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Product of the Month

Acromag Redesigns Popular IP220 Analog Output Module as Part of Extended Product Lifecycle Program

When the D/A converter used on one of our most popular IndustryPack modules was discontinued by the component's manufacturer, Acromag went to great lengths to maintain the availability of the IP220 analog output module. Originally released more than 10 years ago, the IP220 was Acromag's first IndustryPack module and is still actively used. So to meet the needs of our industrial OEM and military customers, we designed the new IP220A module which is a drop-in replacement with form, fit, and function equivalency to the original.

Acromag is committed to maintain the availability of all products for at least 10 years. However, we were first notified that the IP220's primary component would be discontinued only eight years after its release. As part of our product lifecycle program, we consulted our customers to determine their future requirements and accordingly made a lifetime buy of the component for what was to be a five year supply. Nevertheless, demand for the IP220 actually increased substantially, depleting the supply in only two years. It became apparent that many defense projects and industrial systems would still require the product for a longer period. So to support these customers, the IP220A was designed using modern components, but with identical operation to the original, to preserve compatibility with our customers' software investments.

For more information on the new IP220A or our product lifecycle program, please call 248-624-1541. Information is also available on our website at www.acromag.com. To request product literature or our 2003 catalog, use our on-line form.

Application Spotlight
Acromag plays a part in the US Navy's revolutionary next-generation surface combatant DD(X) destroyer program. With the recent completion by the Navy of the System Requirements Review (SRR) for the first milestone in the DD(X)'s development, Raytheon Integrated Defense System has been tasked with the ship's electronic and weapons control systems.

Raytheon and the program prime contractor, Northrop Grumman Ship Systems, are collaborating on the ship electronics. Other participating contractors include Newport News Shipbuilding, Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, Bath Iron Works, United Defense Limited Partners, and Boeing.

The two ship systems approved in July 2004 are the Total Ship Computing Environment (TSCE) and the Mark 57 Vertical Launching System (VLS). The TSCE will integrate all the war fighting and peacetime electronic operations of the ship into a common enterprise computing environment. It is being designed to the Navy's open architecture model to facilitate future system changes and reduce costs. The MK 57 is designed to fire all the missiles currently in the U.S. Navy inventory and projected to be in inventory for the foreseeable future. MK 57 also is scalable to accept the heavier missiles that could potentially be used in the future for ballistic missile defense and lighter missiles such as the Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile (ESSM). Additionally, the TSCE and MK 57 VLS will be used on other Navy ships now underdevelopment.

This DD(X) destroyer will revolutionize naval technology for the 21st century.

Acromag's contribution to solving and managing the I/O solution for various DD(X) control systems is through our Industry Pack Modules (IP) that were selected and designed into systems over other competitors. The I/O systems utilize VME 64+ systems and IP Modules running under the LYNX OS.

CE and FCC Approvals
Acromag's PCI Boards are now CE marked and FCC Part 15, Class B approved.

New Representative
Acromag is pleased to announce BKL Technologies as our newest representative for the New England States. BKL Technologies will provide you with a wide range of hardware, software, tools, and engineering services that will help facilitate faster and less expensive design cycles.

See our full list of technical support solutions on our Website.

Check out all of our newest Press Releases.

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Acromag, Inc.
30765 S. Wixom Rd.
P.O. Box 437
Wixom, Michigan 48393-7037
Phone: 248-624-1541
Fax: 248-624-9234
e-mail: solutions@acromag.com
www.acromag.com