[Razor]

Originally Posted by albert_dao

Okay, let's clear some things up:

1. RE is moving to a direct sales model. Some of you may recall EuroReef did this a while back. It wrecked their business model. Why did they do it? Who knows, but it was BS.

Unfortunately, there is nothing Proline, nor Vertex for that matter, can do about this. When a small company (RE) decides they want to change the direction of their business, there is no board or committee to recommend against toxic actions. It's sad and it f**ks a lot of us, but it's happening.

2. Vertex has moved manufacture of the entire Alpha line to their own factories in Germany. There will be a slight lull as they retool everything, but all molds and designs are owned by Vertex and were previously commissioned to RE for assembly.

3. The pumps will be available once retooling is done. RE pumps are not magical. They're an Askoll motorblock with some well thought out custom components, components that should be readily/easily engineered by a competent firm. I may be going out on a limb here, but I feel (given my affinity) that Vertex is a competent firm.

4. The rest of what you get on the forums is hearsay.

Edit: Dave is right - Parts for Alpha skimmers are still readily available. In the future, they will no longer bear the Red Dragon moniker. That is all.

As an added bonus, removing the commissioned manufacturer will open a few doors for the sake of making improvements and/or price reductions, especially on parts.

I'm good with this.