Nuclear Measurements Corporation
Encyclopedia
Nuclear Measurements Corporation (NMC) is a privately held company based in Indianapolis, Indiana
. It is a maker of instrumentation
for the nuclear industry.
products included Geiger counters, gamma
and neutron
detectors, survey meters, and soil
analyzers. Some are now considered museum pieces.
After going digital in the early 1980s, its flagship
product became the PIOPS ("Programmable Input Output System"), a portable cart unit with embedded system
s used to measure air samples for radioactive gas
es and particulate matter.
in a 1996 lawsuit
http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/cgi-bin/getcase.pl?court=7th&navby=case&no=952122,
that achieved some notoriety. The plaintiff, an employee, sued the company and three of its officers for damages caused by alleged breach of fiduciary responsibility and for civil violation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act
(RICO).
The allegations pertained to employee benefit payroll deductions. For a short time, and without notice to employees, NMC applied funds intended for health insurance premiums against daily operating expenses. NMC's argument was that since the business was on the verge of financial collapse, its action was justified in order to keep the business afloat and its staff employed. The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of NMC on both charges.
Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
. It is a maker of instrumentation
Instrumentation
Instrumentation is defined as the art and science of measurement and control of process variables within a production, or manufacturing area....
for the nuclear industry.
History
NMC was founded in the early 1950s. Their analogAnalog signal
An analog or analogue signal is any continuous signal for which the time varying feature of the signal is a representation of some other time varying quantity, i.e., analogous to another time varying signal. It differs from a digital signal in terms of small fluctuations in the signal which are...
products included Geiger counters, gamma
Gamma
Gamma is the third letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals it has a value of 3. It was derived from the Phoenician letter Gimel . Letters that arose from Gamma include the Roman C and G and the Cyrillic letters Ge Г and Ghe Ґ.-Greek:In Ancient Greek, gamma represented a...
and neutron
Neutron
The neutron is a subatomic hadron particle which has the symbol or , no net electric charge and a mass slightly larger than that of a proton. With the exception of hydrogen, nuclei of atoms consist of protons and neutrons, which are therefore collectively referred to as nucleons. The number of...
detectors, survey meters, and soil
Soil
Soil is a natural body consisting of layers of mineral constituents of variable thicknesses, which differ from the parent materials in their morphological, physical, chemical, and mineralogical characteristics...
analyzers. Some are now considered museum pieces.
After going digital in the early 1980s, its flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
product became the PIOPS ("Programmable Input Output System"), a portable cart unit with embedded system
Embedded system
An embedded system is a computer system designed for specific control functions within a larger system. often with real-time computing constraints. It is embedded as part of a complete device often including hardware and mechanical parts. By contrast, a general-purpose computer, such as a personal...
s used to measure air samples for radioactive gas
Gas
Gas is one of the three classical states of matter . Near absolute zero, a substance exists as a solid. As heat is added to this substance it melts into a liquid at its melting point , boils into a gas at its boiling point, and if heated high enough would enter a plasma state in which the electrons...
es and particulate matter.
Case law
NMC was the defendantDefendant
A defendant or defender is any party who is required to answer the complaint of a plaintiff or pursuer in a civil lawsuit before a court, or any party who has been formally charged or accused of violating a criminal statute...
in a 1996 lawsuit
http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/cgi-bin/getcase.pl?court=7th&navby=case&no=952122,
that achieved some notoriety. The plaintiff, an employee, sued the company and three of its officers for damages caused by alleged breach of fiduciary responsibility and for civil violation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act
Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, commonly referred to as the RICO Act or simply RICO, is a United States federal law that provides for extended criminal penalties and a civil cause of action for acts performed as part of an ongoing criminal organization...
(RICO).
The allegations pertained to employee benefit payroll deductions. For a short time, and without notice to employees, NMC applied funds intended for health insurance premiums against daily operating expenses. NMC's argument was that since the business was on the verge of financial collapse, its action was justified in order to keep the business afloat and its staff employed. The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of NMC on both charges.