Mansur Industries Reports Update of Direct Distribution Initiative
29 June 1998
Mansur Industries Reports Update of Direct Distribution Initiative
MIAMI, June 29 -- Mansur Industries Inc.
announced today that it has completed the development of a significant portion
of its direct sales and distribution infrastructure in connection with the
Company's strategic decision during November 1997 to establish its own direct
marketing and distribution organization for its SystemOne(R) product line.
Mansur also announced, however, that as a result of initial difficulties
associated with the accelerated schedule for the implementation of its direct
distribution program, it anticipates that revenues in the second and third
quarters of 1998 will be lower than previously expected. The Company intends
to announce that revenue is expected to exceed $1 million for the second
quarter of 1998, the Company's first full quarter utilizing direct
distribution exclusively. This compares to $1.3 million in the first quarter
of 1998 of which approximately $275,000 related to sales through the Company's
direct distribution organization, representing a significant increase in
direct sales over the previous quarter.
Mansur announced the achievement of the following milestones since
adopting its direct sales and distribution strategy: A total of 45 Support
Centers have been opened across the United States, 24 of which have direct
sales and service personnel on site and 21 Centers providing service only will
have direct sales by the third quarter. An additional 12 Support Centers are
scheduled for completion in the third quarter, totaling 57 Support Centers
with full service and sales infrastructure and covering approximately 90% of
the Company's U.S. market. Mansur expects to have approximately 100 direct
sales personnel and 64 service technicians by September 30, 1998.
Mansur further announced that it has hired the following management
personnel to head up sales, marketing and sales support: Thomas G. McDonald
-- Vice President Sales and Support (Mr. McDonald was previously Vice
President Sales and Marketing for Daewoo Motors); Gerald Michaluk -- Eastern
U.S. Sales Manager (Mr. Michaluk was formerly Director of Municipal Marketing
with Waste Management); Cliff McAuliffe -- Western U.S. Sales Manager
(Mr. McAuliffe was formerly National Sales Manager with W.R. Grace); and John
O'Rourke -- National Service Manager (Mr. O'Rourke was formerly a Regional
Manager with Maytag Corporation).
Paul I. Mansur, the Company's Chief Executive Officer, stated, "We are
very pleased with the successful implementation of a national marketing and
distribution program on an extraordinarily accelerated schedule and with
successfully attracting numerous talented sales and marketing managers and
back office personnel to support our planned rapid rollout. However, as with
any ramp-up of this magnitude and velocity, we have encountered some
unexpected difficulties primarily related to the introduction of a new
national sales force over a period of only a few months. We are also
extremely pleased with the strong market acceptance of our proprietary and
environmentally superior SystemOne product line and our customers'
confirmation of dramatic increases in productivity resulting in significant
cost savings and reduced environmental compliance costs. The Company believes
that its strategic decision to develop and control its own direct marketing
and distribution will accelerate market share acquisition, significantly
enhance long term profitability, reduce dependency on third party distributors
and maximize value for shareholders."
Founded in 1990, Mansur designs, manufactures, sells and supports a full
range of self contained, recycling industrial parts washing products for use
in the automotive, aviation, marine and general industrial markets. The
Company has been awarded ten patents for its products which incorporate
innovative, proprietary resource recovery and waste minimization technologies.
The Company is headquartered in Miami, Florida.
This press release contains forward-looking statements regarding future
events and the future performance of Mansur Industries that involves risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual events to differ materially. We refer
you to the documents that Mansur Industries files from time to time with the
Securities and Exchange Commission which contain important factors that could
cause its results to differ from its current expectations.