generated about $3.74 billion in shipments in 2000
The largest segment of this industry--about one-third of industry sales--is sighting, tracking, and fire control equipment, much of which is used in missile systems,
This category covers establishments primarily engaged in manufacturing instruments and apparatus that measure an optical property
industry employed approximately 22,100 persons,
On the verge of widespread product application were "switchable optical elements" (SOEs)
Long-term growth in the industry will depend on the ability of U.S. companies to continue to introduce new optical technologies and improve on existing ones,
Companies in this industry manufacture a plethora of devices, including weapon-firing control mechanisms, optical laser-sighting systems, binoculars, borescopes,
Industry shipments increased from $1.32 billion in 1998 to $1.79 billion in 2000.
Most devices in this industry use lenses. Some products, however, do not utilize lenses
Industry growth in sales during the 1990s was attributable to a promising new sphere of "minimally invasive" surgical instruments.
W. T. Welford has written: 'Aberrations of optical systems' -- subject(s): Aberration, Design and construction, Geometrical optics, Optical instruments 'High collection nonimaging optics' -- subject(s): Optical instruments 'Useful optics' -- subject(s): Optical instruments, Optics 'Aberrations of the symmetrical optical system' -- subject(s): Aberration, Design and construction, Geometrical optics, Optical instruments
In the late 1990s, pens alone generated $1.7 billion in annual sales, according to the Writing Instrument Manufacturers Association.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there were at least 500 companies engaged in the manufacturing of optical instruments and lenses in the late 1990s.