$UATG Umbra Applied Technologies, Inc. Chairman Issues Letter to Shareholders
Jan 17, 2018
OTC Disclosure & News Service
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TAMPA, Fla., Jan. 17, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- via OTC PR WIRE Umbra Applied Technologies, Inc. (OTC:UATG) Chairman is pleased to issue the following letter to shareholders today:
January 17, 2018
UATG Shareholders
Re: Umbra Applied Technologies Group, Inc.
2018 Chairman’s Letter
(UATG:PK) Year 2018
Chairman's Letter
“UAT Group and its subsidiaries, operate with the understanding that what we do matters and as such our decisions bear consequences.”
Dear Fellow Shareholders,
First, I would like to wish everyone a prosperous New Year and I hope everyone enjoyed the holidays.
As the Chief Executive of a publicly traded company I am the fiduciary for all shareholders, many of whom have invested in UAT Group based on long-term goals such as retirement or to pay for a childs higher education. As such, I advocate and otherwise direct corporate governance practices that are in keeping with long-term value creation for our shareholders and clients. Last year I asked my executive team to help me outline a new strategic frame-work for long-term value creation that could be completed within the year. I am pleased to report that we have been successful in our execution and were so against significant odds.
Over the course of the past 12 months, many of the assumptions on which our plans were based, including low interest rates on capital and an expectation for continued globalization, have failed to sustain despite indicators to the contrary. With U.S. reflation, increasing rates, renewed growth, the increasing turbulence in Asia as a catalyst to geopolitical tensions, the prospective withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union reshaping Europe and the United States undergoing a fundamental reformation of long held fiscal strategies; the economic environment has been and remains quite volatile. This does not mean that this company or the market at large is expected to be impacted negatively but it is a factor when crafting a long-term execution strategy.
The impact that globalization and the evolution of technology have had on employees and communities is significant. While the overall benefits of globalization have been significant, I believe global companies represent a driving force for growth and prosperity for all. That said, there is an obvious inequity in the benefits shared. This is in part due to asymmetrical wage growth but more specifically technology that has eliminated millions of jobs for lower-skilled workers while simultaneously creating new opportunities for highly educated positions. Employees whose positions are being relegated to obsoletion due to technological advancements, like those found in manufacturing processes, are typically facing retirement with insufficient savings. This is wide spread and is expanding, in part because at some point over the past twenty years, companies decided to transfer the burden of retirement planning to the employees. This change in responsibility comes with significant consequences to the political landscape and economical environment that impacts all of us.
I believe that it is imperative for a responsible company to understand these relationships so that strategies can be implemented in a way commensurate with the challenges it faces and with an understanding of the topography in which they operate. UAT Group and its subsidiaries, operate with the understanding that what we do matters and as such our decisions bear consequences. We have enacted a business strategy to not only create jobs but to sustain employment with proposed tuition assistance programs and re-training initiatives.
So, with the above outlined, 2017 behind us and before looking ahead, let’s take a retrospective look at a two-year long effort to get us to a year that I view as a significant milestone for this company and its shareholders.
“Two years ago, we implemented a holistic strategy that went beyond merely ensuring survival but focused on delivering top-line growth.”
2015 through 2016 marked a professional period for UAT Group so climacteric that it presented the very real potential for failure. We had many substantially complex obstacles to overcome and the challenges were many. This was a parlous period for the company, so far reaching that many had difficulty envisioning a path where success was a likely outcome. I can say, not as a point of ego or arrogance, that I never doubted our success nor do I fault those who advised that it was time to close the doors as it were. I knew that with more than thirty million dollars in assets, a stable of completed product lines across multiple divisions poised and prepared for launch, a calendar that outlined the delivery of products for the next seven years and a population of shareholders counting on us, that failure was not something we could tolerate or consider within the vernacular of UAT Groups universe.
In 2017, we made significant progress in our execution strategy and achieved many core mission objectives that helped to ameliorate company specific market metrics that were less than favorable. Despite the challenges, it was a compelling year with continued operational growth and ongoing progress in developing high-value technologies.
The end of last year not only marked year five for us but it also represented the year we overcame significant obstacles, most of which went well beyond the typical hurdles companies face when striving for success. I attribute this ability to forge ahead and work towards corporate objectives to a team comprised of individuals with intact self-fortitude and discipline that drew on their collective strength to endure and emerge successfully as a stronger company with improved shareholder value potential.
Two years ago, we implemented a holistic strategy that went beyond merely ensuring survival but focused on delivering top-line growth. Two years later that strategy has delivered us to the precipice of success. As a result, I am very excited to announce that we will begin 2018 perfectly poised to complete all the objectives we defined from the beginning of this journey.
