Lightwaverf Share Discussion Threads

[clocktower] 27/4/2016 20:44

Thanks for those posts that re-fresh the history of those meetings, and lets hope that someone present would be kind enough to post their perspective of the meeting and hopefully put a few serious questions to the board in a manner that they will have to address giving straight answers too rather than flannel their way out of.

[sinkyj] 27/4/2016 20:09

2015 With thank to Alynch

Apologies for not rushing on here and keeping you in suspense. I thought somebody else might've already done a summary of the AGM by now. I'll do my best to remember the salient points, but I missed the beginning of the meeting having been caught up in traffic, so took a bit to settle in....

So, for starters, first impressions is that, yes, the board are still very upbeat about the company. Of course they are. They have a great product and the expansion of the company is happening! Unlike some companies, their being upbeat isn't a front, but comes from confidence of the product, where it is and where it's going.

I presume (since I missed it) that the meeting opened with the passing of the resolutions (straight forward voting, I guess). I didn't hear about JS's directorship, so I presume that came at the beginning before I got there too.

After that was a slide-show presentation not dissimilar to last year's so, for me, it was a reiteration of last year's goals. However, it included some of this year's updates.

One of the things that interested me most was an impressive presentation by John Shermer on Warwick University and the information that has been gleaned from the exercise and how it could translate into future progress. John demonstrated with live visual data how easily the LightwaveRF system can be used in all manner of ways. Eg control and management:

1. The screen diagram showed how rooms in the University were being used, whether someone was occupying a room, what temperature they chose to have their room.
2. An alert showed if an occupier of a room had opened a window, or if a battery was running low/ needed replacing in any particular control or sensor.
3. If a window had been opened, but the occupant had left the room, this would create a new, lower, temperature goal, thereby reducing wasted heat.
4. All the details of each control/sensor in any room could be remotely accessible, so that, for instance, if someone had problems with it, the settings can be individually adjusted.

Also demonstrated was how easily the information collected from individual data, whether in the home or in a business, could be harvested and sold on to energy companies as general information, eg whether households/businesses on one side of the country used their energy in a different way to another part. Because of the breadth of the products, a larger range of usage can be taken into account than if any of the 'big guy' companies were to do it. This whole conversation was an expansion of last year’s ideas about it. It seems that we now know we are perfectly capable of monetising this data. Energy companies have approached LWRF to this effect. This is one form of ongoing income that can be made from a large customer base. In fact, this might well become a huge by-product of the whole system!

The Warwick University project is being extended a further year to include a second winter, and to get more information. However, this is with the agreement that a report will be made available for the end of the first year (end April?). I hadn't realised how many companies had bid to be part of the Warwick Uni project (apparently we won the bid out of about 500 companies because of how innovative our designs are). Certain other things were learnt from installing the products in the University - eg unlike when installing in a school, when the guys could zip in and out, all done, in a day - because of how the University is used, it took a lot longer to actually get into the rooms. Because of this, it was a matter of months before they could get access to fully install. However, the users love that it uses negligible internet and doesn't slow usage for users at all(one worry they had) and also how easy it was to manage compared to the system (well known brand, trying to remember which one) already installed which they hated, and which was not only really expensive to fix if it went wrong (so nobody dared touch it) and took up a large room of computers to run.

There was talk about sensors for gas/electricity use, which could also be managed (and the information could also feed into the system's data collection)

Oh, there was a discussion a few days ago about how many ‘live’ homes there are now. It seems there are about 15K in the UK and about the same in Europe = 30K (mg78 – did you catch that?)

Another thing is how everything fits together with the IoT. Someone here asked me to ask if we might sign up to one of the global standards groups? Mike’s answer to that was that it would be too limiting. By signing some such agreement, it would put limits on developments, and that wasn’t such a great idea. We want to be free to expand in any direction. Also, many of the standards are not really compatible with our design, for instance, we use a different radio frequency than some of the stronger global standards groups and their frequencies aren’t really relevant to the use of our products. That won’t exclude our products linking with other products, but guards our freedom to innovate where we please.

Design ideas for IOT products and systems in abundance, obviously restrained by financial constraints. Also discussed was the security products issues, in that finding the right product to work with the LWRF system has not been so straight forward. However, there are talks other companies re their camera, and how it could be integrated with our products. In process.

