Press Release

Thermo Terratech Announces Ford Quality Certification of Holcroft Subsidiary

12/05/96

Thermo Terratech's Holcroft Subsidiary Earns Q1 Certification From
Ford Motor Company

WALTHAM, Mass., Dec. 3 -- Thermo TerraTech (AMEX: TTT)
announced today that its Holcroft subsidiary, based in Livonia,
Michigan, has been granted Q1 (Quality 1) certification by Ford Motor
Company . Holcroft is a major supplier of metallurgical
heat-treating furnaces to the automotive industry.

Q1 is an internationally recognized certification that Ford confers on
its suppliers and its own plants and activities when they meet the
company's highest quality standards. Holcroft supplies Ford with
custom-engineered systems used to heat treat automotive drive-train
components such as transmission gears.

"Holcroft is the first furnace manufacturer in the world to earn Q1
certification," said John P. Appleton, president and chief executive
officer of Thermo TerraTech. "This recognition speaks to the close
relationship between Ford and Holcroft, and affirms our company-wide
commitment to quality."

Thermo TerraTech Inc. provides environmental services and
infrastructure planning and design, encompassing a broad range of
specializations including consulting and design, the remediation of
soil and fluids, laboratory testing, and metal treating. Thermo
TerraTech is a public subsidiary of Thermo Electron Corporation.

This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve a
number of risks and uncertainties.  Important factors that could cause
actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such
forward-looking statements are set forth in Item 5 of the company's
Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 28,
1996. These include risks associated with dependence of the company's
businesses on environmental regulation, potential environmental and
regulatory liability, intense competition, development and
commercialization of technology, and possible obsolescence of the
company's services due to technological change; risks associated with
the company's acquisition strategy and its strategy of spinning out
subsidiaries; and uncertainties associated with the availability of
government funding and the effect of seasonal influences on the
company's performance.