Industry Interview: Laser Devices
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Heinz Thummel
President and CEO
Laser Devices
Born in Jena, East Germany, Heinz Thummel escaped in 1961. He received a Masters Degree in physics and mechanical engineering from the University of Basel, Switzerland. In 1965, developed one of the first sub-miniature He-Ne laser aiming devices at the University Laboratories in Berkeley, Calif. In 1970, he designed and built a unique high energy laser drilling system. Thummel founded Laser Devices, Inc. in 1979 to design and manufacture miniaturized laser aiming devices intended for use by law enforcement and the military. He currently holds seven U.S. patents.
Q: Laser Devices produces a wide range of optics from flashlights to tactical aiming systems. How long has the company been involved in the military market with these systems?
A: The company really got started in the military side of the business in about 1995/1996. One of our first big military contracts was to supply pistol-mounted flashlights and lasers to the Swiss Army for their SIG 226 and SIG 220 pistols.
Q: As for aiming devices, how can you take the technology to the next level, in other words, what’s the next generation going to be bring and how will you be at the forefront of that?
A: In 2007 Laser Devices was awarded contract #W91-CRB-05-D-0029 as a Prime Vendor for the U.S. Department of Defense. The U.S. military is currently acquiring our dual beam aiming laser, DBAL-A2, as part of this contract. This product offers a visible pointer, an Infrared pointer and Infrared illuminator. We believe that this system will continue to meet military requirements for the next five to eight years.
Future laser systems will likely include additional laser and illumination capabilities or combined lasers with a primary battlefields optics/range finding capabilities.
Q: How important are industry partnerships to your business and support for the warfighters and does Laser Devices actively seek partners for the U.S. market and international community as well?
A: We do work with other industry players to continuously improve our products and to offer additional capabilities. One of our newest products is the result of a strategic alliance between Laser Devices and L-3 EOTech which resulted in the design, development and manufacture of the EOLAD laser aiming device with HOLOgraphic weapon sight. This device is available in six different models, both visible [635nM] and infrared [835nM].
Q: Do you think that kind of strategic alliance is pretty indicative of the things you want to do in the future?
A: Yes, it is. As products become more technically advanced, you need to draw on the expertise from other system providers. This type of collaboration allows each of the parties to contribute market-leading technology to produce a better product.
Q: With that program, was it joint research, joint manufacture, or did one of the group bring a certain part of the technology and then somebody else manufacture it?
A: No, we conceptualized the idea at Laser Devices then presented it to L-3 EOTech. They liked or approved the idea and we asked them to supply us a modified holographic sight that would accommodate our laser system. The final assembly of the unit takes place at Laser Devices where we integrate the laser onto the optic. The entire process from conceptualization to realization took approximately one year.
Q: Are there any new product lines other than the types of products that you are currently developing that you are looking to move into or develop?
A: Our newest product is the EOLAD system. We released this product at the SHOT Show in Las Vegas earlier this year. We see this system as having commercial, law enforcement and military applications. We are also currently working on other advanced electro-optical systems which will be announced later this year.
Q: In relation to your business plan, how much of your business and how much of your focus is on the law enforcement community, and are you delivering similar type of products to both the military and civilian law enforcement communities or do you have separate product lines that you’ve targeted each one?
A: It’s actually a little bit of both. We have some products that are really only appropriate for military applications. This would include some high-powered laser systems that are needed for long-range military-type engagements.
Other products certainly have applicability both in the military and the law enforcement arena.
One thing that we see as being of particular interest to our law enforcement customers are those laser systems that offer both visible and infrared capabilities. We have an EOLAD version that has this capability as well as several of our dual-beam lasers. This equipment gives the law enforcement community some of the same capabilities that our soldiers are using right now in Iraq in connection with their house-to-house entries.
Q: Any final thoughts or anything you’d like to add about Laser Devices relationship with the DoD and the U.S. military and special ops community or your business in the future?
A: We have formed a close relationship with different areas within the Department of Defense. We believe that these relationships and our ability to obtain customer feedback is helpful to Laser Devices in its efforts to developing new and unique products for the soldier in the field. ♦