Wrenches,

I'm pleased to be sending this posting, it is the text of a Press Release that Xantrex issued today. Five of the people invited to attend are regular correspondents and readers of this column so I'm confident many of the concerns expressed here will be addressed. Clearly, a one day meeting will not reinvent the entire Trace product line or answer every complaint. We will have a pretty hard days work ahead of us reviewing the specs which are going to be presented, but we do plan on having some time left for a general round table.

I'm very excited about this process, it seems to me a great way of channeling constructive feed back to us folks who design and build the products you all work with everyday.

Xantrex Technology Initiates Product Review Consultative Process

Arlington, Wash./ -- The Distributed Residential and Commercial Markets division of Xantrex Technology Inc. who manufacture Trace brand power electronics are pleased to announce the first of an ongoing series of Product Improvement Focus Groups. Xantrex has asked a small group of active renewable energy professionals to review proposals for improvements and modifications planned for upcoming product offerings. Participants in the process will also be asked to beta test products which they review.

Ezra Auerbach, Market Manager Off Grid Power, says, "We have invited some of the most knowledgeable hands-on professionals in our industry to help us. Our objective in this process is to present draft product proposals to the people who actually install renewable energy systems on a daily basis. We want to know if we got the details right and if we missed anything. These Focus Groups will serve as a cornerstone for gathering invaluable feedback from the field."

Xantrex plans to host Product Improvement Focus Groups on a regular basis with a rotating group of invited industry professionals along with representatives of Xantrex’s Engineering, Technical Support and Marketing departments . Mr. Auerbach says, "We will host these Focus Groups in a variety of locations across the country to ensure good geographic representation. We have chosen Sacramento for the first one."

Best wishes,

Ezra Auerbach 
Xantrex Technology Inc