We continued to position ourselves to meet tomorrow's challenges
We have executed on many important decisions that have strengthened the operational and capital posture of the company. We have evolved our product lines, expanded our team, improved market metrics, ensured broad accountability, and aggrandized our resources. Each decision has slowly and methodically placed UAT Group in the best possible position for the next decision to be made and as a result, has created opportunities that will continue to impact the company in ways that will be far reaching. Recently we fundamentally restructured the capital structure of the company to reflect a company more in line with its peers on senior exchanges so we could consider additional opportunities. This is indicative of an aggressive strategic action plan we defined almost two years ago in an effort to course correct the company’s trajectory. This initiative has resulted in substantial progress in three key areas:
Up-listing- The execution of a comprehensive action plan designed to accelerate the company’s momentum towards an eventual up-listing to a senior exchange.
Market Oversight- We restructured and/or settled debt to better position the company’s corporate balance sheet ahead of independent audits in anticipation of future opportunities for expansion and institutional financing.
Delivery of Product – UAT, a UAT Group subsidiary, delivered its first product successfully proving that it has the ability to not only generate significant revenue but be a disruptive force across multiple market segments.
While I am mindful that we did not reach all of our financial performance priorities this year, I am very proud of our achievements and encouraged by the team’s ability to support a steady cadence of increasingly complex operations that strengthen the company’s leadership across many market segments.
Identifying shortcomings should not be a point of embarrassment but an attribute of strength
To be a cross industry disruptive force that challenges the way we and others not only think but how we, as a company, approach problems or exact a solution, you must first be willing to be self-critical. In keeping with this doctrine there were a few things we identified early on that needed to be ameliorated, augmented or otherwise corrected.
We needed to address market liquidity concerns, for without the proper liquidity, shareholder value cannot be assured nor can a company be viewed as an enterprise level opportunity by financial institutions. To address this matter, we focused heavily on fostering a more open engagement with shareholders and the market as a whole. We improved transparencies, audited the company, made corrections to previous filings when and where necessary, expanded our public relations effort, forged strategic alliances to bolster productivity and partnered with those who brought value to our e-commerce presence ahead of our first product launch. The result; a nearly 8000% increase in market liquidity, 7000% increase in daily volume and 2000% increase in dollars traded.
We needed to demonstrate, our ability to generate ideas, advance multidiscipline design acuity, the ability to improve manufacturing efficiencies and a proficiency to deliver successfully, superior high-quality products. To that end we succeeded and launched our first product, a scaled down by-product of a smart fabric we have been working on since the beginning - Hygieia. When we launched Hygieia we knew it would be the beginning of an extensive product line we had planned with nearly limitless scalability. What we did not know was the overwhelmingly positive response we would get from shareholders and commercial industries across the globe. Since launching Hygieia we have engaged dozens of manufacturers interested in the potential of having UAT manufacture their products for them using our antimicrobial Hygieia technology. The response has been stunning and to be honest quite humbling. Years of dedicated and focused efforts being embraced by others and on the verge of bearing significant returns.
We needed to prepare for what we knew was coming. If we executed as planned, we would need to have the resources to expand quickly while maintaining control of company branding, product quality and a strict production calendar. We identified and engaged industry manufacturing partners, financial institutions for potential financing in 2018 and initiated dialogs with those who could facilitate the company’s intent to be listed with one of the senior exchanges. In doing so, we now have the necessary relationships we need to be successful.
Efficiency should be an obsession and a pursuit that is without cessation
We identified areas to be targeted for improvement and we continued to further streamline operational processes to support product launch and delivery. We implemented far-reaching cost-savings actions by implementing administrative cost reductions, reducing manufacturing costs and streamlining our fulfilment apparatus. We increased proportional investments in targeted product inventory, marketing strategies and s-curve data analytics to direct product innovation.
Our efforts to make the UAT Group more dynamic and less sensitive to market fluctuations continued to bear fruit. Implemented efficiencies and effective inventory control ensured that UAT continued to strengthen its cash flow, cash position and product awareness while mitigating remaining over-runs.
As a result, UAT Group is a more nimble, flexible, opportunity driven, global and customer oriented technology manufacturer. Research and development combined with a scalable business model will be the factors that significantly contribute to our success, present opportunities for growth and improve profitability. A focus on efficiency increases cross-company capabilities to include expansion of our dynamic and elite team members. With a company poised for expansion, having the proper personnel to support growth and deliver products is essential.
