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A cold morning. An icy windshield. A visionary grad school student窶ｦ
That combination of factors was the start of what is now known as Microheat HotShot® technology.
The year was 1994 and English law student, Solomon Franco, was cold. Standing in the frigid morning air, bending over to scrap off snow and ice from his car's front windshield, he had a brainstorm.
Surely, he thought, if we can put a man on the moon we can come up with a simple solution to automatically clear windshields of snow and ice.
From this decidedly unglamorous, non-technical moment; came a technology that is both innovative and practical. Inspiring and effective. Invaluable and affordable.
That's HotShot®. And this is the timeline of how Solomon's vision became a reality - for the largest automobile manufacturer in the world and for thousands of drivers who no longer have to bend over their cars on frigid winter mornings.
1997 - From a cold morning comes a hot new company
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Solomon Franco founds Microheat. His mission: To develop a safe and effective system to clear and clean windshields quickly and conveniently.
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1998 - Turning the vision into a technological reality
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Microheat starts operations. From here, five years of dedicated, intense effort leads Solomon and the Microheat team to HotShot®, the intelligent heated washer fluid system for clearing and de-icing windshields. Microheat's quest to resolve environmental and engineering challenges of the seemingly straightforward problem of rapidly clearing ice and snow from windshields leads to the development - and patenting - of automatic cycling: The precise combination of fluid volume, temperature, electrical current, and timing.
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2002 - The technology begins to be introduced to the world
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Microheat becomes the first company to market an intelligent HotWASH system and bring it to the aftermarket. Microheat shows its technology to the aftermarket at the AAPEX show at Las Vegas in November.
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2003 - And the world responds
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The company becomes a Tier 1 supplier to the automotive industry and starts shipping sample units to major automotive distributors, retailers, and car dealers. Microheat shows its technology at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in January and receives wide exposure and media coverage as well as interest from major automotive players. Buyhotshot.com, the company's e-commerce site is launched.
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2004 - Innovative technology evolves into innovative company
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The company, and its technology, begins taking hold in many ways:
- May - QS-9000 Certification
- November - HotShot® technology ranked 9th in the Top 20 list of emerging technologies from J.D. Power
- December - Roadstar magazine recognizes HotShot® with its "Most Valuable Product" award
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2005 - HotShot® heats up
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HotShot® momentum continues as the idea becomes a manufacturing reality:
- March - OEM production begins
- April - Cadillac production line installs first OEM unit
- June - ISI 6949 Certification
- July - Microheat earns Frost & Sullivan "Excellence in Emerging Technology - Best Practices Award"
- August - MOBIS awards Microheat a "Memorandum of Undertanding"
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2006 - No more cold, icy mornings
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HotShot® technology becomes available to thousands of customers on multiple vehicle lines:
- General Motors responds to growing consumer demand by offering HotShot® on additional vehicle platforms - Chevrolet Tahoe and Suburban, Cadillac Escalade, GMC Yukon and Hummer H2 and Saturn Outlook
- GM advertising campaign for Buick Lucerne runs through winter months and features HotShot® technology in "Snowflake" commercial
- Microheat is named finalist for the 2006 Automotive News PACE Award
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2007 - Highlights
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HotShot® technology becomes available to thousands of customers on multiple vehicle lines:
- Microheat adds state-of-the-art assembly equipment to double production capabilities by the end of the year
- General Motors expands the HotShot® option to the Cadillac CTS, Chevrolet Silverado, Buick Enclave, GMC Sierra and Acadia.
- On September 18, 2007 Microheat manufactures the one millionth HotShot® unit.
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