Posted: 14 Dec 2009 08:28 PM PST

Perth, Dec 15, 2009 (ABN Newswire) - Based in Perth W.A, Automotive Technology Group (

ASX:ATJ) is the designer, owner and manufacturer of the patented Sprintex(R) helicoil twin-screw supercharger and has spent 6 years and over A$22 million in R & D. Development of the Sprintex(R) supercharger range is now complete and commercially ready.

The Sprintex(R) Supercharger and Market

Independently tested and proven to be the world's most efficient supercharger negating the need for intercooling giving Sprintex(R) a cost and packaging advantage.

Existing patents on the rotor profile have four years to run, however new patents filed in March 2009 which should result in effectively extending the patents on the rotor profile for a further 20 years (refer ASX announcement 31 March 2009).

The Sprintex(R) supercharger can attach to any form of combustion engine and results in an engine performing much more efficiently thereby either improving performance in the after market or in the OEM market enabling an OEM to down size engine size resulting in better fuel economy and emissions whilst achieving the performance of a larger engine size.

ATG produces 3 different sized superchargers covering 800cc to 5 litres (200hp to 500hp) and are recognised as being compact for their performance presenting opportunities for a whole range of applications ranging from snow mobiles, jet skis, motorcycles, small cars to large 4 wheel drive applications.

Supercharger production costs have been significantly reduced to a level where they now compete with other superchargers whilst offering better performance.

The Global market for forced induction (turbo and superchargers) has grown over 60% in the 5 years to 2007 to around 21 million units of which 1.6 million units are superchargers, dominated by Eaton's roots style supercharger. The forced induction market is expected to grow by a further 70% to 36 million units by 2014.

Turbo chargers have historically been much cheaper than superchargers and accordingly have dominated the forced induction market. However, in order to meet ever more stringent emissions standards and to lessen their inherent disadvantage of 'turbo lag', turbos have become more complicated and hence more expensive and as a result the market share for superchargers is expected to grow proportionally higher than turbo chargers.

Business Plan

Complete development of superchargers and establish distributors for after market sales. Development work has been completed, distributors have been appointed in Europe, Middle East and China and ATG has recently launched in USA with India and South East Asia (Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia) targeted for early 2010.

Expand production facility in Perth to 10,000 units to satisfy after market sales for next 18 months. Purchase of additional machinery particularly rotor cutting machine, will result in the expanded facility being completed within 6 months and result in a further significant production cost per unit of the superchargers expanded facility.

To achieve OEM sales, ATG needs to deliver a lower cost unit, below US$400, and be able to produce in much higher volumes. The required pricing levels can be achieved with production volume of 20,000 units plus and ATG is seeking to identify appropriate locations outside of Australia and potential joint venture partners to satisfy this requirement.

ATG has detailed plans for an offshore manufacturing facility with a commencement production capacity of 20,000 units and with stepped up production phases. A 20,000 unit facility would have a capex requirement, excluding land and buildings, of approx A$4 million expanding to 100,000 would require additional capex of A$8 million and to 250,000 units a further estimated A$13 million.

To get Sprintex(R) into the after market, and in front of OEM's, ATG has developed and is developing a number of after market systems over the next four months as detailed in ATG's 2010/11 business plan. ATG's current focus now is to meet various after market system designers who would develop their own systems utilising Sprintex(R) superchargers. Assembly of ATG's own after market systems will be quite labour intensive and ATG is currently looking to site a small assembly facility outside Australia with a planned commencement date of March 2010.

Financial Performance

From 2003 to 2009 ATG has incurred losses as all development work has been expensed and the value of development expenditure to date is not reflected in the balance sheet.

ATG expects to be profitable and be cash flow positive in the final quarter of FY 2010 (June 30 Financial Year) based on sales expected to ramp up in FY 2010 and FY 2011. This is based on Perth production for the after market, only, with no OEM and no industrial applications factored in.

An offshore facility of 20,000 units, assuming 60% production for OEM and 40% for after market should generate a gross margin of over A$3 million and a 250,000 unit facility a gross margin of over A$35 million.

ATG's patented Sprintex(R) supercharger range is technically proven and is now in production. Increasingly tougher emissions and fuel economy requirements are driving the market place for superchargers as OEM's are needing to develop more efficient cars with smaller engines to achieve these targets / requirements whilst maintaining performance levels demanded by the consumer.