Looking forward requires a disciplined approach to evaluating core competencies
When drafting or otherwise coordinating a strategic corporate action plan it is essential to be clear on what the company actually does, how it does it, why it does it and what the long-term objectives are. For UAT Group, core competencies must be forged from corporate tenants bolstered by the founding principles that defined our guiding ethos more than five years ago. Seems simple enough but, understanding UAT Group at the onset of 2018 can be challenging and requires a longer view of a complex institution with operational objectives that at times may seem singular in nature or at times too diverse. This is especially true when vision meets execution and when strategies are multilayered or designed to build upon one another. In short, UAT Group needs to be agile and dynamic in order to maintain an innovative culture that is not in keeping with trends but, rather creates trends. After all, innovation is the fundamental underpinning upon which this company has been built and is sustained. We must constantly evolve in keeping with a tempo that is always several steps ahead of what is needed, known and/or desired.
It has everything to do with a passion for vision and absolutely nothing to do with fixing something that is broken. Rather, our experience over the past five years has taught us to be persistent and vigilant when looking ahead. We began to see that the defense and technology industry was going through a shift in focus, driven by the phenomenon of data capturing, the maturation of analytics and the evolution of artificial intelligence or AI. We began to see a space in the technology markets where we as innovators could capitalize on the convergence of these events where new opportunities both in technology and business would be well served by UAT innovation.
We did not hesitate or wait for others to lead. We ended our start-up phase and focused our considerable resources to the production of final design prototypes. We trimmed top line excess in a way that would not negatively affect the bottom line. We refocused our efforts to reimagine innovation in the twenty first century based on current and future needs as we envisioned them. This meant an acute focus on technologies that could be interconnected and supportive of one another. Technology with an integrated capability that was scalable and could be built upon as mechanisms intertwined throughout many product lines across many divisions. This is what our clients and customers need for the burgeoning new era we are entering.
A paradigm shifting UAT Group future is coming and things will never be the same
We begin 2018 as a fundamentally different company, changed forever with potentially the broadest market segment product portfolio in our industry. With legacy issues addressed to course correct our operational trajectory, we emerge with a strong foundation to build a yet stronger company. With emerging applications in artificial intelligence, augmented reality, swarm technology, digital health and reinforcement learning, we are front and center of a technological renaissance that will continue to shape the future of humanity for generations to come.
Our strategic imperatives implemented, we now have for the first time, a revenue positive business model. With double and triple digit growth across various metrics we now reflect a company whose posture is squarely aimed at success. This is in part due to Hygieia but it is also just the beginning. Hygieia will see the launch of further improved sock designs, boxer briefs and bedding product lines but it will also lead our entry into antimicrobial touch surfaces and other unexplored medical industry firsts. In addition, this smart textile will also cross pollinate further product development across all UAT divisions supporting the development of our B.A.T. Suit exoskeleton, Scorpion Security Drone and H.A.V.O.C. third generation camouflage.
In keeping with our brand commitments, Hygieia represents a piece of the puzzle whose aggregate defines a set of strategic imperatives that will transform UAT Group into the broad scope business, data, cognitive and security technology company with the potential to, and in concert with other industry leaders, change the world.
Looking forward, we continue to implement our strategies and as a result, have a busy year ahead of us. The first quarter of this year will bring an increased operational launch of the BioTech Division with an expanded Hygieia product line. Additionally, the third quarter delivery of orthopedic medical devices through strategic partnerships, signals the dawn of a sophisticated and mature corporate division with its focus on expansion across a broad product line.
Thanks to strategic manufacturing partnerships with companies like NextCast, as well as others to be announced in the near future, we initiated our expansion objectives to include next generation trauma care, digital health and quality of life initiatives, empowering people to embrace technology as a daily partner in their lives. I have directed the company’s vast resources in innovation and technology to seek new ways to not only improve technologies surrounding healthcare but integrate them in a way that fundamentally improves the quality of the care delivered. Working with partners throughout the globe and across many disciplines we will be able to support powerful research and development that can provide practical guidance and advanced solutions to global leaders implementing health systems and solutions.
Additionally, we take very seriously the threats to the environment, the depletion of our natural resources and the necessity of innovators to introduce solutions to address the coming social and environmental impact. Over the past 5 years, in preparation of a full divisional launch, we worked to design a stable of clean technology products with the ability to offset and/or reduce the carbon footprint of our products, manufacturing processes and industrialized nations. We are committed to supporting our government and customers in reducing their environmental impact by providing energy efficient products produced via sustainable processes that, either stand alone, or operate in support of existing infrastructure.
