We offer products and services ranging from power solutions to communications
and electronics systems to customers across the globe in the government, defense
and commercial sectors. With an emphasis on strong engineering and a collaborative
approach to problem solving, we design and manufacture power and communications
systems including: rechargeable and non-rechargeable batteries, charging systems,
communications and electronics systems and accessories and custom engineered
systems. We continually evaluate ways to grow, including the design, development
and sale of new products, expansion of our sales force to penetrate new markets
and geographies, as well as seeking opportunities to expand through acquisitions.
We sell our products worldwide through a variety of trade channels, including
original equipment manufacturers (“OEMs”), industrial and defense
supply distributors and directly to U.S. and international defense departments.
We enjoy strong name recognition in our markets under our Ultralife® Batteries,
Lithium Power®, McDowell Research®, AMTITM, and ABLETM brands. We have
sales, operations and product development facilities in North America and Asia.
We report our results in two operating segments: Battery & Energy Products
and Communications Systems. The Battery & Energy Products segment includes:
lithium 9-volt, cylindrical and other non-rechargeable batteries, in addition
to rechargeable batteries, uninterruptable power supplies, charging systems
and accessories. The Communications Systems segment includes: RF amplifiers,
power supplies, cable and connector assemblies, amplified speakers, equipment
mounts, case equipment, man-portable systems, integrated communication systems
for fixed or vehicle applications and communications and electronics systems
design.
We manufacture and/or market a family of lithium manganese dioxide (Li-MnO2),
lithium manganese dioxide carbon monofluoride (Li-CFx/MnO2) hybrid and lithium
thionyl chloride (Li-SOCl2) non-rechargeable batteries including 9-volt, HiRate®
cylindrical, ThinCell®, and other form factors. Applications for our 9-volt
batteries include: smoke alarms, wireless security systems and intensive care
monitors, among many other devices.
Under our McDowell Research and AMTI brands, we design and manufacture a line
of communications systems and accessories to support military communications
systems, including RF amplifiers, power supplies, power cables, connector assemblies,
amplified speakers, equipment mounts, case equipment, man-portable systems and
integrated communication systems for fixed or vehicle applications such as vehicle
adapters and SATCOM systems.
A non-rechargeable battery is used until discharged and then replaced. The
principal competing non-rechargeable battery technologies are carbon zinc, alkaline
and lithium. We manufacture a range of non-rechargeable battery products based
on lithium manganese dioxide, lithium manganese carbon mono-fluoride hybrid,
and lithium thionyl chloride technologies.
We believe that the chemistry of lithium batteries provides significant advantages
over currently available non-rechargeable battery technologies, which include:
lighter weight, longer operating time, longer shelf life, and a wider operating
temperature range. Our non-rechargeable batteries also have relatively flat
voltage profiles, which provide stable power. Conventional non-rechargeable
batteries, such as alkaline batteries, have sloping voltage profiles that result
in decreasing power during discharge. While the prices for our lithium batteries
are generally higher than commercially available alkaline batteries produced
by others, we believe that the increased energy per unit of weight and volume
of our batteries will allow longer operating time and less frequent battery
replacements for our targeted applications. As a result, we believe that our
non-rechargeable batteries are priced competitively with other battery technologies
on a price per unit of energy or volume basis.
Our non-rechargeable products include the following product configurations:
9-Volt Lithium Battery. Our 9-volt lithium battery delivers a unique combination
of the highest available energy density and stable voltage, which results in
a longer operating life for the battery and, accordingly, fewer battery replacements.
While our 9-volt battery price is generally higher than conventional 9-volt
carbon zinc and alkaline batteries, we believe the enhanced operating performance
and decreased costs associated with battery replacement make our 9-volt battery
more cost effective than conventional batteries on a cost per unit of energy
or volume basis when used in a variety of applications.
We market our 9-volt lithium batteries to OEM, distributor and retail markets
including industrial electronics, safety and security, and medical. Typical
applications include: smoke alarms, wireless alarm systems, bone growth stimulators,
telemetry devices, blood analyzers, ambulatory infusion pumps and parking meters.
A significant portion of the sales of our 9-volt battery is to major smoke alarm
OEMs for use in their long-life smoke alarms. We also manufacture our 9-volt
lithium battery under private label for a variety of companies. Additionally,
we sell our 9-volt battery to the broader consumer market through national and
regional retail chains and Internet retailers.
Our current 9-volt battery manufacturing capacity is adequate to meet forecasted
customer demand over the next three years.
Cylindrical Batteries. Featuring high energy, wide temperature range, long shelf
life and operating life, our cylindrical cells and batteries, based on lithium
manganese dioxide, lithium manganese dioxide carbon monoflouride hybrid and
lithium thionyl chloride technologies, represent some of the most advanced lithium
power sources currently available. We market a wide range of cylindrical non-rechargeable
lithium cells and batteries in various sizes under both the Ultralife HiRate
and ABLE brands. These include: D, C, 5/4 C, 1/2 AA, 2/3 A and other sizes,
which are sold individually as well as packaged into multi-cell battery packs,
including our leading BA-5390 military battery, an alternative to the competing
Li-SO2 BA-5590 battery, and one of the most widely used battery types in the
U.S. armed forces for portable applications. Our BA-5390 battery provides 50%
to 100% more energy (mission time) than the BA-5590, and it is used in approximately
60 military applications. With the introduction of our lithium carbon mono-fluoride
hybrid chemistry, we now offer a D-cell that has 100% more energy than the competing
Li-SO2 D-cell.
We market our line of lithium cells and batteries to the OEM market for commercial,
defense, medical, asset tracking and search and rescue applications, among others.
