SmarTire Provides Tire Monitoring Expertise to NHTSA

    RICHMOND, B.C.--June 26, 2001--SmarTire Systems Inc. confirmed today that it is supporting the various task forces that are formulating a Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Recommended Practice Document for tire monitoring that will assist the U.S. National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHSTA) in defining new tire safety standards.
    By providing its in-depth tire monitoring expertise, SmarTire is on record with NHTSA as advocating direct pressure and temperature measurement approaches to tire monitoring as being the best suited to achieve the goal of improving tire pressure maintenance while also providing a timely warning when tires are under-inflated. Since 1999, John Bolegoh, SmarTire's Technical Services Manger has provided technical information and written documentation to this U.S. government agency. The rulemaking for the amendments to the Transportation Recall Enhancement Accountability and Documentation (TREAD) Act is to be completed by November 2001.
    The Company is strongly advocating direct pressure and temperature measurement technology as it provides a means to automatically alert the driver when tire pressures move away from the recommended levels. With heightened consumer, media, industry and government attention on tire safety, SmarTire has taken the position that the required technology and products are presently available to provide consumers with the highest standards of tire pressure maintenance and reliability.
    "During the past year, the automotive industry has been forced to re-evaluate tire safety. In accordance with the TREAD Act, we believe direct pressure and temperature measurement technology to be the superior approach and we encourage that it be adopted by the industry," said Robert Rudman, President and Chief Executive of SmarTire Systems, Inc. "SmarTire's new Gen II tire monitoring products currently provide this high level of performance to all sectors of the automotive industry."
    "SmarTire has a competitive advantage with our new product mix. Automotive customers now have the ability to select one of two robust transmitters and customized in-vehicle displays for different vehicle platforms. This allows for cross platform applications for installation at the dealer or port of entry level," Rudman added. "In addition, our aftermarket products offer a tire monitoring solution for existing vehicles."
    In addition to the Gen ll passenger car and commercial vehicle tire monitoring systems, SmarTire's product roadmap includes the future development of tire monitoring systems powered without batteries. Influenced primarily by the European automotive industry, SmarTire has been exploring alternative technologies to meet this increasing demand. In 1998, SmarTire signed a non-exclusive worldwide license with Transense Technologies plc for the right to develop, make, use, supply and sell tire monitoring products incorporating patented surface acoustic wave (SAW) technology.
    According to James Perry, Chief Executive of Transense, "Our licensing strategy has been to address all three possibilities of utilizing our SAW devices for tire monitoring purposes. SmarTire engineers are now working very closely with our engineering team to develop a range of SAW based systems for sensors positioned within the tire/wheel cavity. With its years of experience in developing tire monitoring systems for a wide range of applications within the transportation industry, SmarTire was the obvious candidate for our first license. Transense later granted a license to 3DM, a developer of composite wheels that intends to incorporate the SAW device within the wheel. Most recently, Michelin was granted the right to embed the SAW device into the rubber of the tire itself. Our in-cavity, in-wheel and in-tire licensing strategy is now in place and we are very pleased with the quality of our licensees. In fact, our agreements do permit our licensees to work together for the development of compatible systems."
    The Company also has announced the appointment of Mr. William Cronin to the Board of Directors for SmarTire Systems Inc. Mr. Cronin has been a member of the SmarTire USA board and brings a wealth of business and industry experience to this position. He has an extensive background in the financial industry having founded a full-service financial service firm specializing in pension plans.