The University of Colorado at Boulder Business Advancement Center has issued a new directory for Colorado聮s photonics industry.
The multifaceted directory, the most comprehensive of its kind, offers current information about state and national photonics companies, as well as photonics consultants, organizations and federal laboratories. It also includes analyses of the Colorado and worldwide photonics industries.
Photonics-enabled products include compact discs, motion sensors, digital cameras and surgical lasers. Photonics is a core technology that harnesses light for use in a variety of New Economy industries, such as medical equipment, telemedicine, data storage and telecommunications. The industry pays higher wages than most sectors, is environmentally friendly and is growing rapidly.
"This is an effort to take a group of companies in a niche and tell a story about them," said Gary Horvath, a marketing analyst at CU-BAC. "It puts the photonics industry in the context of the state and global economies, as well as in the context of the manufacturing sector and the New Economy."
The directory is written in easy-to-understand language and is designed for use by suppliers, economic development planners, university and federal researchers, members of the press, legislators and others who have contact with this far-reaching industry.
Colorado is home to 200 photonics organizations, which will employ approximately 37,250 people during 2000. Of these organizations, 159 each have annual sales of less than $100 million. Total industry sales in Colorado range between $5.5 billion and $10.5 billion.
More than half of Colorado聮s photonics organizations are located in Boulder County and the second highest concentration is in Denver. The $60 billion global industry is expected to grow 200 percent in the next 10 years.
The directory is a joint effort of the Optoelectronic Computing Systems Center and CU-BAC. OCSC is a research and education center within CU-Boulder and Colorado State University, comprised of 30 faculty, 148 students and a $5-million budget. CU-BAC offers research and technical assistance to small and mid-sized businesses and to public and non-profit organizations in Colorado.
The directory sells for $50. To order a copy, contact Gary Horvath at (303) 492-8395.