The Employee shall, while employed by the Company and thereafter, preserve in confidence all proprietary information heretofore or hereafter acquired by him or disclosed to him relating to customers, products, processes, machines, inventions, or improvements of the Company and its affiliates (collectively, the “Companies”) or in which the Companies are interested and all other information of any kind or nature pertaining to the business of the Companies, and the Employee will not disclose any such information to any other person without the express prior written authorization of the Companies or make use of such information for the Employee’s personal benefit or for the benefit of any person (other than the Companies) or assist others in using such information. Confidential information shall not include: a) information which the Companies permit the Consultant to disclose in the course and scope of performing his duties under the Employment Agreement; b) information which at the time of its disclosure is or which thereafter becomes part of the public domain by publication or otherwise, other than as a result of a disclosure by Employee; or c) any information which is required to be disclosed by law or any administrative or legal proceedings.