Dalsa to Supply CCD Chips to Mamiya

WATERLOO, Ontario, Sept. 29 -- Dalsa Corp., a Canadian maker of digital imaging and semiconductor products and services, announced it has received a contract to supply charge-coupled device (CCD) image sensor chips to Mamiya, a manufacturer of professional medium-format cameras. Dalsa will supply a minimum quantity of sensors valued at $20 million. The contract is for a five-year period, but the company said it expects the minimum quantity to be delivered over the next two years with the potential for follow-on orders.

Dalsa's 22-million-pixel CCD image sensor chips will be "the eyes" of the new Mamiya ZD portable (nontethered) medium-format digital camera. The professional-grade device is being launched at the Photokina imaging trade show this week in Cologne, Germany.

Medium-format cameras are used by commercial photographers for advertising, wedding, portrait and landscape work. "Compared to the smaller 35-mm format, the imaging area on a medium format camera is several times larger, providing sharper, higher-quality images with significantly more detail," Dalsa said in a statement. "As in other areas of photography, medium format is rapidly transitioning from film to digital. The move is being fueled by the availability of viable digital camera and workflow solutions that allow commercial photographers to eliminate film costs and significantly increase productivity."

Dalsa expects shipments under the contract to begin in late 2004 with an anticipated increase in 2005 once the customer's camera gains market acceptance.

For more information, visit: www.dalsa.com