Nov 20, 2002
Marlborough, MA November 18, 2002 � EKRA has been aware of Speedline�s patents for some time, has carefully reviewed the patents that are at issue in the lawsuit and is confident that it does not infringe any of the patents. In addition, EKRA owns substantial prior art dating more than a year before the application of the Speedline vision alignment patent which will likely invalidate that patent. EKRA intends to fully defend itself in this matter, as this is an obvious effort to apply unfair and inappropriate business practices to limit competition. In addition, EKRA America�s parent, EKRA GmbH, has initiated a patent action in Germany against Speedline in connection with EKRA�s 2 1/2D Inspection technology. That case is to be decided by the Court in Germany in March, 2003.
Headquartered in Marlborough, MA, EKRA America provides screen printing solutions for the SMT, Hybrid, Semiconductor Packaging, and Solar industries in the Americas. EKRA America�s parent company is EKRA GmbH. Headquartered in Bonnigheim, Germany, EKRA is a leading worldwide supplier of printing solutions for the electronics industry. EKRA focuses on useful technology development that provides real benefit to customer processes. Efficiency, ease-of-use and reliability are characteristics designed into every EKRA product.