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To: Phil(bullrider) who wrote (143)9/14/1998 12:20:00 AM
From: Jeffrey L. Henken  Respond to of 939
 
Jeff, I have read a LOT of your messages, and now you have posted a few in the area of my expertise.

Thanks for reading and thanks for bringing up some excellent questions about EVDS.

EVDS may have a flagship product, but in my opinion they are at least ten years too late.

Really? Why is that Phil, did someone else manage to truly produce an accurate method of measuring and monitoring underground storage tanks?

I don't think so! The stick isn't accurate. A measurement missed by as little as 1/8 an inch could be off 40 gallons or more. Veeder Root Systems has got around 30,000 in tank devices installed. How many monitoring devices have the companies you mentioned installed? Do you realize there are 1,500,000 UST's in the USA. Does even one of the companies you mention below have an inexpensive device that exceeds EPA requirements for tank monitoring. The CAPSCAN device is so accurate that it can make a determination within 1/10 of 1% of the actual volume of petroleum. This far exceeds the EPA requirements. That's why insurance companies are actually going to give a 15% break on service stations mandatory Environmental Impact Liability insurance.

Around 1989, the engineering firm I work for began a project removing and replacing underground storage tanks for several regional, and one worldwide, TELCO companies, along with several state agencies. Due to the 1998 deadline most of the industry is presently in compliance.

Much of the industry perhaps but certainly not all. What about new tanks Phil? Don't forget EVDS has a construction and remediation arm of the company. Here is an excerpt from a recent press release:

Mr. Dan Hoobler, President of the new subsidiary, is proud to announce being awarded a contract for all underground fuel systems, including islands and dispensers for 50 new stations being constructed as a joint venture of a major fast food chain and a major oil company, for an estimated revenue flow of $4.5 million over the next two years. Questions regarding EDSi or EDSi Construction and Remediation, Inc. may be directed to William Wolters, Executive Vice President, EDSi:

biz.yahoo.com

You are sadly mistaken if you think that V-R is the only competition left. Your contacts failed to mention Pneumercator, Red Jacket, and Gilbarco among others. I can give you a complete list if any of your readers are interested.

I'm interested Phil, tell me how they can monitor these tanks as well or as inexpensively as EVDS? There will be lots of business coming EVDS's way Phil because your listed competition has not got anything similar to the patent protected CAPSCAN.

Company Background and Patent Information:

Environmental Digital Services Inc. has been existence since 1987 to serve the environmental services and products market. The Company originally developed a computerized inventory control system and in 1991 turned it's attention to the development of a product to measure the volume of fluids in storage tanks. In 1992 a patent was awarded (#5,085,077) for electronically measuring the volume of petroleum and other potentially polluting fluids in below ground and above ground storage tanks. The process adjusts for each tank and it's environmental variables, and is highly accurate, meeting EPA standards for inventory control systems intended to detect tank leakage. Environmental Digital Services has been market testing it's device the "CAPSCAN" for the past three and one half years, principally with Texaco, and is now ready to come to market. As of July, 1998 the Company began trading on the OTC BB through a 15c211 filing.

In October 1984, the Resources, Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) was passed as an extension to the Groundwater Acts of 1976 and 1982. Loosely explained, all underground storage owner operators who have fuel tanks of 1,100 gallons or more must:

1. Keep accurate daily inventory records.
2. Make the daily records available for at least 5 years.
3. File types of tanks, their age and other criteria with State and Federal EPA.
4. Have insurance in place to cover the requirements of the EPA financial responsibility laws.

I'll check on the power source question tomorrow Phil. You have asked some very good questions. I know you never invest in OTC BB stocks and you think anyone who discusses them, as I do, is by your own definition a hypester. I do my due diligence. I suggest you do your own because your post contained so many half truths that it was laughable.

EVDS closed Friday at the bid price of 3/4's. That is very near the yearly low. This is a fine young company which in my opinion will be highly profitable before the year ends. I suggest that you or anyone interested in the company make a phone call to the number below and begin your own due diligence before buying. Here is the company's address and phone number:

Contact: Jim Crehan (Chairman)
2700 Donald Ross Road
Palm Beach Gardens, Fl 33410
(561) 630-0150
Fax (561) 630-0150
OTC BB: EVDS

If anyone else has any questions about EVDS please feel free to ask them here but please read all the information available on the EVDS thread:

Subject 22787

InvestRight

Regards, Jeff



To: Phil(bullrider) who wrote (143)9/14/1998 11:49:00 AM
From: Jeffrey L. Henken  Respond to of 939
 