What else (unfortunately, like last year, I didn’t write it down…if you have anything to ask, I’ll try and see what I can remember on the issue)

Oh yes, as somebody suggested earlier, the company is now a lot more careful about getting patents for ideas and products, and patents are now a matter of course (there are a couple on the go even now).

They continue to look for more distributors like Megaman on the continent.

Interest was drummed up from those samples that went out, however, though there is interest, various potential business has been delayed by quibbling over various things. The orders that were sitting on the books at year end are, unfortunately, still awaiting shipment. (I’m afraid I didn’t catch all of this discussion, but it was more about delays than disinterest).

The LWRF products have not only been successfully tested in Warwick University (+ hotel), but have also been installed in a school/ dentist (mentioned here already)/ care home and other small businesses. The board feel that medium sized businesses might be the biggest area of expansion in the future (the company’s ‘niche’). The company has taken on a couple of dedicated representatives to approach/visit businesses for presentations and so far have gone out to a fair few. It is felt that the seeds of the system are being sown, and rewards will be reaped later…it is not a fast process. As someone said, ‘It’s a no-brainer!’ for the benefits a company could reclaim from installing the system, which is not only cheaper and easy to install, but is easier to use/manage and the savings are substantial.

Also, because of this latter point, that it is expected that business use might be a larger area of expansion than even domestic use, then the ongoing difficulties of creating an app to control so many different products/sensors might not be such an issue. Talking of which, they are very aware of ongoing issues. The problem comes from, as I said, having to deal with such a wide range of products rather than just one or two. Some companies would like an app for only managing lighting or only managing heating, so they are considering whether it might be good to create apps for each particular area, as well as continuing to develop a better ‘domestic̵7; or universal app, one that is more intuitive.

A little thing, but they also want to pretty-up the thermostat so it looks as good as the rest of the range.

There was a feeling that the ‘big guys’ in home automaton didn’t have everything LWRF has to offer, and that, once word of the companies products and system gets out more, we will have a competitive edge in the market, and (as said above) will have a particular niche that we excel in (medium businesses).

Right, unless anyone asks a particular question, that’s all I have for now. There’s so much information (it was an intense hour and a half)! So, feel free to ask.

[sinkyj] 27/4/2016 20:08

2015 with thanks to MG78

A good, low key, rather informal AGM. Just how I like them.

It was almost two hours long with good in-depth discussion and an open Q&A session at the end.

Several things emerged that are note worthy:

The value proposition being offered by LWRF to medium sized public/private sector business is very strong indeed. The costs savings achieved by employing the technology is considerable and, most importantly, is now being actively proven-up and collated via the Warwick Uni deployment.

To quote Mike Hughes, the savings achievable make LightwaveRF "a no brainer" for commercial applications and medium sized businesses.....and throughout the AGM it became apparent as to why....

The Warwick Uni project has been successful and will continue for another year so that further data can be gathered. However, an interim report for what the project has so far discovered/recorded, will be produced and should be invaluable in illustrating the benefits to new clients. In this regard, we were also told that the sales team has just been strengthened. Good good.

Further, I talked with JS after the main event and it became clear that the company does now have growing interest from significant businesses/organisations looking to make their operations smart and more energy efficient. This is not just important from a cost perspective but also from a 'green credential' and carbon reduction incentive. The names of those potential clients was not divulged and I chose not to push. Indeed, I respect his integrity in this respect.

JS is very credible and after his live, web enabled demonstration of the Warwick Uni project in which he illustrated exactly what the kit was actively doing, the future opportunity for data-derived, recurring revenue streams, was overtly clear and a very exciting prospect. I left feeling confident that, with time, they will achieve just that.

At Warwick it should be recognized that the kit is now working in well in over 300 rooms, with active, automated management of lighting and heating in each. This is some achievement and should prove to be a fantastic example to put to other medium sized propositions. The interface is good and gives a high level of data about each room, including occupancy, temperature, window/doors open/shut. In multiple room buildings (such as schools, universities, hotels etc) where heating is provided by a central source, the flexibility, versatility and practicality offered to caretakers and managers, by the remote LWRF system will prove invaluable. The costs of managing and regulating traditional or should I say 'old fashioned' heating and lighting systems was discussed and in contrast to this, the argument for deploying LWRF again is very strong.

