Press Releases

Maas Companies to auction three-year old biodiesel energy plant that uses soybean oil as primary feedstock in Keokuk, Iowa.

KEOKUK, Iowa--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Maas Companies of Rochester, MN will auction the 5 MGY Tri-City Energy Biodiesel Refinery Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2009 at 10 a.m. onsite at 219 S. 5th Street, Keokuk, Iowa. It is conducted in conjunction with Iowa District Court in and for Lee County.

Founded in 2006, Tri-City Energy is a privately-held company and the 11th biodiesel plant in Iowa to begin production using soybean oil as a primary feedstock.

Recent news reports indicated the plant was being purchased by an overseas entity, however the mortgage is still in default and the court-ordered auction is proceeding as planned.

Buyers will have the option of purchasing plant equipment and real estate as one tract. The facility also has an extensive lab that will be available for purchase as a second tract, independent of the real estate and process equipment. A detailed equipment catalog is available by contacting Maas Companies at (507) 285-1444 or at the auction website, www.maascompanies.com.

The court-ordered sale is pursuant to foreclosure proceedings and the property will be sold subject to court approval.

Potential buyers are encouraged to attend the open houses:

 Wednesday, November 18, 11a.m. to 4 p.m.

 Thursday, November 19, 11a.m. to 4 p.m.

 Tuesday, December 15, 11a.m. to 4 p.m.

 Other times by appointment.

Details of the sale are available on the Maas Companies website, www.maascompanies.com, or by contacting the auction company directly at (507) 285-1444.

Maas Companies Inc. is an international marketing company located in the U.S.A. with extensive experience in successfully marketing industrial plants, equipment, and real estate, hospitality and commercial properties worldwide.

    Source: Maas Companies Inc.

PERTH, Western Australia and BETHESDA, Md., Nov. 11, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Fastwave Communications has received a contract from Chevron Australia Pty Ltd to supply a water quality monitoring system for the Gorgon offshore gas project based on Iridium satellite data links provided by Iridium Communications Inc. (Nasdaq: IRDM).

The system will provide monitoring of turbidity levels arising from dredging and spoil operations in waters near the gas processing plant location on Barrow Island.

The Fastwave system consists of underwater instrumentation modules positioned on the sea floor around the dredging and spoil disposal sites. Each subsea module contains turbidity sensors, data loggers, an Iridium short-burst data (SBD) modem and rechargeable battery packs. They are connected to small moored buoys which relay the data packets through the Iridium satellites to an environmental monitoring system onshore.

"We designed our underwater monitoring systems to take advantage of Iridium's global coverage, high network quality and low-latency, two-way SBD links, providing a robust solution capable of working reliably under extreme environmental conditions," said Nick Daws, Director, Fastwave.

Protection of the marine environment is a key priority for the Gorgon project and this will include a program of water quality monitoring using the Fastwave system. The system has all electronics and instrumentation packages in waterproof, hardened subsea capsules rather than in surface data buoys, providing extra protection from the cyclones that prevail in the region. The modules are designed to function at depths up to 50 meters with endurance of at least four months between battery recharges.

"Iridium's fast-growing machine-to-machine (M2M) data business is being driven largely by the innovative and creative solutions being developed by our Value-Added Partners such as Fastwave," said Patrick Shay, vice president of Iridium's data division. "Iridium offers a unique value proposition for remote M2M asset monitoring and tracking, providing reliable, low-latency data communications anywhere in the world, on land, in the air, on the sea and even under the sea."

About Iridium Communications Inc.

Iridium Communications Inc. (www.iridium.com) is the only mobile satellite service (MSS) company offering coverage over the entire globe. The Iridium constellation of low-earth orbiting (LEO) cross-linked satellites provides critical voice and data services for areas not served by terrestrial communication networks. Iridium serves commercial markets through a worldwide network of hundreds of distributors and provides services to the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), and other U.S. and international government agencies. The company's customers represent a broad spectrum of industry, including maritime, aeronautical, government/defense, public safety, utilities, oil/gas, mining, forestry, heavy equipment and transportation. Iridium has launched a major development program for its next-generation satellite constellation, Iridium NEXT. The company is headquartered in Bethesda, Md., U.S.A. and trades on NASDAQ Global Market under the ticker symbols IRDM (common stock), IRDMW ($7.00 warrants), IRDMZ ($11.50 warrants) and IRDMU (units).

About Fastwave Communications

Established in 2001, Fastwave Communications (www.fastwave.com.au) is an Australian company specializing in the development of remote monitoring, control and tracking solutions for organizations with personnel, assets and equipment located in remote parts of the world. Fastwave won three Australian national industry safety awards in 2008 for its innovative remote vehicle speed and safety monitoring system.

