LONDON, March 4, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Auto-Q International Inc. (OTCBB:AUTQ), a leading provider of vehicle tracking and monitoring systems for trucking fleets and consumers, announced today that it has received a $50,000 purchase order from Swindon Borough Council to install its eGuard monitoring system in 33 vehicles.
The Council has turned to Auto-Q's eGuard vehicle monitoring system to protect itself against dubious claims and unfair complaints of poor service. Auto-Q management expects to receive additional orders from Swindon which should bring the final order to over $200,000 from the local UK Government agency.
Auto-Q CEO Paul Spetch commented," We are very pleased to work with Swindon Borough Council in their trial program and are delighted to be invited to supply our eGuard system to their fleet. We expect to receive additional purchase orders in the future as eGuard is rolled out to the Council's 350 vehicle fleet."
The Council decided last year to install vehicle tracking in its maintenance vehicles because of increasing claims and complaints about non-attendance, lateness and damage. The UK Government agency also wanted to tighten up fleet management to ensure vehicles were being operated correctly.
"If a member of the public phoned to complain they had been let down, we had no way of proving attendance" said Transport Manager Jeff Bond. "More seriously, we could be accused of not having gritted a road where there was subsequently an accident, and we would have little defence. On top of this we are getting more and more complaints about damage caused by Council vehicles. Until now we have had no way of checking whether the vehicle had even been in the street in question at the time. We looked at a range of systems and chose eGuard after extensive trials on our vehicles because it offered the right package at the right price."
About Auto-Q International Inc.
Auto-Q designs and supplies mobile data acquisition and vehicle tracking systems using global positioning systems and telematics technology. Auto-Q's products are used for vehicle fleet and asset management including tracking, positioning, security, fuel monitoring, navigation, data acquisition and reporting.
For more information on Auto-Q International visit http://www.auto-q.com/ or contact Matt Maguire at 407-884-0444 or 1-866 THE APPLE.
Certain statements contained herein are "forward-looking statements" (as such term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) Because such statements include risks and uncertainties actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward looking statements include but are not limited to, economic conditions, market acceptance of products, risks in technology, and product development.