Carl Zeiss opens $30m advanced imaging centre

INTERNATIONAL optical and opto-electronics company Carl Zeiss yesterday officially opened an advanced imaging centre in Singapore. The $30 million centre at International Business Park - the company's first worldwide - allows prospective clients to view and trial the full range of Zeiss micro and nano-imaging solutions at one location. Previously they had to travel to several facilities in Germany to test equipment before purchase.

Carl Zeiss SMT president and chief executive officer Hermann Gerlinger said: 'State-of-the-art imaging solutions are critical for the industrial, bio and life science sectors to develop quality products and successful medical research.' Zeiss is the only company that deals with the entire spectrum of optics, from consumer camera lenses to microscopes that make even single atoms visible, he said.

The products featured at the centre promise, among other things, non-destructive 3-D magnification of complex living specimens and contamination-free dissection of samples using lasers, both of which facilitate bioscience and medical R&D.

Research into increasing semiconductor yields will be aided by a process that cuts damaged microchips into segments to be analysed separately, making troubleshooting easier.

While these applications in microscopy and nano-technology are diverse and general, Ven Raman, managing director of Carl Zeiss South-east Asia and India, said feedback from customers visiting the centre will let Zeiss tailor solutions to specific needs, enhancing uses of existing products. He cited current synergistic partnerships with Biopolis, the National Eye Centre, the National University Hospital and Nanyang Polytechnic.

Zeiss employs 120 people here and aims to boost this to 200 qualified staff by 2010. In 2006-07, its global and South-east Asian revenue came in at $5.56 billion and $904 million respectively.