UV-LED developer Crystal IS prepares for transition from R&D to commercial manufacturing

New Vice President of Operations Along With Expansion of Manufacturing Capabilities Readies Green Island Facility for Growth

GREEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Crystal IS, a leading developer of the most effective UVC LEDs, today announced the appointment of John Gartner as its first vice president of operations. Gartner brings more than thirty years of experience in manufacturing and engineering, including establishing and growing manufacturing operations for clean and reliable energy solutions. His expertise and experience will help transition Crystal IS from R&D to a manufacturing company poised to become the market leader in UVC LEDs for life sciences, environmental monitoring and disinfection.

"It is clear that Crystal IS has committed to moving from R&D to commercial product development," said John Gartner, vice president of operations, Crystal IS. "I'm thrilled to be part of the team leading the company in this exciting time."

In conjunction with the addition of Gartner, Crystal IS continues to expand the Green Island facility preparing it for full scale production and shipping of soon to be announced Optan product with the addition of:

- a raw material furnace as well as three additional furnaces and a chiller to double manufacturing capacity
- a new lab and production equipment for fine wafer polishing
- moving fabrication in-house to the AK Fuji facility
- twenty-three percent employee growth across the organization in areas including application engineering, quality, customer support and product marketing

"As the industry leader in developing UVC LEDs, our move from R&D to commercial production was inevitable," said Larry Felton, chief executive officer. "Appointing John Gartner as our first vice president of operations and expanding our manufacturing capacity demonstrates our commitment to commercializing our superior technology and getting our breakthrough products to customers."

About Crystal IS
Crystal IS, an Asahi Kasei company, is an innovative U.S.-based manufacturer of proprietary, high-performance UVC LEDs. Crystal IS products are suitable for monitoring, disinfection and sterilization in a variety of applications, including industrial and point-of-use (POU) water purification as well as infection control in air and surfaces in healthcare industries. The company's powerful and reliable UVC LEDs provide customers with the flexibility to develop new products that enhance and sustain life. For more information, visit cisuvc.com.