Axsun Technologies Introduces a Breakthrough NIR Analyzer for Process Applications at PITTCON© 2004

CHICAGO, IL and BILLERICA, MA (March 8, 2004) - Axsun Technologies, Inc., a leading manufacturer of micro-optoelectronic products that improve quality, performance, and productivity in a variety of industries, will unveil its latest product at PITTCON 2004 (Booth 4811) - the Axsun NIR-APS (application prototyping system), a powerful near-infrared analyzer. Rugged, versatile, and designed for the exacting demands and hostile environments of process applications, the Axsun NIR-APS makes real-time, on-the-spot measurements feasible and affordable. Big on features, yet miniature in size, these fully integrated NIR spectrometers can be placed strategically throughout the process line.

The Axsun NIR-APS is designed to perform reliably under the harshest conditions, combining all of the features process applications need in one fully functional, sensor-sized spectrometer: speed, accuracy, resolution, ruggedness, and low cost. Based on Axsun's proven reliable MEMS tunable optical filter, micro-optics, and LIGA micro-alignment structures, along with a broadband SLED light source and wavelength reference, the analyzer's small size and ruggedness enable true process-analytical spectroscopy in industrial-manufacturing settings. Real quality can't be tested into a product; it needs to be designed in as an integral part of the production process - from raw materials through manufacturing, to final packaging.

"Our goal with this first offering to the industrial-process market is to demonstrate the power of our technology in the most demanding process applications," said Jack Kay, president and chief executive officer of Axsun. "Until now, the available analytical tools have been too delicate, too big, and too costly to deploy effectively in most industrial process lines. In fact, it's not unusual for installation and maintenance costs to exceed procurement costs for traditional laboratory instruments. We are committed to working with OEM customers and end users to tailor this technology to bring the instrument to the line, instead of the line to the instrument."

In addition to its own booth at PITTCON, Axsun products will also be featured in the booths of partnership program members, including Specac, Axiom Analytical, Inc., and SpectrAlliance.

"We are excited by the potential of significantly reducing the size of a dedicated sampling system in tandem with delivering innovative, reduced-cost-per-point sampling solutions," said Dave Coombs, Specac's sales and marketing manager. "Axsun's leading-edge miniature spectrometer technology combined with Specac's excellence in sampling interfacing will create a powerful new tool for obtaining infrared molecular data."

Dr. Mike Doyle, Axiom's president and chief executive officer, commented, "By uniting Axsun's innovative optical engine with our robust process probes and Symbion-DX process-management and control software, we can offer manufacturing customers a laboratory-grade instrument mounted on a probe that will meet regulatory requirements such as 21 CFR Part 11."

PITTCON, the Pittsburgh Conference, will be held March 7-12, 2004, at McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois. Axsun is exhibiting in booth 4811. Axsun products can also be seen in the following partnership program member booths:

• Axiom Analytical booth 3969
• Specac booth 810
• SpectrAlliance booth 4410a

In addition, the company will present three symposia at the conference:

• Sunday, March 7, 2004, poster session, grand ballroom, 2 pm to 7:30 pm
  High-Speed, High-Resolution Spectroscopy in Process Analysis (Poster 1700-1800 P)
• Monday, March 8, 2004, poster session, exhibit floor aisles 2500-2600, 1:30 pm to 4:30 pm
  The Challenge of Chip-Sized Optical Spectrometers (Poster 7400-2100 P)
• Friday, March 12, 2004, 11:45 am, Location: S504bc
  Micro-Optical Instrumentation for Industrial Process Spectroscopy (Paper 25900-1000)

About Specac

Specac designs, manufactures, and supplies products to serve customers in a variety of markets, including sampling accessories for FTIR, specialist optical components for many industries, process systems for on-line analysis, presses and dies for XRF sample preparation, and specialist components and systems such as polarisers and FIR spectrometers. Specac is part of the Smiths Group, an international company listed in the top 100 UK companies on the London Stock exchange and with sales of £3billion, employing 16,000 people in some 50 different businesses located in the UK, USA, and Europe.

About Axiom

Founded in 1988, Axiom Analytical, Inc.'s mission is to develop and manufacture the robust sample-interfacing equipment and instrumentation software required to fully realize the potential of molecular spectroscopy for industrial near-line and on-line chemical analysis. The company's sampling devices make it possible to monitor chemical composition at locations, or under conditions previously thought impossible. Its optical transfer and multiplexing equipment enable these products to be linked into comprehensive sampling systems. Its Symbion-DX Process Analytical Software Suite controls diverse instruments, providing data acquisition and analysis, trend plotting, archiving, validation, and regulatory compliance. Axiom's customer base spans the chemical processing and pharmaceutical industries.

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