Business briefs

17 Jun 2002

Including news from PhotonEx, Memscap, News Focus and Bausch & Lomb.

US start-up PhotonEx has won USD 90 million in its third round of funding. The latest cash injection brings the optical telecoms maker's total financing to USD 178 million, and it plans to use this round of funding to ramp up production.

French microelectromechanical systems developer Memscap reports overall growth so far this year despite the economy slow down. At Euro 7.2 million, this year's revenue is up by 3.7 times compared with the same period last year. Memscap directors anticipate that the total yearly revenue will reach Euro 10.5 million.

Kenneth Westrick, the president and chief executive of US-based fiber-optics maker New Focus, has resigned. Clark Harris, who will now take on Westrick's role, says that Westrick's resignation is due to personal reasons.

The US Food and Drug Administration has approved US-based eye lens manufacturer Bausch & Lomb's Active Eyetracking System. The high-speed image processing system tracks eye movement during excimer laser surgery.

Opticology, a US optical systems manufacturer, has won a grant to develop an ophthalmic device that measures blind spots on the retina. Working with the Aborn Eye Research Center, Opticology will combine the technique with software for clinical trials at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary.