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Valdor Technology High Potential in Fiber Optic Market Next Bull Market

Apr. 24, 2011 8:41 AM ETVTIFF
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Valdor Technology International Inc.

Founded in 1985, Valdor Technology International Inc. (valdortech.com) is a technology solutions provider listed on the TSX Venture Exchange,trading under the symbol VTI with operation offices in Hayward, California, USA and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Valdor Technology is in a great position and has a low stock value and now is a great opportunity to get in early in Valdor Tecnology stock (VTI:V). Valdor has a unique breakthrough technology in fiber optics. In early 2000, when technology projects enjoyed unprecedented popularity, the Company's stock price rose from $0.30 to $14.00 in less than two months primarily on the strength of R&D and potential. This R&D is now complete and the technology is ready for market. The Company is in production and has modest annual sales of about US$300,000.; Valdor has not only survived, it has grown past the R&D stage, as a new-generation technology company, and is progressing on the continuum to profitability. Valdor Impact Mount Technology.

IMT is a radial compression fit of a ductile metal around a cylindrical glass surface. The need to metallize optical fiber is obviated by Impact Mount Technology. Attachment of metal ferrules to the fiber(s) occurs in one fast mechanical action. This action, called the impact, occurs between the stripped fiber and ferrule, using a precision impact mount die. The Impact Mount connectors/ferrules are made from various metal alloys, the most common types being stainless steel and copper nickel alloy. The main body of the connector can be all metal or constructed with glass-reinforced polymer.

For a single fiber operation, the result is a hermetic mechanical fit of the fiber to the inside of the ferrule. The process satisfies Telcordia GR-488 environmental exposure requirements. Fibers with IMT ferrules maintain helium leak rates of 2.7x10-11 atm.-cc/s over 2000 thermal cycles of -40oC to 100oC. Pull-test results on the fiber pigtails exceeded the 1kg requirement and the fiber piston movement was typically less than 80nm.

Impact Mount™ Technology Concept

The mounting process is accomplished in three steps:

Impact Mount tool dynamically compresses the metal ferrule tip around the fiber

Crimps buffer at the rear of the connector. Polishes end of ferrule in 20 seconds

Interesting events

On January 12, 2010, Valdor announced Lockheed Martin, the defense contracting giant and advanced technology and systems integrator firm, had conducted a series of successful tests for its impact mount miniature SP fiber optic splice. This connector is the only field installable connector able to meet Lockheed Martin’s high operating temperature requirements. This development could represent a significant opportunity for Valdor if further testing is successful and results in additional product purchases.

Sep 22, 2010

Hayward, California -- Fiber-optic connectivity specialist Valdor Technology reports that its Omega Enclosure Package for aerospace cable repair has been qualified for high temperature environments by Valdor's aerospace client.

Dec 2010 North American aerospace and military supply company, with annual sales in excess of $25 billion, has purchased and will begin testing Valdor's patented Impact Mount™ miniature SP fiber optic connector.

Competition in the specialty connector space is limited. Valdor’s patents allow the firm a degree of protection, offering the potential for licensing agreements with other firms. Valdor’s main competitors are 3M and Dow Corning. Neither firm could be classified as a direct Competitor for Valdor, as each firm is heavily diversified. Neither firm has displayed a willingness to develop the niche markets in which Valdor currently runs unopposed.

In terms of share rise, Valdor has been trading in a range of $0.15 – $0.30 since April 23, 2009 in 2011 the trading stock volume is rising. There was a brief spike to $0.35 on January 12, 2010, the stock was unable to hold gains or build on momentum.

Despite being a niche play, two major factors have kept Valdor’s share price from rallying: lack of revenue and sales.

Fiber Connector Market

The total global value for the fiber optic connector market in 2010 is an estimated $1.9 billion. In 2011 the global value is projected to increase to more than $1.9 billion, as the global economy Begins to improve. By 2016, given a compound annual growth rate of 9.6%, total global value for the FOC (fiber connector market) market is projected to be nearly $3.1 billion.

Fiber To The Home Market

As a case study example from 2007 in the Japanese FTTH market shows mechanical splicing
technologies can reduce tool costs by up to 90%, improve productivity by 50% and deliver a 50% reduction in the general
cost of each FTTH cable drop. Mechanical splices and mechanical splice connectors have a successful decades-long track record in the
telecommunications industry and represent a best-fit option for network designers and last-mile infrastructure contractors.
Testing performed by Corning, Inc., 3M and Tyco Electronics support the conclusions. Mechanical splice technology has gained wide acceptance in this mature market.

