- US real estate magnate, Larry Silverstein, who owns the
New York World Trade Center site, is now considering an investment of several
million dollars in Israeli start-up Advanced Evacuation Systems (AES),
a specialist in evacuation systems for high-rise buildings.
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- Eli Nir, founder and CEO of the tiny three-man company
based in Nordia, met with Silverstein in New York two weeks ago to discuss
the possible venture. "Our product is very interesting to Silverstein,"
Nir told The Jerusalem Post.
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- Silverstein is one of between 10 to 15 investors who
are interested in making a strategic investment in AES. Nir said the new
round of financing should be completed in the next few months.
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- AES is also in advanced sales negotiations with two large
hospitals, in Israel and in the US.
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- AES has developed an escape chute for skyscrapers or
any large building, that can be used in the event of a fire, terrorist
attack, earthquake or any other type of disaster. The Advanced Modular
Evacuation System (AMES 1) looks a bit like a giant slinky toy. It consists
of steel coils developed by Nordia Metal Spring Industries, which are covered
with smoke and flame resistant fabric. The chute is installed in the outer
wall of a building and in an emergency, it automatically springs open and
uncoils to the ground in about 90 seconds.
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- The system can rescue one person every four seconds.
It can also be used to evacuate the elderly, disabled, children and pregnant
women. The system enables rescue services to winch firemen and other rescue
staff up to the top floors.
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- On Monday the AMES-1 system was named one of the top
10 inventions of the year by Time Magazine.
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- The company's present chute, which is effective up to
22 stories, costs $22,000 each and should go on sale in six months. It
is being manufactured by Sysmop Technologies in Yokneam. AES says it can
manufacture 5,000 systems per quarter. A new chute effective for any number
of stories is now in development.
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- The AMES system, which was launched in Washington DC
in October, has undergone a series of successful operational checks. Israel's
former Prime Minister, Ehud Barak, is a marketing advisor to the company.
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- http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?
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