Engineering, the Foundation Stone of LORD

LORD Ingénierie was created in 1985 by a group of young engineers from the Ecole Supérieure d’Optique. LORD Ingénierie, from the beginning, has centred its activities on engineering and the realisation of optic and optoelectronic systems, a certain number of which are vision systems designed for industrial control purposes, originally made by integrating vision components available at the time.

In 1990, LORD Ingénierie became a public limited company with a capital of FF3,000,000 with the capital risk companies of the Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique (CEA) and the Délégation Générale de l’Armement (DGA) among its shareholders.

From Engineering to Production

Competency related to the field of optics develops rapidly within the company, notably in computer hardware and software, analogue and digital electronics and mechanics.

These skills enable the company to move to its second development phase : the design and serial production of optic and optoelectronic systems.

The main, and original, idea is to offer OEMs the expertise of a partner competent in mechanics, electronics and information technology who is also recognised for their skills in optics, image processing and optoelectronics, and their know-how in the design and serial production of cameras, sensors and OEM optoelectronic sub-systems.

This step has ensured that customers are offered a fully functional product at an optimal price, with a full guarantee as to its durability and reproducibility.

A Catalogue of Products : LORD Vision Technology

In 1991, LORD Ingénierie decide to develop a range of digital line scan cameras, judging that the products currently available in the market of line scan vision are relatively limited and hardly suitable for industrial purposes. The first products are released in 1992 and their commercialisation fully operational by early 1993.

While sales of industrial vision products continue to rise, efforts are again increased in product development in order to offer top performance equipment. Thus today, LORD Ingénierie offers a range of 15 digital line scan cameras from 512 to 7926 pixels and PC compatible, acquisition and real-time processing boards.

Industrial Inspection Systems Using Vision Technology

Still in 1993, encouraged by its experience in the engineering and camera domains, LORD Ingénierie designs and installs its first inspection systems designed for the flat glass production and transformation industry but also for other applications such as the guidance of robots used in laser soldering procedures.

This step represents a very important guarantee of safety and durability for the customer as many of the systems components are both designed and manufactured by LORD.

LORD Ingénierie has recently installed the first systems for the inspection of moving metals and is developing its activities in this sector.

Smart Sensors

1998 was a remarkable year in the growth of LORD with the marketing of the first smart line scan camera.

LORD Ingénierie’s CIL 2048 represents a new generation of line scan cameras, operating as a stand alone programmable logic controller. It consists of a high-resolution, autonomous industrial line sensor. Contactless, it can make several thousands of verifications per second on fixed or moving objects.

Designed for industrial system and automation specialists, parametrizable in a few minutes, it fulfils the classical functions of industrial vision namely, dimensional measurement, guidance and inspection.

LORD Today

Today, LORD is a prosperous company with a staff of 32 (of which 17 are engineers or technicians).

All products and projects are based on optics and industrial vision, from engineering to production.

The strength and the stability of the company resides in the balance between its different activities which have all been maintained and developed.