Question-and-Answer Session
Thank you ma'am (Operator Instructions). And we'll take our first question from Steve Sanders with Stephens Inc.
Steve Sanders – Stephens Inc
Hi, good afternoon, everyone.
Malcolm Unsworth
Hi, Steve.
Deloris Duquette
Hi, Steve.
Steve Sanders – Stephens Inc
I'm going to ask a two part first question and then a one part second question if I may. If you can just clarify how aggressive the DOE will be on the pace of spending of the stimulus money and kind of related to that Malcolm to your point about the enhanced pipeline because several utilities got money, but they have not selected vendors yet. How long do you think it takes before they need to make a decision to stay on this DOE spending space? And then do you have a follow-up.
Malcolm Unsworth
We probably think between anywhere from 1 to 3 years somewhere in the middle I guess Steve.
Steve Sanders – Stephens Inc
Okay, and so the utilities you've got significant grants and I have picked vendors would you expect them to make a decision and a matter of months or could it take quite a bit longer than that, what you're thinking on that?
Malcolm Unsworth
I would say months. I think that’s a lot of the works already been done so I would say months.
Steve Sanders – Stephens Inc
Okay, and then – and then I think regarding the margins, in prior quarter you've talked about gross margins in North America getting back up into the high 30s were better range during 2010 I just wanted to see if you could either put a final point on that or maybe talk a little more about your comment regarding the cost outs during 2010, just give us a little additional information on the gross margin picture in North America.
Malcolm Unsworth
You know what we have introduced that first really the second version now about OpenWay meter, we expect that we would probably introduce our next version sometime later in 2010. And obviously once the volume start to grow we are going to leverage on that on those all that expenses and we'll get better absorptions though we should see the margins improved.
Deloris Duquette
Yeah, Steve we're obviously not giving a timeframe for being back to what we were say in 2008 but certainly that’s the goal that we look for, whether you can achieve that in 2010 as Malcolm said with that the introduction later in the year. That’s probably unrealistic next year but as you ramp that gets better.
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