In large universities or hotels for instance, where room use (eg lecture rooms, bedrooms) is inconsistent, or, where room users are 'customers' (and so not directly responsible for paying the lighting and heating bills), instant and automated switch off of heating (for instance when doors and windows are left open) will save very large amounts of money. Carelessness costs businesses vast sums of money, but the LWRF system effectively acts like a caretaker in each room, cutting cost at exactly the right moment in time.

All in all, highly innovative.

The team seemed upbeat and positive. JS is clearly passionate about his subject and a credit to the company....and, after today, the board. A position I feel is well deserved. Mike Lord similarly upbeat.

Global sales of the lighting is taking time to find traction, but the big forward order book we already know about is pretty much UK derived so all good there.

Commercial sector and B2B will be the driver for growth. LWRF appear ahead of the game with a good foothold already in the market and with growing visibility. Every new customer will bring added credibility. Rising energy prices, green credentials, carbon footprint, lower maintenance and lower energy bills will be the incentive. In my view in 5 years time, those businesses who rely on heating and lighting and who do not employ scaleable, retrofit smart solutions, such as ours, will be at a loss and, as a result, increasingly uncompetitive.

As shareholders we should become excited as larger orders arrive and when names are put to those orders.

The recent heating collaboration is actually a much better start than many of us might have thought.

In the meantime sales via Maplin nationwide to domestic customers seem good.......and this matches my own mkt research in this respect.

This was a good AGM, from a small but quietly confident team, who are all well incentivized and who have enough humility to recognise what work needs to be done.

The strategy is in place and now they must work hard to hone the technology and secure the deals that will truly transform the business.

Any sales traction into the commercial sector will get picked up on imo; for any predator wanting to pick up a one stop, bolt on, smart/IOT division, we would be very hard to ignore.

The specific market opportunity is wide open and we are well positioned.

ADYOR etc as always.

[sinkyj] 27/4/2016 20:08

2014 AGM
2014 report for anyone to follow up on that’s there.
----------

Phil et al

Great AGM today. (Have stopped for lunch in service station on the way home)

Met Mike Lord, John Sherman, and several others...and having met & talked to them feel very confident of how JSJS Designs (now LightwaveRF Plc (LWRF, I think the ticker will be)).

To sum up though...all VERY positive, and anyone in now is in at the start of some great things! Mike and John S kindly talked us through the strategy for future development...I didn't write it all down, so will say what I can remember.

The name change/ board change all make huge sense, as it is in line with their focus on expanding and developing the products to reach into every part of the home,also in conjunction with other companies' existing household products (like that music system someone linked to a while back).basically, the more items in the house that have the LightwaveRF chip/board in, the more that can be controlled from one point...some of the suggestions were so cool!

The Light show Megaman attended (was it yesterday ? in Germany?) proved very popular, and the LightwaveRF section had people 4 deep interested in the products.
Megaman doing V. Good job of getting products out there, and will, for now) be concentrating on lighting products abroad (7 main ones to start with) The hope is, once folk have the lighting, they'll come back for the rest! They are also looking to take this to other countries worldwide, eg Canada, US and some others (they did name three more they are looking into just now, but i forgot to write them down) and will looking to find other big distributors to cover these countries. Now that a company as large as Megaman are on board, they are finding that other companies have more confidence they aren't a fly-by-night company, and are out of financial problems and are therefore more enthusiastic to join the gravy-train (to mix metaphors :-) )

Warwick Uni testing going well - very useful exercise- and is being expanded further. Energy savings have been shown to be between 25 & 40% already (for a university that size is more than £1M savings p.a), so the cost of installation is quickly recovered.

Work is going into developing a universal web-based site to supercede having many different Apps for different platforms, so that it will fit any gadget/ screen that has access to the Internet, and so customers can be in touch with their home/the RF system they control from anywhere. They are aiming at making it smart, beautiful, intuitive...

Development will also go into useful data mining (we talked about whether it was intrusive or not, and everyone who took part in the Warwick Uni trial would rather be part of it, and agreed it was not intrusive at all, since the information is not particular to individuals) the information then being available to, for example, utility companies to help them plan and direct energy most usefully.

Now that they can concentrate on what they're good at, they can devolop the company to cover a wider range than any others are offering.

I think there was lots more, but that's enough for now. Suffice to say, I would be happy to chuck money at this now, fully confident they have tightened up how they are working, and that this is the transition from a small company that was struggling to take a dream forward into a medium-sized, more disciplined, company with a big - no, potentially huge - future!!

Right, off home now...another two and a half hours drive!

