Photo-Sonics Inc

Since the founding of Photo-Sonics, Inc. some seven decades ago, the company's record of performance and integrity is a recognized achievement in the photo-optical instrumentation field and the motion picture industry. The contribution by Photo-Sonics, Inc., to this discipline has been continuously demonstrated by the high performance level exhibited by equipment now in use at the nation's major missile test ranges, defense installations, scientific laboratories, military test ranges, military research centers, in military aircraft, and at major corporations.

In the late 1920's Adolph Furer founded the business as Acme Tool and Manufacturing Company. The company began primarily as a contract machine shop. In ensuing years the company moved into the motion picture field through contact with Walt and Roy Disney. The Disney's were in a specialized and entirely new field of photography for which appropriate equipment, including animation cameras, was not available. The initial business development was to manufacture specialized equipment for animation photography and develop new or modified cameras for this specialized application.

In 1939 Adolph Furer sold his interest to his son, Edward, who oriented the business toward the development and manufacture of special effects motion picture equipment. In 1949 the company name was changed to Producers Service Company. At that time the company had achieved Mr. Furer's primary objectives as a company that manufactured self-developed, proprietary products. The company's primary products were animation stands, optical printers, matte printers, process cameras, and related accessory and peripheral equipment.

In the late 1940's and early 1950's, because of the U.S. Government's emphasis on missiles as new weapons development, a requirement developed for high speed instrumentation cameras. Since the company had a history of building precision cameras, it was a natural progression to enter into this new field.