KANATA, Ontario, Oct. 30 -- Citing increased demand in the telecommunications optics market, GSI Lumonics Inc. has formed a new business unit specializing in optical switching. The core of the new unit will be based in the company's precision optics operation in Nepean, Ontario. Fourth quarter sales of the precision optics unit will approximate a $28 million annualized run rate, with about 60 percent sold into the telecom optics market, the company said. The new unit will generate more than 10 percent of consolidated GSI Lumonics' sales in 2001, the company said.
The company currently supplies a number of applications in dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) for fiber optics telecommunications networks. The company plans to develop a Boston-based center to address future technology requirements for optical switching capability in DWDM as well. A focus of this work will include developing MEMS technology for optical switching applications.