Elekta receives repeat order in UK for linear accelerators, announces expansion of production at Crawley plant

Elekta receives repeat order in UK for linear accelerators, announces expansion of production at Crawley plantIn September 1999 the New Opportunities Fund announced the provision of over £150m to improve cancer services in the UK, a key part of which was for the purchase of over 50 new linear accelerators. With the last wave of purchases recently decided, Elekta has proved to be the overall winner taking well over 50% of the market, more than all of their competitors combined. In the fifth and final wave of purchases Elekta won five of the nine machines available maintaining their impressive record. The latest orders valued at £3.5 million, take the total value of orders placed from the NOF funded program to £20 million The five purchasing waves have seen major success for Elekta including a single order for five machines from the Christie Hospital in Manchester, the largest single order within the NOF funded program. Two fundamental issues that influenced the choice of Elekta as prime supplier were the unique ability to offer a combination of the latest high technology equipment and strong local support. Elekta make multi million dollar investment in core technologyElekta today announced inauguration of a new multi-million dollar production facility at their Oncology Headquarters facility in Crawley, UK. This marks the completion of an 18 month project to expand in-house capabilities in the core area of wave guide manufacture. The waveguide is one of the key components in the generation of the high energy X-Ray beams that enable Elekta Precise Treatment Systems to deliver advanced clinical techniques. With the recent commissioning of the new facility, Elekta has full process capabilities for in house manufacture. As well as securing supply of a strategically important component, the project will realize improved cost and process efficiencies. The facility includes capital equipment for high precision machining and measurement as well as clean room facilities and a high temperature brazing furnace. "With the completion of this major investment as well as other restructuring activities, Elekta is well positioned to take advantage of new business opportunities in the US and Asia," said Laurent Leksell, CEO of Elekta. ELEKTA is a world-leading supplier of radiation oncology and radiosurgery solutions for precision radiotherapy and neurosurgery. Elekta Precise Solutions® includes a comprehensive range of non-invasive cancer care and minimally invasive neurosurgery systems including radiosurgery and stereotaxy, backed by a global network of clinical, technical and financial support services. Radiotherapy products include Elekta Precise Treatment System® utilizing digital technology in linear accelerators and multi-leaf collimators, PreciseSIM® treatment simulator, Stereotactic Body Frame® and conformal 3-D dose-planning systems. Neurosurgery products include Leksell Gamma Knife® and Leksell Stereotactic System® For further information, please contact: Håkan Bergström, CFO, Elekta AB (publ), tel. +46 8 733 342 318------------------------------------------------------------This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.netThe following files are available for download:http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2001/06/26/20040524BIT20750/wkr0006.pdf