Significant commercial applications include pipeline inspection equipment, automatic
reclosers and oceanographic devices. Asset tracking applications include RFID
(Radio Frequency Identification) systems. Among the defense uses are manpack
radios, night vision goggles, chemical agent monitors and thermal imaging equipment.
Medical applications include: AED’s (Automated External Defibrillators),
infusion pumps and telemetry systems. Search and rescue applications include:
ELT’s (Emergency Locator Transmitters) for aircraft and EPIRB’s
(Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons) for ships.
Thin Cell Batteries. We manufacture a range of thin lithium manganese dioxide
batteries under the Thin Cell® brand. Thin Cell batteries are flat, lightweight
batteries providing a unique combination of high energy, long shelf life, wide
operating temperature range and very low profile. We are currently marketing
these batteries to OEMs for applications such as displays, wearable medical
devices, toll passes, theft detection systems, and RFID devices.
In contrast to non-rechargeable batteries, after a rechargeable battery is discharged,
it can be recharged and reused many times. Generally, discharge and recharge
cycles can be repeated hundreds or thousands of times in rechargeable batteries,
but the achievable number of cycles (cycle life) varies among technologies and
is an important competitive factor. All rechargeable batteries experience a
small, but measurable, loss in energy with each cycle. The industry commonly
reports cycle life in the number of cycles a battery can achieve until 80% of
the batterys initial energy capacity remains. In the rechargeable battery market,
the principal competing technologies are nickel cadmium, nickel metal hydride
and lithium ion (including lithium polymer) batteries. Rechargeable batteries
are used in many applications, such as military radios, laptop computers, mobile
telephones, portable medical devices, wearable devices and many other commercial,
defense and consumer products.
Three important performance characteristics of a rechargeable battery are design
flexibility, energy density and cycle life. Design flexibility refers to the
ability of rechargeable batteries to be designed to fit a variety of shapes
and sizes of battery compartments. Thin profile batteries with prismatic geometry
provide the design flexibility to fit the battery compartments of todays electronic
devices. Energy density refers to the total amount of electrical energy stored
in a battery divided by the battery’s weight and volume as measured in
watt-hours per kilogram and watt-hours per liter, respectively. High energy
density batteries generally are longer lasting power sources providing longer
operating time and necessitating fewer battery recharges. High energy density
and long achievable cycle life are important characteristics for comparing rechargeable
battery technologies. Greater energy density will permit the use of batteries
of a given weight or volume for a longer time period. Accordingly, greater energy
density will enable the use of smaller and lighter batteries with energy comparable
to those currently marketed. Lithium ion batteries, by the nature of their electrochemical
properties, are capable of providing higher energy density than comparably sized
batteries that utilize other chemistries and, therefore, tend to consume less
volume and weight for a given energy content. Long achievable cycle life, particularly
in combination with high energy density, is suitable for applications requiring
frequent battery recharges, such as cellular telephones and laptop computers,
and allows the user to charge and recharge many times before noticing a difference
in performance. We believe that our lithium ion batteries generally have some
of the highest energy density and longest cycle life available.
Lithium Ion Cells and Batteries.We market a variety of lithium ion cells and
rechargeable batteries comprising cells manufactured by qualified cell manufacturers.
These products are used in a wide variety of applications including communications,
medical and other portable electronic devices.
Battery Charging Systems and Accessories. To provide our customers with complete
power system solutions, we offer a wide range of rugged military and commercial
battery charging systems and accessories including smart chargers, multi-bay
charging systems and a variety of cables.
Multi-Kilowatt Module. Our Multi-Kilowatt Module lithium ion battery system
is a large format battery utilizable for energy storage, battery back-up, and
remote power applications. This product is a direct replacement of 2.5 kWh and
greater lead acid batteries in 24V or 48V applications. It can be connected
in multiples to obtain higher-voltages and is capable of over 3,000 cycles while
maintaining 80% of its capacity.
Technology Contracts. Our technology contract activities involve the development
of new products or the enhancement of existing products through contracts with
both government agencies and other private sector third parties.
Communications Systems
Under our McDowell Research and AMTI brands, we design and manufacture a line
of communications systems and accessories to support military communications
systems, including RF amplifiers, power supplies, power cables, connector assemblies,
amplified speakers, equipment mounts, case equipment, man-portable systems and
integrated communication systems for fixed or vehicle applications such as vehicle
adapters and SATCOM systems. We package all systems to meet specific customer
needs in rugged enclosures to allow their use in extreme environments.
We offer a wide range of military communications systems and accessories designed
to enhance and extend the operation of communications equipment such as vehicle-mounted,
manpack and handheld transceivers. Our communications products include the following
product configurations:
RF Amplifiers. Our RF amplifiers include: 20, 50 and 75-watt amplifiers and
20-watt accessories and kits. These amplifiers are used to extend the range
of manpack and handheld tactical transceivers and can be used on mobile or fixed
site applications.
Integrated Systems. Our integrated systems include: vehicle mounted systems;
SATCOM systems; rugged, deployable case systems; multiband transceiver kits;
enroute communications cases; and radio cases. These systems give communications
operators everything that is needed to provide reliable links to support C4ISR
(Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Information, Surveillance and
Reconnaissance).
Power Systems. Our power systems include: universal AC/DC power supplies with
battery backup for tactical manpack and handheld transceivers; ROVER™
power supplies; interoperable power adapters and chargers; portable power systems;
tactical combat and AC to DC power supplies, among many others. We can provide
power supplies for virtually all tactical communications devices.
Communications and Electronics. Our communications and electronics services
include the design, integration, and fielding of portable, mobile and fixed-site
communications systems.
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