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Crazy Man with Gun
CLS Laser Systems
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CLS (or) Coherent Laser Systems (or) CLS Laser Systems
Founded in the early 1980s by Bob Mongeon and his merry band of malcontents including Lanny Laughman, Bob Wayne, Bob Henschke and Ron Belek. They left UTRC to further advance the LIDAR technology first developed in the LOTAWS wire detection program. Bob DelBoca, who was the LOTAWS government program manager, joined the startup. The company went on to develop the leading Laser Radar, IFF and Vibration Sensing CO2 technology in the country. The company was hampered by the lack of access to RF excited CO2 laser technology.
McDonnell Douglas was an early financial supporter to in-turn gain CLS technology for their CMAG (Cruise Missile Advanced Guidance) program. Kollmorgen (Northampton, MA) was another early supporter. LLS (Litton Laser Systems, Apopka, FL) which was a YAG Target Designator house purchased the company in 1986 to gain entry into the military CO2 market. LLS kept operations in South Windsor until the 1990s when they packed it up and moved to Orlando. At that time many of the employees went to work for Tony and the UT Florida returnees at DEOS (DeMaria Electro Optic Systems) in Bloomfield - thus closing the technology circle that started years earlier at UTRC.
My stint at CLS started in early 84 and ended in 1990 when Pete and I started QSource. We bought out the residuals at the CLS close down auction. I joined up with DEOS (more circle?) in 2003 after building my new house in Middlefield, MA. I stayed there until 2010 when Joel fired me because I was old. Many more pictures to come.
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