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TechVents honeycomb panels from Leader Tech offer 125dB E-field attenuation >Story

Spectrum Control Completes Acquisition Deal

Spectrum Control Inc. has completed an acquisition of most of acoustic wave technologies developer Micro Networks Corp.

The Fairview, Pennsylvania firm said in a news release that its microwave unit recently purchased "substantially all of the assets" of Integrated Device Technology's Micro Networks in a move to expand the company's microwave capabilities for defense and other applications.

Spectrum Control, a custom electronic solutions developer for defense markets, says the acquisition was completed for approximately $13 million.

"We are very pleased to complete this acquisition, which expands our microwave capabilities to include surface acoustic wave products and technology," says Dick Southworth, president and CEO of Spectrum Control.

"Surface acoustic wave filters are a natural complement to our existing microwave capabilities, as these products predominantly serve our major targeted markets of military, aerospace and communications equipment," he said.

Sypris Acquires Davis Calibration

Sypris Test & Measurement of Orlando, Florida and Davis Calibration of Baltimore, Maryland report that STM has completed the acquisition of Davis. Details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Founded in 1912, Davis Calibration is a leader in the calibration, repair and certification of test, measurement and control instruments. It serves its customers from 29 calibration laboratories located throughout the U.S. staffed with highly trained calibration experts and the calibration capabilities and capacity to meet the needs of virtually every industry. Prior to this transaction, Davis was owned by JPB Enterprises, Inc., a Columbia, Maryland-based private equity and advisory service firm.

STM is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tektronix, Inc. and is a leading provider of calibration services, testing and component sourcing services. The company serves customers in a variety of markets, including military, aerospace, avionics, telecommunications, automotive, semiconductor, medical and more.

Tektronix Wins 2009 EEPW Award

Tektronix, Inc. of Beaverton, Oregon, a leading provider of test, measurement and monitoring instrumentation, reports that its MSO2000 mixed signal oscilloscope received an Editor's Choice Award in China from Electronic Engineering & Product World (EEPW) magazine for Embedded System Users' Favorite Test and Measurement Solution.

The EEPW Editor's Choice Award judging panel, composed of its editorial team, Embedded System Committee of China Computer Federation, Embedded System Committee and IC Design Branch of China Semiconductor Industry Association, selected 18 winners out of 60 entries from 40 companies.

NII's Miura Wins 2009 Seymour Cray Award

Miura

Kenichi Miura, a professor at the National Institute of Informatics, is the 2009 winner of the IEEE Computer Society's prestigious Seymour Cray Computer Engineering Award.

Miura, a professor in NII's Information Systems Architecture Science Research Division, is also director of the Center for Grid Research and Development and a Fellow of Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd. He was cited for leading the groundbreaking development of the Fujitsu vector processors, hardware, and software. Miura was recognized for his unique contributions to the field of computer engineering by bringing a strong background in numerical algorithms and applications to the task of designing systems that deliver high performance on real scientific applications.

The 1983 introduction of the Fujitsu VP-100/200 vector processing systems was a major milestone in the history of supercomputer design. Miura made seminal contributions to the Fujitsu supercomputer design, showing how effective vectorizing compilers could exploit architectural features.

LCR Hires Kessler as Director of Commercial Sales

Kessler

LCR Electronics of Norristown, Pennsylvania, a leading manufacturer of EMI filters, electronic controls, subsystem enclosures and backplanes as well as related electronic components, has hired Eric Kessler as director of commercial sales. The new position was created in response to the company's growing customer base in this distinct market segment.

Kessler will focus on customer support, strengthening relationships worldwide, as well as managing all commercial sales activities for the company. He will spend time onsite with customers as well as with LCR sales personnel and manufacturers' representatives. As director, Kessler will also identify additional commercial markets that could benefit from LCR's technologies and advanced customization techniques.

He holds a BA degree in international affairs with a business concentration and an MBA in international business from Xavier University. During his work in industrial steam generation, he authored several published papers and spoke at a number of industry conferences.

Mowell Named EMS Technologies' Executive Director

Mowell

EMS Technologies' board of directors has appointed John B. Mowell, chairman of the board, to the additional position of executive director. This appointment responds to requirements of the National Industrial Security Program Operating Manual (NISPOM) with respect to the senior management of companies that perform classified U.S. government work, and was necessary to maintain the company's facility clearance license for its Defense and Space Division.

To hold the license, the company is required to have as its most-senior management official an individual who holds a U.S. security clearance. Recently elected president and CEO, Neilson A. Mackay, holds a NATO clearance, but is currently a Canadian citizen and thus is not eligible for a U.S. clearance until he completes the process, currently under way, of becoming a U.S. citizen.

In order to meet the NISPOM requirements in the short term, the board elected Mowell as executive director, which under the company's recently amended by-laws is its most-senior management position. Dr. Mackay will continue to hold the titles of president and CEO.

Nordson's Boards Names New President and CEO

Hilton

The board of directors of Nordson Corp. in Westlake, Ohio has named Michael F. Hilton as the company's new president and CEO. Hilton, who will also join the Nordson board of directors, will succeed retiring president and CEO Edward P. Campbell. Campbell will be succeeded as chairman of the board by current Nordson director Joseph P. Keithley.

Hilton, 55, has served since September 2007 as senior vice president and general manager for Air Products and Chemicals Inc. with specific responsibility for leading the company's $2 billion global Electronics and Performance Materials segment.

"I am very pleased by the opportunity to build on Nordson's outstanding record of success," said Hilton. "I look forward to working with the company's deep and experienced management team to deliver the performance and global growth that customers, employees and shareholders expect."

