Q: Can you tell me your name, title, and company name?
A: Jeff Whitaker, General Manager at Ushio America, Inc.
Q: What do you do at Ushio?
A: I am in charge of managing two of our production facilities in the US. With a background in mechanical engineering, I also oversee many of our new product development projects. I also have close interactions with many of our customers and vendors.
Q: How did you first hear about IOI and our LED Illuminators, and how long have you been a client?
A: I first heard about IOI’s multi-color projector in 2015 from a colleague who saw it at Photonics West I think.
Q: Please tell me the product(s) you have purchased from IOI and their application(s).
A: We have been purchasing a custom multi-color LED engine since 2016 for use in a product that we engineered which is a handheld illuminator for use in the forensic industry.
Q: Would you tell me why you chose IOI and our products over others on the market?
A: At the time of inception, we knew of no other companies with the ability to combine individually addressable high powered LEDs in one package.
Q: How would you describe IOI’s expertise in High Power Solid-State Illuminators?
A: Without the innovation and expertise of IOI in the ability to create such high-powered LED engine’s we would not have had a successful product. They were an absolute key partner in the development of our product.
Q: How would you rate IOI’s customer service and responsiveness?
A: IOI has been great to work with across the board; from fielding engineering questions and requests early in the development cycle of our product, up to delivery information during production orders.
Q: Please describe the performance and best attribute(s) of your IOI illuminator(s)?
A: IOI’s product has proven to have very high brightness without sacrifice of typical solid state long lifetime.
Q: How have IOI’s products enabled the success of your instrument/application?
A: The product we have been buying form IOI helps us meet a unique niche capability in the market. With high output and the ability to combine multi-wavelengths in one compact package.
Q: What has been the most positive aspect of working with IOI?
A: The ability to collaborate with engineers to gain insight into capabilities and coordinate on EOL issues with individual components and the impacts to our design
Q: Would you recommend IOI to others, and if so, what would you say?
A: Yes, I would certainly recommend IOI to others. They bring key optical and heat rejection expertise to their solid-state device performance. They offer off the shelf solutions in addition to customizable products to fit unique applications.