Integra Optics Celebrates 10 Years

ALBANY, N.Y. – Integra Optics, a global provider of carrier-grade fiber optics components, is marking its tenth year in business with a brand refresh and aggressive five-year plan to continue gaining new ground in the IT sector. The manufacturing company has grown significantly in the past year, adding employees while also introducing automated production processes through the use of robotics. The new efficiencies allow Integra Optics to meet the demand of a client base that continues to grow nationally and internationally. Annual revenue has grown significantly with future goals to reach $100 million over the next three to five years. This as the transceiver industry is expected to grow, in the same span of time, from $4 billion to $40 billion.

“As we have grown, we have been able to stay true to our mission of maximizing network uptime for our customers – helping customers turn up networks faster and keep them up and running,” said David Prescott, founder & CEO, Integra Optics. “We’ve shown that we can outperform our competitors in product viability and customer service. Our direct sales stream is now very well established and that’s let us branch out and increase our focus on our international and distribution streams.”

To support the rapid expansion related to its market share value, Integra Optics has hired key staff in executive positions, including former infrastructure president Jim Pascarell who was recently named president. David Vener, formerly of Smith & Jones and Burst Marketing has been brought on as chief marketing officer.

Integra Optics was founded in Albany, N.Y. in 2007 and quickly became recognized for its innovative network solutions, product reliability, technical expertise and personalized customer service. As a third party alternative to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), Integra Optics filled a need for fast delivery and deployment times for its more than 300 customers worldwide. In July of this year, a corporate rebrand campaign was unveiled, magnifying Integra Optics’ leadership position within the fiber optic component space and to reinforce the company’s guiding core principles of interoperability, reliability, and availability.

The rebrand points to Integra Optics as “the most trusted name in uptime.” This is supported by extensive internal testing of competitive optics and based on average industry and customer-reported failure rates. By these metrics, Integra brand optics are proven to be 33 times more reliable than both OEM and third-party generics. Integra Optics determines reliability in terms of five 9’s where all products will operate more than a 99.999 percent uptime. The observed failure rate for Integra Optics is less than .001 percent based on data gathered over the last 10 years. Given these factors, all Integra Optics transceivers have a calculated mean time before failures (MTBF) figure in excess of 900,000 hours. Current and long-time customers have verified this level of reliability.

“Jaguar purchased optics for a complex project in multiple cities involving coding for two OEMs in multiple wavelengths,” said Brian Riggleman, network administrator, Jaguar Communications. “The other vendor sent us bad optics and the troubleshooting lasted several days. Integra shipped us two tunables and using Integra’s Smart Coder, we were able to turn up our network faster. The project was completed on time thanks to the fast action of Integra. I have discovered that what initially looks like a good deal is not the entire price.”

“Deep Blue has been working with Integra Optics for nearly ten years, really since the beginning,“ said Brian Epstein, chief executive officer, Deep Blue Communications. ”They are the only optic provider we use and have supported overall network uptime through superior products and exceptional customer service. We look forward to working with Integra for the next ten years.”

“We are pleased to add Integra Optics to our portfolio in this fast-growing sector,” said Marty Bauerlein, senior vice president, Commercial and Retail Solutions, North America at Tech Data. “Their customer-focused attention to quality and availability enables our solution providers to keep their clients up and running at all times.”

This year of growth follows the opening of Integra Optics’ first international production facility in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The expansion came in response to the growing customer base in South America and the region’s rapidly increasing demand for network technologies.

In observance of the ten-year milestone, Integra Optics is hosting an anniversary celebration on September 15 at its Latham office, which is located inside of a former airplane hangar on the grounds of Albany International Airport. Joining company leadership and staff, as well as elected officials and special guests, will be Brazilian astronaut Marcos Pontes, the first South American to fly in space. Pontes now serves as a brand ambassador for Integra Optics.

Integra Optics is a veteran-owned business, certified by the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, and led by an executive team with vast experience in the cable and telecommunications industries. In the past year, the company has more than doubled its workforce. As Integra Optics supports the hiring of both veterans and active reserve members, 25 percent of its employees have a background in the armed services.

The rebrand includes a new website, newly redesigned corporate logo, and video series. Its latest video can be seen on the company’s homepage: www.integraoptics.com.