Aurora Control Technologies (ACU.V) is involved in the development and delivery of inline process measurement, analysis and control systems for solar cell manufacturers. Coverage initiated on January 2017, with notes on April 2017, June 2017, November 2017, March 2018, August 2018 and February 2019.
Listed below is an update.
May 14 - Receives Order from Top-Tier Solar Cell Manufacturer. To supply a major China-based manufacturer of high-efficiency PERC solar cells with four DM-110e measurements systems. The systems will be shipped in June 2019. Aurora's DM-110e was launched as a less expensive version of our DM product line, to address the price-sensitive market for the automation of manual sheet resistance measurements.
"This customer is one of the largest solar cell manufacturers in the industry, with aggressive expansion plans over the coming months." - ACU.V's CEO.
May 21 - Receives Repeat Order from Top-Tier Solar Cell Manufacturer. This new volume order is for fifteen DM-110e measurements systems. The systems will be shipped in June/July 2019.
May 29 - Receives Third Repeat Order from Solar Module Super League Customer. To supply a top-tier Asian manufacturer of high-efficiency PERC solar cells. This order, consisting of two DM-310 measurements systems for an existing customer, are expected to replace a competitor's older products for production line upgrades. The systems will be shipped in June 2019.
June 3 - Receives Order from Another Top-Tier Solar Cell Manufacturer. Received an order to supply another major China-based manufacturer of high-efficiency PERC solar cells with four DM-110e measurements systems The systems will be shipped in June 2019.
This order marks the third China-based manufacturer customer that Aurora has secured since February 2019. Over the past few months we have now gained orders from three of the global top ten solar cell manufacturers. These orders have followed a period of thorough competitive product evaluations by these industry leaders, demonstrating that Aurora's products are technically and commercially superior. - ACU.V's CEO.
June 18 - Receives Order from Major China-based Automation Provider. The new order is for two DM-110 measurement systems and one AS-100 server for control of the DM-110 units. These products are expected to be used for testing and integration of Aurora's products within this company's offerings. The DM-110 and AS-100 units are planned to be shipped in July 2019.
Jul. 2 - Receives Order from Second Major China-based Automation Provider and Announces Appointment of Investor Relations Services Firm. To supply a major China-based manufacturer of solar cell and module manufacturing automation systems. The new order is for six DM-110 measurement systems and three AS-100 servers for control of the DM-110 units. These products will be integrated in the automation systems and then provided to a China-based solar cell manufacturer for use in their production operations, shipping date is August 2019.
Appointed AXINO GmbH for investor relations services in Europe.
Aug. 21 - Receives Order from China-based Turnkey Production Line Provider. To supply its inline heterojunction (HJT) measurement systems to a China-based manufacturer of turnkey solar cell manufacturing lines. The new order is for four DM-121 measurement systems and associated AS-100 servers. These products are expected to be used for testing and integration of Aurora's products within this company's turnkey offerings, and in an end-user pilot project. The units are planned to be shipped by September 2019.
"This order from a major turnkey production line provider in China is a key development for Aurora for two reasons," said Gordon Deans, Aurora's Chief Executive Officer. "First, this is our third solar cell production equipment design win, opening up a new OEM channel to market in China. Second, this is the first sale of our DM-121 measurement system for commercial production of HJT solar cells, positioning Aurora to be a leader in this market segment, in which we project eight-fold growth over the next four years."
Sept. 3 - Announces Record-Setting Order and Provides Corporate Update. Received its largest single order to date by unit volume, to supply a major China-based manufacturer of high-efficiency PERC solar cells. This order, for twenty DM-110e measurements systems, follows an initial order in June from the same customer and is expected to ship by October 2019.
Since January of 2019, the company has now received orders with a total value in excess of three million Canadian dollars. The Company is also pleased to provide an update on ongoing initiatives, building on the Company's recent sales momentum. Aurora has now established volume business with three of 2019's top-ten solar cell manufacturers as defined by Solar Media, and two market-dominant automation system providers.
We are also in the evaluation trial phase with one other top-ten manufacturer. With the orders now in place and this strong position amongst the largest players, ACU.V has dramatically increased its credibility and brand recognition in the dominant China market. Looking ahead, ACU.V is bidding on several large repeat orders both in China and elsewhere in east Asia. Over the coming months, we anticipate receiving further volume orders. The Company also expects market introduction of new measurement and analytical products in the latter half of the current fiscal year.
In the last six months ACU.V traded between $0.04 to $0.05 cents for the most part, but went as low as $0.025 to a recent high of $0.08 cents. In total, more than eight releases were issued; six involved solar manufacturers and three automation systems providers.
As depicted by the table above (grey), the automation system providers orders are notable as they provide ACU.V with a strategic additional distribution channel. Traditionally, ACU.V units are aligned with its client's production automation systems which are subject to expansion. Having these included within automation system providers will drive sales and reduce cost. The above order quantities for this segment suggests that these efforts are at the initial stage. Furthermore, the August 21 release pointed out that ACU.V received its first order for an heterojunction (HJT) initiative that is part of an end-user pilot project. ACU.V reports expecting this segment to grow "eight-fold growth over the next four years".
As for the recent sales penetration with top solar manufacturers, the announced orders are for both new and existing customers to either to augment ACU.V's presence and/or remove competitive products. The recent volume order (Sept 3rd) got the market's attention for its quantity and also because it referred to "a manufacturer of high-efficiency PERC solar cells".
As displayed by the chart, it took more than seven releases and the Q2 Earnings before the market change its valuation of the company. Recent earnings indicated a significant increase in revenue $0.41M (Q2) vs. $0.21M (Q1). While Q2 Loss were flat $0.39M vs. $0.38M (Q1), $0.78M in cash was reported. ACU.V is in a good financial position and market trends suggest that its capitalization of bifacial (HJT and PERC) manufacturing optimization is timely.
Indeed, ACU.V is finally looking up.
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