CALABASAS, Calif., June 12, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — National Technical Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTSC) (NTS), a leading provider of testing and engineering services, announced today that it has acquired all the outstanding shares of stock of privately-held Garwood Laboratories Inc. Based in Southern California, Garwood is a full-service product certification lab for the commercial, defense, space, medical, aviation and transportation industries.

Garwood will be operated as a wholly-owned subsidiary of NTS. It currently has two Southern California locations: one located in Pico Rivera in Los Angeles County, and the other in San Clemente in south Orange County within close proximity to San Diego County.

“Garwood offers us a natural fit in terms of synergies with customers and services and will enable us to extend our reach throughout the Southern California region, which is a key geographical area for us,” said President and CEO William C. McGinnis. “In addition, the acquisition of long time competitor Garwood Laboratories increases our market share and adds several new clients in the aerospace, defense, telecom and commercial electronics markets. The addition of the Garwood employee base augments our top-flight teams of engineers, technicians and management with an exceptional and complementary group of talent.”

“Combining Garwood with NTS was the best choice for us,” said Jim Armstrong, Garwood President and CEO. “NTS clearly has the best strategic fit as it relates to our clients and employees. In the recent years, my employees and I have established a friendly relationship with NTS’ management team. I believe our clients will continue to realize the benefits they have enjoyed from Garwood, along with the many additional capabilities offered by NTS. I look forward to supporting our clients, employees and new friends at NTS in achieving a successful integration.”

The purchase of Garwood Laboratories marks the third NTS acquisition in the past 12 months. In July 2011, NTS purchased Rockford, IL-based Ingenium Testing, a leading product compliance and engineering services provider, adding an advanced testing facility, solid customer base and a presence in the important Chicago region. In September, NTS purchased Pittsfield, MA-based Lightning Technologies Inc., an internationally recognized engineering services and testing laboratory specializing in the field of lightning protection.

About Garwood Laboratories
Garwood Laboratories offers complete reliability testing for the certification of components and systems. The Company has provided valued, state-of-the-art testing services with core competencies including EMI/EMC, Mechanical/Fluids, Dynamics and Environmental technologies as a well respected brand since 1954.

About National Technical Systems
National Technical Systems, Inc. is a leading provider of testing and engineering services to the aerospace, defense, telecommunications, automotive and high technology markets. Through a world-wide network of resources, NTS provides full product life-cycle support, offering world class design engineering, compliance, testing, certification, quality registration and program management. For additional information about NTS, visit the Company’s website at www.nts.com or call 800-270-2516.

Forward-Looking Statements
The statements in this press release that relate to future plans, events or performance, are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including risks associated with uncertainties pertaining to customer orders, demand for services and products, development of markets for the companies’ services and products and other risks identified in the companies’ SEC filings. Actual results, events and performance may differ materially. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. The companies undertake no obligation to release publicly the result of any revisions to these forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

“Safe Harbor” Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Statements in this press release regarding National Technical Systems’ business which are not historical facts are “forward-looking statements” that involve risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Annual Report or Form 10-K for the most recently ended fiscal year.

SOURCE National Technical Systems, Inc.