Japanese FTTH service providers have
almost entirely eliminated fusion splicing, reporting that mechanical splice technologies have reduced capital investment by
90% and decreased installed costs by 50% while doubling the speed of making splices at drop sites. Perhaps most significant,
installers report the only challenges to optimal mechanical splice performance are in fact the same challenges which confront
fusion splice performance, namely a clean fiber cleave and the need for attention to cleanliness at the splice point

The concern about mechanical splice is the gel type connector and what age and water do to the performance on the connector. Valdor connector has a great advantage and possibility in the market because they do not use any gel or epoxy in a Valdor connector and even more time saving.

Another new customer is Fort Bragg Electric Inc. ("Fort Bragg") has made a purchase order for the Valdor Omega Enclosure Kit. Fort Bragg will be using the Valdor Omega Kits for fiber optic projects where the Valdor technology provides installation and/or finished product quality benefits. The Valdor technology allows significantly faster installation for the Fort Bragg technicians and a faster repair with shorter downtime for the end user.

Harsh environments

One of the most significant drawbacks of fiber-optics has been the reliance on traditional micro-optic assemblies used in most applications to date. Virtually all optical components to date have been built using miniature lenses, filters, and other optical components that are aligned by hand and glued in place. There are several potential issues with this approach.

Also, many piece parts epoxied together presents a risk of a subcomponent being knocked out of alignment in harsh environments, high vibration, or mechanical shock. This is particularly important in aerospace applications where vibration or shock up to 20 g acceleration is not uncommon. Valdor connector is in strong position to grab some market share in this field.

Another field is the mining and oil industry where Valdor connector can make progress in the connector market; Fiber optics continues to provide a flexible enabling technology for future subsea oilfield development. Higher demand on oilfield performance and profitability is driving the industry into deeper waters, increasing the complexity of subsea systems. The resulting growth in control systems functionality and update rates is pushing the need for increased communication bandwidth and the need for more flexible and fault tolerant communication systems using Bus architectures. The search for improved profitability is also driving the development of new and improved subsea and, particularly, down-hole sensors and sensor arrays.

Optical fiber, a proven technology for transoceanic communication, can provide the offshore oil industry with gigabit communication bandwidths, and can support 200 km unrepeated step out distances. The build and installation cost of umbilical’s can be significantly reduced when optical fiber replaces copper. The switch to fiber leads to a large reduction in umbilical cross section. Also robust, network compatible passive optical sensors, for any conceivable measurement, (originally developed for the aerospace and construction industries) are becoming available, packaged for subsea and down-hole environments.

Valdor is currently marketing a high temperature IMT connector for both mining and oil exploration applications using the SP connector that has been designed specifically for the harsh environment. It has been successfully tested and qualified for off-shore oil platform. Both rigid and flexible housing are available for harsh environment and high temperature applications

Optic Fiber in the aviation industry

US continues to invest heavily in avionics research and in January 2011 the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency research and development office for the US Department of Defence, said that its "network enabled by wavelength division" was working on a highly integrated photonics (NEW-HIP) programme, which aims to replace aircraft wiring with a single-mode fibre-optic network, where each fibre can carry multiple digital and analogue signals. The programme is being researched and developed by APIC, a Los Angeles-based pioneer of photonics technology integrated monolithically with electronics.

According to DARPA, military aircraft contain miles of heavily shielded copper wire cables that connect a multitude of components. The cabling is heavy and subject to harsh conditions that cause it to deteriorate. The cables required for analogue radio frequency signals are also expensive, fragile and difficult to install and replace, while some more modern aircraft employ multimode fibre cables, which can carry only a single digital signal. A single-mode fibre-optic network, where each fibre can carry multiple digital and analogue signals, should lead to large weight savings, leading to greater fuel efficiency and a potential reduction in installation and maintenance costs.

Another major maintenance concern is the time it takes to complete the repair of the fiber optic cable and or the fiber optic connector. This issue is especially critical when the airplane is on the line. To repair a damaged optical cable a mechanical splice can be installed in approximately fifteen minutes or use Valdor connector and cut time to 2 minute.

Valdor Highlights
  • Well-structured share capital; recently consolidated 6.5 to 1.
  • Inside group owns more than 60% of the fully diluted stock.
  • Dr. Michel Rondeau, CEO/President, is well known and respected worldwide in the fiber optics industry.
  • Valdor has a manufacturing facility in Shanghai, China.
  • Fiber optics is the future of communications and connectors are a major profit center within this market.
  • Product line is all-mechanical, field installable fiber optic connectors that do not require epoxies or gels.
  • Valdor is selling products to several major companies that, in the near term, could place blanket orders.
  • Unbiased third parties confirm that Valdor connectors are superior to all competing connectors.
  • Valdor’s connector technology is patented in the USA and a few select countries.
  • Valdor projects it will require a total raise of less than US$1,500,000 to reach profitability.
  • Valdor’s primary marketing focus is on niche markets thru OEM and qualified distributors.
  • Upon achieving a 0.5% – 2.5% connector market penetration, Valdor could become a take-over target.

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