National Technical Systems Certifies Golden Units for ZigBee Compliant Platform Standard

CALABASAS, Calif., Dec. 19, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- National Technical Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: NTSC) (NTS), a leading provider of testing and engineering services, announced today that it successfully completed testing of all of the "Golden Units" for the enhanced ZigBee 2012 specification. These "Golden Units" are ideal examples of this ZigBee specification, and serve as the devices by which all future ZigBee Compliant Platforms will be compared for interoperability and conformance. NTS participated in the earliest stages of the interoperability testing efforts and ultimately performed all testing and verification for the new "Golden Units."

ZigBee is the leading wireless standard that has already been adopted by countless manufacturers for the design of low-power wireless devices from smart meters and thermostats to remote controls and televisions. ZigBee Compliant Platforms are the foundation upon which all of the ZigBee application standards, such as ZigBee Smart Energy and ZigBee Home Automation, are built. NTS performed testing on products from Atmel, Freescale, Silicon Labs, and Texas Instruments.

"The testing of these 'Golden Units' again solidifies NTS leadership position in the testing of ZigBee products, which have proven to be instrumental in many devices, including those developed for the Smart Grid," said President and CEO William C. McGinnis. "We look forward to continuing to work closely with the ZigBee Alliance as it enhances existing standards and introduces new ones."

ZigBee 2012 includes additional security and integration of the latest errata into the specification. Once ZigBee Compliant Platforms have been ZigBee Certified by the Alliance, they will be rolled out in the next generation of ZigBee devices.

"ZigBee is focused on providing product manufacturers with the greatest flexibility through a low-cost, low-power platform," said Ryan Maley, vice president of strategy at the ZigBee Alliance. "NTS provides members of the ZigBee Alliance with flexibility by offering testing services covering every standard we have released. We look forward to a continued long relationship with NTS as one of our authorized testing laboratories."

ZigBee: Control your world
ZigBee offers green and global wireless standards connecting the widest range of devices to work together intelligently and help you control your world. The ZigBee Alliance is an open, non-profit association of approximately 400 members driving development of innovative, reliable and easy-to-use ZigBee standards. The Alliance promotes worldwide adoption of ZigBee as the leading wirelessly networked, sensing and control standard for use in consumer, commercial and industrial areas. For more information, visit: www.ZigBee.org.

About National Technical Systems

National Technical Systems, Inc. is a leading provider of engineering services to the aerospace, defense, telecommunications, automotive and high technology markets. Through a world-wide network of resources, NTS provides full product life-cycle support, offering world class design engineering, compliance, testing, certification, quality registration and program management. For additional information about NTS, visit the Company's website at www.nts.com or call 800-270-2516.

Forward-Looking Statements
The statements in this press release that relate to future plans, events or performance, are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including risks associated with uncertainties pertaining to customer orders, demand for services and products, development of markets for the companies' services and products and other risks identified in the companies' SEC filings. Actual results, events and performance may differ materially. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. The companies undertake no obligation to release publicly the result of any revisions to these forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Statements in this press release regarding National Technical Systems' business which are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report or Form 10-K for the most recently ended fiscal year.

SOURCE National Technical Systems Inc.