Intersil to Acquire Rock Semiconductor

Intersil Corp. of Milpitas, California has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Rock Semiconductor of China, a privately-held, fabless semiconductor company with technology leadership in highly integrated power management ICs.

Rock Semiconductor provides high-performance analog and mixed-signal integrated circuits for wireless, audio, video and data communications solutions. Rock's products are primarily used in the consumer end market in applications such as cellular phones, personal navigation devices, portable multimedia players and other types of popular consumer electronics products.

"Rock Semiconductor's products are a perfect fit with Intersil's rapidly expanding portfolio of power management, audio and communications ICs," said Dave Bell, Intersil's CEO. "In addition, the acquisition of Rock will immediately give Intersil a greatly expanded presence in the burgeoning local Chinese market."

Laird Engineer Recognized for IEEE Std 1302™

Laird Technologies reports that Gary Fenical, EMC technical representative and NARTE-certified EMC and ESD engineer, has been recognized for co-developing the IEEE Std 1302-2008 standard for the IEEE Guide for the Electromagnetic Characterization of Conductive Gaskets in the Frequency Range of DC to 18GHz.

IEEE provides technical and professional information, resources, and services specializing in the areas of aerospace systems, computers and telecommunications, biomedical engineering, electric power, and consumer electronics.

The IEEE Std 1302™ — 2008 assists in evaluating gasket measurement techniques, establishing gaskets exhibiting properties critical to the intended application, highlighting limitations and errors of rival measurement techniques, and providing a comparison for the techniques used. Emphasis is placed on the measurement techniques adopted into standards or extensively used.

Viterbi Named 2010 IEEE Medal of Honor Recipient

IEEE, the world's largest technical professional association, reports that IEEE Life Fellow Andrew J. Viterbi, co-founder of Qualcomm Inc. and developer of wireless technologies that became the international standard for third-generation cellular phones, has been named the 2010 IEEE Medal of Honor recipient. The Medal of Honor, IEEE's highest award, will be presented 26 June 2010 in Montreal, Canada as part of IEEE's annual Honors Ceremony.

Viterbi, who received the National Medal of Science in 2008, is being recognized for "seminal contributions to communications technology and theory." In the mid-1960s, while a professor at UCLA, he developed the Viterbi Algorithm, a breakthrough in wireless technology that separated information (voice and data) from background noise. All four international standards for third-generation digital cellular communications as well as most digital satellite communications systems use the Viterbi Algorithm. In 1985, Viterbi co-founded Qualcomm with Irwin Jacobs and helped to develop Code Division Multiple Access technology, which applied spread spectrum to cellular phones.

Schaffner Activities to Be Halted in Switzerland

The Schaffner Group plans to cease production activities in Switzerland that remained following realignment. A social plan has been put in place for the 21 employees affected by this measure. The anticipated one-off costs will be recognized in the financial statements for fiscal 2008/2009. The company's headquarters in Luterbach remains the most important center for innovation and development within the global Schaffner Group.

The decision by the Schaffner Group to cease its remaining production activities in Switzerland was made in response to a reduction in demand for EMC rail filters brought on by the recession. The existing Schaffner plants will be sufficient to meet the international demand for EMC rail filters once the world economy recovers. The Schaffner Group currently has a total of more than 1,700 full-time positions worldwide, at its headquarters in Switzerland, its production facilities in China, Germany, Thailand and Hungary, and its international service and sales organization.

EM Test Opens U.S. Office

To better serve its customers, EM Test has opened a U.S. office headed by Michael Hopkins, formerly with Keytek and Thermo Voltek, and will expand this new facility to include service and calibration operations. EM Test is already the world's leading manufacturer and supplier of EMC generators for the automotive industry and will use the U.S. office to expand its customer base with testers and services for telecom, avionics, medical, consumer and industrial control products.

The U.S. office also will act as a base for organizing seminars, workshops and other services to educate and train customers. To insure they remain at the leading edge of EMC technology, EM Test USA will participate directly with U.S. manufacturers to understand their requirements and be first to offer advances in software (Windows 7 compatibility) and hardware control.

For more information, visit:
www.emtest.com,
email: sales@emtest.com or phone: (603) 769-3477.

Agilent Cited for LTE and WiMAX™ Leadership

Agilent Technologies Inc. of Santa Clara, California has received Frost and Sullivan's Best Practices Award for World Market Share Leadership in LTE and WiMAX test equipment. The award is based on market research showing that Agilent held the highest industry market share in 2008 with 20.2% of the market revenues.

"While Agilent's competitors are capable of addressing certain segments within WiMAX and LTE, the company's product range spans the entire technology life cycle, from early R&D through manufacturing to network deployment and service assurance," said Vijay Mathew, Frost & Sullivan research analyst.

Agilent has a wide range of hardware platforms and software solutions that address the complex technical issues inherent to both LTE and WiMAX. Additional resources include Agilent's book, LTE and the Evolution to 4G Wireless Design and Measurement Challenges, a vast library of application notes, and a knowledgeable sales force capable of guiding and supporting customers through complex RF and wireless application challenges.

Smiths Group Acquires Channel Microwave

Channel Microwave of Camarillo, California reports that it has been acquired by Smiths Group plc, and will now operate as an independent division of Lorch Microwave Inc. of Salisbury, Maryland.

"We are proud to become a part of the Smiths family of companies, and we are committed to maintaining the sound business practices and culture that have contributed to our success to date. Our position as a leader in high performance ferrite products and sub-systems for military, space, commercial and industrial applications is now supported by the additional resources of Smiths," said Ken Boswell, VP and GM.