Tony Blair, Quartet Envoy, Faith healer, Ex PM, Ex Sedgfield MP promotes Durham hi-Tech company in Washington with Defence / Security interests

17/02/2009 UK Trade & Investment by COI News & PR North East. Press Release. COI ref 170693P Karen Bell, Tel: 0191 202 3603, EMAIL: karen.bell@coi.gsi.gov.uk

Kromek©, (http://www.kromek.com ) specialises in developing digital colour imaging for use in x-rays and scanners They have launched their new new liquid detection bottle scanner (with over 20 patents) at a a special events in Washington - where former Prime Minister Tony Blair™ provided the guest speech - he was of course MP for Sedgefield, County Durham here their factory is located. (Simultaneous launch in Dubai also)

“We’re not having a problem attracting the kind of staff we need, despite the perception of skills shortages in industry,” says founder professor Max Robinson - the firm employs some 30 people many with PHd's or equivalent - a tribute to the job finding skills of Sedgefield Job Centre

The company harnessed its new generation digital colour x-ray detectors to develop the new scanner that can identify and categorise liquids in bottles in less than 20 seconds, including liquid explosives, screening for alcohol and for dissolved narcotics in other liquids.This can be done without opening/ beaching the bottle / container or samping the liquid.

With Kromek’s © novel kit, it is possible to rotate a 3-dimensional X-ray image without moving the item being scanned, they claim they can identifydifferent materials, discriminating between different types of liquid.

John Holmes-Carrington, one of UK Trade & Investment's International Trade Advisers, said:

"As terrorism remains a very real threat, the safety and security of airline passengers is a key concern for those in the industry and Kromek has developed an innovative product that can be of real help.

"Its scanner also has more wide-reaching uses and as the inspection unit itself requires minimal operator training, it is something I'm sure will be of interest to clients around the world. (See launch story September 17th 2008) and also very good article here

Kromek © is a venture backed high technology company, which was spun-out in April 2003 as Durham Scientific Crystals from the Physics Department of the University of Durham where many Board Members were educated. Rebranded as Kromek in May 2008, it is pioneering digital colour imaging for x-rays and has brought ground-breaking innovation to materials technology and advanced 3D imaging that will literally change the way in which we see the world.They specialise in semiconductor materials within the Cadmium Telluride family.

From website - KROMEK © has raised an additional £1.45m from new investors and existing shareholders. This makes a total of over £3m raised by Kromek in the current round of funding. The Company now has a valuation of £48m. The company also secured a £250,000 R&D grant from the One NorthEast development agency in 2008.

The Board - * Prof Brian Tanner * Dr Arnab Basu (CEO) * Richard Morgan * Prof Max Robinson * Jerel Whittingham * Dr Andy Brinkman

Dr Arnab Basu, CEO, has a PhD in Physics from Durham University, specialising in semiconducting sensor materials. Dr Basu held senior management positions in his family business, which manufactured materials for the electronic industry. The business served over 250 customers in India, including Siemens, GEC and most of the major telecommunications and consumer electronics manufacturers. He has also worked for Elmwood Sensors Ltd, part of the Honeywell Group, in the UK where he was involved in commercial product development.

UPDATE :GMT 2300

This story and the placing of it by COI has absolutely nothing to do with the start of the trial of 8 men who are charged with ineptly plotting to use "home-made bombs" disguised as soft drinks to blow up transatlantic planes Woolwich Crown Court. Monday Feb 16th 2009