ORCMT
SUCCESS STORY
 
Laser Power Optics 
 
COMPANY/LOCATION: Laser Power Optics, San Diego, California 
PRODUCT: Laser Optics 
YEARS IN BUSINESS: 14 
EMPLOYEES:
ANNUAL SALES: 		 130 
More than $10 million 
 
SITUATION:      Laser Power Optics needed an independent means to confirm the waviness (the variation from a perfect ellipse or a perfect circle) of diamond cutting tools the company buys and uses for diamond turning in the production of laser optics. The confirmation tells the company if its suppliers meet quality specifications. 
 
PROJECT:          Laser Power Optics contacted the Ultraprecision Manufacturing Technology Center at the Oak Ridge Centers for Manufacturing Technology to provide independent confirmation of the accuracy of the tools. The precision measurements provided by the Ultraprecision Manufacturing Technology Center have allowed Laser Power Optics to assess continued contracting viability and identify product problems.
 
RESULTS:          Laser Power's work with ORCMT has given the company measurements that can confirm vendor specifications and provide the company a backup traceable to the National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST). Having the second check on the accuracy of the tools allows the company to (1) pay for the proper tools, and (2) produce parts under conditions where the requirement for the accuracy of the surface is as tight as specifications given to the tool vendors. 

Jim Austin, manufacturing engineer with Laser Power Optics, said the service from ORCMT has saved his company several thousand dollars. "This second check of accuracy saves us time on machines that must produce $400 per hour in revenue. We know the tools we are going to use are accurate. It is impossible to produce good optics with bad tools," he said. 

"Now that a NIST-traceable waviness measuring device exists, Laser Power Optics plans to purchase one and will insist that all vendors who are serious install and use such a device," Austin said. 
 
PARTNERS: 
   
 
 

Technical assistances provided to the private sector by the Oak Ridge Centers for Manufacturing Technology (ORCMT) and its manufacturing extension partners throughout the United States. 
 
   For information or assistance, call the Manufacturing Technology Information Service at 1-800-356-4USA 
   or visit the ORCMT Home Page.