VECTRIX: Back for More

NEW BEDFORD — Since Vectrix was reborn more than a year ago, the electric scooter company has expanded its product line and is looking toward a bright future.

Vectrix, whose U.S. headquarters is located in the New Bedford Business Park, filed for bankruptcy protection in 2009 and later relaunched under new ownership. The company's research and development team is based out of the business park, and some of its scooters are built on the site.

"We have now tripled our product line," said Jeff Simpson, Vectrix's global marketing manager. "We are not standing still. We are moving forward."

More than 30 people work out of the New Bedford facility. The company, which promotes its scooters as emissions-free and virtually noiseless, is touting VX-1 LI and Li+, the new generation of its flagship model, which are now powered by lithium energy systems. Those are being manufactured in New Bedford, with overflow manufacturing at its Wroclaw, Poland, factory.

Vectrix is also rolling out another model, VX-2, which is smaller and lower-speed than the others. The company contracts with a factory it doesn't own to build that model using Vectrix technology.

To promote the launch of the VX-2 in Europe, Vectrix will have a booth at an auto show in Amsterdam later this month, where it will give away one free VX-2 to a lucky attendee.

"We at Vectrix are very excited to launch our new electric VX-2 urban commuter model in Europe," said Brian Buccella, vice president of sales and marketing, in a news release announcing the giveaway.

It's also planning to come out with the VX-3, possibly this summer, a three-wheel model that will be built in New Bedford as well, Simpson said.

As the company celebrates the 15th anniversary of its founding, it is enjoying a resurgence after a difficult period.

After the former Vectrix Corp. filed for Chapter 11 protection in September 2009, the business reached a deal to sell most of its assets to New Vectrix LLC, which was sponsored by the New York-based GH Venture Partners LLC. EVB Technology (HK) Limited, an affiliate of Hong Kong's Gold Peak Industries (Holdings) Limited, also holds an interest in New Vectrix LLC, according to court records.

"We're extremely excited about the growth of this technology," Simpson said. "With gas prices moving up the way they are, the relevance of our technology, not only in the United States but literally on every continent, is growing every day."

Despite the company's global reach and ownership, Simpson says Vectrix has strong roots in New Bedford.

"The New Bedford history for Vectrix spans back to 1996 when the company was founded," he said.

The scooter manufacturer leases a 65,000-square-foot plant in the business park.

"The facility that we have moved into in the New Bedford Business Park is a world-class production facility, and it is also a world-class research and development facility," Simpson said.

The city facility plays a role in developing and building technology that is sold both domestically and internationally.

"What we're learning, what we have done, and what we are planning to do, the heart of it is out of New Bedford, the heart of it is out of New England, and the heart of it is out of America," Simpson said.

VECTRIX IS SOLID: the VX-1 Rocks!

I cannot even begin to explain the sheer awesomeness that is the new VX-1 all electric bike from the indomitable Vectrix. My ride videos will be posted to the usual haunts, and pictures are forthcoming shortly. Maxi-Scooter indeed! Look, I know the Vectirx web site clearly states that the VX-1 has a top speed of 62 miles per hour. Ladies and jellybugs, I am here to definitively tell you that 62 miles per hour is absolutely not the top speed on the 2009 Vectrix VX-1. Period. End of discussion. If you'd like to argue the point, I encourage you to take up the matter with my sunglasses. But first you have to find them, as they sailed off my head in the fast lane of Interstate 80 as I cruised by a patchouli-oil-smelling, hippie used-to-be in a 32-thousand-dollar Prius that left a Sasquatch sized carbon footprint compared to the almost-90-mile-per-hour beast between my legs (the bike people, stay focused...)...

In the face of such strong (and fast and sleek) evidence, I am now fully convinced that the "Vectrix is bankrupt/Vectrix is for sale" hoopla was a cleverly designed marketing ploy thunk up by some high-falutin' executive in a pant-suit that cost her more than the reasonably priced VX-1E will cost you.

Green Bike - Yeah, that's right...

Dr Wolfgang Gohl Doctoral Thesis

Hochauflösende Flugzeitmassenspektrometrie / (1986)

Gohl, Wolfgang.

Thesis (doctoral)--Justus Liebig-Universität Giessen, 1986.

Selected Publication Information

Authors

Gohl, Wolfgang.
Justus Liebig-Universität Giessen.

