So, are we going to get bought out like all the other corporations this guy has led? At what price? How soon? Is this guy being brought in to sell us out? Are we gonna get screwed as usual, while the moneyed folk who can continue to buy in at tiny prices, get rich? Ah, capitalism. Make money on the backs of OPM, usually not the moneyed class. Get ready to turn over your shares for a demanded price. These guys have so many minisculy priced shares they could sell them for a buck and walk away with millions. I hope, but doubt, I'm wrong.
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Vancouver, Canada (Oct. 23, 2007)– The Board of Directors of Braintech, Inc. (BRHI:OB) announces the appointment of Frederick W. “Rick” Weidinger as Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board, effective immediately.
As part of a planned transition, the founding management team has taken on new roles: Owen Jones has resigned as CEO and will stay on as an advisor and director for the Company; Babak Habibi has resigned as director and will continue as Chief Technology Officer and President of Braintech Canada, Inc.; Ted White has resigned as CFO and director and will take a new position as Senior-Vice President, Administration. The changes were made as part of a plan to position Braintech as a major market leader in the rapidly developing intelligent robotics industry, which includes industrial, consumer and military markets.
“Under my leadership, the Company established itself as a technology leader for Vision Guided Robotics,” founder Jones said. ” As a result, we signed a global sales agreement with industrial giant ABB and started a new partnership with Microsoft. In order to advance these and other business relationships, the Company needs to be strong enough for major organizations to engage strategically. This means having an experienced and successful executive, previously backed by the capital markets, which is what Rick brings to the company.
“We’re so very fortunate to have Rick join Braintech. (Who's we?) The intelligent robotics industry is starting to grow rapidly and with Rick’s guidance we’re in a very strong position to realize market leadership. It’s an exciting time for Braintech and I personally look forward to helping Rick achieve success.”
Weidinger says Braintech is a strong company with emerging technology and tremendous growth potential.
“I am looking forward to the challenge of increasing value for the employees, partners and shareholders of Braintech,” Weidinger said. “I come to a Company that has built a solid foundation of top quality and talented employees, successful corporate partners and proven products. I believe the company is well positioned for future growth and is in front of an amazing wave of intelligent robotic developments, technological advancements and commercialization. It reminds me of my involvement in the beginning of the telecommunications wave in the ‘80s and ‘90s.
“We will work hard every day in order to best capitalize on these unique opportunities in the industrial, consumer and government business sectors for Braintech.”
Weidinger plans to announce the appointment of key management and directors to join his senior team in the near future.
About Frederick W. (Rick) Weidinger
Rick Weidinger brings an accomplished history in technology and sports to Braintech, Inc.
For more than 15 years, Weidinger created a legacy of innovation and technology success stories, serving as a chief architect behind the emergence and growth of such highly-regarded organizations as the Institutional Communications Company (ICC), MFS Communications Company, and Pontio Communications.
At Pontio, from which he retired in 2001, he began as a member of the Board of Directors in June 1999 and became Chairman, President and CEO just two months later. In November 2000, Weidinger directed Pontio’s acquisition by a Fortune 100 Company, managing and negotiating the sale of the company in an all-cash transaction. Weidinger funded, refocused, operated and recapitalized the company, raising equity and debt funding, attracting and hiring management, establishing operating agreements and, thus, dramatically increasing the enterprise value of the company. All the while, he was developing and building city-wide state-of-the-art fiber optic networks throughout Texas.
Prior to Pontio, Weidinger served as a founding member and Vice President Corporate Development for MFS Communications and later as Vice President of Integration and Development for WorldCom, following WorldCom’s acquisition of MFS, in which Weidinger played a key role. He was responsible for MFS’s development and success through transactions, which made the start-up company an appealing acquisition for WorldCom. Beginning with the company’s origin in 1989, MFS enjoyed exponential growth, where Weidinger engaged in more than 25 transactions totaling approximately $18 billion. Some of these developments included organic company growth and other transactions included MFS’s $2 billion acquisition of UUNET Technologies, the world’s largest ISP in 1995, and the subsequent acquisition of MFS by WorldCom in a $14 billion transaction in 1996. Weidinger retired from WorldCom in March 1999.
Previously, Weidinger served as Chief Financial Officer for ICC, then considered the flagship of start-up fiber-optic communications companies. Before ICC, Weidinger was hand-selected by Union Pacific Corporation to launch a competitive communications company in 1986, which led to the investment in ICC in 1987. MFS acquired ICC in 1991.
Weidinger holds both Juris Doctor and MBA degrees from Creighton University and a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Nebraska. Weidinger is married with three children and resides in Great Falls, Va., and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He presently sits on the Board of Directors of several North American corporations.
Pursuing his passion for open-wheel racing, Weidinger is owner of A1 TEAM USA, which represents the United States in the global A1GP World Cup of Motorsport. Previously, Weidinger co-owned an IRL IndyCar team for the 2004 season, which included two cars in the prestigious Indianapolis 500. Weidinger has also been co-owner of cars in the Indy 500 in 2006 (driven by two-time Indy champion Al Unser Jr.) and 2007 (driven by 2004 Indy winner Buddy Rice).
