AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 11, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Superconductor Technologies Inc. (STI) (Nasdaq: SCON ), a world leader in the development and production of high temperature superconducting (HTS) materials and associated technologies, reported its Conductus ® wire achieved a significant milestone for use in High Field Magnet applications. The company also provided an update on qualification tests of Conductus wire completed in December.
High Field Magnet Milestone In December, the Paul Scherrer Institut (PSI) validated Conductus wire met the critical current (Ic) objective of 500 Amps on a four millimeter width operating in a high magnetic field of 12 Tesla (T) in a low temperature at 4.2 Kelvin (K). This represents a 34% performance improvement over previously tested Conductus wire. The wire tested at PSI was manufactured on the full production machine utilizing STI’s standard process. The in-field performance of Conductus wire’s rare earth-barium-copper oxide (ReBCO) superconducting compound far exceeds commercially available low temperature superconducting material, such as niobium-titanium (NbTi), thereby enabling companies and institutes like PSI to design and develop new innovative products.
“PSI’s test results are an important validation of our wire and we are honored to be working with the most advanced applied researchers in the world at PSI,” stated Jeff Quiram, STI’s president and chief executive officer.
Key Customer Update “STI remains focused on our key customers as we work to successfully complete all acceptance testing and certification. In mid-December, we received feedback and detailed analysis from five customers on the most recent testing of Conductus wire. After synthesizing the test data, we designed and implemented an upgrade to our manufacturing production machine over the holiday break. We plan to ship additional wire against existing purchase orders to finalize qualifications with key customers in the coming weeks,” Quiram concluded.
In the fourth quarter of 2015, STI shipped wire to seven customers for superconducting fault current limiter (SFCL), high performance magnets and NMR/MRI applications. The shipments included two new customers for power and magnet applications.
About PSI PSI works with global companies, government and academia and is the largest research center for natural and engineering sciences within Switzerland. For more background on PSI, visit www.psi.ch .
About Superconductor Technologies Inc. (STI) Superconductor Technologies Inc. is a global leader in superconducting innovation. Its Conductus ® superconducting wire platform offers high performance, cost-effective and scalable superconducting wire. With 100 times the current carrying capacity of conventional copper and aluminum, superconducting wire offers zero resistance with extreme high current density. This provides a significant benefit for electric power transmission and also enables much smaller or more powerful magnets for motors, generators, energy storage and medical equipment. Since 1987, STI has led innovation in HTS materials, developing more than 100 patents as well as proprietary trade secrets and manufacturing expertise. For more than 20 years STI utilized its unique HTS manufacturing process for solutions to maximize capacity utilization and coverage for Tier 1 telecommunications operators. Headquartered in Austin, TX, Superconductor Technologies Inc.'s common stock is listed on the NASDAQ Capital Market under the ticker symbol “SCON.” For more information about STI, please visit http://www.suptech.com.
Safe Harbor Statement Statements in this press release regarding our business that are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are inherently subject to uncertainties and other factors, which could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. These factors and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: our limited cash and a history of losses; our need to materially grow our revenues from commercial operations and/or to raise additional capital (which financing may not be available on acceptable terms or at all) in the very near future, before cash reserves are depleted (which reserves are expected to be sufficient into the fourth quarter 2016, to implement our current business plan and maintain our viability; the performance and use of our equipment to produce wire in accordance with our timetable; overcoming technical challenges in attaining milestones to develop and manufacture commercial lengths of our HTS wire; the possibility of delays in customer evaluation and acceptance of our HTS wire; the limited number of potential customers and customer pressures on the selling prices of our products; the limited number of suppliers for some of our components and our HTS wire; there being no significant backlog from quarter to quarter; our market being characterized by rapidly advancing technology; the impact of competitive products, technologies and pricing; manufacturing capacity constraints and difficulties; the impact of any financing activity on the level of our stock price; the dilutive impact of any issuances of securities to raise capital; cost and uncertainty from compliance with environmental regulations; and local, regional, and national and international economic conditions and events and the impact they may have on us and our customers.
Forward-looking statements can be affected by many other factors, including, those described in the "Business" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" sections of STI's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014 and in STI's other public filings. These documents are available online at STI's website, www.suptech.com, or through the SEC's website, www.sec.gov. Forward-looking statements are based on information presently available to senior management, and STI has not assumed any duty to update any forward-looking statements.
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