Repository

OCLC's Experimental Thesis Catalog

Most widely held works by Wolfgang Gohl

Hochauflösende Flugzeitmassenspektrometrie by Wolfgang Gohl( Book )
1 edition published in 1986 in German and held by 7 libraries worldwide

Die "Bayernliga" : Ergebnisse, Tabellen und Statistiken zur obersten Spielklasse im BFV ; 1945-1997 ; eine Zusammenstellung( Book )
1 edition published in 1998 in German and held by 2 libraries worldwide

1H-NMR Untersuchungen zur molekularen Wechselwirkung einiger biologisch interessanter Phenäthylamin-Derivate mit ATP by Wolfgang Gohl( Book )
1 edition published in 1979 in German and held by 1 library worldwide

Landesliga Bayern : 1963 - 2002 : eine Zusammenstellung( Book )
1 edition published in 2002 in German and held by 1 library worldwide

Vectrix Corporation

Vectrix Corporation

— AGM Statement

Vectrix Corporation [AIM:VRX], the high performance zero emission scooter company, is pleased to provide the following H1 trading update in advance of the AGM to be held at 11:00 am EDT today.

2007 was a year in transition for the Group, as it moved from being a design and development company to becoming a manufacturer and marketer of the world’s first high performance zero emission two wheel vehicle. The first half of fiscal 2008 remained low from the perspective of revenues generated as we began building a larger dealer network. In the first half of fiscal year 2008, Vectrix grew its sales of bikes to dealers by 222 units and expanded its global dealer network, with an increased focus on North America. Recognised revenue for the half year was US$ 1.3M and deferred revenue was US$ 4.6M at 31 March 2008.

However, the Company has noted a number of signs of turnaround early in calendar year 2008 that are expected to result in significant revenue increases beginning in the second half year in various markets that are currently being actively pursued (both in dealer and fleet sides of the business). In particular, as a result of securing dealer inventory financing (floor planning) in North America with GE Capital, which was finalised in early April, the Company has received multiple applications from new dealers interested in selling the Vectrix bike in their respective geographical areas. Also, in North America, Vectrix launched its fleet business and delivered the first bikes to potential fleet customers in California and New York. The Company is also pursuing various fleet opportunities in Europe, mostly in the UK and Spain.

To drive these opportunities, the Company has appointed a new Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Mike Boyle, with many years of experience in running public companies and a great deal of success in various turnaround situations. Mr. Boyle will assume his position at the conclusion of the AGM. The Board also intends to nominate Mr. Boyle as a director, to fill the seat being vacated by the Company’s current Chief Executive Officer, Andrew J. MacGowan which will be voted upon at the AGM.

Throughout the period Vectrix has taken measures to reduce its cash spend, primarily through renegotiating payments and delaying component supplier shipments, slowing R&D spending and also by right sizing its Southern Europe operations. The Company installed additional budgetary and cash controls to better manage its cash flows, and undertook major steps to decrease the amount of inventory of finished product on hand, to improve its liquidity as well as to capitalize on its new agreement with Gold Peak to utilize new lithium battery in future products. In Poland, the Company slowed significantly the build of new bikes to avoid further overstocking and redirected its production focus to finding new contract manufacturing opportunities. Vectrix ended its half year with approximately US$26M of cash, in line with its expectations.

For the period 1 October 2007 through 31 March 2008, Vectrix has:

— produced an additional 245 bikes

— shipped 274 bikes from its manufacturing facilities in Wroclaw in Poland

— retained a stock of approximately 550 bikes in Wroclaw, pending future shipments

— invoiced US$2.2 million of bikes and related spare parts and accessories under purchase contracts with retail customers buying directly from Vectrix owned stores or pursuant to orders placed by dealers under their contracts with Vectrix entities worldwide. This brings the total number of invoiced bikes and associated products to over US$6.5M (net of any credits or returns).

Since inception, the Company has invoiced and shipped 690 bikes to dealers globally and sold a total of 193 bikes to end users.

Vectrix continued its rapid build out of the dealer network in Northern Europe, invoicing bikes to customers in 11 countries in that region.

The Company has undertaken additional steps to improve its customer service and post sales support, streamlined its logistics and inventory management. Additional training was provided to dealers to manage post sales support of customers and initiatives have been made to sell previously used bikes in selected countries to establish a market for second hand Vectrix scooters.

Mr. Boyle looks forward to providing shareholders with a comprehensive update in the near future.

