16 Jan IMM Photonics: anniversary and transition
In January 2020, Christian Raith took over the duties of his mother Helga Raith in the family-run company IMM Photonics. Helga’s husband Friedrich Raith now followed her into retirement on January 1, 2023. From now on, Christian Raith will be the managing director. He emphasizes that consistently building up the positions of commercial management, development management and sales management, the company can now be operated by one managing director.
30 years of company history
IMM Photonics also celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2022. It was founded in 1992 as IMM Meßtechnologie. The company’s history began with the order to develop and produce a laser power meter for photodynamic laser therapy in cooperation with the GSF Central Laser Laboratory in Neuherberg, Germany, ready to be manufactured on industrial scale. In 1996, IMM Meßtechnologie is awarded what it claims is its most important patent: a universal fiber coupling that enables the development and production of fiber-optic test equipment.
In 2000 the factory in Viechtach is opened. In 2008 IMM Meßtechnologie changes its name to IMM Photonics. Changes in location also take place: According to the company, the new plant in Unterschleißheim, near Munich, is still mainly used for computer-based integrated development of optics, electronics, mechanics and the software. Mechanical design is based entirely on CAD (Autodesk Inventor), Zemax is used in optics development, and Altium is used in electronics development. Simulations of changing environmental conditions are enabled by a climate chamber for complex test cycles between -70 °C and +180 °C at 5 to 95 % relative humidity.
In 2013, IMM Photonics moved its Viechtach facility to the technology campus of HS Deggendorf in Teisnach. At this location, the company has a clean room and flow boxes to minimize exposure to microparticles. The rooms are equipped with dissipative floors and facilities according to DIN61340. Class 4 lasers can also be produced in specialized rooms. In 2016, an automatic gluing machine for lens assembly was developed, which IMM Photonics says performs up to 250,000 assemblies per year. In spring 2019, it was decided to purchase an automatic alignment machine for fiber optics, which has been in productive use since 2021. A website relaunch also took place in 2021.
Source and image: www.imm-photonics.de/en
