, Director, Investor Relations, Tel. +1 (905) 465-3030 EXT. 3055 New Siemens Membrane Diffuser for Wastewater Treatment Delivers Air in Wider Operating Range The Envirex Diamond edition membrane diffuser from the USFilter unit of Siemens improves oxygen transfer and lengthens diffuser operating life in biological wastewater treatment systems. Available in Spring 2006, the diffuser was developed specifically to overcome the shortcomings typical of other membrane diffusers, such as reduced oxygen transfer efficiency, narrow airflow rate operating range, diffuser headloss and overall life cycle. The new Diamond membrane diffuser employs a unique diamond-shaped aperture configuration (U.S. patent pending) which optimizes the slit pattern, making possible a wider range of airflow through the diffuser – 0.5 to 5 SCFM per diffuser (compared to 0.5 to 3 or 4 SCFM per diffuser from other manufacturers). This results in reduced headloss and increased efficiency of the transfer of oxygen into the wastewater. Less air and fewer diffusers are required per treatment basin, and this leads to lower operation and maintenance costs. The diffuser is made of a custom-formulated EPDM material that is a wastewater specific compound. It offers a 50 percent greater tensile strength than typically designed diffusers, and lower soluble oil content for longer product life. The Diamond membrane diffuser is an integral part of USFilter’s Envirex DualAir® fine-bubble aeration system. Applications include biological wastewater treatment systems of various sizes and configurations for municipal and industrial customers. Kits are also available to retrofit the Diamond edition membrane into any of the major manufacturers’ existing 9-inch ceramic or membrane disc diffuser systems. The Envirex® line of products and services includes the water and wastewater treatment industry’s best-known processes for screening, grit removal, biological wastewater treatment, clarification and separation, aeration, anaerobic treatment, digestion and sludge management. Applications include municipal water and wastewater, industrial process water and wastewater, and groundwater. Siemens Water Technologies, delivers cost-effective, reliable water and wastewater treatment systems and services to municipal, industrial, commercial and institutional customers worldwide. The division “Water Technologies” is part of Siemens' Industrial Solutions and Services Group (I&S), which provides innovative solutions and services designed to improve competitiveness in processing and manufacturing industries and in infrastructure. In fiscal 2004 (to September 30) I&S employed a total of 30,000 people worldwide and achieved total sales of EUR 4.290 billion. Visit company websites at www.usfilter.com and www.siemens.com/water. Contact USA: USFilter Corporation - 1501 E. Woodfield Rd, 200 South; Schaumburg, IL 60173, USA Karole Colangelo, Tel. +1 847 706-6947 Promotion of novel wastewater technologies by the EU: 6 Mio Euro Funding for the development of membrane bioreactor technolgy The European Commission has decided to boost the development and application of European membrane bioreactor processes for municipal wastewater treatment through financing two projects within the scope of its 6th Framework Program. The two consortia gather 25 European universities, research centres, enterprises and MBR plant operators. Furthermore two Australian universities, and one South-African university are involved. The global project envelop totals to around 12 Mio € of which the European Commission’s contribution to the projects amounts to 6 Mio € and of the Australian government to approximately 0.5 Mio €. The projects “AMEDEUS” and “EUROMBRA” start in October 2005 and are scheduled for 3 years. They focus on research and development of the membrane activated sludge technology. This recent invention, commonly referred to as membrane bioreactor (MBR), is already implemented worldwide on a large scale to treat industrial wastewater, and is considered as a key technology to achieve advanced municipal wastewater purification in the future. Compared to conventional technologies, the MBR enables complete disinfection of the treated water, and may lead to superior elimination of trace substances and emerging pollutants. The cluster of two projects targets ambitious objectives: - Reducing both capital and operation costs of the MBR technology in Europe in order to increase its competitiveness with respect to conventional technologies; - Increasing the share of European companies in the market of MBR plants, in the EU as well as worldwide, while strengthening the European MBR market; - Facilitating the implementation of the European directive on wastewater treatment, and bathing waters, as well as increasing the potential for non-potable reuse of treated effluent. KompetenzZentrum Wasser Berlin GmbH - www.kompetenz-wasser.de - Cicerostr. 