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TECHNICAL MANPOWER SHORTAGE

During 2008 to 2012 the demand for testing, commissioning and maintenance engineers, test and maintenance technicians, and operators will outstrip the supply.

We are in the process of notifying our best customers of this peak demand situation and letting you know that we do not believe that we will be able to help all of our customers in the near future if we wait until the last minute to fill your needs. With this in mind, some of our customers are paying us up front to guarantee the availability of our startup personnel and test equipment in the future.

We feel that this is cheap insurance to mitigate the risk of not having startup personnel, test technicians and test equipment to support upcoming work. If you are interested, we will be glad to talk to you about some ideas of how this might work.
The linked article by EnergyBiz Magazine describes the shortage for plant operators based on attrition alone. In addition, the new construction scheduled over this time period will make this shortage much more severe.

http://energycentral.fileburst.com/EnergyBizOnline/2007-1-jan-feb/Energy_Business_Generating_Assets.pdf



The attached graph shows the staffing needs for power plant startup engineers by the major EPC companies in the U.S. over this same time period.

In addition to providing startup engineers, TDS also provides startup technicians and startup test equipment. This provides you with a full range of startup support and allows us to reduce the unit costs on the project, which we have clearly demonstrated in the past. This full range of startup services and test equipment also differentiates TDS from our competitors, as TDS is the only U.S. company that can provide this range of startup capabilities.

TDS will commit to a firm mark up on direct labor for our services. Our research, as well as that of most of the major EPC contractors shows the approaching manpower shortage. Therefore, we believe that it is of utmost importance that you select not only a competent company that provides competitive rates, but also, a company that has the ability to provide startup engineers, startup technicians, and test equipment during this peak demand time frame. TDS is one of the few companies that is doing something now to ensure the availability of qualified technical people in the future - both experienced and entry-level. We believe that "it is what we do now, when we don't have to do anything, that will determine who will be successful in the future, when it is to late to do anything about it!"

I would like to schedule a meeting with you at your earliest convenience to discuss specifics. If you have any questions, please contact me at 817-465-9494 or at jlapicola@technicaldiagnostic.com
Respectfully,

John J. Lapicola
President
Technical Diagnostic Services, Inc.
15825 Trinity Blvd.
Fort Worth, Texas 76155
817-465-9494
www.technicaldiagnostic.com