News Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Mason N. Carter, Chairman & CEO
973-575-1300, ext. 1202
mnc@merrimacind.com
Merrimac’s Multi-Mix® Microtechnology
Granted Patent By The People’s Republic of China
WEST CALDWELL, N.J., March 31, 2006:
Merrimac Industries, Inc. (AMEX: MRM), today announced that
it has been granted a patent for its Multi-Mix® Microtechnology
from the State Intellectual Property Office of the People’s
Republic of China entitled “Method of Making Microwave
Multifunction Modules Using Fluoropolymer Composite Substrates”.
Chairman and CEO Mason N. Carter commented, “This patent
further supports our Multi-Mix® Product/Market Strategy
and enhances our intellectual property in one of the key growth
areas in the global economy and facilitates our ability to
secure manufacturing and licensing arrangements in China.
This patent covers products such as low cost integrated power
amplifiers and radio transceivers for wireless infrastructure
and WiMAX base stations in the 450 MHz - 3.7 GHz range as
well as Microwave and Millimeterwave line of sight (LOS) digital
radios and backhaul systems.”
Mr. Carter continued, “There is growing trend in the
wireless infrastructure industry to integrate base station
power amplifiers and radio transceivers. This trend is in
line with our Multi-Mix® high power integrated platform
strategy to replace labor intensive and expensive discrete
RF subsystems such as power amplifiers, radio transceivers,
tower mount antennas (TMAs), with low cost, compact, and light
weight integrated solutions. This patent enhances Merrimac’s
position as a pioneer in the global wireless infrastructure
industry offering the industry’s first integrated radio
transceivers, power amplifiers and transmit and receive (T/R)
modules for base station and tower top applications. This
patent enhances our competitive position to establish significant
partnerships with major base station OEMs in China enabling
Merrimac to participate with its advanced integrated high
power amplifier technology in a growing number of base station
opportunities.
Mr. Carter further noted, “Multi-Mix® Microtechnology
is an innovative proprietary enabling platform technology
developed exclusively for integration of RF, Microwave and
Millimeterwave circuits, multifunction modules and subsystems
where high RF power handing capability and superior thermal
management are performance critical. Multi-Mix® integrated
platform technology is based on a proprietary multilayer PTFE
process whereby fluoropolymer composite substrates of different
dielectric constant and thickness are fusion bonded together
to form a highly robust multilayer structure. The fusion bonding
process yields a highly reliable homogeneous multilayer stripline
structure with superior electrical and thermal performance
across a wide frequency and power range. The Multi-Mix®
fusion bonded multilayer structure is an enabling platform
for embedding a wide range of RF and Microwave semiconductor
chips such as LDMOS, GaAs FET/MESFET and PHEMT, GaN, SiC,
and SiGe, etc., eliminating expensive discrete packages. This
enabling platform offers the capability to replace complex
RF power amplifier circuitry with low cost integrated modules,
dramatically improving reliability and peak power handling.
Furthermore, by incorporating other active as well as passive
circuit elements, etched resistors, and plated-through via
holes a three-dimensional subsystem enclosure can be formed
that requires no further packaging resulting in significantly
smaller, low cost and light weight products with enhanced
reliability and superior electrical and thermal performance.”
About Merrimac
Merrimac Industries, Inc. is a leader in the design and manufacture
of RF Microwave signal processing components, subsystem assemblies,
and Multi-Mix® micro-multifunction modules (MMFM®),
for the worldwide Defense, Satellite Communications (Satcom),
Commercial Wireless and Homeland Security market segments.
Merrimac is focused on providing Total Integrated Packaging
Solutions® with Multi-Mix® Microtechnology, a leading
edge competency providing value to our customers through miniaturization
and integration. Multi-Mix® MMFM® provides a patented
and novel packaging technology that employs a platform modular
architecture strategy that incorporates embedded semiconductor
devices, MMICs, etched resistors, passive circuit elements
and plated-through via holes to form a three-dimensional integrated
module used in High Power, High Frequency and High Performance
mission-critical applications. Merrimac Industries facilities
are registered under ISO 9001:2000, an internationally developed
set of quality criteria for manufacturing operations.
Merrimac Industries, Inc. has facilities located in West
Caldwell, NJ, San Jose, Costa Rica and Ottawa, Ontario, Canada,
and has approximately 240 co-workers dedicated to the design
and manufacture of signal processing components, gold plating
of high-frequency microstrip, bonded stripline and thick metal-backed
Teflon (PTFE) micro-circuitry and subsystems providing Total
Integrated Packaging Solutions® for wireless applications.
Merrimac (MRM) is listed on the American Stock Exchange. Multi-Mix®,
Multi-Mix PICO®, MMFM®, System In A Package®,
SIP® and Total Integrated Packaging Solutions® are
registered trademarks of Merrimac Industries, Inc. For more
information about Merrimac Industries, Inc. and its Canadian
subsidiary Filtran Microcircuits Inc., please visit http://www.merrimacind.com
and http://www.filtranmicro.com .
This press release contains statements relating
to future results of the Company (including certain projections
and business trends) that are "forward-looking statements"
as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995. Actual results may differ materially from those projected
as a result of certain risks and uncertainties. These risks
and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: risks associated
with demand for and market acceptance of existing and newly
developed products as to which the Company has made significant
investments, particularly its Multi-Mix® products; the
possibilities of impairment charges to the carrying value
of our Multi-Mix® assets, thereby resulting in charges
to our earnings; slower than anticipated penetration into
the satellite communications, defense and wireless markets;
failure of our Original Equipment Manufacturer, or OEM, customers
to successfully incorporate our products into their systems;
changes in product mix resulting in unexpected engineering
and research and development costs; delays and increased costs
in product development, engineering and production; reliance
on a small number of significant customers; the emergence
of new or stronger competitors as a result of consolidation
movements in the market; the timing and market acceptance
of our or our OEM customers’ new or enhanced products;
general economic and industry conditions; the risk that the
benefits expected from the Company’s acquisition of
Filtran Microcircuits Inc. are not realized; the ability to
protect proprietary information and technology; competitive
products and pricing pressures; our ability and the ability
of our OEM customers to keep pace with the rapid technological
changes and short product life cycles in our industry and
gain market acceptance for new products and technologies;
foreign currency fluctuations between the U.S. and Canadian
dollars; risks relating to governmental regulatory actions
in communications and defense programs; and inventory risks
due to technological innovation and product obsolescence,
as well as other risks and uncertainties as are detailed from
time to time in the Company's Securities and Exchange Commission
filings. These forward-looking statements are made only as
of the date hereof, and the Company undertakes no obligation
to update or revise the forward-looking statements, whether
as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
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