Thermo Electron Sells Test and Measurement Unit to SPX

WALTHAM, Mass., Oct 20 -- Thermo Electron Corp. announced today it has sold its test and measurement business to the Ling Dynamic Systems (LDS) business of SPX Corp. for an undisclosed cash amount.

Thermo's test and measurement business consists of high-performance data acquisition systems used in research, process maintenance and physiological applications to measure various physical parameters such as stress, vibration and temperature sold under the Nicolet and Gould brands. The sale included US operations in Wisconsin and Ohio, and European facilities in France, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK. The Nicolet line of spectroscopy systems, included in Thermo's Life and Laboratory Sciences sector, was not part of the sale.

Marijn E. Dekkers, president and CEO of Thermo Electron, said, "We constantly evaluate our businesses to determine whether they fit our long-term strategy for growth. We believe this test and measurement business did not represent a strategic growth platform for Thermo and is, in fact, a much better fit with LDS's systems-analysis business."

SPX's LDS business makes vibration test systems, vibration controllers and signal analyzers used by manufacturers and test organizations in the aerospace, automotive, aviation, defense and consumer electronics industries.

For more information, visit: www.thermo.com