Here is some information I found when doing a patent search on the patent that EVDS was issued:

5085077 : Ultrasonic liquid measuring device for use in storage tanks
containing liquids having a non-uniform vapor density

INVENTORS: Stapleton; Charles E., Bellevue, WA
Numata; Jerauld T., Renton, WA

ASSIGNEES: Capscan Sales Incorporate, Kirkland, WA
ISSUED: Feb. 4 , 1992

FILED: Jan. 7 , 1991, SERIAL NUMBER: 638393, MAINT. STATUS: INTL. CLASS (Ed. 5): G01F 023/28; U.S. CLASS: 073/290.V; 340/621; 367/908;
FIELD OF SEARCH: 073-290 V ; 340-621 ;

ABSTRACT: An ultrasonic liquid level detector mounted in a fill pipe cap. The ultrasonic detector mounted in a fill pipe cap (10) is used in determining a level and/or the volume of a liquid (5) stored in an underground storage tank (20). The fill pipe cap contains an ultrasonic ranging unit (50) that measures a time, TL, required for an ultrasonic pulse to travel round trip between an ultrasonic transducer/receiver (54) and the surface of the liquid in the tank. A reference reflector (25) disposed within a fill pipe (30) is used in determining a reference time, TR, that is included in a non-linear expression, e.alpha. .multidot.TL.beta..sbsp.1 .multidot.TR.beta..sbsp.2, in order to compute the level of liquid in the storage tank. The terms e.alpha., .beta.1, and .beta.2 comprise a correction for errors in the round-trip times TL and TR caused by a non-uniform vapor density of the liquid along the path traveled by the ultrasonic pulses.

patents.ibm.com

This is indeed the EVDS patent. EVDS has been working with the Yarrow Bay Texaco in Kirkland Washington for several years to test this product. Upon completion of the developmental cycle the accuracy of the device has consistently been better than the EPA requirement for reporting inventory in underground tanks.

InvestRight

Regards, Jeff



To: Phil(bullrider) who wrote (143)9/14/1998 9:19:00 PM
From: Jeffrey L. Henken  Read Replies (2) | Respond to of 939
 
Phil, I called EVDS to get some clarification on the answers to your questions. Your questions and statements are highlighted.

Now concerning installation costs, every system I am aware of that monitors the contents of a UST, requires one to excavate to the top of the tank so that electrical conduit can be installed and an access port can be utilized for the probe that monitors the level of product. This is a major cost in the retrofit.

In order to install an electrical conduit as companies you have mentioned do at least a portion of the tank must be excavated in order to install a probe to monitor the level of petroleum fluids in the tank. This is the major cost of a retrofit. The numbers I have read are in the neighborhood of $6,000 per tank. Does that sound about right to you?

If this device can be installed in the fill pipe, is there no requirement for electrical conduit? If not, it is a mechanical device and not an electrical device at all. And if it is not an electrical monitoring device, it is very little better than someone sticking the tank as necessary. In fact, not as good, as I have found very few mechanical devices that maintained consistent accuracy. This is the very reason for a lot of the EPA regulations, in the fact that the mechanical devices would hang up, and would cease to function.

It is indeed battery operated. The CAPSCAN device will have one battery and the hand held computer two, using one as a back up. I was told the battery life would be three to four years. The bottom line is the CAPSCAN device is far more accurate than anything any competitor has ever produced. EVDS has one patent and two more pending which will protect their device, preventing anyone else from going directly through the fill pipe.

You say the device is an electronic device that can be read with a handheld computer. Where is the power source. With no conduit, it must have batteries. What is the battery life? What is the requirement to change them? What happens to the memory (history) if they go dead?

The battery system has a fail safe system and a warning system as well to prevent loss of data. The CAPSCAN itself reads the data but does not store it so a single battery is no problem. Since the batteries have a long life, and the hand held computer a fail safe system, it seems that EVDS has thought along the same lines as you to prevent data loss.

Thanks for asking some tough questions. I admittedly don't enjoy your investment bias but they were for the most part very good questions. I think the CAPSCAN will have a tremendous competitive advantage based both on cost and accuracy. Service stations are required to keep daily records on their tanks. The EPA or state regulatory bodies can check on these records at any time. If these records are inaccurate, or miss even a small leak, fines and associated clean up costs can be very severe. That's why Lloyd's of London is already offering to give a 15% discount to service station owners-operators who use the CAPSCAN device for their tank monitoring and inventory management on their Environmental Impairment Liability Insurance. Keep your eye on the EVDS thread where I hope we will be discussing this company as anything but your typical OTC BB stock.

InvestRight

Regards, Jeff