Critical. Important. Essential. Necessary.
These are some of the words that come to mind when I think of the word “vital.”
Vital represents something crucial. In a life and death situation, a doctor’s first concerns are the patient’s vital signs. Is there life?
So, at POET, how do our vital signs look?
One of the four vital signs a doctor looks at is body temperature. Is the body too hot or too cold? Could the patient be suffering from hypothermia or hyperthermia?
A couple of years ago, the ethanol industry was very hot. There was an undersupply situation thanks to the Renewable Fuel Standard and the outlawing of methyl tertiary-butyl ether (MTBE). Investors and bankers were scrambling to get in on the action.
Now, I would say our temperature is about 98.6. It’s right where it should be. Growth has slowed. There is more caution. Yet our market continues to grow, and economic conditions are still favorable for efficient producers like POET.
How about our pulse? Doctors look for the pulse to gauge if there’s life.
At POET, our heart is really pumping! We’re excited about what lies ahead, and we’re vigorously working to take advantage of the many opportunities that await: new plant developments, new technologies, cellulosic ethanol. These are all available, and we’re sprinting to win the prize.
Doctors also check for blood pressure. High blood pressure is a sign of hypertension. And if blood pressure is too low, it can mean the patient isn’t getting enough blood to critical organs.
I’d have to say our blood pressure is just right at 120 over 80. We have the right people to get the job done— to get the blood to the right places. We will not sacrifice when it comes to the lifeline of our organization: people. And we’re not going to let our blood pressure get too high. We’ll continue to take the same methodical, timetested approach to growth that we’ve taken in the past. We’re not going to increase our blood pressure by putting unnecessary risk on our organization.
The final vital sign is respiratory rate. Is the patient breathing? And how fast? We’re breathing hard at POET. The recent Energy Bill has been a breath of fresh air. Not to mention the tremendous opportunity that exists for ethanol blends in the 20- to 30-percent range. These could very well be the optimum blends for motorists and the ethanol industry.
So you can see, at POET our vital signs are in check. And we check them often. We’re here to do a job for our team members, our investors, our communities, our nation and our planet.
It’s vital that we do.
