PPT VISION, Inc. Reports Third Quarter Fiscal 2001 Results

MINNEAPOLIS, August 17 /PRNewswire/ -- PPT VISION, Inc. (Nasdaq: PPTV)today announced financial results for the third quarter ended July 31, 2001. Net revenues for the third quarter were $2,009,344, which represents a decrease of 57% compared to net revenues of $4,713,784 for the same period in fiscal 2000. The Company's net loss was $2,048,658 or 37 cents per share compared to a net loss of $1,648,179 or 31 cents per share for the same period in fiscal 2000.

For the nine-month period, net revenues decreased 13% to $11,247,925, compared with $12,945,626 for the previous year. The Company reported a net loss of $3,091,092, compared to a net loss of $2,893,647 during the first nine months of the previous year. Net loss per share for the nine-month period was 56 cents versus a net loss per share of 55 cents in the prior year.

Machine vision system unit sales for the nine-month period ended July 31, 2001 totaled 621 compared to 597 for the same period in fiscal 2000. Since inception, PPT VISION has sold over 4,000 machine vision systems to more than 300 customers.

"Unfortunately, our third quarter revenue results were very negatively affected by the general economic downturn which has severely curtailed capital spending in the manufacturing sector. Particularly hard hit has been capital spending in the electronic component manufacturing area, from which PPT VISION has historically derived over 60% of its revenue flow. Thus, as previously announced, we implemented a cost-reduction program during the third quarter which will more fully take hold in the fourth quarter, as the non-recurring charge in the third quarter was for severance payments associated with the cost-reduction program," stated Joseph C. Christenson, President of PPT VISION, Inc.

"At this time, short-term forward revenue visibility remains weak and we do not expect fourth quarter revenue results to be any better than third quarter. Looking into 2002, it is very hard to predict with precision exactly which quarter will begin to show revenue recovery. Clearly, our most important short-term goal is to take whatever measures are necessary to bridge the economic downturn to the point of revenue recovery while keeping our existing new product development and strategic marketing agenda intact, so that we can participate fully in the economic upturn when it does come. Based on the kinds of new product capabilities we have under development and the markets they are designed to serve, we do believe that PPT VISION will emerge from this economic downturn as a significantly stronger company, which is much better positioned to realize very strong levels of future revenue growth."

"While we experienced a very pronounced cyclical decline in buying from our major 2D machine vision customers, it is interesting to note that during the third quarter we sold and shipped initial 2D machine vision systems to ten new customers, which is higher than typical in any given quarterly timeframe. This is important in that this amount of new customer development is typically a positive indicator of future revenue growth. It is also reflective of our generally strong new business development efforts, despite the current economic downturn, in all three key strategic areas of our business, which include the 2D machine vision product line, the SpeedScan™ 3D product for OEM applications, and the PPT861™ 3D scanning system for end-user applications."

"Also worthy of note, in the third quarter PPT VISION shipped and installed two PPT861™ 3D scanning systems to two new customers. Both of these customers manufacture components used in the hard drive component industry, where acceptance of the PPT861 is gaining momentum as customers realize the benefits these systems provide. Our PPT861 system enables these customers, for the first time, to perform 100% in-line inspection. This, in turn, allows them to control important characteristics such as resonance performance of hard drive suspensions, an increasingly critical performance metric that until now has only been measured using very slow, off-line methods," concluded Mr. Christenson.

PPT VISION, Inc. designs, manufactures, markets, and integrates 2D and 3D machine vision-based automated inspection systems for manufacturing applications. Machine vision-based inspection systems enable manufacturers to realize significant economic paybacks by increasing the quality of manufactured parts and improving the productivity of manufacturing processes. The Company's 2D machine vision product line is sold on a global basis to end-users, system integrators, and original equipment manufacturers (OEM's) primarily in the electronic and semiconductor component, automotive, medical device, and packaged goods industries. The Company's SpeedScan™ 3D sensor, incorporating the Company's patented high-speed Scanning Moiré Interferometry™ technology is sold to original equipment manufacturers for specific applications. The Company's PPT861 3D scanning system, which uses the Company's SpeedScan 3D sensor, is an application-specific inspection solution targeted at inspection of leaded and bumped components in the semiconductor back-end manufacturing process, inspection of surface-mount electronic connectors, and inspection of components used in hard disk drives. The Company's Common Stock trades on the Nasdaq National Market tier of The Nasdaq Stock Market under the symbol PPTV. For more information, please see the PPT VISION, Inc. web site at www.pptvision.com.

Conference Call

The Company has scheduled a conference call for 10:00 AM CDT on Friday, August 17th. In the conference call, the Company will discuss the results for the recent quarter and expectations with respect to future performance. The conference call will be broadcast live over the Internet by StreetFusion. To listen live go to www.streetfusion.com.

A digitized replay of the third quarter conference call will be available between 1:30 p.m. on August 17th and 11:59 p.m. on August 25th. To access the replay please use the following numbers: U.S.--800-475-6701; International--320-365-3844; Access Code--595672.

Forward Looking Statements

The discussion above contains forward?looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements by their nature involve substantial risks and uncertainties as described by PPT VISION's periodic filings. Actual results may differ materially depending on a variety of factors, including, but not limited to the following: changes in worldwide general economic conditions, a change in the level of capital spending by electronic component manufacturers and cyclicality of capital spending by other customers, PPT VISION's ability to keep pace with technological developments and evolving industry standards, worldwide competition, and PPT VISION's ability to protect its existing intellectual property from challenges from third parties and other factors. Additional information with respect to the risks and uncertainties faced by PPT VISION may be found in the section "Business" under the caption "Important Factors Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" contained in its filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Form 10?K for the year ended October 31, 2000 and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.