Georgie Girl Ch. 16-18

"I stopped by the lab on the way here," Carl said as we sipped a pre-dinner drink. "I shouldn't tell you this, but the preliminary results look like a success. We'll have the full results in the morning."

"That's very good news, Carl," Thomas said. "I hope the formal results are just as good."

"Actually, I don't want to sound arrogant, but I'm not surprised," I said. "We aren't inventing a new process. We're inventing a more compact way to use an existing process. We've thrown in some new wrinkles because we want this unit to be as close to indestructible as possible.

"If it gets dropped off the back of a truck, we want it to have a good chance of survival. If it's got to operate in over one-hundred degree heat, then we want it to work reliably. The same goes if it's the middle of winter in Minnesota. If the owner doesn't bother to tie it down in the back of his truck and it gets bounced all over the place for five miles, we still want it to work," I said.

Carl Whitehurst was nodding. "I can see what you're getting at. The big units are a lot more fragile than that. You want this to be an 'everyman's machine' then; something like a portable generator."

"Yes," I agreed. "Along those lines, my dream is that it will be totally American-built and for all intents and purposes, bulletproof."

"Are you worried about someone like the Chinese building a cheap copy?" he asked.

"We are," Thomas said, "but we'll have some patent protection and in the beginning, they won't be able to duplicate some of the components. They will be exclusive to us. But, in the real world, we'll have to expect copies to show up. By that time, I'm hoping that John and Kevin can come up with new versions that will keep the competition at bay a while longer."

"I was thinking about someone like James Dyson," I said. "His vacuum cleaner sells for much more than the competition, but every few months, he has a new improved product on the market. People have tried to copy him, but he always seems to be a few steps ahead of them. Now he's into bladeless fans. I hope we can be as inventive."

"Actually," Kevin interjected, "his products are all based on one pneumatic principle. He's just adapted it into various forms to either suck or blow. Simple, when you think about it."

"That's what most inventions are," Whitehurst added. "Simple ideas that perform difficult tasks. Just like John's idea. Take proven technology and make it more compact and affordable. I hope this becomes a roaring success for you, John ... and for all of you for that matter."

"Thank you, Carl," Georgette said with a smile. "I have a lot of confidence in John."

The cool of our air conditioned room was a welcome relief later that evening. We had showered before dinner and now as we readied to retire, Georgette was showing all the signs of wanting me to pay some special attention to her. We had both had a couple of glasses of wine at dinner and, although she was still somewhat trussed up on her left side, I knew that with care I could please her and myself. It would be the perfect ending to a successful day.

Georgette was always responsive when we made love and that night was no exception. She may have been limited in her range of motion, but not in her emotions. I spent a little more time on foreplay before I entered her and she was quite vocal in her enthusiasm for my efforts. The need to be careful not to harm her shoulder or arm caused me to slow down and that brought its own reward. I was exhausted and my arms ached an hour later when we reluctantly surrendered and sought sleep.

"That was wonderful," she said drowsily as we lay together.

"It always is," I said. I don't remember anything after that.

I awoke at six the next morning, my usual time. Georgette had tossed and turned a few times during the night, trying to get comfortable. I knew she was taking only two Tylenol before bed and had weaned herself off the prescription pain medication. Her shoulder still ached although the scapula was healing well according to our doctor. The arm was still painful due to some of the muscular damage the broken bone had done.

A new, lightweight cast had been fitted to replace the plaster cast she had first been encumbered with. It still was connected to a harness around her upper chest but weighed a fraction of the plaster cast. It was made of a molded nylon with foam cushioning and Velcro straps to secure it. As the bone healed she would be able to remove it temporarily to bathe or dress herself. It was a big relief to her, but she was anxious to see the end of any type of cast.

We returned to the Folsom Water Resources Control Board property in the morning and were met by Carl Whitehurst and several of the group from yesterday. Carl was wearing a friendly smile as we parked the car and walked to him.

"Looks like everything went according to plan, John," he said. "The result indicated the output water meets all our California standards for potable water. Congratulations."

"Thank you. I hope we get the same results with the next two tests. That will really get us on our way."

Kevin and I and some of the group began to set up the second prototype unit. We would run the next two tests in parallel. It took an hour to connect the power, input and output lines before we were ready to begin. We were using the same procedure as we had the day before and the facility had provided a second stainless steel tank for the output.

"We should be done before noon with the two batches and we can begin testing after lunch," Carl said. "It will be very interesting to see the results because this is where some of the larger equipment has trouble meeting the standards. If you can do that, you've really got something."

A mobile lunch wagon provided for our break just after noon as the last of the test batches was completed. I was anxious after what Carl said about the big units having some difficulty with meeting the state standards. We would know how we did before five that evening.

It was Thomas that said what needed to be said.

"No matter how these tests turn out, Carl, we want to thank you on behalf of our group for participating in evaluating the prototypes. We couldn't have asked for a more reliable source and we are very grateful."

"You are welcome," he smiled. "So, assuming you are successful, what comes next?"

"Hostile environment testing," Kevin replied. "I'm a bit worried about the shrouds being used when the temperature is this high. Inside the unit could be over a hundred-forty degrees. I'm going to have to consider some kind of cooling perhaps. We might need to add a simple compressor and refrigerant system with a fan. Unfortunately that would add to the bulk of the unit, something we're trying to avoid."

"How did you solve that problem in aircraft?" I asked.

"When the plane was on the ground, we vented and ran a small recirculation fan," he answered. "In the air it didn't matter. Cold was more the concern there."

"Does the 220 power line have enough capacity to run the purification system and a small refrigeration unit?" Georgette asked.

