Optiforms is a leading provider of precision electroformed metal components and thin film optical coatings. The company has built a reputation for excellence over the past 39 years, supplying a wide range of components to support various market segments in the defense, aerospace, medical, and semiconductor industries.
Let’s look at four projects where Optiforms provided components to OEMs for industrial safety, defense, security, and experiential/event applications.
We invite you to read more about the company in our Spotlight article and on Optiforms’ website.
Thermal Imaging Camera by Flir
Teledyne FLIR manufactures and distributes a range of thermal imaging, visible-light imaging, and advanced threat detection systems used in the government, defense, industrial, and commercial markets. FLIR considers itself “the world’s sixth sense,” and its products enable security and safety for all users.
Optiforms produces the cold shield used in FLIR’s Recon V multi-sensor thermal binoculars when enhanced imagery and long standoff range are required, day or night.
“The cold shield helps improve the signal-to-noise ratio of the thermal imaging system by limiting the angle of view of the infrared detector to only the desired image,” explains Marco Arellano, Senior Process Engineer at Optiforms, “preventing radiation from unwanted directions from reaching the detector.”
Gas Leak Monitor by MSA Safety
Gas leak detection is an essential safety protocol at any power production plant, so any sensor in a detector unit must work perfectly every time.
MSA Safety’s ULTIMA X5000 gas detector is installed in offshore and onshore petrochemical facilities, chemical and pharmaceutical manufacturing, wastewater treatment, and other industrial manufacturing facilities to protect from the hazards associated with combustible gas leaks.
Optiforms produces the small spherical reflector used in the XIR+ sensor in the ULTIMA X5000. The reflector is electro-deposit plated with rhodium.
Optiforms’ Arellano explains, “The fusion of an electroformed reflector with gas leak detection systems like the MSA Ultima X5000 leads to unmatched sensitivity, pinpoint accuracy, and prolonged durability, establishing a gold standard in safety for critical setups like oil rigs — where the highest levels of safety are essential.”
9/11 Tribute by Spacecannon
“It was an honor to work with Spacecannon on a project dedicated to the memory of the people we lost on 9/11,” Robert Brunson, VP of Sales & Marketing says. “The array of searchlights is meant to be a hopeful visual tribute, visible throughout New York City and beyond.”
Optiforms produced 88 electroformed parabolic reflectors (P60) with rhodium coating for the Xenon vertical searchlights installed close to the 9/11 Memorial at the World Trade Center.
“Scatter can dilute the beam’s intensity, impacting the output of visual light,” Brunson adds. “Electroformed reflectors, with their minimal scatter, ensure that the tribute beams remain sharp, poignant, and clearly visible.”
Lighting up the Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle program was one of NASA’s longest-running and most successful projects, ferrying astronauts, scientists, and essential gear from Earth to outer space for 30 years.
Launches and landings were newsworthy events, and Optiforms was right there. “The searchlights used for such launches must produce intense and well-directed beams to highlight the shuttle against the vastness of the sky,” explains Brunson. “Electroformed reflectors, due to their reduced scatter, ensure that the shuttle remains well-lit and visible against the backdrop of space, providing spectators and cameras with an unobstructed view.”
The company provided eight electroformed parabolic reflectors (P108) coated with enhanced aluminum and twenty 20” parabolic reflectors (P60) coated with enhanced aluminum. These reflectors were placed in Xenon searchlight systems to light up the Space Shuttle on launch pads and landing strips.
A History of Excellence
Each of these projects highlights Optiforms’ mission to provide the best optical components and services available to customers seeking the strictest levels of performance and quality.
Coming up on its 40th anniversary, Optiforms continues to help solve complex problems and support customers with the highest efficiency, service, expediency, and quality.
Contact Optiforms for more information.
