Business briefs

09 Jan 2004

Including news from Agere Systems, Lumenis, Diomed, GSI Lumonics and more.

•  Lumenis, the Israeli medical laser maker, has agreed to outsource the manufacturing and service operations at its Pleasanton, California site to RH Technologies. The agreement is part of Lumenis’s plan to close sites and reduce costs. Lumenis expects to save approximately $5million over the next four years as a result of this deal.

•  Diomed, a maker of medical laser systems, has started legal action against fellow US firm AngioDynamics/ in the US Federal District Court for the District of Massachusetts. Diomed is seeking injunctive relief and damages for infringement of its patent covering endovascular treatment of varicose veins.

•  Agere Systems has acquired fellow US firm TeraBlaze, a maker of gigabit ethernet (GbE) switching systems, in an all-stock deal valued at $21 million. All 16 TeraBlaze employees will join Agere’s workforce. Agere hopes to use the acquisition as a route into the fast-growing GbE market.

•  MicroVue, a UK-based microdisplay production firm, has been placed into voluntary liquidation. CRL Opto, a UK firm that uses MicroVue as its supplier, says that its will continue to sell reflective ferroelectric liquid-crystal-on-silicon XGA and SXGA microdisplays. “Whilst we appreciate that CRL’s customers will be concerned about the production and supply of microdisplays, we have a high level of confidence that a new source will be available soon,” said CRL’s managing director Greg Truman.

•  GSI Lumonics has received a $7 million order for its WaferTrim M310 systems from a US-based integrated circuit (IC) manufacturer. The systems will be delivered in the first quarter of 2004. The Wafer Trim, which is used in the production of precision linear and mixed-signal IC devices, allows developers to produce multiple devices from the same die.

•  Toshiba has developed a prototype high-definition DVD player. The Japanese consumer electronics giant says the player contains a single-lens optical head which uses a red diode laser to read current DVDs and a blue diode laser to read next-generation discs. The device is on show at this week’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2004) being held in Las Vegas, US.