CONTACT:  Iridium Communications Inc.
          Liz DeCastro
          +1 (301) 571-6257
          liz.decastro@iridium.com

          Rhodes Communications
          Jim Rhodes
          +1 (757) 451-0602
          jrhodes@rhodescomm.com

          Fastwave Communications
          Nick Dawes
          +61 (6) 9486-4256
          nick@fastwave.com.au

STATE COLLEGE, Pa., Nov. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- All Traffic Solutions, the leader in traffic safety outcomes, has been selected by the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) and the Rhode Island Police Chiefs Association (RIPCA) to provide thirty-eight (38) variable message signs (VMS) for use in statewide initiatives for alcohol, speed and occupant protection safety enforcement.

The signs, which have been distributed to each law enforcement agency in the state, will be used at specific times throughout the year to communicate a consistent safety message statewide. The signs were put to use for the first time on Halloween; each was programmed to include a message about driving safely on Halloween night and added the tag line, "If you drink and drive you lose."

Rhode Island officials purchased All Traffic Solutions' trailer-mounted VMS that are able to display up to three (3) lines of text or full graphics. The signs can be programmed remotely using a computer or PDA. In addition, the signs include radar and communicate speed data back to drivers. Scott Johnson, Vice President of All Traffic Solutions, applauds Rhode Island's proactive efforts, "Rhode Island DOT and its Police Chiefs have come up with a strategy for safety improvement that is notable for its thoroughness. Some organizations may encourage law enforcement to communicate a message; Rhode Island officials gave law enforcement both the program and the technology to implement it. We are looking forward to seeing positive outcomes from this approach."

Rhode Island is one of many states that cannot conduct sobriety checkpoints due to provisions in its State Constitution. Rhode Island will couple VMS with overtime patrols to help drive down safety violations. Janis Loiselle, RIDOT's Office on Highway Safety Administrator, explains, "A drunk driving crash is totally preventable. One way to get this message out is to couple overtime patrols with VMS reinforcing messages that, in Rhode Island, if you drink and drive, you will be caught."

RIDOT held a launch of the new technology and the initiative in Warwick, RI on October 29th. Featured speakers included RIDOT Director Michael P. Lewis, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Regional Administrator Philip Weiser and Pawtucket Police Chief George Kelley, who also serves as President of the Rhode Island Police Chiefs Association. Eight of the All Traffic Solutions VMS flanked the outdoor stage, flashing their Halloween message.

About All Traffic Solutions

All Traffic Solutions, the leader in traffic safety outcomes, is headquartered in State College, PA and is a division of Intuitive Control Systems, LLC. Our highly engineered smart devices -- radar speed signs, message boards, and video imaging systems -- direct and monitor traffic patterns and supply the traffic data necessary to manage public safety. Municipalities, schools, construction companies and private organizations rely on All Traffic Solutions to do more than slow traffic -- we provide the information necessary for these organizations to manage comprehensive safety programs and efficiently deploy human and technological resources. Online at www.alltrafficsolutions.com

    Media Contact:  Anne Marie Heil
                    amheil@amheil.com
                    610-933-8065

SOURCE All Traffic Solutions

BETHESDA, Md., Nov. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Marriott International (NYSE: MAR) today announced the signing of five hotels for its newly established Middle East & Africa Region, including its first properties in Algeria, Ghana and Morocco.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090217/MARRIOTTINTLLOGO )

The hotels are scheduled to open under long-term management contracts over the next 36 months and represent the company's Marriott Hotels & Resorts and Marriott Executive Apartments brands. The properties announced today add 1,126 rooms to Marriott's Middle East & Africa development pipeline, which now totals 44 hotels and 10,800 rooms under construction or in advanced planning.

Opening between now and year-end 2015, these new properties will boost Marriott's Middle East & Africa regional presence to more than 70 hotels across six lodging brands, totaling nearly 20,000 rooms in 12 countries. The portfolio includes JW Marriott and The Ritz-Carlton hotels in the luxury tier; Marriott and Renaissance Hotels & Resorts in the upscale segment; Courtyard by Marriott in the moderately-priced tier and deluxe Marriott Executive Apartments for extended stay travelers.

Hotels announced today include:

    --  Marriott's first hotels in Algeria -- the 227-room, upscale Algiers
        Marriott and the 180-unit Algiers Marriott Executive Apartments
        properties. Both are planned to open in 2012. The hotels are owned by
        Trust Real Estate SPA and will be part of an attractively landscaped,
        secure mixed-use development located three kilometers north of the
        Algiers airport consisting of a high-end shopping mall, offices and
        residential space.

    --  Marriott's sixth resort on the Red Sea and eighth hotel in Egypt -- the
        294-room Sahl Hasheesh Marriott Beach Resort. Scheduled to be rebranded
        in 2011, it is a conversion from the existing The Old Palace Resort and
        is owned by Red Sea Hotels Co.

