HILLSBORO, Ore., Nov. 3, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- FEI Company (Nasdaq:FEIC) announced that Phenom-World, a majority-owned subsidiary of NTS Group B.V. (NTS) of Eindhoven, The Netherlands, has acquired FEI's Phenom(TM) product line. NTS has been FEI's manufacturing partner and was closely involved with the development of the innovative desktop scanning electron microscope before it was introduced in 2007. NTS will continue to manufacture the product, and Phenom-World will assume responsibility for marketing, sales and distribution of the product worldwide, as well as service and warranty repairs for the installed base.
FEI will retain a minority position in Phenom-World and will retain certain related intellectual property. FEI expects this transaction will have a minimal impact on its 2009 fourth quarter earnings and will have a modest positive impact in 2010. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
"This transaction is consistent with our division strategy of focusing on value-added solutions for specific industries and groups of customers such as natural resources," said Paul Scagnetti, vice president and general manager of FEI's Industry market division. "As we continue to develop individual applications, we will be able to purchase Phenoms from Phenom-World when it is appropriate for our customer needs. NTS will combine its manufacturing and engineering strengths with marketing and distribution of the product."
About FEI
FEI (Nasdaq:FEIC) is a leading diversified scientific instruments company. It is a premier provider of electron and ion-beam microscopes and tools for nanoscale applications across many industries: industrial and academic materials research, life sciences, semiconductors, data storage, natural resources and more. With a 60-year history of technological innovation and leadership, FEI has set the performance standard in transmission electron microscopes (TEM), scanning electron microscopes (SEM) and DualBeams(TM), which combine a SEM with a focused ion beam (FIB). FEI's imaging systems provide 3D characterization, analysis and modification/prototyping with resolutions down to the sub-Angstrom (one-tenth of a nanometer) level. FEI's NanoPorts in North America, Europe and Asia provide centers of technical excellence where its world-class community of customers and specialists collaborate. FEI has approximately 1800 employees and sales and service operations in more than 50 countries around the world. More information can be found at: www.fei.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
This news release contains forward-looking statements that include the impact on FEI's financial results due to the sale of its Phenom product line and NTS Group's assumption of future sales and distribution of the product line. Factors that could affect these forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, failure of the market for Phenom products to develop as expected and unexpected costs or asset valuation issues. Please also refer to our Form 10-K, Forms 10-Q, Forms 8-K and other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for additional information on these factors and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. FEI assumes no duty to update forward-looking statements.