By Milt Capps
Published Tuesday, March 1, 2022 1:05 pm
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NASHVILLE-based Discovery Sound Technology LLC's (DST) filing for an equity raise of up to $6.5MM could signal pursuit of growth for sales of the company's ultrasound technology platform for management of HVAC systems.
The latest SEC filing for the company, which is led by President/CEO and former Stanley Black & Decker executive Brett Shaw, with a board chaired by long-time Nashville angel investor and startup advisor Crom Carmichael, appeared Feb. 23.
Shaw served with Stanley Black & Decker, 1991-2017, in roles including that of president of the company's Mac Tools brand.
VNC research indicates that revenue-producing DST traces its business origins to 2009.
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In addition to Chairman Carmichael and CEO Shaw, VNC research indicates the company's directors include board members DST Co-founder and Chief Engineer Mike Stumpf; CTO John Jenkins; and, Angel investors Regan Brown (a construction industry veteran and podcaster), Igal Zamir and Art McWilliams.
A 2014 SEC filing listed Richard Perko of the Lee Company and economist Arthur Laffer among persons associated with the company. Their names do not appear in more recent DST filings. As VNC reported in 2018 and 2020, DST was at one point involved in a co-development venture with the Lee Company, see references here.
According to LinkedIn, DST team members also include Michael Harden, VP sales; Jon Harper, VP software; engineer Michael Pedersen; and, director of sales operations Glenn Brown.
DST's technology for maintenance and facilities services customers is used to detect and evaluate sounds that can be used to precisely locate and address leaks in heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems, with an eye toward extending equipment life, averting costly operational interruptions and lowering repair and capex spending.
The company's SEC filings, 2011-2022, suggest it has conducted at least five raises of outside capital during that period.
During that same period, the company's SEC filings indicate its aggregated proceeds from reported raises reached nearly $2.2MM, at a minimum. (Crunchbase today notes only earlier raises totaling about $1.6MM, during 2011-18.)
VNC also notes that during the 2011-2022 timeframe, the company's aggregated aspirational ceilings on raises for which it made SEC filings totaled roughly $13.4MM. Owner-investor stakes, if any, established during 2009-2011 or earlier may not be reflected in these tallies.
Research also indicates that the advantages of ultrasound devices lies partly in the fact that they enable detection of leaks' sound signals, rather than detecting leaked liquids or gases, per se. Effective ultrasound devices need little or no calibration for detection of differing types of chemical leaks.
A brief scan for competitors in the category of ultrasound leak detection technologies produced references to companies including Superior Signal's Accutrak brand, Robinair's Trutrak, Inficon's Whisper, Amprobe's ULD-300, and Reed Instruments R9100, among others.
DST and its principals are named in multiple patent entries on file with USPTO. Some of DST's IP work has been done by attorneys with Patterson IP Law, according to USPTO filings, including trademark applications for SoundEnergy and SoundSignature service marks. VNC
. last edited 1116 1 March 2020