24, D-10709 Berlin Boris Lesjean, Projektkoordinator AMEDEUS Norwegian University of Science and Technology - www.ntnu.no - 7491 Trondheim, Norway TorOve Leiknes, Projektkoordinator EUROMBRA Polypore Sets Third Quarter Earnings Release - conference call on Thursday, November 10th. 2005 CHARLOTTE, N.C., Oct. 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Polypore, Inc. plans to release its third quarter 2005 financial results after U.S. markets close on Wednesday, November 9th. The Company's executives intend to host a conference call to review and discuss those results beginning at 9:00 am Eastern time on Thursday, November 10th. The dial-in number for financial analysts is 800-399-7902 (in the U.S. or Canada) or 706-643-0847 (International). The media and public are invited to listen to a live webcast of the call at http://www.polypore.net in the "Investor Relations" section. A replay of the conference call will be available through November 16th via telephone at 800-642-1687 (in the U.S.) or 706-645-9291 (International). Enter code 1878389. The call will also be archived for a limited time on the company's website at http://www.polypore.net. Polypore, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Polypore International, Inc., is a worldwide developer, manufacturer and marketer of highly specialized polymer-based membranes used in separation and filtration processes. Polypore's products and technologies target specialized applications and markets that require the removal or separation of various materials from liquids, with concentration in the ultrafiltration and microfiltration markets. Truly a global provider, Polypore has manufacturing facilities or sales offices in ten countries serving five continents. Polypore's corporate offices are located in Charlotte, NC. Polypore International, Inc. - www.polypore.net - 13800 South Lakes Drive, Charlotte, NC 28277, USA Mark Hadley, Investor Relations Manager of Polypore, Tel. +1 704-587-8886 DuPont Fuel Cells Delivers Major Advance for Membrane Durability: New Chemically Stabilized Polymer Extends Membrane Lifetime 7x WILMINGTON, Del., Oct. 26, 2005 – As part of its strategy to enable the advancement of fuel cell technology, DuPont Fuel Cells today announced product improvements that dramatically increase the durability and lifetime of fuel cell membranes, dispersions and Membrane Electrode Assembly (MEA) components for hydrogen based fuel cells. Following the May 2005 introduction of the more powerful, longer running DuPont Gen IV direct methanol MEA technology, and additional developments currently under way, DuPont continues to deliver technologies essential to help make fuel cells a commercial reality in applications such as consumer electronics, residential power and automotive. “We’re very excited about bringing these technologies to market to enable improvements in fuel cell performance,” said Richard Okine, technology director, DuPont Fuel Cells. “Fundamental science is key to our progress; and as the fuel cell industry evolves, DuPont continues to prove its leadership by bringing innovation to the market. We’ve made important progress in developing more powerful, durable and longer lasting materials. Just as we have demonstrated with Gen IV technology for direct methanol fuel cells, this latest improvement in polymer chemical stability brings significant durability in components for hydrogen fuel cell systems. Further developments are focused on providing additional mechanical stability, longer life and more power from our membrane and MEA offerings, and doing so even more cost effectively.” DuPont polymers with improved chemical stability prolong durability and lifetime in a fuel cell because they are less vulnerable to the degrading effects of chemical attack on the polymer. Fluoride ion release and the resulting membrane thinning are common measures of membrane chemical attack. The rate of fluoride ion release is a measure of life expectancy. Extensive testing by DuPont has shown eight- to ten-fold improvement in oxidative stability, and greater than four-fold reduction in OCV decay with the recently introduced chemically stabilized products. The lifetime of chemically stabilized membranes has been increased by a factor of seven, while other physical and mechanical properties of membrane and dispersion remain the same (see graph). DuPont Fuel Cells is a technology and market development organization enabling the advancement of fuel cell technology and products with leading players in the industry. By driving the technology to make fuel cells a commercial reality in the near and long term, its mission is to become the leading global supplier of Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cell membranes and