[sinkyj] 27/4/2016 20:01

As a reference, I'm posting reports from 2014 & 2015 AGM.

Financially progress is such

Revenue
2013 - 1.05M
2014 - 3.04M
2015 - 2.10M

Gross Profit
2013 - 0.45M
2014 - 1.03M
2015 - 0.67M

Pre tax Losses
2013 - 0.81M
2014 - 0.30M
2015 - 0.42M

"ORDER BOOK"
2013 - not known
2014 - 1.8M
2015 - 1.0M

Share Price 28th April
2014 - 43p
2015 - 41p
2016 - 14p

[clocktower] 27/4/2016 17:06

AGM at 11 am tomorrow - if anyone is going could you ask the company to enquire why the holders of over 800k of shares have never disclosed the sale by way of a RNS which I understand should have been disclosed within days. In addition has there been any other changes to holders that were listed, holding 3% or above since those last listed on the company website.

I am sure followers of these threads would be grateful if a summary was posted on the thread if anyone is attending.

[clocktower] 26/4/2016 16:05

News from earlier this month but worth keeping in mind:

[jmf69] 26/4/2016 12:46

htTps://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/apr/25/how-to-sleep-better-with-technology

[clocktower] 22/4/2016 19:09

How Smart is it to have a Smart Mattress? The possibilities are endless! Enjoy.

[clocktower] 22/4/2016 18:03

Megaman still promoting Lightwaverf at the shows in a positive manner, the pictures can be seen on their twitter link of the Elexshow at Exeter today.

[clocktower] 22/4/2016 14:39

With only One Thousand traded this week (less than £140.00 worth) all interest seems to have been lost ahead on the AGM next week. Are we about to see a rapid rise in turnover next week and to see considerable movement of the share price on the back of the considerable buying that took place in previous weeks?

Is there to be a flourish of news from the company with news about HomeKit and Warwick University plus new products that were promised?

Will John Lewis start stocking the products? If so it could give it a shot in the arm and send the share price well up I expect.

Up or down there could be a lot of movement in the next couple of weeks I assume.

[clocktower] 20/4/2016 15:59

Buying & selling dried up over the past few days but even since one MM has dropped the offer today there has been no take up so far. Might still be an overhang to clear.

[clocktower] 19/4/2016 15:03

Media articles must be gaining attention.

[sinkyj] 18/4/2016 15:39

Already sold off 30% of the company last time for "developments". At 2.6m market cap, lets hope the news comes a long way before the need for funding. If they were in receipt of big orders, there are much better ways of raising money for the existing shareholders. Unless it's share options all round again, for the few also employed.

Directors can't be replaced but a message can be sent all the same.

Definitely been solid buying though, as you say. Price ready to start moving with a little more.

[clocktower] 18/4/2016 15:38

A show that might be worth a visit for all those interested in "the Internet of Things"

[clocktower] 18/4/2016 14:36

It should be noted that there is one "special" resolution that should be a concern:

8 other special TO AUTHORISE THE DIRECTORS TO ALLOT SHARES ON A NON PRE EMPTIVE BASIS

Regrettably there is no way that the directors could be removed and replaced with those that clearly would be better placed to run this company.

If however you look at the trades over the past weeks there has seemed to be some pretty solid buying at around the 14p level, in reasonable sizes, so it could be that there could be better news due and if they are in receipt of very large orders and they may need to seek further funding to support some very large contracts.

[greenrichard] 14/4/2016 17:54

AGM is being held at Faraday Wharf, Holt Street, Birmingham B7 4BB. Starts at 11am. If you have a reasonable holding, it's surely worth the cost of any travel plus a day off work.

[clocktower] 14/4/2016 13:56

hxxp://www.sbhonline.co.uk/news/ifttt-recipes-for-success/

[greenrichard] 14/4/2016 12:53

I only know the date because TD Direct had a corporate action. Surprised there hasn't been an RNS to confirm.

[clocktower] 14/4/2016 12:20

GreenRichard 1 Apr'16 - 12:48 - 2610 of 2628 0 0

AGM date is 28th April at 11.00am in Birmingham. I'll be going. Anyone else?

[jmf69] 14/4/2016 11:22

When is the agm?

[gozo] 14/4/2016 10:39

Thanks Clocktower...hopefully some good news via an RNS prior to the agm....maybe...!

[clocktower] 14/4/2016 10:10

Lightwaverf now listed on IFTTT: See Logo