REO – Bright Light in the Down Economy

Although Colorado’s high tech cluster has been hit hard during the “lost decade” there are some bright spots. On November 17 the Colorado Photonics Industry Association (CPIA)  recognized Research Electro-Optics, Inc. (REO)  as one of those bright spots when it named it the 2010 Colorado Photonics Company of the Year.

REO is a precision optics and thin film coating company founded in Colorado in 1980. It services small to medium to high volume OEMs including manufacturers of defense and aerospace systems, laser systems, semiconductor tools, medical systems, life sciences instrumentation and telecommunications equipment.

In recent years REO has expanded its staff and increased its new manufacturing and technology assets. REO officials indicated that they have been profitable for all of the past six years, with double-digit growth in several of those years. The company is privately held, with 2010 annual sales projected to be in the neighborhood of $40 million.

The Colorado photonics cluster received a boost during the mid-1980s, around the time REO was started. At that time, the Colorado Advanced Technology Institute (CATI) provided a small matching grant for at National Science Foundation Center of Excellence at CU and CSU. That grant ultimately led research that was commercialized to form 20 companies.

As an enabling technology, photonics touches many industries, such as aerospace, renewable energy, homeland security, biomedical devices, telecommunications, and defense. This allows companies, such as REO to diversify their product line and clients, thus insulating them from turbulent economic times.

Congratulations to REO!

©Copyright 2011 by CBER.

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