In the wake of announcing “disappointing” results for 2012, including an 18 percent revenue slide from 2011, ProPhotonix Ltd. chairman and CEO Mark W. Blodgett said he will retire after 24 years with the company. ProPhotonix, formerly known as StockerYale (See: StockerYale Changes Name to ProPhotonix), consists of two business units: an LED systems manufacturing business based in Ireland, and a laser modules production and laser diode distribution division located in England. Corporate, marketing and North American sales activities are based in Salem. The company announced its 2012 results on Tuesday, posting a loss of $2.9 million for the year, compared to a $1.4 million loss in 2011. Revenue was down 18 percent, to $13.9 million from $17 million in 2011, with LED revenue declining 30 percent to $6 million and lasers/diode revenue decreasing 6 percent to $7.9 million. The fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2012. “2012 was a disappointing year for ProPhotonix,” Blodgett said, due in part to a dramatic decline in sales of LED systems to solar equipment manufacturers, which started in the fall of 2011 and accounted for 85 percent of the decline in LED systems revenue. “The loss of the solar business, which now represents less than 2 percent of sales, derived from excess capacity in the solar industry,” he said. “However, with the build-out of our global sales force in 2012, we are moving expeditiously to replace solar sales and we are pleased with the positive book-to-bill so far this year.” The company’s 2012 revenue by market: industrial (primarily lighting for machine vision), 74 percent; medical, 18 percent; and homeland security and defense, 8 percent; with 56 percent of sales in Europe and 27 percent in North America. The outlook for 2013 is improving, Blodgett said, as the company began seeing results from its sales force expansion in the US and Europe, with booking activity improving so that the pipeline is nearly double that of a year ago. “Booking activity accelerated across both the laser and LED businesses in the first four months of 2013,” he said. “Order bookings totaled $6.2 million, versus $4.9 million in the last four months of 2012. Backlog totaled $6.6 million as of April 30, 2013, a 25 percent increase since year-end.” Other strategic developments in 2013 enhancing this outlook include “an expanded product distribution agreement with Oclaro to include distribution of their high-power lasers, and recently announced partnership with Osram to sell market-leading green and blue direct-diode lasers,” he said (See: ProPhotonix to Offer Osram Green and Blue Laser Diodes). “Both of these initiatives will enable us to offer more solutions to our growing customer base and I am pleased to report that a modest initial order has been placed.” Given the company’s improved long-term outlook, as well as the receipt of financing proposals from several firms to provide working capital, Blodgett said he will retire after more than two decades with the company. He will be succeeded by Tim Losik, who has been chief operating officer and chief financial officer (CFO) for more than five years. “Tim has developed an excellent understanding of the business and the markets we serve, and I am confident that the company will be in good hands moving forward under his stewardship,” Blodgett said. “Tim will continue as acting CFO until a suitable replacement is hired.” ProPhotonix will hold its annual shareholders meeting on July 24 in London. For more information, visit: www.prophotonix.com