PALM BEACH, Fla., Aug. 20, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Global Digital Solutions, Inc. (GDSI), a company that is positioning itself as a leader in providing small arms manufacturing, knowledge-based and culturally attuned social consulting combined with complementary security and technology-related solutions in unsettled areas, announced today that it has signed an exclusive letter of intent to acquire Cool Sound Industries, Inc. (CSI), a pioneer in harnessing sound waves to provide sustainable, eco-friendly ways to power heat-pumping systems such as air-conditioners, refrigerators and heating systems. GDSI believes thermoacoustic technology (TA) has the potential for game-changing defense-related and commercial applications.
The companies have agreed, on an exclusive basis, to enter into good faith discussions involving a potential strategic combination in which CSI would be acquired by GDSI. If the acquisition is completed as expected, CSI will continue to operate as a subsidiary of GDSI. The exclusive agreement is subject to the completion of due diligence reviews by both companies and certain other conditions.
CSI's patented technology efficiently induces high-amplitude sound waves into a mixture of harmless gases which creates oscillations in pressure, temperature and volume. The oscillations are then harnessed to drive eco-friendly air conditioning, heating and refrigeration systems. The mechanical simplicity of thermoacoustic engines eliminates the need for gears, pistons, valves, timing chains and lubrication, which most conventional compressors are totally dependent upon and they need more frequent maintenance. Thermoacoustic engines may be expected to last two-to-three times longer than most conventional air-conditioning systems and can be designed to run on lower voltages from solar cells, batteries or the standard power grid and can even be designed to convert waste heat into sound waves that can power heat pumping systems.
"We think this could be a real game-changer," said GDSI's President and CEO Richard J. Sullivan. "TA technology could change the rules of engagement, so to speak, in a variety of commercial and defense-related applications. For example, we envision many TA heating and cooling applications in connection with military vehicles, submarines and facilities. In the not-too-distant future, 140 nations that are signatories to the Montreal Protocols will be scrambling to find a way to bring their air-conditioning equipment into compliance with the new regulations, which forbid the world-wide manufacture or use of any ozone destroying or planet warming refrigerants. After examining the potential of a range of innovative technologies that fit into our global growth strategy, we think TA technologies are poised for especially strong near and long-term growth. In fact, we have concluded that thermoacoustics could be the next technology wave, eventually supplanting most of the current, climate-damaging, high-maintenance, vapor-compression applications in much the same way that transistors made vacuum tubes obsolete. Cost-efficient, climate-friendly heating and cooling technology is a top priority in both the defense and commercial arenas in the U.S. and around the world. Put simply, the goal of the GDSI-CSI combination is to ride the sound wave to a Freon-free future, leading the way in the development and widespread adoption of thermoacoustics."
Richard Sullivan has a proven track record of success as a pioneering advanced technology entrepreneur. In 2001, Sullivan received the prestigious World Economic Forums Award for Advanced Chip Technology presented in Davos, Switzerland. He served as Chairman and CEO of Applied Digital Solutions, where he executed a technology rollup involving 42 acquisitions that succeeded in increasing the company's share price from $2.50 to a peak of $18 per share. During Sullivan's decade-long tenure as Chairman and CEO, Applied Digital was one of the highest volume traded stocks on NASDAQ. Sullivan also served as Chairman and CEO of Digital Angel Corporation and led the effort to spin off VeriChip Corporation. In 1970, he was a founding member of the management team of Manufacturing Data Systems, Inc., which listed at $7.50 per share and was sold to Schlumberger N.V. in 1980 at $65 per share.
CSI founder, Frank Wighard, who holds a patent for a revolutionary double-acting thermoacoustic driver – which requires no lubrication and generates twice the power density of competing drivers – also commented on the planned partnership with GDSI: "I'm very excited about partnering with GDSI and particularly with Dick Sullivan. Dick and I have agreed to work very closely together on this very exciting project."
Here is a checklist of the comparative advantages of TA technology over conventional air-conditioning and refrigeration systems:
- No ozone depletion
- No greenhouse effects
- High energy efficiency using the existing power grid
- Compatible with solar power applications
- Low initial equipment costs
- Low maintenance costs
- Very long operating life cycle
For a detailed, third-party account of the history and potential of thermoacoustics, read this American Scientist article, The Power of Sound.
