CERADYNE RECEIVES RECORD BODY ARMOR ORDER
Ceradyne, Inc. recently received a $133 million delivery order for enhanced side ballistic inserts (ESBI) from the U.S. Army, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md. This new delivery order, scheduled to be shipped April 2007 through November 2007, will be shipped against a larger indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (ID/IQ) contract announced earlier. Ceradyne records as firm orders only delivery orders, such as the above, that have scheduled delivery dates. “This delivery order is the largest single order ever received by Ceradyne,” said Dave Reed, Ceradyne president North American Operations. “Together with the $122.2 million in ESAPI and ESBI body armor orders announced last month, we have excellent visibility into 2007. We anticipate receiving additional orders early in 2007 for delivery in 2007.”
The company’s website is located at www.ceradyne.com.

COOKSON TO SELL MONOFRAX TO RHI
Effective December 18, 2006, Cookson entered into an agreement to sell Monofrax, a fused-cast refractories business that forms a separate part of Cookson’s Ceramics division, to RHI AG of Austria for US$45 million (£23 million). The purchase price will be satisfied on completion of RHI's assumption of pension, retirement, medical and other liabilities, estimated at US$10 million (£5 million), with the balance satisfied in cash, estimated at US$35 million (£18 million). Cookson also recently sold its PVC Cements business for a cash consideration of US$3 million (£2 million). “Monofrax and PVC Cements are non-core businesses where we have relatively small market share positions, and their disposal is part of our strategy to focus our portfolio on businesses where we have leading market positions,” said Nick Salmon, chief executive of Cookson.
For additional information, call (44) 0207822-0000 or visit www.cookson.co.uk. RHI’s website is located at www.rhi-ag.com .

COORSTEK ACQUIRES GAISER TOOL
CoorsTek, Inc. recently announced its acquisition of Gaiser Tool Co., a high-quality ceramic precision tooling manufacturer based in Ventura, Calif., with operations in Tokyo, Japan. CoorsTek plans to retain the Gaiser brand while infusing technical and material innovations to further enhance the company’s market position. With precision ceramic tools capable of part dimensions as small as 2 µm, CoorsTek also expects to expand its micro-component capabilities for a variety of markets. “Gaiser Tool invented the wire bonding ceramic tool market in the early 1970s and now leads the high end of it with quality and innovation,” said Mark Petty, executive vice president of CoorsTek. “We bring a significant level of technical ceramic expertise to this enterprise and expect customers and their industries to benefit substantially.”
For additional information, visit www.coorstek.com.

EPA FINALIZES TRI RULE
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently finalized a Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) rule that encourages reductions in chemical emissions and increases in recycling at facilities nationwide. The EPA also announced its decision to continue requiring TRI data reporting on an annual basis. These changes in no way affect the specific chemicals or amounts of chemicals that facilities are authorized to release to the environment. In addition, the final rule does not exempt any facility from reporting their releases, nor does it remove any chemicals from the TRI. The rule allows facilities that completely eliminate releases of persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic chemicals (PBTs), and recycle and treat no more than 500 pounds of such chemicals, to use a shorter reporting form. For non-PBT chemicals, the rule allows businesses to use the simpler reporting form if their releases are no more than 2000 pounds of waste as part of an overall waste management limit of 5000 pounds.
For more information about the final rule, visit www.epa.gov/tri/tridata/modrule/phase2/forma.htm.

ZLOTY NAMED SALES REP FOR FURNACE PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
Furnace Products and Services, Inc. recently announced that Bob Zloty is its latest outside sales representative. He has over 20 years of experience in the refractories industry, with extensive knowledge of furnace design and installation. Zloty can be reached at (724) 285-3774 or (630) 740-9504, fax (724) 285-7673, or e-mail bob.zloty@fpands.com.
The company’s website is located at www.fpands.com. 

CUSTOM ATTRITOR DEVELOPED BY UNION PROCESS
Union Process has manufactured a custom model SDL-30 dry grinding batch Attritor for a customer producing desiccants (sorbents) for the food, pharmaceutical, medical/diagnostic and electronics industries. The unit has a special cover with a Teflon shaft seal for grinding under low temperatures, and it features a vent port for liquid nitrogen as well as two ports for charging separate ingredients. With a gross tank volume of 52 gal, the mill is constructed with a 50-HP motor with a variable frequency drive (VFD). The operator station, mounted on the unit, includes start/stop pushbuttons and a speed potentiometer.
For additional information, call (330) 929-3333, e-mail eli@unionprocess.com  or visit www.unionprocess.com.

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Insaco is a precision machining company that provides finished pieces to customers' specifications from ultra hard materials, including oxide ceramics, nitrides, carbides and quartz, and especially industrial sapphire. NEW capability allows the company to machine within a 102” x 31” x 70” envelope and still hold tight tolerances. Visit www.insaco.com.

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