The Helix Power Station, PowerCube and our most recent innovations in bio-electricity all represent initiatives in furtherance of our commitment to researching innovative solutions to complex challenges. We also continue to share our zero CO2 emissions technology across all divisions with design advancements from our GreenTech division influencing multiple divisions within the company. With testing currently underway, our Aerospace & Defense division is scheduled to begin offering our new zero-carbon footprint security drone platform later this year.
Objectives for a brighter tomorrow
Providing a path to innovation, environmental sustainability and demonstrating an ethical responsibility to all that share our planet is what a manufacturing leader does. UAT Group and its subsidiaries will continue to build on our commitment as leaders of industry and stewards of our planet. We will continue to leverage our global resources and presence to improve the lives of all, through responsible technology. In accordance with this commitment, I have directed our team to set our most aggressive environmentally conscious expansion targets to date and through 2025.
It is now the company’s official targeted objective to manufacture in accordance with bluesign®, Green Seal and by 2025 meet ISO 14001 standards. In addition, we have designed a framework that will have all six divisions of UAT fully operational over the next 3 years; one wholly owned subsidiary added, via acquisition, to the UAT Group holding company per year for the next 5 years; and initial construction of a corporate headquarters. To be completed over the next four years, UAT Groups new headquarters will be designed to house corporate offices, research and development complex, technology demonstration facilities, manufacturing operations, fulfillment processes, a shareholder/client welcome center and support public education initiatives. Our expansion will not be solely focused on profits but will be done honoring our commitments to our country, fellow shareholders and an environment under siege across the globe.
UAT Group remains committed to building an enterprise level company with a global footprint that does more than innovates technology for products to be sold. UAT Group has always been and remains the example of what to do when given the responsibility of being an industry leader. UAT Group will continue to focus on corporate sustainability and responsibility as a cornerstone of its business model as well as in developed and emerging markets in which it operates.
I would like to once again thank my UAT Group family for their support, tireless commitment and loyalty to a vision that many thought was not possible yet has empowered us to contribute in a way that matters. Together we can build that which will make a difference for generations to come and be the clarion call for others to join in our pursuit of re-imaging what is possible through innovative thinking and responsible technology.
Warm regards,
Alex Umbra
Chairman & Chief Executive Officer
Umbra Applied Technologies Group, Inc.
About Umbra Applied Technologies, Inc.
Umbra Applied Technologies is a member of the Umbra Applied Technologies Group (OTC: UATG) family of companies. Umbra Applied Technologies, U.S. based Defense and Security Company, is engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration, and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products, and services for defense, civil, and commercial applications in United States and internationally. It also provides management, engineering, technical, scientific, logistic, and information services.
In support of air, land and naval forces, the company operates in five segments: Aeronautics, Information Systems & Global Solutions, Biotech, Alternative & Renewable Energy, and Intelligence Systems. The Aeronautics segment offers military aircrafts, such as unmanned combat and air mobility aircrafts, and related technologies. The Information Systems & Global Solutions segment provides advanced technology systems and security expertise, integrated information technology solutions, and management services for civil, defense, intelligence, and other government customers. The Biotech segment addresses critical gaps that are absent in defense medical research programs. The Alternative & Renewable Energy segment provides alternative solutions to energy through research in bioelectricity, wind, thermodynamic and solar energy. The Intelligence segment provides computational study of signals, open source and network intelligence through advanced metrics and algorithms to locate and extract sentiment from gathered intelligence.
For more information visit www.uatgroup.com or www.uatgroup.com
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Forward-Looking Information
This news release may include "forward-looking statements" including forecasts, estimates, expectations, and objectives for future operations including but not limited to its ability to conclude a business combination with a third party, sale of assets, return of capital or initial public offering and a secondary listing on the OTC as a result of aforementioned and its ability to fund the exploration of its assets through the raising of equity or debt capital or through funding by a joint venture partner that are subject to a number of assumptions, risks, and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the control of Umbra Applied Technologies including but not limited to capital markets and securities risks and continued development success on technology. There can be and are no actual or implied guarantees that any of the above activities will be completed or completed on terms acceptable to the Company and its shareholders or approved by any regulatory authority having jurisdiction. Such forward-looking information represents management's best judgment based on information currently available. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed and actual future results may vary materially. Risks and uncertainties about Umbra Applied Technologies business are more fully discussed in the company's disclosure materials, including its MD&A, filed with the securities regulatory authorities in Canada and available at www.sedar.com and readers are urged to read these materials. Umbra Applied Technologies does not assume the obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required by applicable law.
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