FARO Enters Countertop Market with New Digital Template FaroArm

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LAKE MARY, Fla., April 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- FARO Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: FARO), the only company with a complete line of portable 3D coordinate measurement systems for the Computer-Aided Measuring (CAM2) market, announced that, following a market test period which began in 2004, it has launched a special version of its traditional FaroArm called "Digital Template" for the construction and home improvement industries.

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"Several countertop installation companies purchased our regular FaroArm to improve their turnaround time and accuracy when measuring a new countertop," said FARO CEO Simon Raab. "The response to our market testing was so positive that we are releasing the Digital Template as a new product especially for this market."

Most kitchens and baths in the industrialized world have countertops with a unique geometry. Traditionally, countertops are fabricated using a wood template of the countertop shape. If there was an error during templating, it would not be discovered until the builder attempted to install the countertop. Given the expense of the materials involved and the time-consuming process, the cost of the error-prone physical template method is very high.

"When a countertop doesn't measure up to specs, a builder's problems are just beginning," said Ken Steffey, FARO Digital Template Product Manager. "He has to scrap the material, reprogram the CNC, rework the part, send the measurement crew back and forth to the job site, and, even worse, tell the customer that the job is behind schedule again."

The new Digital Template FaroArm eliminates such errors by capturing the data electronically, which enables the files to be e-mailed to the shop and transmitted directly into the cutting machine. It provides an immediate R.O.I. by saving time dramatically, reducing scrap and re-work costs.

The user-friendly system allows builders and fabricators to create files for countertops, backsplashes, side splashes, window sills, wall caps, breakfast counters and other common shapes.

One of the first companies to incorporate the Digital Template FaroArm was Counter Intelligence, a custom job shop that measures and cuts countertops for kitchen and bath dealers -- as well as large retail outlets such as Home Depots and Expo Design Centers -- throughout the Washington, DC area.

"We tried hard template digitizing, photogrammetry, laser devices -- the countertops didn't fit; customers weren't happy," Counter Intelligence president John Murray said. "But the accuracy of Digital Template has almost completely eliminated our rework. We simply don't have to go back and re- measure because our first attempt did not fit. We estimate that the efficiency of the Digital Template has added $150,000 per week to our revenue stream."

The system includes the FARO Digital Template Measurement Arm and CAM2 Digital Template Software.

About FARO

With more than 7,500 installations and approximately 3,800 customers globally, FARO Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq: FARO) and its international subsidiaries design, develop and market software and portable, computerized measurement devices. The Company's products allow manufacturers to perform 3D inspections of parts and assemblies on the shop floor. This helps eliminate manufacturing errors and, thereby, increases productivity and profitability for a variety of industries in FARO's worldwide customer base. Principal products include the FARO Laser ScanArm; FARO Laser Scanner LS; FARO Gage and Gage-PLUS; Platinum, Digital Template, Titanium, Advantage FaroArms; the FARO Laser Tracker X and Xi; and the CAM2 family of advanced CAD-based measurement and reporting software. FARO Technologies is ISO 9001 certified and ISO-17025 laboratory registered. Learn more at http://www.faro.com .

SOURCE  FARO Technologies, Inc.
    -0-                             04/11/2005
    /CONTACT:  Darin Sahler, Global Public Relations Manager, FARO
Technologies, +1-407-333-9911, ext. 1137, or sahlerd@faro.com /
    /Photo:  NewsCom:  http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20000522/FLM035LOGO
              AP Archive:  http://photoarchive.ap.org
              PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com/
    /Web site:  http://www.faro.com /
    (FARO)

CO:  FARO Technologies, Inc.
ST:  Florida
IN:  AUT MAC STW CPR
SU:  PDT

MD
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6761 04/11/2005 13:57 EDT http://www.prnewswire.com

"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Statements in this press release regarding FARO Technologies Inc's 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.