Company Profile

About Thermodynetics Inc.

The founding of Thermodynetics, Inc. proves that necessity is not only the mother of invention --sometimes the best inventions happen through a plain and simple mistake.

It was a twist of fate in the mid 1950s when a metal tube was placed in a lathe, the wrong controls activated, and the tube formed a distorted, fluted shape in an Oklahoma manufacturing plant. That mishap led to a patent being secured and the process was purchased and perfected by Massachusetts' Waltham Industries in 1969. Waltham saw the potential that this approach offered and invested several million dollars to form a new division of the company called Turbotec, Inc. in South Windsor, Connecticut.

The company worked hard to improve the process and the machinery to create the product. However, in the first two years of business, Turbotec was limited to applications that were mostly decorative, creating table legs, lamp bases, hat racks and department store displays.

Waltham Industries was overextended in several areas and was forced into bankruptcy. In 1972, at an IRS auction, Robert Perkins, a New York consultant, purchased Turbotec’s machinery, equipment, patents, small customer list and files. From inception, the new division generated only $50,000 in aggregate sales. Perkins recognized the opportunity the process held and formed Spiral Tubing Corporation (STC) having just four employees.

Perkins' timing was fortunate, because in 1973, the Arab Oil Embargo resulted in a need for energy cost savings technology and this was exactly what STC’s tubing could provide. The application quickly broadened from ornamental to utilitarian when the fluted tubing became instrumental in manufacturing tankless water heaters for residential furnaces, plumbing connectors, marine engine oil coolers, and even heat exchangers for blood oxygenators used for open heart surgery.

By 1975 Spiral Tubing’s' sales had reached $200,000 annually. Perkins continued to have vision for the company, and determined that through further financial support, the growth he forecast was certain.

In 1976 Perkins sold the company to Stampede Energy Corporation. A new forward-thinking management team was hired to make the acquisition not just seamless, but profitable. Industry consultants Robert Lerman and John Ferraro were engaged to assist in managing the company's operations.

Spiral Tubing was positioned for growth. The Company, which originally was housed in 8,000 square feet in New Britain, Connecticut, quickly doubled its space requirements. In 1978, Turbotec Products, Inc. was formed as a wholly owned subsidiary of Spiral Tubing, and Lerman and Ferraro joined the Company in a permanent capacity as treasurer and secretary, respectively. Also in '78, the Company sold its first coaxial condensers to the water source heat pump industry and expanded the applications of its tubing into new exchangers for the biomedical industry and bendable connectors for plumbing applications.

Establishing Turbotec was a progressive step for the Company. It was created to work with customers in the effort to improve the use and efficiencies of thermal energy in a wide variety of applications.

Growth was rapid in terms of plant size, product offerings and sales. In 1981 Spiral Tubing Corporation merged into Thermodynetics, Inc. The Company conducted an initial public offering on July 16, 1981. The $3.3 million raised allowed the Company to construct a 40,000-square-foot facility in Windsor, Connecticut.

In just 12 years, the Company had evolved from a small manufacturer of decorative items, to producing applications for the tubing, which included condensers and evaporators for water source heat pumps in addition to a variety of other heat-exchange applications including heat recovery and refrigeration.

The early 1980s brought great success for the young Company. With revenues in the range of $3 million in 1984, a second public offering was held. The Company used the $4.125 million raised to pay down debt, buy out the holdings of Stampede Energy and explore new possibilities. The Company was then offering not only tubing, but tubing assemblies as well.

The early '80s also brought new opportunity: Thermodynetics acquired National Energy Savers Products, Inc. -- a St. Petersburg Florida company that manufactured small residential and commercial heat recovery systems. Thermodynetics began to build larger-scale heat reclaimers, which led to sales of heat recovery units for food processing plants and resort communities. The operations of National Energy Savers Products were eventually merged into the Company's Windsor facility. With this acquisition, the Company grew to revenues of $5 million by 1986.

Due to high standards and excellent customer service the Company continued to progress despite the turbulent economic climate of the early 1990s. Thermodynetics moved forward, expanding its product line to serve refrigeration, heating, air conditioning, swimming pool heat pumps, plumbing connectors, marine air conditioning, soft drink dispensers, ice making machines, aerospace and biomedical equipment, as well as energy conservation applications.

The Company was growing and a second manufacturing building, housing 28,700 additional square feet, was built in 1991 to augment the main facility. The mid 1990s saw more growth for the business and revenues increased into the $6 million range.

