GSI Group's Continuum Business Awarded Major Scientific Laser Program

BEDFORD, Mass., March 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- GSI Group Inc. (NASDAQ: GSIG) (the "Company" or "GSI"),  a global leader and supplier of laser-based solutions, laser scanning devices and precision motion and optical control technologies to global electronics, industrial, medical, and scientific markets, today announced that its Continuum laser business, a leading producer of high energy laser products to scientific and industrial markets, has been awarded a $4.8 million contract with the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) for the delivery of a 400 Joule amplifier section that will be used as part of the Apollon high energy laser program developed by the Institut de la Lumiere Extreme (ILE).  Apollon is designed to be the world's first 10 petawatt femtosecond pulsed output Sapphire laser system.

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The award comes as the result of a four-year program, funded in part by the French Government, to develop a compact, high energy laser pump module operating at typical repetition rates approximately 20 times faster than the repetition rate of conventional high energy laser glass pump modules.

The program award reflects the joint efforts of GSI's Continuum team, Laboratory of Laser Energetics, and National Energetics.  National Energetics is based in Austin Texas and was founded by the foremost authorities in chirped pulse amplification (CPA) technology.  The Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE) of the University of Rochester, in New York, is a unique national resource for research and education in science and technology.

"This was a team effort involving the best of cooperation between industry, government labs and academic institutions," said Dr. Laurence Cramer, President of GSI's Continuum business. 

"We are very pleased to be awarded this business, which recognizes our role as a global leader in large, high power, scientific laser systems, and positions us well for future opportunities on other similar programs," said John A. Roush, CEO of GSI Group Inc.

About the Companies

GSI Group Inc. supplies laser-based solutions, precision motion control devices, optical controls, and associated precision technologies, and semiconductor systems to global industrial, electronics, medical, and scientific markets. GSI Group Inc.'s common shares are quoted on NASDAQ (GSIG).

Continuum Electro-Optics Inc., a subsidiary of GSI Group Inc. and headquartered in Santa Clara, California, manufactures and markets a complete family of high energy laser products worldwide to industrial and scientific markets. 

Safe Harbor and Forward Looking Information

Certain statements in this release are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and are based on current expectations and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties. All statements contained in this news release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements, and are generally identified by words such as "expect," "intend," "anticipate," "estimate," "plan," and other similar expressions. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements related to: the Company's expected future financial performance; the expected effect of the refinancing on the Company's interest expense; the expected impact of the 12 x 12 Program and related charges; the expected impact from recent orders; the Company's optimism regarding its prospects for the future; and other statements that are not historical facts.

These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors that could affect future results and cause actual results and events to differ materially from historical and expected results and those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the following: economic and political conditions and the effects of these conditions on our customers' businesses and level of business activity; our significant dependence upon our customers' capital expenditures, which are subject to cyclical market fluctuations; our dependence upon our ability to respond to fluctuations in product demand; our ability to continually innovate; delays in our delivery of new products; our reliance upon third party distribution channels subject to credit, business concentration and business failure risks beyond our control; fluctuations in our quarterly results, and our failure to meet or exceed the expectations of securities analysts or investors; customer order timing and other similar factors beyond our control; disruptions in, or breaches in security of, our information technology systems; changes in interest rates, credit ratings or foreign currency exchange rates; risk associated with our operations in foreign countries; our increased use of outsourcing in foreign countries; our failure to comply with local import and export regulations in the jurisdictions in which we operate; our history of operating losses and our ability to sustain our profitability; our exposure to the credit risk of some of our customers and in weakened markets; violations of our intellectual property rights and our ability to protect our intellectual property against infringement by third parties; risk of losing our competitive advantage; our ability to make acquisitions or divestitures that provide business benefits; our failure to successfully integrate future acquisitions into our business; our ability to retain key personnel; our restructuring and realignment activities and disruptions to our operations as a result of consolidation of our operations; product defects or problems integrating our products with other vendors' products; disruptions in the supply of or defects in raw materials, certain key components or other goods from our suppliers; production difficulties and product delivery delays or disruptions; changes in governmental regulation of our business or products; our failure to implement new information technology systems and software successfully; our failure to realize the full value of our intangible assets; any requirement to make additional tax payments and/or recalculate certain of our tax attributes depending on the resolution of the complaint we filed against the U.S. government; our ability to utilize our net operating loss carryforwards and other tax attributes; fluctuations in our effective tax rates and audit of our estimates of tax liabilities; being subject to U.S. federal income taxation even though we are a non-U.S. corporation; being subject to the Alternative Minimum Tax for U.S. federal income tax purposes; any need for additional capital to adequately respond to business challenges or opportunities and repay or refinance our existing indebtedness, which may not be available on acceptable terms or at all; volatility in the market for our common shares; our dependence on significant cash flow to service our indebtedness and fund our operations; our ability to access cash and other assets of our subsidiaries; the influence over our business of several significant shareholders; provisions of our articles of incorporation may delay or prevent a change in control; our significant existing indebtedness and restrictions in our new senior secured credit agreement that may limit our ability to engage in certain activities; our intention not to pay dividends in the near future; and our failure to maintain appropriate internal controls in the future.

Other important risk factors that could affect the outcome of the events set forth in these statements and that could affect the Company's operating results and financial condition are discussed in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2011, and in the Company's subsequent filings with the SEC made prior to or after the date hereof. Such statements are based on the Company's management's beliefs and assumptions and on information currently available to the Company's management. The Company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of developments occurring after the date of this document except as required by law.

CONTACT: Mary Anne Davoli, +1-781-266-5864

SOURCE GSI Group Inc.