ATF.V aha, could this be the start??
AFS awarded new orders from Australia
Alternative Fuel Systems Inc ATF
Shares issued 24,373,982 Feb 10 close $0.92
Fri 11 Feb 2000 News Release
Ms. Jo-Anne Cappis reports
After an enthusiastic response to the performance of its innovative
diesel/natural gas systems in Australia, Alternative Fuel Systems has seen
a significant increase in interests as well as new sales. In late 1999, AFS
completed a fleet installation of AFS Eagle Dual Fuel Systems in Australia
for Isuzu-General Motors. Although the systems were used on garbage trucks
which receive the most demanding vehicle usage, the customer response was
outstanding. "Brilliant" is how Norgas president Johnny Emanuele described
the AFS system during a recent customer followup. After worldwide research
of the natural gas vehicle (NGV) industry, Mr. Emanuele selected the AFS
system because he found it to be the "best system, easy to install, and
simple to operate and figure out. It only took three months to supply and
install the AFS equipment and it works."
The garbage truck market was targeted initially because of the difficulty
in achieving success with this type of vehicle since these trucks that stop
and start an average of 1,400 times a day with tough acceleration demands.
According to Mr. Emanuele, "the garbage industry can't tolerate failures as
the garbage has to be picked up every single day." He felt that this was a
good way to enter the NGV market since "any other applications would be
easy once the systems are proven in the garbage industry." Now after months
of successful operation in Australia, AFS has received orders for more
systems and numerous municipalities across Australia have also expressed
serious interest. Mr. Emanuele commented on the genius of AFS's proprietary
engine control software and on the fact that, at AFS, "they know what they
are doing."
Not only have customers been impressed by the AFS Diesel Dual Fuel System
performance, ISUZU-General Motors even agreed to offer warranty coverage on
these vehicles. This was the first time one of the big three automotive
manufacturers offered this type of coverage for diesel to dual fuel
conversion.
The demand for AFS's products has also received another boost from the
Australian government's NGV incentive programs. The government is investing
$70-million to help individuals pay the capital costs of installing a
natural gas system and the government is also building a national fueling
infrastructure. In addition, Australia is offering tax and other incentives
to registered fleet owners. These programs, together with the enthusiastic
response AFS has received, should continue to make Australia a burgeoning
marketplace for AFS products.
In response to the excellent feedback from the Australian market, AFS
president and chief executive officer John C. Anderson, said: "Customer
satisfaction is everything whether you are selling leading edge technology
or regular commodities. After some internal reorganization, AFS is now
beginning to reap the benefits from refining the focus of AFS's unique
engine technologies and marketing." He went on to say that he was
"delighted" with this recent string of successes and expects to see this
trend continue.
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