Aerotech is bringing its expertise even closer to its customers: In early 2026, the motion control specialist will open its laser laboratory in Fürth, where customers from all over Europe will be able to test demanding laser processes in a practical setting and further develop them together with the experts from the company. Aerotech is thus further expanding its presence in Europe and creating a central point of contact for application and development testing.
We talked to Brian O’Connor, Vice President of Growth & Strategy, and Bryan Germann, Optomechatronics Lead at Aerotech, about the strategic goals Aerotech is pursuing with this facility and how customers will benefit from it.
Mr. O´Connor, a laser laboratory is scheduled to open at the Fürth site at the beginning of next year. To what extent will this strengthen your position?
Brian O’Connor – The lab in Fürth will enable Aerotech to better support our customers in Europe. We have many customers who want to come and demonstrate their processes using our products and systems. This lab will make it possible for customers to do exactly that.
What is the strategy behind this?
Brian O’Connor – The strategy behind this is simple — supporting our customers. We are very consultative in our approach in working with customers to provide the best motion control and automation solutions. This facility gives us a place to work collaboratively with our customers in Europe.
How have you responded to such customer inquiries in the past?
Brian O’Connor – In the past, we’ve worked with customers out of our US labs. However, putting a lab in Europe allows us to be closer to our European customer base, making collaboration easier.
Have you already considered collaborating with partners in this field?
Brian O’Connor – Yes, absolutely. We have worked closely with many partners. We have been collaborating with Light Conversion AB and have equipment in their Silicon Valley US lab. We have worked closely with other partners as well to get our equipment as close as possible to our customers.
What were the reasons for not pursuing this further?
Brian O’Connor – We feel that having an Aerotech lab in Europe is vital for us to continue to build market-leading products. We already have a facility in Fürth, so building out a lab in that facility was relatively straightforward. We will also continue to work with our partners all over the world to help our customers solve their most challenging manufacturing challenges.
Mr. Germann, what role does the new lab play in your customer strategy?
Bryan Germann – The laser lab enables us to demonstrate that our products can solve customers’ problems directly with them in a collaborative way. It enables customers to see specific capabilities and how experts at Aerotech would implement and optimize a specific solution. The benefit to our customers is reduced cost and faster implementation.
Which industries are you targeting in particular?
Bryan Germann – Any industries that use our AGV laser scan heads and Automation1 in laser applications — typically medical device manufacturing, electronics and semiconductor component processing, aerospace and defense component manufacturing, and the watch-making industry.
How will the new LaserLab be equipped? What opportunities will it offer for customer testing?
Bryan Germann – The lab will be equipped with machines that demonstrate our laser processing capabilities. We will have our two-, three- and five-axis laser scan heads along with high-precision servo stages and our Automation1 control platform equipped with laser-specific features like our infinite field of view (IFOV) and position synchronized output (PSO). In addition, we will have a Light Conversion ultrafast laser with multi-wavelengths, along with other lasers, for processing a variety of substrates and materials.
What are your long-term goals with the establishment of a laser lab in Europe?
Bryan Germann – Our long-term goal is to improve our support for customer applications. This requires us to be close to our customer base and work collaboratively with them on next-generation processes. This close collaboration will result in better products that will help solve these next-generation challenges. We expect that lab to continue to grow in capabilities over time, constantly adapting to the market needs of our customers.
To learn more, visit www.aerotech.com.