ATG has a highly experienced and qualified Board of Directors and management team able to deliver on its Business Plan and has the vision to be a pre eminent manufacturer of superchargers to the world market and to challenge Eaton's current dominance of the supercharger market.

Information available

- Alpha Securities Research Paper on ATG dated 6 November 2009

- Business Plan 2009/10 - 2010/11

- Investment Summary including historical financial information, share structure and share holdings of directors and major shareholders

- Investment Overview Presentation November 2009

- Feasibility Study for offshore manufacturing facility

fivefilters.org featured article: Normalising the crime of the century by John Pilger. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

Alabama Car Loans Online - Guaranteed Car Finance Company in Alabama ... - American Chronicle

Posted: 14 Dec 2009 06:19 PM PST

The American Chronicle, California Chronicle, Los Angeles Chronicle, World Sentinel, and affiliates are online magazines for national, international, state, and local news. We also provide opinion and feature articles. We have over 5,000 contributors, over 100,000 articles, and over 11 million visitors annually.

This website and its affiliates have no responsibility for the views, opinions and information communicated here. The contributor(s) and news providers are fully responsible for their content. In addition, the views and opinions expressed here are not necessarily those of the American Chronicle or its affiliates. All services and information provided on this website are provided as general information only. Any medical advice, home remedies and all other medical information on this website should not be treated as a substitute for the medical advice of your own doctor. We are not responsible for any diagnosis of treatment made by anyone based on any of the content of this website. Always consult your own doctor if you are in any way concerned about your health.

fivefilters.org featured article: Normalising the crime of the century by John Pilger. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

VTEC History & Technology - Wrenchin' - Honda Tuning Magazine

Posted: 13 Dec 2009 07:24 PM PST

VTEC Anniversary
Though it's been called many things, the VTEC acronym stands for Variable Valve Timing and Lift Electronic Control. VVTLEC doesn't quite roll off the lips, but the adjectives one tends to spew out after experiencing it for the first time do. They run the gamut but almost always include the "F" word. Ol' Soichiro-san would've been pleased. April 2009 marks the 20th anniversary of VTEC in the automotive world. The 1989.5 Integra XSi was the first production Honda that featured the technology. Shortly after, Civics and CRXs received the same B16A engine.

But all of this began much earlier-sometime during the early 1980s, in fact-and none of it had anything to do with automobile engines. The technology behind VTEC originated from Honda's motorcycle side. Honda's engineers knew that four-valve engines made great top-end power, but that two-valve ones were competent down low and even idled nice. The quest soon became one in which a 500cc engine would spin to 11,000 rpm yet idle patiently at a mere 1,000 rpm. The result was what Honda internally labeled as its "REV" mechanism, or "HYPER VTEC" to the rest of us. The technology allowed for only one intake and one exhaust valve per cylinder to operate below certain engine speeds but for two intake and two exhaust valves per cylinder to function above that threshold. It allowed for the best of both worlds.

Honda launched the NCE (New Concept Engine) project in 1984, which aimed to push the limits of top-end torque production without sacrificing low-end performance. Japanese-market '85 Civic and Integra engines were the result of this project. More importantly though, it convinced engineers that a dual-camshaft profile-or a mechanism that could dynamically alter camshaft timing-must be a part of the company's next-generation engine. Engineer Ikuo Kajitani, who was a part of the NCE team, was particularly enthusiastic about making this happen. The ideal engine would have better fuel economy and a higher output across the entire powerband, specifically, about 90 hp per liter. But 90 hp soon began to seem too low; it was, after all, only 10 more than the engine they'd just produced. Based on the suggestion of then Honda R&D president Nobuhiko Kawamoto, a new goal of 100 hp per liter was set.

"It felt like a dream," Kajitani recalled. "Conventional engines in those days could only produce 70 or 80 hp per liter. But here we were, being asked to increase it all the way to 100 horses. It wasn't going to be easy. An engine becomes subject to a higher load as you increase its rpm," Kajitani said. "So, we had to keep in mind the quality-assurance target of 15 years, or 250,000 km, for a mass-production engine. We all wondered how on earth we were going to reach that number while ensuring the required quality of mass production." After all was said and done, Kajitani officially set the goal for the new VTEC Integra engine: 160 hp and an 8,000rpm redline. A goal is one thing, but the technology had yet to be created. All of this led to daily arguments as to whether or not such an engine was even possible. After three months, Kajitani put it all on the line, ordering his team to move forward. A technology proposal would soon be chosen and developed.

fivefilters.org featured article: Normalising the crime of the century by John Pilger. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.