Enquiries:

VECTRIX Corporation www.vectrix.com

Chris Moe, Chief Financial Officer (401) 848-9993

Redleaf Communications

Emma Kane/Paul Dulieu 020 7822 0200

HSBC

Nick Donald / Nic Hellyer 020 7991 8888

Notes to Editors

— Vectrix listed on AIM in May 2007 and is the developer of the world’s first high performance, zero emission, electric maxi scooter which is at least 10 times more powerful than existing electric power two wheel vehicles.

— Vectrix Corporation is dedicated to developing and commercializing zero emission vehicle platform technologies focused on two-wheel applications. Longer term, Vectrix plans to develop environmentally sensitive technologies for other segments within the transportation industry.

— Vectrix is headquartered in Middletown, Rhode Island, USA, has a modern production facility in Wroclaw, Poland and a test facility in New Bedford, Massachusetts.

— Vectrix was awarded the 2006 Frost & Sullivan Award for Technology Innovation and Leadership in Alternative Vehicle Technologies.

— Transportation is the largest single source of air pollution in the world. A typical motor scooter produces significantly more carbon monoxide and hydrocarbon emissions than a large diesel truck, and far more than a modern low emission automobile. The Vectrix scooter utilizes innovative zero-emission technology, offering customers a clean, affordable, and much needed alternative.

— In 2006, the scooter market* in countries targeted by Vectrix was worth USD3.1 billion. Within the powered two-wheel vehicle market (PTW), the trend in Europe is towards scooters, with the Maxi Scooter segment being the fastest growing segment over the last six years. (Source: LEK Report "Power Two Wheeler Market Overview," March 2007.)

Vectrix update

FROM http://scootinoldskool.wordpress.com

by Orin

Orin O’Neill photo

Vectrix has released sales figures, per listing requirements of the London Stock Exchange, and the news is pretty bad. Autobloggreen (in the blogroll under “Other Stuff”) reports the situation in detail.

In a nutshell, the company has built 2,002 of the MAXI electric scooters, and sold only 123 of them. As you might guess, the company’s bottom line is looking rather bleak at the moment.

I personally liked the Vectrix, but have a serious issue with its $11,000 price tag, especially given its rather limited range.

In light of this news, one might be able to cut a sweet deal with a nervous dealer. Or you could wait for the company to declare bankruptcy—a very likely outcome if they don’t sell a whole lot more of them, quickly—and get a real deal. Maybe.

You’d still have the range issue, though the progress being made in battery technology lately could make that issue moot. The L.A. Times’ Susan Carpenter reported a range of just 45 miles. The manufacturer claims 68, but only if you go no faster than 25 mph. Right, like that’s how everybody rides.

Remember, the PX has a 2-gal. gas tank, and the low-fuel light comes on after 120-130 miles. A battery offering that kind of range would make a good electric scooter (except for the Vectrix, the ones on the market now are, frankly, crap) practical. ABG posts many stories about battery research, and all indications are such batteries are getting close, cost being the biggest stumbling block.

I’m the first to admit I’m not exactly being green by riding a PX 150. But to the greener-than-thou, I say I’ll park it (or only take it out on special occasions) when leaf blowers, weed wackers, gas-fueled lawn mowers and other devices with 2-stroke engines are banned. As I said, I like the Vectrix.

I’d have no trouble at all going up the Counterbalance…

Test Drive: The New Vectrix Electric Maxi-Scooter

From Go-Moto:

Well, it's GO GREEN week here at Go Moto. This morning I blogged about biodiesel motorcycles, now it's electric!

This afternoon I took a ride over to Kirkland to test drive the new Vectrix Electric Maxi-Scooter. This bike is part scooter, part beefy motorcycle, and part toaster (the plug). It's the equivalent of a 500cc motorcycle, but it goes from 0-50 faster than my 1100 cruiser. This scooter is fast – lightening fast – almost scary fast. It goes 62 miles per hour at top speed. I did not go that fast, but I did go about 50mph and it felt like I was gliding.

I will tell you about my test ride in a bit. While at The Green Car Company, our area's only distributor for the Vectrix scooters, I met David. David is the first person in the northwest to take delivery of a Vectrix. His is the pretty blue one in front of this picture.

David was there picking up his new ride. I asked him why he chose the Vectrix and a few reasons topped his list:

• Fuel efficiency
• Lower dependency on oil
• Be green
• It's cool and fun to drive!

