
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, March 19, 1991                   TAG: 9103190193
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-2   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: New River Valley bureau
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG                                LENGTH: Short

FORCE INC. GETS MAJOR DEFENSE JOB

Force Inc. has been awarded a major defense contract for fiber optic products, said sales manager Jim Vanhoozier. TRW Space and Defense Sector, a large California military contractor, awarded the development and production contract to the Christiansburg firm.

Force Inc. began work on the high-speed data links several months ago and has brought its work force up to 42 to handle the extra load, Vanhoozier said. "It's a classified program, and there's very little they'll let us say," he said. "Quite frankly, we don't know the end use."

He could not say how much the contract is worth, or the number of items Force Inc. will make, other than, "It's substantial." He said the work will last at least several years.

The data links run on fiber optic technology that move information 500 times faster than a personal computer, he said.

Force Inc. is a locally owned fiber optics and electronics company started in 1979.

by CNB