HISTORY OF PRIMA NORTH AMERICA
PRIMA North America is comprised of three businesses - PRIMA SYSTEMS, LASERDYNE SYSTEMS and CONVERGENT LASERS.
PRIMA SYSTEMS imports 2D and 3D laser cutting machines and automation systems from its parent company, PRIMA Industrie in Torino, Italy. CONVERGENT LASERS, another part of PRIMA North America located in Chicopee, MA, supplies the CO2 lasers and high peak power pulsed Nd:YAG lasers.
PRIMA SYSTEMS cut and weld sheet metal parts used in the Metal Fabrication, Automotive and Appliance Industry.
A well-established sales network of Regional Sales Managers and Independent Representatives distribute the systems in North America (Canada, USA and Mexico). PRIMA SYSTEMS also provides service and application support throughout North America through its own Service and Application Engineers and its multi-million dollar spare parts inventory in Chicopee, MA.
CONVERGENT LASERS - Industrial material processing lasers have been in use in manufacturing applications since the early 1960’s. Once thought of as a solution of last resort, today they are commonplace and often the tool of choice. PRIMA INDUSTRIE has been a leading innovator in this industry since the production of their first ground breaking, multi axis system.
In 2000, PRIMA INDUSTRIE, Torino, Italy purchased the laser division of TransTech Industries, then located in Sturbridge, MA USA. Under the names Laser Incorporated, Coherent and Coherent General, this company was a pioneer in the industrial laser industry. CONVERGENT LASERS traces it founding to 1966 with the introduction of one of the first truly industrial lasers. Today it has close to 4000 industrial lasers in operation around the world.
Some of the historical highlights include:
1966 First industrial laser introduced
1969 Commercial Nd:YAG
1970 First deep penetration weld
1971 25kW CO2 laser operated
1973 Nd:Glass laser
1983 Fast flow CO2 laser introduced
1990 Refocusing resonator CO2 laser
1993 Sealed diffusion cooled laser
1994 First 45 kW laser delivered
2002 4kW Fast Axial Flow CO2 laser
2007 5kW CV lasers are delivered
2008 800 CP CV laser installed worldwide
2008 CL50k laser delivered to LASERDYNE SYSTEMS and end user
Today's products include the CP series of CO2 lasers and the CL50k Nd:YAG laser. These products, designed in conjunction with end users within the PRIMA Group and with worldwide customer input, produce beam characteristics that allow the widest range of industrial material processing applications. They utilize the latest electrical and mechanical technology and adhere to the highest standards for quality and reliability. Designs stress simplicity along with ease of integration, operation, maintenance and servicing. With certification and installations in Europe, North America, Asia and Australia, today's products have proven to be a consistent, cost effective, reliable manufacturing tool wherever they are used.
LASERDYNE SYSTEMS - was founded in 1981 by engineers who felt there was a need for a standard built laser system where the laser was controlled by the motion system controller. From this seed of an idea came the first system, the 3 axis LASERDYNE 780. Soon the 780 system with System 84 controller was accepted by a wide variety of customers and known for ease of use and versatility. Requirements from Harley Davidson and Xerox led to the development of the BeamDirector® and a new area in laser processing was born. Sophisticated 5 axis motion for trimming 3D parts became the focus of LASERDYNE development.
1982 - First 780 installed
1984 - First 780 BeamDirector®
1986 - AutoFocusControl (AFC)
1990 - First 890 installed
1991 - Effusion Cooling drilling process
1992 - First 550 NGV driller shipped
1996 - Solar Turbines F laser developed
1998 - 200th 5 axis system installed
2002 - First OFC installed
2003 - 300th 5 axis system installed
2004 - First 450 installed
2006 - System 94P controller introduced
2007 - Adaptive Hole Size Control standard on all CL50k drilling systems
2008 - First LASERDYNE 795 delivered
2008 - CL50k laser replaces older CL50k, Co-designed with CONVERGENT LASERS
Today LASERDYNE SYSTEMS products are in use around the world in the most demanding drilling, cutting and welding applications. A favorite of turbine engine, aerospace and medical manufacturers LASERDYNE SYSTEMS is well recognized for process development and the most innovative software in laser processing.
For additional information on the businesses and products of
PRIMA North America, Inc. e-mail Sales