PRESS RELEASE

St. Rose, Louisiana

February 8, 2002

Source Production and Equipment Co., Inc. (SPEC) located in St. Rose, Louisiana, announced today that it successfully opened and inspected a shipment of radioactive material that exceeded transportation dose rate limits. The package consists of three metal capsules containing Iridium-192 pellets inside an inner shielded container which is inside a metal overpack. The inspection revealed that two of three metal capsules were open and some of the Ir¹⁹² pellets migrated past the shield of the inner container. All pellets remained secured within the inner container and no radioactive contamination escaped the package.

The shipment originated at the Studsvik facility in Sweden on December 27, 2001 and arrived in New Orleans on December 31, 2001. The radioactive Ir¹⁹² contents is used by nondestructive testing companies to perform industrial gamma radiography. SPEC is a leading manufacturer of gamma radiography equipment and radioactive sources with customers worldwide.

A shielded room and hot cell was rapidly constructed at SPEC’s facility for this operation. "The project required a highly coordinated effort involving many company technicians to complete a very intricate operation quickly and effectively. I am very proud of our staff," said Mr. R. D. "Donny" Dicharry, President of SPEC.

The inspection was performed in the presence of Studsvik’s personnel and officials from the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, U. S. Department of Transportation, and Swedish Radiation Protection Institute.