II-VI acquisition secures laser optics materials
By executing a definitive stock purchase agreement in which a wholly owned subsidiary of II-VI (Pittsburgh, PA) will acquire substantially all of the equity interests of Pacific Rare Specialty Metals & Chemicals (PRSMC; The Philippines) in exchange for cash, II-VI will expand its product offering and secure its supply chain for selenium and tellurium. Selenium is a critical raw material for the production of zinc selenide, the most commonly used substrate for CO2 laser optics manufactured and sold through II-VI’s Infrared Optics business segment.
OSA and SPIE lobby for science initiatives
Optical Society of America (OSA; Washington, D.C.) and SPIE (Bellingham, WA) members were on Capitol Hill in early May asking elected officials to support a range of science policy initiatives, including increased federal investments in scientific research and development.
During the 2007 Capitol Hill Day event, OSA participants from 14 states discussed the importance of doubling federal investments in basic research for FY2008 at the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Department of Energy’s Office of Science, and in the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST) core programs.
Members of SPIE requested funding support for innovation legislation, science and math education, and federal agencies for FY2008. SPIE team members joined nearly 300 scientists, engineers and business leaders who made visits on Capitol Hill as part of the 12th annual Congressional Visits Days, an event sponsored by the Science-Engineering-Technology Working Group, which is composed of more than 40 companies and organizations.
Multiyear mirror contract goes to MRC Optics
Photonic Products Group (Northvale, NJ) announced that its MRC Optics subsidiary (Sarasota, FL) was awarded a multiyear contract from the U.S. Army Tank Automotive & Armaments Command (Rock Island, IL) to provide new precision metal optical mirrors for the M1A1 Abrams tank fire-control electro-optical suite. The contract award contains an initial funding release of $660,000 for first-year deliveries, with multiple options for additional releases during the next three years.
In addition, MRC Optics received in excess of $240,000 funding from the U.S. Army’s Anniston Army Depot (Anniston, AL) for refurbishment of existing M1A1 tank mirrors over the next three months under the company’s existing multiyear basic purchase agreement with the Army.
BRO joins SolidWorks distributor network
Breault Research Organization (BRO; Tucson, AZ), manufacturer of ASAP Optical Software, is now part of SolidWorks (Concord, MA) OEM Distributor network. Under the terms of the partnership, BRO will now ship CAD-interoperable optical-software products and maintenance continuations with the latest SolidWorks Parts 3-D Modeling Engine. The partnership will improve the workflow between mechanical and optical engineers, and make optical simulations accessible to engineers in disparate fields.
Inficon acquires Maxtek for optical coatings
Instrumentation manufacturer for the semiconductor and vacuum-coating industries, Inficon (Syracuse, NY) acquired the assets of Maxtek (Cypress, CA), a developer and manufacturer of thin-film deposition measurement and quartz-crystal microbalance measurement instruments and accessories. The acquisition further strengthens Inficon’s position for measurement and control products in the optical coating market, already an important area for Inficon. Maxtek, with its 25 employees, was the first company to produce digital equipment for thin-film deposition processes and sciences.
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Also in the news . . .
Optics, imaging, and spectroscopy solutions provider Princeton Instruments (Trenton, NJ) established a direct sales and marketing office in Beijing, China that will be supported countrywide by a new partnership with Hong Kong-based Teltec Semiconductor Pacific. . . . According to news reports, Sunny Optical Technology (Zhejiang, China), one of the largest producers of optical components and subsystems in China, has launched an initial public offering in Hong Kong and hopes to raise up to $132 million dollars. . . . ASML (Veldhoven, The Netherlands) joined the Industrial Affiliates program at the College of Optical Sciences at the University of Arizona (Tucson, AZ), which means that its ASML Optics unit (Wilton, CT) will directly support the quality of education for students through program participation as well as potential technology transfer opportunities. . . . The SAES Getters Group (Milan, Italy), provider of technology for high-vacuum applications, and STMicroelectronics (Geneva, Switzerland), the manufacturer of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices, signed a cooperation agreement that will support development and production of next-generation MEMS gyroscopes.