ESCO Announces Aclara AMI System Win In Toronto

ST. LOUIS, Jan. 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE: ESE) today announced that the City of Toronto, Canada, has selected the Aclara RF Systems Inc. STAR® Network for its Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) water project. Aclara will supply the STAR system to Toronto under a contract with Neptune Technology Group Ltd., a part of Roper Industries Inc. (NYSE: ROP), that will serve as the prime contractor. When fully installed, the fixed-network technology is expected to read approximately 465,000 water meters.

Toronto joins over 100 RF fixed-network AMI water customers, including cities such as New York, San Francisco, Boston and Washington, D.C. that employ Aclara's innovative STAR Network system to enhance operations and improve customer satisfaction. The system is expected to be deployed over a six-year period beginning in mid-2010.

"Aclara will provide Toronto with the leading-edge technology it needs to give its citizens access to the critical information they need to make more responsible use of water," said Gary Moore, president of Aclara RF Systems Inc. "What's more, our relationship with Toronto further solidifies Aclara's leadership role in providing AMI to the water industry. We look forward to working with the talented people at the City of Toronto to deliver this valuable technology to service its customers today and into the future."

The STAR Network system delivers robust data communications on secure, licensed, radio frequencies. The fixed-network solution efficiently and automatically provides timely data, empowering utilities to maximize meter functionality and provide superior customer service. Accurate and timely billing, high/low consumption reporting, and non-revenue water loss detection are just a few of the AMR benefits the STAR Network system can provide – all at a low system cost with manageable operating expenses.

A choice for both large and small utilities, the Aclara STAR Network has been successfully deployed by companies ranging from small municipal water systems to large investor-owned gas utilities. In a consistently changing utility environment, Aclara and the STAR Network provide a solid foundation on which to build the metering solutions of today and tomorrow.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this press release regarding the size and timing of the City of Toronto's AMI deployment, and any other written or oral statements which are not strictly historical are "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the federal securities laws. Investors are cautioned that such statements are only predictions and speak only as of the date of this release, and the Company undertakes no duty to update. The Company's actual results in the future may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements due to risks and uncertainties that exist in the Company's operations and business environment including, but not limited to: the timing and content of future purchases of the Company's products by the City of Toronto; the Company's successful performance of requirements for the City of Toronto and the Neptune Technology Group Ltd.; changes in the City of Toronto's demands or financial constraints impacting the City; technical difficulties; delivery delays or defaults impacting the Company's contracts; and termination for convenience of the Company's contract.

ESCO, headquartered in St. Louis, is a proven supplier of special purpose utility solutions for electric, gas and water utilities, including hardware and software to support advanced metering applications and fully automated intelligent instrumentation. In addition, the Company provides engineered filtration products to the aviation, space and process markets worldwide and is the industry leader in RF shielding and EMC test products. Further information regarding ESCO and its subsidiaries is available on the Company's web site at www.escotechnologies.com.

About Aclara

The Aclara brand represents one of the industry's leading Intelligent Infrastructure™ technologies for providing device networking, data-value management and customer communications to water, gas and electric utilities globally. Over 500 utilities in nine countries rely on proven Aclara solutions to connect with their customers. Aclara is part of the Utility Solutions Group of ESCO. Further information is available on Aclara's web site at www.Aclara.com.

SOURCE ESCO Technologies Inc.