Thermodynetics remained on the cutting edge of technology. But the 1990s brought with it a change in corporate culture. While many in manufacturing resisted the shift, the Company embraced the new ideas. Total quality management was introduced and every employee became part of the team. Instead of seeing the Company's mission statement as only valuable to upper management, all employees were included in the vision and guiding statement for Thermodynetics. As a direct result, a significant revenue increase occurred during the next few years.

In another industry-leading move, Turbotec made the conversion to cellular manufacturing and demand flow scheduling in 1999. These management tools created greater operational efficiencies and increased productivity for the Company.

With the failure of the dot-com industry and the very real impact of terrorism, the early years of the 21st century presented their own unique problems. However, in 2000 the Company invested in an upgraded computer system, which allowed for a fully integrated information-processing platform. The new system provides real-time data to better manage the reporting and control systems of the Company.

In 2001 a 15,000-square-foot addition to the 40,000-square-foot main building was completed. This new 55,000 square foot structure allowed for Turbotec's manufacturing operations to be consolidated under one roof.

With a new millennium, Thermodynetics put maximum effort into not just keeping up with the industry, but setting the pace. In August 2003 the Company purchased Vulcan Industries, Inc. of Sturgis, Michigan. Vulcan manufactured metal tubing assemblies for the automotive, appliance, and furniture industries in quantities reaching into the millions. By combining the knowledge base of Vulcan with Turbotec, a unique opportunity arose as they began to share resources and technical knowledge.

With a specialization in automotive-quality stainless steel tubing assemblies, Vulcan often served as the sole source to its consumers in automotive manufacturing. With this focus and state-of-the-art production, Turbotec was poised to expand its sales activities. In turn, Turbotec's stellar reputation and quality products were ready to serve Vulcan's sales potential. However, with the market’s shift in 2004-5 to rapidly increasing metals pricing and the automotive industries reluctance to accept pricing increases, the Vulcan operation became a severe cash drain and the operation was closed.

To offset the losses incurred at Vulcan, the need to improve the balance sheet became important to allow the company to continue to grow. The capital markets were approached in London and a new United Kingdom subsidiary was formed, Turbotec Products, Plc which acquired all of the US operations of Turbotec Products, Inc. The UK entity was taken public and was listed on the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange in May 2006. Thermodynetics remains the parent company through its majority interest in Turbotec Products, Plc.

Today Turbotec's products are sold nationwide, as well as in Canada, Europe, Asia and Australia. Everyday production of the fluted tubes begins with smooth copper, copper-based alloys, carbon and stainless steels, aluminum and titanium tubing. The fluted tubes are especially suited for flexible, space saving and energy efficient uses. Other materials are often considered as new applications or needs arise, since the Company's proprietary technology allows it to manufacture its spirally fluted tubing in exotic materials when necessary. The tubing offers dramatic increases in heat-transfer efficiency, providing up to four times the efficiencies of smooth tubing. The literally millions and millions of dollars expended on the research and development of the process and machinery over the years was the reason that the technology advanced so far and this effort continues today. The test facilities within the plant, the creativity of the engineers and manufacturing personnel allow Turbotec to continue to build its acceptance throughout the special marketing niches that Turbotec’s sales and marketing teams approach. The company considers itself a world leader in heat transfer technology and is a banner that we consider quite appropriate.

Thermodynetics, under the presidency of Robert Lerman, continues to call Windsor, Connecticut -- the state's first town -- its home. Sunil Raina is president of Turbotec. In 2006 and again in 2007, Thermodynetics was named as one of Deloitte’s Fast 50 technology companies in Connecticut, an honor that reflects the expansive growth that the company has achieved in the past 5 years. Revenues have reached $23.5 million in the March 2007 fiscal year and are headed for another record in fiscal 2008.

The Company contributes to the town's economic viability with its solid reputation in manufacturing and sales, as well as serving as a place of employment to many residents. The Company currently provides many jobs and as opportunities unfold will likely expand staffing further.

Over the years, the Company has maintained the goal to provide the best product with the best customer service possible. It is for this reason that Thermodynetics, through its Turbotec subsidiary, has established and maintained professional relationships with many clients for 10, 15 and 20 years.

What was once considered by some to be an accident created more than five decades of success, numerous satisfied customers and millions in sales for Connecticut's Thermodynetics. The Company has remained a leader through changing times by constantly building on the desire to innovate. Thermodynetics is continuing on its growth path and is currently seeking an acquisition to expand its reach.