Watch this You-Tube video for a basic, easy-to-follow demonstration of thermoacoustic technology being used to power a refrigerator. Although this video does not show Cool Sound's advanced technology in action, the demonstration is still useful for understanding the principles behind thermoacoustics.
Toward a Freon-Free Future: Background on the 1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer and North American Proposals in April 2013
The original Montreal Protocol, signed in 1987, was the first step in international efforts to protect stratospheric ozone. Since that time, the Montreal Protocol has been repeatedly strengthened by both controlling additional ozone-depleting substances (ODS) as well as by moving up the date by which already controlled substances must be phased out.
The section below is excerpted from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's website. For more information about the 1987 Montreal Protocol and the amendments and adjustments made since 1987, visit http://www.epa.gov/ozone/intpol/history.html
In April 2013, the United States, Canada, and Mexico together submitted a proposal to phase-down consumption and production of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) under the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. HFCs are intentionally made fluorinated greenhouse gases used as replacements for ozone-depleting substances. HFCs are used in the same applications where ozone-depleting substances have been used: refrigeration and air-conditioning equipment in homes, other buildings and industrial operations. Smaller amounts are used in foam products, aerosols, fire protection systems and solvents.
Like the ozone-depleting substances they replace, most HFCs are potent greenhouse gases. For example, the most commonly used HFC, HFC-134a, is 1,430 times more damaging to the climate system than carbon dioxide. Though they represent a small fraction of the current total greenhouse gases, their warming impact is very strong, and their emissions are projected to increase nearly twentyfold in the coming decades.
If HFC growth continues on the current trajectory, the increase in HFC emissions is projected to offset much of the climate benefit achieved by phasing out ozone-depleting substances. HFCs are rapidly increasing in the atmosphere mostly due to increased demand for refrigeration and air conditioning, particularly in developing countries, and because they are the primary substitution for ozone-depleting substances.
Read this informative report commemorating 25 years of progress under the Montreal Protocol.
Here is a one-page fact sheet from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) about the Montreal Protocol.
Here is some additional information about the Montreal Protocol and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Efforts to reduce ozone chemicals.
About Global Digital Solutions, Inc.
Global Digital Solutions is refocusing its business strategy on providing small arms manufacturing, knowledge-based and culturally attuned social consulting combined with complementary security and technology-related solutions in unsettled areas. For more information please visit http://www.gdsi.co.
About Cool Sound Industries, Inc.
Cool Sound Industries was established as a commercial platform to bring together the various technical disciplines required to successfully develop residential and commercial air-conditioning and heating applications for thermoacoustic technology. Frank Wighard, the company's founder, has over 35 years of experience in the design, installation and service of environmental control equipment (air-conditioning systems). In the late 1990s, Mr. Wighard recognized the potential benefits thermoacoustic technology could provide to the field of air-conditioning and financed the initial feasibility study to start his investigation by collaborating with the leading researchers in 1996. After analyzing the results of the feasibility study, he filed the initial patent for his double-acting driver and system configurations which improved the efficiency and heat transfer process to make them more suitable for air-conditioning applications. He has since proposed numerous improvements to his basic design. His early involvement and consulting activities have resulted in valuable business relationships that will benefit the launch and future success of the company. Visit http://www.coolsound.us
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains "forward looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The statements contained in this press release that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements give the Company's current expectations or forecasts of future events. Such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that are often difficult to predict and beyond the Company's control, and could cause the Company's results to differ materially from those described. The Company is providing this information as of the date of this press release and does not undertake any obligation to update any forward looking statements contained in this press release as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. We have based these forward looking statements largely on our current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends affecting the financial condition of our business. Forward looking statements should not be read as a guarantee of future performance or results, and will not necessarily be accurate indications of the times at, or by, which such performance or results will be achieved. Important factors that could cause such differences include, but are not limited to the Risk Factors and other information set forth in the Company's Registration Statement on Form 10 filed on August 9, 2013, and in our other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Contact:
W.J. Delgado
916-838-8833
info@gdsi.co
Richard J. Sullivan
561-515-6163
info@gdsi.co
SOURCE Global Digital Solutions, Inc.