Cree to begin marketing blue laser diode
Cree Inc. (Durham, NC) has announced blue laser diode lifetimes in excess of 1000 hours in the 400-nm range. The company has also increased the efficiency of its blue laser diode through improvements in threshold operating characteristics, and plans to begin customer sampling by the end of this calendar year. "This announcement signifies a new era in blue laser technology," said Chuck Swoboda, president and CEO. "We believe silicon carbide's natural cleave plane and structure will render our device to be the preferred choice among packagers and system suppliers. We are positioning the company with a view to capturing a significant share of this market."
TerraPoint lidar assesses transmission lines
Manitoba Hydro (Winnipeg, Man., Canada) has selected TerraPoint (The Woodlands, TX) to provide laser detection and ranging (lidar) technology for verification and re-rating services of transmission lines. Utility companies across the United States and Canada are looking to upgrade their transmission lines to meet growing demands for energy, according to Jim Koop, general manager of the W.I.R.E. Services subsidiary of Manitoba Hydro. "But many times information regarding line designs is out-of-date, incomplete, or missing all together," Koop said. "Lidar technology provides a fast, cost-effective method for collecting highly accurate data that allows utilities to make the best-informed decisions regarding upgrade and re-rating options."
Coherent sales increase in fourth fiscal quarter
Coherent Inc. (Santa Clara, CA) has reported a $7.3 million (7%) increase in sales to $115.5 million for its fourth fiscal quarter ended Sept. 29, compared to sales in the fourth quarter of the prior year. And if market conditions remain the same the company estimates that sales could decline 10% to 15% in the first quarter of 2002 from Q4 2001. During the recently completed quarter, all non-Lambda Physik employees took four unpaid vacation days, and the global workforce was reduced by 4%. Fiscal year 2002 has already brought an additional 3% workforce reduction and promises 7 shutdown days in the first half. "We have not stood idle during this downturn as it relates to managing our business, as we have taken what we consider appropriate actions in monitoring our levels of spending," said Bernard Couillaud, president and CEO.
Rofin-Sinar revenues decrease in fourth fiscal quarter
Rofin-Sinar Technologies Inc. (Plymouth, MI and Hamburg, Germany) reported net sales totaling $54.4 million for the fourth quarter ended Sept. 30, a slight decrease of 6.2% over the comparable period in 2000. The company also reported gross profit totaling $17.1 million or 31.5% of sales, compared to $22.5 million or 38.9% of sales in 2000. The decrease in profit margin was attributed to changes in product mix because of reduced sales of laser marking equipment to the semiconductor/electronics industry, higher warranty reserves, and higher amortization for more demonstration units in the field. "Despite the adverse market conditions, we still achieved respectable sales in the fourth quarter, yet the losses in our US marking operation and an adverse tax structure led to a net loss in the quarter," said Peter Wirth, chairman of the board and CEO.
Also in the news . . .
JMAR Technologies Inc. (San Diego, CA) announced that its JMAR/SAL NanoLithography Inc. division located in Burlington, VT has been awarded a US patent titled "Method for Improving X-ray Lithography in the Sub-100nm Range to Create High Quality Semiconductor Devices," which will help the company compete in the advanced military and commercial semiconductor-lithography system markets. . . . The American Council of the Blind (Washington, DC) praised the federal Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services' decision, announced last month, to pay for ocular photodynamic therapy for age-related macular degeneration. The repeatable treatment uses nonthermal laser activation of a photosensitive drug to temporarily close leaking blood vessels.
Hassaun A. Jones-Bey