David is also interested in the Tesla, an electric car being produced down in Albuquerque (and other places). I would love to have both a Tesla and a Vectrix parked in my garage!

Gary Chittam, the environmental reporter from King 5, was there to talk to David too and they filmed him leaving the parking lot on his shiny new Vectrix. It was all very cool.

Would you like to test drive a Vectrix? See the details on a special Vectrix event coming to our area August 11th and 12th toward the end of this post. I'll be there!

One thing to note: Because this is a 500cc equivalent bike, you need a motorcycle license endorsement to ride the Vectrix. No endorsement, no test drive.

My training session for the test drive took only 60 seconds. There are just a few things to learn and you can be ready to ride. This machine is simple and elegant. The instrument panels tell you when the bike is ready to go. It actually reads the word, "GO." The bike also estimates how many miles you have left to go on a charge. The throttle is very responsive and the Vectrix is whisper quiet. The two brakes (both on the handlebar grip) are strong and effective. The steering felt weird to me because it was so light to the touch. I am used to pushing on the handlebar cruiser style. The bike weighs about 500 pounds and the weight is distributed low and centered, so it feels light.

I really liked the Vectrix and I want one. On my wish list it goes! I would like a red one like this, thank you.

There are a couple modifications I would make to the Vectrix. First, this is a pretty tall bike. I am about five feet five and I could barely touch my heels to the ground. This is not a scooter for people under five feet four or so UNLESS (and this is what I would do) you modified the seat. The Vectrix cannot be lowered, but the seat is made of thick foam. If I get a Vectrix, I will take it to Rich's Custom Seats and have him take out some of that foam and replace it with smaller and equally comfortable gel (this is what I did with my R1200C and it made the bike more comfy and lowered it by 1.5 inches). Rich can do this, put it back together, and make it look like it was intended that way. I think you could easily take one or two inches off the height of the seat with this method.

I really like the storage in the Vectrix, and I would add more. It has a small locking glove compartment in the front and a large locking storage under the seat that will hold a full-face helmet and another bag. You can also buy an optional trunk for the Vectrix, which I would do.

Of course, whenever you add weight, you reduce the running time on one charge. The Vectrix has a regenerative breaking feature that allows you to charge back some power while in operation, but it will still need to be charged regularly (they say it lasts 68 miles at 25 mph or about five hours of urban driving, but who goes 25mph?). Recharging each evening is a small price to pay for the pleasure of fun travel that is less harmful to the environment. It takes two hours to recharge when the battery is low.

A cool feature of the Vectrix is that is has a reverse speed. No more worries about parking in downward sloping spaces! (You only make that mistake once…) And the parts and components feel high quality. It has Pirelli tires, nice design details, and Brembo disc breaks.

And like a motorcycle or gas scooter, the Vectrix can scoot around easily and squeeze into tight parking spaces.

The Vectrix has a sticker price of $11,000 and comes with a two-year warranty. After purchase, the Vectrix is very inexpensive to operate, about two cents per mile.

Want to try a Vectrix? On August 11th and 12th, The Green Car Company and folks from Vectrix HQ in Rhode Island will be hosting an event at the Totem Lake Mall. Here are the details.

Date: Sat.-Sun., August 11-12, 2007
Time: Sat. 12-7 PM, Sun. 12-5 PM
Place: Totem Lake Mall, South Parking Lot, 12500 Totem Lake Blvd. NE, Kirkland, WA 98034

Here's a link to a map.

They will have a video presentation, company experts to answer your questions, and lots of Maxi-Scooters for you to try. Remember, because this is a big scooter, you will need a motorcycle endorsement to test drive and drive the Vectrix.

If you go and see me there (I am hard to miss with my black and yellow gear and unnaturally red hair), say HI.

A commercial jingle keeps going through my mind and I can't get out of my head. I don't know what product it is for, but it goes like this:

Plug it in, plug it in.

Yeah, Seattle, let's plug it in.

Posted by Lisa Haneberg

Vectrix Electric Super Bike

Vectrix Electric Super Bike

By Alice Hill
RealTechNews

Now this is what I call being green! The first all-electric super bike from Vectrix sports a very innovative new look, and can top out at 124 miles per hour (or 200 kph.) It has no unsightly exhaust pipes spoiling the sleek new lines, no bulky engine, or fuel system, and I’ll bet is whisper quiet on the straightaways. But with no roar of the engine, I wonder how many bike purists will object? Source: tuvie