components, to power automobiles, electronics, and residences. DuPont is a science company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture, nutrition, electronics, communications, safety and protection, home and construction, transportation and apparel. DuPont Fuel Cells - www.fuelcells.dupont.com - Chestnut Run Plaza, 4417 Lancaster Pike, Wilmington, DE 19805, USA Ellen G. Pressley , Tel. +1 919-248-5598 Membraflow Group was taken over by the GEA Group AG effective 1 October 2005 Sale of the business operations of aaflow systems GmbH & Co. KG to Westfalia Separator Filtration GmbH The Membraflow Group was taken over by the GEA Group AG effective 1 October 2005 and trades under the name Membraflow GmbH Since the foundation of our company in the year 1988 we have experienced a constant upward trend and are an accepted partner today in the sector of membrane filtration. In order to allow further growth and to successfully establish a new product in the market, the shareholders of aaflow systems GmbH & Co. KG decided to let their business operations have further developed by a financially strong partner. With effect on 1st October, 2005, our business operations will therefore be acquired and continued by Westfalia Separator Filtration GmbH. This is a financially strong member-company of the GEA Group Aktiengesellschaft that is quoted in the M-Dax. With the assistance and the know-how of Westfalia Separator Filtration GmbH the high quality of our products can be continued and further developed in future. A contribution to this is also the fact that all our employees known to you will continue their activities at Westfalia Separator Filtration GmbH. As a matter of course it is guaranteed that your present orders placed with our enterprise will be completed by us as your contract partner with the approved quality and care. Westfalia Separator Filtration GmbH will trade under the name Westfalia Separator Membraflow GmbH after the corresponding entries in the Commercial Register will be effected. Membraflow GmbH - www.aaflowsystems.com - Robert-Bosch-Straße 99, 73457 Aalen-Essingen Tel. +49 73 65 969 71-0, Fax +49 73 65 969 71-90 Aquatech awarded contract for 5th Coal Power Plant CANONSBURG, September, 2005 -- Aquatech International Corporation, a leading supplier of custom engineered water treatment equipment, recently received a contract for a complete water treatment system from Bechtel Power Corporation for the planned expansion of the Oak Creek Power Plant, the Elm Road Generating Station. Aquatech will design and supply equipment that will treat water from Lake Michigan to be used as boiler feed water for the power plant. The water treatment equipment features Ultrafiltration, Reverse Osmosis and Mixed Beds. The Elm Road Generating Station, developed and owned by WE Energies includes the construction of two 615-megawatt supercritical coal-fueled generating units. Bechtel Power Corporation is the EPC contractor. This contract is the 5th in a series of Coal Power Plants for Aquatech. Other contracts include, a cogeneration plant in Nevada for Newmont Mining; Weston Steam Plant, Unit 4 for Wisconsin Public Service; Springerville Unit 3 in Arizona for Tri State/Tuscon Electic, and Santee Coopers’s Cross Generating Station, Unit 3 in South Carolina. . Aquatech International Corporation, headquartered in Canonsburg, PA, specializes in industrial water purification technologies. Primary product groups offered by Aquatech are Raw Water Treatment, Ion Exchange, Membrane Processes, Wastewater Recycle / Reuse, Zero Liquid Discharge, Industrial Concentration and Desalination. For nearly 25 years Aquatech has executed over 450 projects, integrating several of its product groups, in over 40 countries across the globe for the power generation, chemical, petrochemical, pharmaceutical, microelectronics, and other industries. Aquatech, through its subsidiaries and offices, has global sourcing and fabrication capabilities to suit logistics of project sites throughout the world. Aquatech International Corporation - www.aquatech.com Karin L. Brightwell, Tel. 724-746-5300, Fax 724-746-5359 Army Selects Koch Membrane Purification Units WILMINGTON, MA -- Koch Membrane Systems, Inc. (KMS) has been selected by MECO of New Orleans, Louisiana to supply ROMIPURE® hollow fiber ultrafiltration (UF) membranes and FLUID SYSTEMS® TFC® spiral reverse osmosis (RO) elements for use in the U.S. Army’s Lightweight Water Purification units (LWP). LWP is a portable water purification unit designed to fit into the cargo space of a High Mobility Multi-Purpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV) and can be transported in a single lift of a UH-60 Blackhawk Helicopter. UF hollow fiber membranes are used in the LWP as pretreatment for RO spiral membranes by removing turbidity, suspended