November 12, 2001 — PLAINVILLE, CT — GE Industrial Systems, a division of the General Electric Company recently completed the acquisition of the Sensing Solutions group of Spirent plc, the international network technology company based in the United Kingdom. The new entity will remain known as Sensing Solutions.

The Sensing Solutions group manufactures products and subsystems for sensing temperature, humidity and pressure for the pharmaceutical, biomedical and automotive industries. “With this acquisition, GE Industrial Systems acquires a recognized leader in sensor technology with quality products and leading edge technology that are an exciting expansion of our product offering, yet complement many of the industrial components manufactured by our business,” said Lloyd Trotter, president and chief executive officer of GE Industrial Systems. “This will allow us to better serve our customers with a broader, more diversified portfolio of products and services to meet our customers needs while supporting our continued focus on global growth.”

The Sensing Solutions group comprises three principal divisions:

– Temperature division: Thermometrics, a global provider of temperature measurement and sensing solutions principally in the automotive and medical sectors;

– Humidity division: including General Eastern Instruments which provides a broad range of products for the measurement of humidity and pressure for a variety of industries;

– Pharmaceutical division: Kaye Instruments, a supplier of products and services for thermal calibration, validation and monitoring, primarily in medical device sterilization and pharmaceutical production.

“We’re excited about joining GE and welcome the plans to grow a large sensing business with us at the core,” said Carl Sheffer, Sensing Solutions president. “As one of the world’s largest and most respected companies, GE’s financial strength and world-wide presence will provide an unparalleled home in which our businesses can achieve their full potential.”