PRESS RELEASE

Engineering Service Provider CEKAtec Acquires its Business Partner ECOnovis

Fusion makes us fit for the future / bundling expertise to strengthen our range of services

(Wattwil, 18 December 2013) The approaching New Year brings with it real changes for two closely interconnected Swiss high tech companies: on 1 January 2014, CEKAtec, an engineering & production service provider, based in Wattwil, Switzerland, will take over the running of its long-term business partner ECOnovis Engineering AG. An independent technology and consulting firm for bespoke product innovations, it is headquartered in neighboring Rapperswil. The reason ECOnovis decided to integrate with what was previously its main client, was the need to implement its urgently needed plans for expansion as quickly and effectively as possible. And CEKAtec also sees itself as a winner in this scenario. "The four-person ECOnovis team fits perfectly into our operations. We can now bundle our areas of expertise and make the company truly fit for the future", Managing Director Stefan Jud was happy to announce.

Marco Pfister and Claudio Foscan, formerly Managing Directors in Rapperswil, are now heads of Sales and Electronics in the newly merged company. ECOnovis Project Manager Lars Kamm continues to be responsible for drive technology, including control systems. A new colleague, Alain Trachsler, is taking over the IHPoS fuel cell department. By taking on colleagues from ECOnovis, and recruiting new members of staff – all electronic engineers – CEKA's workforce has grown to 65 since its foundation in 1979.

Lars Kamm and Alain Trachsel will also continue teaching courses in micro electronics and chip design, and information technology, at the Hochschule für Technik (technical college) in Rapperswil, or Biel. This has the benefit that the very latest scientific insights can be applied immediately, to help shape CEKAtec's product innovations. The technical strengths of Marco Pfister lie in his experiences as a manager and the time he spent in application engineering at Matlab and Simulink. Claudio Foscan has devoted his energies to embedded systems and robotics. Both of them are experts in the hardware and software used in their specialist areas. Bringing together software and embedded systems creates new perspectives for software patent protection, which is of ever increasing importance in this rapidly globalizing market. In the new quartet of managers it is Lars Kamm who is the specialist in drive technology, including RFID, Bluetooth and GPS. Alain Trachsler has specialized in the energy sector, in particular fuel cell system controls.

CEKAtec AG Telephone +41 71 98740-40 ContactIndustriestrasse 2 Fax +41 71 98740-41 Stefan Jud9630 Wattwil E-Mail info@ceka.chSwitzerland Web www.ceka.ch

PRESS RELEASE

Managing Director Stefan Jud believes that this fusion has set the course for the company's future. From the very beginning, we can expect to see a multitude of product innovations, such as a test adapter for the electronic components used in production systems. This device tests every type of circuit involved in the manufacturing process, and ensures the quality standard remains high. A capsule robot has a similar effect. It automatically and autonomously checks coffee capsules to ensure they have been filled and sealed correctly. Or the BLDC drive technology for new areas of application such as medical technology, where the motor is inserted inside a human body as a pump drive. And most importantly: small production batches of every single product developed undergo rigorous testing at the CEKAtec production facility, where medium sized production runs can also be manufactured.

Photo legend (from left to right)Claudio Foscan and Marco Pfister – formerly at ECOnovisManaging Director Stefan Jud and Head of Development Pascal Tanner – CEKAtec

CEKAtec AG Telephone +41 71 98740-40 ContactIndustriestrasse 2 Fax +41 71 98740-41 Stefan Jud9630 Wattwil E-Mail info@ceka.chSwitzerland Web www.ceka.ch