Champlain Will Supply High-Performance Cables for Over 200 MARTA Rail Cars!

 The success of a company is the benchmark of those victories which reflect its commitment to innovation and quality. Champlain Cable, a subsidiary of American Industrial Acquisition Corporation owned by Leonard Levie, has achieved such a benchmark by winning the subcontract of the Stadler Rail Car Project.

Stadler US Inc. was awarded the contract of metro trains by the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA). The MARTA METRO Project is a multi-year contract that is worth several million dollars and is meant to develop metro trains intended for service to the world’s largest airport, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. 

To successfully complete the order of metro trains on time, Stadler is looking for partners who can supply the best quality components. Stadler selected Champlain Cable to supply high-performance wire and cable for more than 200 rail cars for the MARTA Metro project.

This is a moment of celebration for Champlain Cable for being recognized at such a huge level for its sheer dedication to innovation, compliance, responsiveness, and attention to detail. 

According to the agreement made between Champlain Cable and Stadler US Inc, Champlain Cable will now support the expanding MARTA rail network by supplying its highly innovative EXRAD-RHF low-smoke, halogen-free (LSHF) polymer technology and crosslinking capability. Champlain Cable will commence the supply in 2022 and is scheduled to conclude in 2028-2029.

The Success Journey of Champlain Cable that Was Once Under-Performing 

Champlain Cable, now a successfully running company, was once burdened with thousands of related asbestos claims and soil and underground environmental cleanup obligations along with pension underfunding liabilities worth $594,000. This transformation didn’t happen overnight.

Champlain Cable was acquired by an AIAC affiliate - CC Acquisition Corporation in June 2003 from Huber + Suhner based in Zurich, Switzerland. At the end of December 2002, Champlain Cable produced only $19.8 million as revenue and lost EBITDA of $2.2 million. Its shareholder’s equity was just $3.6 million. 

However, after being acquired by the owner of AIAC affiliate, Leonard Levie, Champlain performed significantly better as it produced revenues of $21.3 million and positive EBITDA of $1.3 million. Over the following years, Champlain grew into a company with not one but five production facilities: one in Colchester VT, two in El Paso TX, and two in the greater Houston TX area. Besides, the company now works in full compliance with all relevant environmental, pension, and other obligations.

For the year 2018, Champlain made revenues of $111.6 million and EBITDA of $14.7 million, and its Shareholder’s Equity amounted to $51.6 million. 

Now, under the leadership of Leonard Levie, Champlain Cable has been awarded a multi-million dollar Stadler Rail Car Project for supplying high-performance power and control cables for over 200 rail cars.

The subway cars equipped with Champlain’s high-performance cables and wires will operate across the entire MARTA network, serving more than 175,000 passengers on a typical weekend. This OEM approval is exemplary of how Leonard Levie transforms underperforming companies into successful ones that contribute to the national and regional economy.

Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) and Bradford ECAPS Sign MoU for Orbital Debris Removal Services

Common Earth orbits are becoming increasingly congested due to more and more space exploration missions as more space agencies deploy satellite constellations than ever before. Orbital debris are released from spacecraft or rocket bodies in common earth orbits, which poses a risk to spacecraft and satellites in Earth orbit and has a negative impact on space infrastructure and Earth. To address this issue, Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) and Bradford ECAPS came together and have signed an MoU to provide orbital debris removal services.

ECAPS, owned by Bradford Space (a company in the AIAC Group), is very excited to team up with Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) for this space cleaning mission. Starting from 2024, Bradford Space / ECAPS and SSC will provide orbital debris removal services as part of their commercial services. Bradford Space will launch a satellite bus, named ‘Square Rocket’, with significant delta-V capability into the earth orbit from the Esrange Space Center. This satellite bus will deorbit the orbital debris and junk to clear common earth orbits for spacecraft and satellites. 

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed by SSC and Bradford Space’s ECAPS at the 2021 International Aeronautical Congress in Dubai. To accomplish this mission and provide orbital debris removal services, a new spaceport facility - Esrange Space Center in northern Sweden - is currently under construction and will be operational from 2022.

Talking about the MoU agreement for sustainable use of space, L. M. Levie, Chairman of American Industrial Acquisition Corporation (AIAC) stated,

“This has been an astonishing journey. The agreement with SSC further demonstrates the tireless dedication and brilliance of the Bradford team combined with the superiority of our technology.”

American Industrial Acquisition Corporation (AIAC) has acquired Bradford Space in 2016 and played a significant role in what the current Bradford Space began to take form. AIAC is a privately-held industrial and investment group that seeks to acquire under-performing companies and invest in manufacturing and distribution operations to build enduring and flourishing businesses. Under AIAC, Bradford Space started acquiring companies to form a ‘Bradford Workspaces’ to rebrand and reimagine the commercial space industry. Talking about the MoU with SSC, Patrick van Put, Managing Director for Bradford Space European operations said,

“Bradford Space / ECAPS is very excited to team up with SSC for this venture, which is based on exceptional complementary capabilities from both Swedish entities”

Earlier this year, Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) launched a new program to create a safer and more sustainable space environment for space exploration companies. As part of Space Situational Awareness (SSA), the program will consist of initiatives such as detection, tracking, identification, and addressing man-made space objects space junks in common earth orbits through the analysis of SSA data. The MoU between SSC and Bradford ECAPS for orbital debris removal will showcase Sweden as a leader in orbital debris mitigation for sustainable use of space.