UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
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Form 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): April 16, 1998
ROFIN-SINAR TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
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(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Delaware 000-21377 38-3306461
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(State of other jurisdiction of (Commission (I.R.S. Employer
incorporation or organization) File Number) Identification No.)
45701 Mast Street, Plymouth, MI 48170
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(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
(734) 455-5400
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(Registrant's telephone number, including area code)
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(Former name, former address and former fiscal year,
if changed since last report)
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ITEM 5 - OTHER EVENTS
The registrant issued a press release on April 16, 1998 announcing that an
independent jury has chosen the "Modular Diode Laser-Tools" project presented
by ROFIN-SINAR Laser as one of the five new projects to be supported by the
German Federal Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Technology BMBF.
The competition was organized by the BMBF to further promote the development
and application of advanced technologies.
ITEM 7 - FINANCIAL STATEMENTS, PRO FORMA FINANCIAL INFORMATION AND EXHIBITS
A) Not Applicable
B) Not Applicable
C) Exhibits:
99 - Press Release dated April 16, 1998
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
ROFIN-SINAR TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
By: /s/ GUNTHER BRAUN
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Gunther Braun
Chief Financial Officer
Dated: April 16, 1998
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ROFIN-SINAR ANNOUNCES NEW PROJECT FOR DIODE LASER DEVELOPMENT
Hamburg, Germany/Plymouth MI, April 16, 1998 -- ROFIN-SINAR Technologies,
Inc. (NASDAQ: RSTI), one of the world's leading developers and manufacturers
of high performance laser beam sources, today announced that an independent
jury has chosen the "Modular Diode Laser-Tools" project presented by ROFIN-
SINAR Laser as one of the five new projects to be supported by the German
Federal Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Technology BMBF. The
competition, organized by the BMBF, aims to further promote the development
and application of advanced technologies.
"We are very pleased with the decision," Hinrich Martinen, CTO of ROFIN-
SINAR commented. "This proposal, which was developed in close cooperation
with the Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology in Aachen, will help us
to establish a leadership position for German companies and institutes in
the world wide market of industrial laser materials processing."
The objective of the project is to identify the requirements and develop
laser diodes suitable for material processing tools for manufacturing
industries. The project involves more than 20 companies and institutes and
is anticipated to last 5 years, with a total budget of more than DM 70
million (approx. $40 million).
Diode lasers are extremely compact and maintenance-free, and feature an
overall efficiency of approximately 40%, significantly higher than the
efficiency of conventional CO2 or Nd:YAG lasers. However, the beam quality
and the related focusability with current diode technology are low,
restricting industrial applications to surface treatment and soldering and
welding of plastics and thin metal sheets. Therefore, improvements in beam
quality, laser output power and the development of new application areas are
key objectives of the research project.
The Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology in Aachen, Germany, has
considerable experience in the field of laser technology and the development
of industrial applications, a result of numerous cooperative agreements with
industrial partners involving more than 1,000 R&D projects. Two years ago,
ROFIN-SINAR and FHG ILT agreed to establish a cooperative partnership for
the development of high power diode pumped solid state lasers.
ROFIN-SINAR Laser GmbH is a subsidiary of ROFIN-SINAR Technologies
Incorporated. The Company designs, develops, engineers and manufactures a
wide product range of laser beam sources for industrial materials
processing. ROFIN-SINAR's ordinary shares trade on the NASDAQ under the
Symbol RSTI.
Certain information included in this press release is forward-looking and is
subject to important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results
to differ. Actual results could differ materially based on numerous factors,
including currency risk , competition, risk relating to sales growth in CO2,
diode, and Nd:YAG lasers, cyclicality, conflicting patents and other
intellectual property rights of third parties, potential infringement claims
and future capital requirements. These forward looking statements represent
the Company's best judgment as of the date of this release based in part on
preliminary information and certain assumptions which management believes to
be reasonable. The Company disclaims any obligation to update these forward-
looking statements.
