ATI has always provided both superior products and outstanding customer service

Apex, North Carolina: ATI Industrial Automation, a world-leading engineering-based developer of robotic peripheral equipment, including Automatic Tool Changers, Multi-Axis Force/Torque Sensing Systems, Utility Couplers, Robotic Deburring Tools, Robotic Collision Sensors, and Compliance Devices, has established an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). An ESOP is a federally-qualified employee benefit plan which makes employees owners in the company. ATI has always provided both superior products and outstanding customer service and now that the employees are also owners they will reap the rewards as the company continues to grow.

ATI was started in 1989 by three engineers and current ATI employees: Keith Morris, CEO; Robert Little, COO; and Dwayne Perry, Chief Sensor Technologist. They operated out of a small office in Garner, North Carolina with a mission: To produce the best robotic productivity tools available. Over the next 23 years, ATI has continued to grow and expand. ATI now has over 170 employees working in their corporate and manufacturing headquarters located in Apex, North Carolina and offices located in Michigan, China, and Brazil.

Since 1998, ATI has increased its revenue tenfold and has become the leading supplier of Robotic Tool Changers and Multi-Axis Force/Torque Sensors. "Our employees have an extreme focus on customer satisfaction, engineering, and quality. The ESOP will strengthen that focus by empowering employees to share in the company's success and directly benefit from the company's profitability," said Keith Morris, CEO.

Robert Little, COO, states, "Our employees have been acting as owners by demonstrating exceptional dedication, detail, and diligence in performing the day-to-day responsibilities of their jobs. Now they are owners." ATI holds many patents and awards for excellence in manufacturing and quality in the robotics industry. Their engineers continue to provide state-of the-art, cost-effective solutions, which will increase robot productivity while surpassing their customers' automation needs.

For additional information about the ESOP or ATI products, contact ATI Industrial Automation, 1031 Goodworth Drive, Apex, NC 27539, phone 919-772-0115, fax 919-772-8259, www.ati-ia.com.