"Sure," I said. "We've made sure our unit isn't too power-hungry."

"So, maybe a separate cooling unit to be used when required, then?" she suggested.

"Probably the smart way to do it," Kevin agreed. "Something out of one of those bar fridges would work most likely. We'd just have to make sure it was durable enough too."

"So," I said, "we've got a basic unit, an auxiliary power unit where necessary, and potentially a refrigeration unit. Is that about it?"

Kevin chuckled. "Maybe a small heater for cold weather situations. Something like those old in-car heaters you used to buy at the auto parts store. We don't need the temperature to be down to seventy in the summer or that high in the winter. The machine will function just fine between freezing and something in the nineties."

"Fairly simple add-ons, then," I said. "Not too much cost involved."

"That's the way I see it," Kevin said.

"Have we got a way to put the heater inside the shrouds?" I asked.

"Sure. That won't be a problem. It's the cooling system that will be heavier and bulkier. My thinking is that we shutter the shrouds to allow ventilation when needed. We can close the shutters when it's cold."

"That won't add to much cost or weight I assume."

"Not really. I was going to use aluminum, but it transfers heat too quickly for my liking. I want to look at a polymer alternative. It should make a better heat shield and be more resistant to impact damage."

"Are you thinking carbon fiber?" I asked.

"No ... too brittle. Actually, I was thinking Kevlar."

"Wouldn't that be really expensive?" I worried.

"It's come down in cost quite a bit in the past few years. I think it's worth a look. Otherwise, we might look at what they are using in the automotive industry on bumper covers."

"Is this how you guys operate?" the young Hispanic guy who asked several questions yesterday spoke. His name tag read Luis.

"Well," Georgette said, "this is a prototype and final design is dependent on a lot of different issues. The testing here is about making sure the system works and does what it's supposed to do. The rest of it is getting the details right. We don't have all the fine points figured out yet, but we are working through them as we go. Kevin's experience is in the Air Force and at Lockheed-Martin. Those people invented this kind of development."

As I looked around, I saw the group was paying rapt attention to our discussion and particularly to Georgette. She kept surprising me at just how deeply she was immersed in this project and how much she had learned in a very short period of time.

I wondered if any of them were thinking about applying for a job when we went commercial with our products. I could visualize the need for technicians to continuously test our developments. What I really hoped for was to find at least one more Kevin so that the load wasn't completely on his shoulders to turn my ideas into reality. He kept coming up with good ideas and I wanted to do everything in my power to encourage him.

By three-thirty that afternoon the four of us were pacing around the property after having loaded the equipment back on the pickup and trailer. I thought about how lucky we were to have this cooperation from the state government. They couldn't promote our product, but they could make people aware that it was available. More importantly, their independent testing would give us the credibility that we sought. Assuming similar performance from the production unit, we could release the results of the testing and they would substantiate our claims.

It was an hour later when Carl met us in their lunch room and sat with us.

"Congratulations people, both tests meet our minimum standards quite handily. It looks like you have a product."

"Woo Hoo!" Georgette cried, offering up high-fives to the group. "You did it, John!" she cried, giving me a one-armed hug and a kiss. "That is so great."

"Well done, John," Thomas smiled, offering me his hand.

"I couldn't have done it without Kevin, that's for sure," I said, grasping his hand. "And don't forget Dow and Charlie Prendergast. But I want to thank you, Carl, for all your help. Your testing means so much because it's the standard we all have to meet. We aren't guessing that our results are good. We know they are. Thank you so much."

"You're welcome, John. We can't call these results official until we test actual production units, but I'm anticipating the numbers to be the similar. I'll be following your progress, so please keep me informed. When you have production units available for testing, give me a call. We'll be happy to help."

"That's very generous, Carl," Thomas said sincerely. "It has been great to work with you and your people. Please thank them on our behalf. They contributed to this too."

The drive back to San Francisco that afternoon was done in high spirits. Georgette resumed her front seat position to give her the most comfort, while Thomas drove and Kevin and I sat in the back.

"You think Kevlar might be affordable?" I asked my friend and partner.

"I think there's a good chance. Georgette's volunteered to contact some people who can source it. If we're smart, we won't need a lot. Seeing how hot the metal parts got during our testing, I'm sure aluminum is a bad idea. We don't want to burn the customers, do we?" he grinned.

"I thought Kevlar was just used in fabric applications," I said.

"No, it's also used in rigid structures like carbon fiber is, but in our case, we want something less exotic and more practical from a cost point of view. Even exterior grade PVC might be good enough. They use it on house siding and the surface temperature of that application will probably approximate what our unit will experience."

"I've been wondering if engineered plastics can be used for our structure in place of stainless steel," I mused. "I've been thinking about that for both cost and weight. I see it being used in a lot of structural applications now. Windows, doors, industrial structures, all kinds of things. I need to do some more research to see if it's practical."

"That would be a good project for version two of the machine," Kevin smiled.

"Exactly. I've got to make some phone calls tomorrow and let Dow know the results of our tests. Carl said he would e-mail the formal results to us. I'm anxious to compare them to the information Georgette gathered."

"I'll call Charlie and let him know how it went also. I was a bit worried that the outer casing on the flexible hoses might soften with the buildup of surface temperature, but there was no sign of it at all. I should have believed Charlie. He told me not to worry about it."

We didn't stop to eat, but carried on to our home in San Francisco. Thomas had called ahead, letting Sarah know of our success and told her we would arrive sometime near seven that evening. When we did, we got a great reception from Sarah, Nan, Devon and Mary. There was cause for celebration. While we showered and changed, a small feast was brought out and we congratulated ourselves on the progress we had made at Smithton PWTS.

To Be Continued.