(Newtown, PA) – Today, Pennsylvania Congressman Patrick Murphy (D-8th District) announced that Newtown manufacturer Optellios, Inc., will receive a $660,000 grant from the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Optellios is a leading manufacturer of fiber-optic sensor systems for physical security and infrastructure monitoring. The company recently completed its expansion into a new facility in Newtown, PA.

  Optellios was awarded the NIST funding to develop new fiber-optic technology for monitoring water pipelines and similar buried infrastructure. The goal is to have a sensor providing continuous, real-time data about pipeline integrity. Such sensor information would help improve pipeline safety by making it easier and faster to identify any structural problems. It would also allow for better upkeep and maintenance of water pipelines and other infrastructure systems.

  “It’s exciting to see manufacturing companies like Optellios putting down roots in Bucks County and providing good jobs for our well-qualified workforce,” said Rep. Murphy.

  “We’re proud to be a part of Bucks County’s growing hub of high-tech manufacturing companies,” said George Zisk, the company’s Operations Manager. “This grant money helps us employ researchers and engineers to develop new products in markets that are critical to a sustainable economy.”

  According to Mr. Zisk, Optellios will create a fiber-optic monitoring system that will act as a continuous sensor providing real-time data about the location and nature of acoustical and temperature changes in the sensor’s surroundings over long expanses of pipelines. This constant monitoring would help operators prioritize maintenance schedules and would help prevent costly accidents and repairs.

  About Optellios, Inc.

  Optellios, Inc., is a leading Newtown-based fiber-optic technology company that provides advanced sensing, security, and communication solutions for military bases, airports, power plants, water treatment facilities, pipelines, secure data networks, and other critical infrastructures and high-value assets. For more information, visit www.optellios.com.

For Immediate Release, August 11, 2010
Contact, Sara Schaumburg, (202) 225-4276