Menhir Photonics, a Swiss-based developer of ultrafast lasers, has secured a seven-figure growth loan to construct a high-volume laser production facility in Dübendorf and increase its staff.
Founded in 2018 and now located in Glattbrugg, Zurich, Menhir Photonics develops ultrafast lasers for telecommunications, aerospace, and scientific research applications.
Its femtosecond laser systems reach a repetition rate up to 10GHz, which is particularly needed in high-precision use cases such as telecom network synchronisation, secure optical communications and broadband navigation systems.
The company, which serves 83 customers across 17 countries, demonstrated a 90% year-over-year revenue increase from 2022 to 2023 while maintaining profitability.
The new 1,550m² production facility in Dübendorf will feature an ISO6 cleanroom and advanced testing equipment, enabling Menhir Photonics to achieve high-volume laser production.
The company also plans to add 10 to 12 more employees to their current team of 30 within the next year.
While it has been fully bootstrapped, Menhir Photonics says it has used grants in the past to finance R&D efforts, including application-oriented grants with telecom providers such as British Telecom, Orange, and Ericsson. These grants, accounting for less than 15% of cumulative revenue, have enabled the firm to reach larger markets and develop more applications for their lasers.
The company's Menhir-1550 series is the first industrial-grade femtosecond laser at 1,550nm with GHz repetition-rate. Initially serving scientific facilities and universities, its lasers now serve the data centre market. A third version of its femtosecond laser for the telecom and aerospace industries is currently being developed to offer ruggedised and scalable lasers for high-volume production (10,000 units/year).