    --  Marriott's first hotel in Sub-Saharan Africa -- the 209-room Accra
        Marriott in Ghana which is scheduled to open in late 2010.  Owned by
        African Hospitality Ltd., the hotel will be located within minutes of
        Kotoka International Airport.

    --  Marriott's first hotel in Morocco -- the 216-room Marrakech Marriott
        Palm Golf Hotel which is expected to open in 2012.  The hotel is owned
        by a JV between J. Partners and Domaine Palm Marrakech SAS. It will be
        part of a large master development community that will also include an
        18-hole golf course, a country club and 250 luxury residences. A key
        focal point of the development is its commitment to achieving "Haute
        Qualite Environmentale" certification, a European program similar to the
        U.S. Green Building Council's LEED® (Leadership in Energy and
        Environmental Design) certification program in the United States."

"The opening of our new regional headquarters in Dubai recognizes the dynamic nature of tourism in the Middle East and the emergence of Africa as a viable destination for business and leisure travel," said Ed Fuller, president & managing director international lodging for Marriott. "The Middle East appears to have weathered the global economic storm and we're beginning to look forward to rising occupancies through the end of this year and into next. With its diverse cultural and historic attractions, unique geography and the industry's changing travel patterns, we expect the Middle East and Africa as a whole to play an increasingly important role in the future."

Mr. Fuller said that the strong pace of Marriott's development pipeline shows long-term confidence in the region, "especially since this growth is occurring in the context of the difficult global economy and tight credit markets. The hotels joining our portfolio are a testament to the recognized power of our brands to deliver results even under challenging conditions and to the success of our existing hotels." He added that the company's hotels throughout the region regularly rank at or near the top of their competitive set in customer preference, guest satisfaction and operating results.

NOTE: Statements about the locations and number of new hotels to be opened and their anticipated completion and opening dates are "forward looking statements" within the meaning of federal securities laws, and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including those described in Marriott International, Inc.'s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which could cause the actual number of new hotels or their completion or opening dates to be different than expected.

Visit Marriott International, Inc. (NYSE: MAR) for company information.

SOURCE Marriott International

Stephanie M. Chmiel and Peter E. Jones Join Columbus Office

COLUMBUS, Ohio--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Stephanie M. Chmiel and Peter E. Jones have joined the law firm Thompson Hine LLP as associates in the firm's Columbus office.

Chmiel, a member of the firm's Business Litigation group, focuses her practice on civil litigation matters in state and federal courts, including product liability, consumer protection, unfair trade practices, tort and commercial disputes. She formerly was an associate with Jones Day. Her pro bono experience includes drafting a habeas petition to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals on behalf of an indigent prisoner, drafting and arguing appellate briefs on behalf of the Kings County District Attorney's Office and drafting an appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals on behalf of a Tibetan monk.

On joining the firm, Chmiel says, "Thompson Hine's breadth and depth of experience, along with their commitment to client service, as evidenced by their Client Service Pledge, sets them apart from other firms. I'm pleased to be a part of Thompson Hine."

Chmiel earned her J.D. from Cornell University and her B.A., magna cum laude, from Miami University. She is admitted to practice in New York, Pennsylvania and before the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania.

Jones, also a member of the Business Litigation group, was formerly an associate with Squire Sanders. He focuses his practice on general litigation and political law compliance, including commercial litigation, product liability and First Amendment issues. Jones counsels individuals, businesses and public entities on compliance with government ethics, lobbying regulations and campaign finance-related matters at both the state and federal levels. During law school, Jones was an extern for The Honorable Jeffrey S. Sutton of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Prior to entering law school, Jones taught high school English.

"By joining Thompson Hine's business litigation practice, I can expand my ability to provide excellent service to my clients," says Jones. "I am excited about the new opportunities I have with Thompson Hine."

Jones earned his J.D., summa cum laude, from Capital University and his B.A. from Bradley University. He is admitted to practice in Ohio.

Bill Jacobs, who heads the firm's Business Litigation group, states, "We are very pleased to add Stephanie and Peter to our group. Each brings a unique background that strengthens our group. Their experience will help further our ability to do our best work for clients every day."

Columbus office partner-in-charge Tony White adds, "Stephanie and Peter are both strong additions to our Columbus office. We're glad to have them at Thompson Hine."

About Thompson Hine LLP: Established in 1911, Thompson Hine is a business law firm dedicated to providing superior client service. The firm has been recognized as one of the Best Corporate Law Firms in America (in an annual survey of corporate directors conducted by Corporate Board Member magazine). With approximately 400 lawyers, Thompson Hine serves premier businesses worldwide. The firm has offices in Atlanta, Brussels, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, New York and Washington, D.C. For more information, go to www.ThompsonHine.com.

    Source: Thompson Hine LLP