Whenever we in the investing realm decide to take a look at a company, there are a couple fundamental issues we like to examine right up front. One of course is the question of market demand. You might indeed build the finest product on the planet, but if no one needs or wants it, it’s simply not going to sell. The patent office is full of tremendous drawings, none of which ever made it to market simply because there was no demand.
In the Case of Material Technologies Inc., or “MATECH” as we affectionately know them, this isn’t an issue; there is more demand than they could ever service. Let’s give an example for illustrations purposes. Material Technologies Inc. is an engineering, research, and development company that provides technology solutions for detecting, measuring and monitoring metal fatigue in metal structures and equipment. By utilizing patent protected technology, Matech has the ability to monitor metal stress and fatigue, and assign real world values to any changes in a structure’s integrity. Their main thrust has been in policing the nations tired , worn out, bridge and tunnel infrastructure. With the Highway department suggesting that some 150,000 + bridges are structurally unsound, and that the remaining 400,000 are in need of monitoring, MATECH has the demand side of the coin wrapped up. They are already being used in various Department of Transportation agencies in Pennsylvania, New York and elsewhere.
So, if demand and market niche isn’t a stumbling block, the next thing we like to look at is the management team. Does the company employ the kind of people that can get the job done? Do the people at the top really understand the product and its benefits? At MATECH not only is this “not an issue”, we are often astounded at the depth of the collective knowledge the team brings to the table.
Of the five people directly involved in management positions, two have Ph.D’s in metal engineering and structure. As impressive as that is, it’s only the beginning of a management resume that reads like a who’s who. Monty Moshier, Ph.D., Chief Technologist, obtained his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University and his M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University. He Managed the High Cycle Fatigue Lab at the Air Force Research Laboratory of Materials & Manufacturing Directorate at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. The air force is obviously very interested in metal fatigue as their most precious elements, namely pilots, depend on metal’s structural integrity every time they get in a plane.
Campbell Laird. Ph.D.. Chief Researcher, has published over 250 papers concerning metal fatigue, and has held such positions as a Senior Research Scientist, Ford Motor Company; a Battelle Visiting Professor (Electron Microscopy), Ohio State University; a Professor, University of Pennsylvania, where he was Chairman, Department of Metallurgy & Materials Science; Gast-Professor of Physics, University of Vienna; and Visiting Professor of BioMetallurgy, University of Sorbonne, Paris. He is presently Professor and Graduate Group Chairman, Department of Materials Science & Engineering, University of Pennsylvania.
Brent M, Phares, Ph.D., Chief Engineer, received his Ph.D. at Iowa State University in Civil Engineering – Structures in Aug., 1998. He is Associate Director for Bridges and Structures at Iowa State University, Center for Transportation Research and Education where he is responsible for the daily and long-term administrative, research, and education activities related to bridges and structures. He is also Bridge Engineer for the Iowa Department of Transportation. Maybe “best of all” is that Brent has been awarded grants from the National Science Foundation, the Iowa Highway Research Board, and the Federal Highway Administration. This is a man that people with very deep pockets listen to.
We can go on and on, from Marybeth Miceli, Chief Operating Officer, with over 12 years of nondestructive evaluation and testing of civil infrastructure, and who currently sits on the board of directors for the American Society for Nondestructive Testing, to Bob Bernstein himself, the President, CEO and Chairman of the Board. Bob’s been responsible for obtaining in excess of $8,000,000 from the US Government for research and development, congressional sponsorship for the technology, US Airforce interest for using the technology in its aging aircraft project, and support from the Federal Highway Administration for Bridge Monitoring Systems. Shall we go on? No the point’s been made.
When you couple all the demand from the various aging metal bridges, towers, cranes, windmills, tunnels, aircraft, ships, and any other area that metal fatigue can damage or even destroy, with the people that best understand the issues and the way to monitor or even solve them, we feel you have a winning combination. The company has the management team with the background and resources to make a significant impact on such Nationwide enterprises such as the Federal Highway Association, and the public is demanding that the FHA more closely monitor and repair the nation’s infrastructure.
We feel MATECH will be found to be the “go to” company for more and more federally sponsored projects, and that should indeed bring a smile to investors’ faces. Stay tuned, this is an exciting area.
Let us hear your thoughts: Material Technologies, Inc. Message Board