solids, bacteria and other microorganisms from the feed water that can foul the downstream RO membranes. RO membranes remove salt and very small organic components to produce fresh water that is suitable for drinking. Membrane processes have been selected for the LWP because they reliably produce fresh water while keeping equipment space and weight to a minimum. Another advantage is low chemical consumption and reduced waste generation as compared to other types of water treatment processes. Fresh water produced by the LWP will support both military operations and humanitarian missions, including disaster relief and refugee care. Design capacity of the LWP is between 75 and 125 gallons per hour of fresh water when treating a wide variety of feed waters including turbid or brackish water, seawater, and water with nuclear, biological or chemical contamination. MECO designs, constructs and services water purification equipment and systems for critical applications in various markets. The company has been serving the U.S. military since WWII when its then patented technology was used throughout the European and Pacific theaters. MECO is the North American market leader in the development of biopharmaceutical water systems used in drug manufacturing. The company also provides desalination plants and services to the marine oil and gas industry. MECO will supply several hundred LWP units during a five-year production contract with the U.S. Army Tank and Automotive Command (TACOM). About Koch Membrane Systems Koch Membrane Systems, Inc. has been a global leader in separation and filtration products for over 30 years. A designer and manufacturer of state-of-the-art membrane cartridges and elements, as well as complete membrane systems, KMS has products that treat even the most demanding applications. To enhance membrane performance, KMS offers a line of antiscalants and cleaning chemicals, and provides numerous maintenance and technical service programs. The company has supplied membranes to more than 15,000 systems used around the world, serving the food processing, life sciences, and general manufacturing industries, as well as providing potable water and wastewater treatment technologies for communities of all sizes. Headquartered in Wilmington, Massachusetts, Koch Membrane Systems is a member of Koch Chemical Technology Group, LLC. For more information on Koch Membrane Systems visit www.kochmembrane.com, call 888-677-5624 or write to info@kochmembrane.com. www.kochmembrane.com GE and Pall Form New Global Strategic Alliance TREVOSE, PA and EAST HILLS, NY (June 13, 2005) — GE Infrastructure, Water & Process Technologies, a unit of General Electric Company (NYSE:GE), and Pall Corporation (NYSE:PLL) today announced an expansion of their strategic alliance to bring innovative water technologies to the global marketplace. The companies will combine their advanced membrane technologies and separation solutions to cover more applications and markets, including desalination, water reuse and municipal water. This extensive range of technologies and services will focus on meeting the world’s rapidly increasing demand for clean water for drinking, irrigation and industrial uses. "As the population grows and water scarcity increases, so does the world’s need for clean water,” said George Oliver, CEO, GE Infrastructure, Water & Process Technologies. "This strategic alliance enhances our ability to answer the world's most pressing water needs with energy-efficient, cost-effective, customized solutions." Building upon a January 2004 agreement -- which integrated GE’s advanced design reverse osmosis/nanofiltration systems and services with Pall's high performance microfiltration/ultrafiltration technologies -- the new alliance paves the way for collaboration on the development and sale of proprietary technologies focused on bringing innovative water technology solutions to the world. "We are very excited about the prospects of this enhanced alliance,” said Don Stevens, Chief Operating Officer, Pall Corporation. “Its expanded scope not only creates more opportunity in the industrial markets but also allows our companies to jointly develop and deploy advanced membrane, filtration, and separation technologies for the very large and growing municipal, water reuse, and desalination markets." The alliance draws upon GE and Pall’s complementary strengths in materials development, applications and process engineering; as well as a broad array of filtration and separation products and services. It will allow customers in the industrial, municipal and desalination marketplace to reduce energy use and costs while increasing efficiency in the production of pure water. For more information on water solutions, please visit www.gewater.com or www.pall.com |
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