Business briefs

26 Aug 2005

Including news from JDS Uniphase, LG Philips LCD, Carl Zeiss IMT, Specialised Imaging and more.

General company news:

•  Teem Photonics has acquired JDS Uniphase's passive Q-switched microlaser product line based in Grenoble, France. The deal includes licenses to intellectual property associated with the laser. "The divestiture enables us to focus management attention, sales resources and R&D on our leading solid state laser portfolio," said Phillip Meredith, vice president of JDS Uniphase's commercial laser business unit.

•  Paju Electric Glass, a joint venture between Nippon Electric Glass of Japan and LG Philips LCD, has started construction of a new production line with an initial design capacity of 60,000 input sheets of glass. On Target Media reports that the plant, which is located in Korea's Paju display cluster, is expected to begin production in the first half of 2006 to coincide with the commercial production schedule of LG Philips LCD's new Gen 7 facility.

•  3D Systems, the rapid prototyping specialist, says that a major Japanese car marker has purchased a laser sintering system in order to help with its R&D. "Because it enables customers to reliably manufacture large, highly durable parts directly from digital data, the SinterStation Pro 230 is an ideal choice for automotive manufacturers," said Abe Reichental, 3D Systems' CEO.

•  Photonic Products Group Inc. (PGGI), a US provider of crystals, optics and lasers, has a reported a second quarter revenue of $3.1m, a rise of 62% over the same period last year. The results include sales from MRC Optics, which PGGI acquired in October 2004. "Cash flow from operations turned positive in Q2 as expected," said Dan Lehrfield, PGGI's CEO.

Contracts:

•  TVI has been awarded a five year order to provide the US Army with near-infrared reflective materials for combat identification of soldiers on the battlefield. The material will be sewn directly into uniforms and represents a commitment from the US military to minimize "friendly fire". Currently in production, the new uniforms are expected to be available to the Army's 259,000 soldiers serving in 120 countries worldwide by 2007.

•  StockerYale is to supply laser modules for SICK|IVP's IVC-3D machine vision device. Claimed by its manufacturer to be the world's first 3D smart camera, the unit is said to detect precise geometrical features, regardless of fluctuations in contrast and object speed.

•  Axsys Technologies has received a $4.4 million order to produce dual-field-of-view infrared imaging lenses for an advanced US Army armoured vehicle. Due for delivery over the next 12 months, the lenses are said to enable vehicle operators to perform all-weather missions, day or night.

•  DRS Technologies, a defence contractor based in New Jersey, has received a $24 million contract to supply Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) assemblies for use in the US Army's Javelin anti-tank weapon system. The order was placed by Raytheon Missile Systems of Tucson, Arizona. DRS says that it has already delivered 5000 FLIR components for the Javelin program.

•  Brush Wellman of Ohio has now finished making the 18 blanks that form the primary mirror in the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). The 6.5m-diameter mirror consists of 18 Beryllium hexagonal blanks, each weighing 553 pounds and 1.5m across. The blanks will now be machined by Axsys Technologies and then polished by Tinsley Laboratories. Northrop Grumman is the prime contractor for the project.

Distribution agreements:

•  Specialised Imaging Ltd, a UK maker of ultra high-speed imaging systems, has appointed BOWAS Consulting & Universal Trading of Munich to distribute its products in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and South Africa.

•  Carl Zeiss Industrial Metrology has signed an agreement to distribute Bio-Imaging Research's industrial computer tomography (CT) products in North America. CT is a valuable and non-destructive inspection tool for manufactured parts featuring complex internal geometries.