Jabil Optics expands R&D resources

24 May 2018

With the opening of 2000 square meter Optics Technology Innovation Center in Haifa, Israel.

Green Point, a division of Jabil Optics, has opened its new 2,000 square meter Optics Technology Innovation Center in Haifa, Israel. This development and manufacturing center is intended to provide the Israel tech community with additional opportunities in computational cameras, projection systems and combined solutions.

Irv Stein, VP of Jabil Optics, commented, “We’re actively engaged in several global automotive opportunities to industrialize and bring to market advanced LiDAR solutions for mass-market adoption. By leveraging our cost-optimized hardware, global manufacturing expertise, and strategic partnerships, we can meet our customers’ needs for dependable, high-quality products.”

“We recognized the growing demand for premium optoelectronic solutions more than a decade ago, and sought to address it with the acquisition of the Carl Zeiss projections systems group. Our support for optoelectronics customers has been on a steady, upward trajectory since. Today, our services help to drive the market for mobile devices, AR/VR, automotive solutions and medical devices.”

The new Jabil Optics facility – located in Matam Park, Haifa – meets the growing demands of Jabil customers looking for resources for complex assembly and integration of optoelectronic systems. Capabilities include optical design; development and manufacturing capabilities for camera modules; and projection systems.

These solutions are important assets for smartphones, tablets, e-readers and laptops as they prepare to serve mobile, virtual, augmented and extended reality products seeing rapid growth and adoption. The Center will also create leading-edge automotive products and solutions including advanced driver-assistance components, DMS systems, head-up display units and LiDAR systems.

Automotive markets

“Jabil’s advanced manufacturing and technology capabilities are enabling the automotive industry to develop increasingly complex electronics that improve safety, efficiency, intelligence and connectivity of all types of vehicles,” said Chad Morley, VP, Jabil Automotive & Transportation.

“We’re actively engaged in several global automotive opportunities to industrialize and bring to market advanced LiDAR solutions for mass-market adoption. By leveraging our cost-optimized hardware, global manufacturing expertise, and strategic partnerships, we can meet our customers’ needs for dependable, high-quality products.”

Jabil employs more than 600 people in Israel and expects this number to continue to grow in the future. One of the compelling incentives for Jabil Optics to locate its Innovation Center in Haifa was to access the strong stream of technology resources and talent in the surrounding area.

Evolution

Jabil’s optics footprint initially began in the Optics Valley of Jena, Germany with the Carl Zeiss acquisition and expanded to include process development and materials science expertise located in Silicon Valley in the United States. Optics expertise was further bolstered by the acquisition of Kasalis, an active alignment automation leader located outside of Boston, Ma.

The company’s strategy includes the participation of numerous ecosystem partners in Israel. As recently as July of 2017, Jabil entered into a strategic partnership with Israel-based eyeSight Technologies, to bring vision-based Driver Monitoring Systems (DMS) to market.

Gideon Shmuel, CEO of EyeSight, commented, “The Jabil/eyeSight partnership offers a complete ‘design to manufacturing’ platform solution, enabling Automakers and Tier 1’s to accelerate time to market. EyeSight’s award-winning software requires less processing power, allowing it to run on lower-cost, industry standard processors, and be easily integrated into existing ARM architectures. This complements Jabil’s miniaturized optics and hardware solutions, which can be seamlessly integrated into any cockpit electronics or vehicle interior.”