IPKL news - QuadTech International Acquires Exclusive Worldwide Sales and Marketing Rights to Groundbreaking Mine-Safety Technology
May 8, 2006 9:00:00 AM
VANCOUVER, BC -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 05/08/06 -- QuadTech International, Inc. ("QuadTech") (OTC BB: QTII), a global provider of leading-edge technology solutions, announced today that it has signed a three-year exclusive worldwide sales and marketing agreement with iPackets International ("iPackets") (OTC: IPKL), whereby QuadTech will market and sell iPackets' iPMine mine-safety technology. The agreement is automatically renewable for an additional three-year period.
iPMine is a real-time two-way wireless communications solution designed to significantly improve the safety of miners and equipment in virtually any size mine and has been successfully demonstrated 1800 feet (600 meters) below ground in one of the largest nickel and copper mining operations in China.
Under the terms of the agreement, QuadTech will acquire the rights to all revenue generated from the sale of the iPMine product, as well as related licenses and services, for the next three years. QuadTech will pay iPackets US$9 million in non-refundable installments against product deliveries and an additional one-time US$1 million non-refundable payment for the exclusivity rights, subject to achievement of specific sales milestones. For the first 24 months of the agreement, QuadTech has the first right of refusal to acquire either 100% of iPackets' issued and outstanding shares, or 100% of the iPMine intellectual property. The purchase price will be mutually agreed upon at the time of the acquisition.
iPackets will continue to be responsible for product manufacturing, research and development, customer support, and system installation and deployment. In addition, the iPackets management team has signed a three-year consulting agreement with QuadTech and will direct day-to-day sales and marketing, and after sales service functions as well as the worldwide promotion of iPMine products and services.
QuadTech will honor all of iPackets' current agreements, including iPackets' master distribution agreement in China, a country that currently comprises more than 80,000 state-owned mining enterprises and more than 280,000 active mines in all.
Safety has become a major issue in the Chinese mining industry, with government estimates confirming more than 6,000 mining-related deaths in China last year; independent estimates suggest the real figure could be as high as 20,000. In February 2005, the Chinese State Administration of Work Safety mandated US$6.3 billion to be spent over the next three years to improve mine-safety at all state-owned coal mines, which number approximately 25,000.
"QuadTech's acquisition of the sales and marketing rights to iPMine is a significant milestone for our company," said John Meier, president and CEO of QuadTech. "QuadTech's focus moving forward will be to build the iPMine brand, generate its global sales, and continue to develop new technologies that meet the needs of our clients in the mine-safety space."
About iPMine
iPMine, targeting the mine-safety industry, is a real-time two-way wireless communications solution to track, monitor, and communicate with miners and equipment underground and above ground. Location information of both miners and equipment is collected and displayed live on one or more monitoring stations against a background of a mine's terrain map. iPMine's scalability and flexibility features make it ideal to be deployed in any size mine supporting multiple levels and/or sites. iPMine's redundant communications feature makes the system highly reliable to efficiently operate in the harsh mining environment.
About QuadTech International, Inc.
QuadTech International is a global provider of leading-edge technology solutions. QuadTech develops partnerships and/or acquires control in high-growth, small to medium-sized companies and solutions that support its technology-driven business focus. QuadTech's management goal is to offer its shareholders an exceptional value through investments in a diversified portfolio of products serving multiple markets and industries. For more information, please visit www.quadtechint.com.
Legal Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements: Forward-looking statements in this news release are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Investors are cautioned that statements in this news release that are not strictly historical statements, including without limitation, management's plans and objectives for future operations and management's assessment of market factors, and statements regarding the strategy and plans of the company and its strategic partners, constitute forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of the company's future performance and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause the company's actual future results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements.
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