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John Matthews Email
CEO, Founder & President . SureFire
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Employees:
316Revenue:
$96.8MAbout
SureFire is a story of what can be accomplished with light. The tale begins in 1969 when an engineer with a Ph.D. from Cal Tech decided the future lay in lasers. Dr. John Matthews founded the Newport Corporation to harness the power of the laser for industrial applications. Over the next decade, the Newport Corporation grew to become a leader in the laser field, pioneering a host of industrial uses for the laser. Patents were issued, contracts were won, business boomed. Basking in the glow of success, John 's inventive mind turned toward his hobby and passion, shooting. He wondered if a laser could be adapted to serve as a sight on a firearm. In 1979, John's concepts became reality as he designed and patented a laser sight. The original laser sight was large and cumbersome by today 's standards, and prohibitively expensive to manufacture. The board of directors of the Newport Corporation - now a public company with shareholders - looked at the bottom-line of the fledgling laser sight business and decided that the interests of the shareholders would be best served by investing in something more profitable. They resolved to dump laser sights. John and several other of the key technical people at Newport Corporation who shared John 's vision bought the business from the board. John resigned as president from the Newport Corporation and set about perfecting his dream with his new business, Laser Products. A handgun sight for a Colt Trooper was the company 's first product. A laser sight for a Ruger Mini-14 soon followed. Then, in 1984, the phone rang with a call from a local police agency that would literally alter history for Dr. John Matthews and Laser Products. It was the Los Angeles Police Department 's SWAT Team on the line. The 1984 Olympic Games were to be held in The City Of Angels and the police wondered if it would be possible to borrow a number of laser-sighted shotguns to use for security during the Games. No problem, said John. In the years that followed, the technically superb, but expensive, laser-sighted firearms paved the way for future developments. While none proved commercially viable, the willingness of Laser Products to accommodate law enforcement 's needs led to the development of a novel idea at the time, a weapon-mounted flashlight. The SureFire WeaponLight was born, and low-light law enforcement and military operations would never be the same. Laser Products went on to establish itself as the leading manufacturer of rugged, powerful and compact illumination tools for tactical applications - from weapon-mounted lights and laser sights, shield lights and baton lights to hand-held lights powerful and bright enough to qualify as "force-option " tools that could temporarily blind, unbalance, and disorient a threat. Eventually the SureFire name became so synonymous with excellence in hand-held illumination tools that the company name, Laser Products, was changed to SureFire LLC. Today SureFire employs nearly 300 technicians, engineers, assemblers, machinists, clerks, salesmen and administrators. The company manufacturers all of its key components. It boasts a state-of-the-art Machining Center where the aerospace-grade aluminum bodies, bezels and tail-caps are machined on 11-axis CNC Index lathes. Since its inception, SureFire has continued to design and manufacture lights of ever increasing brightness and quality while setting new standards for maximum power with minimal size.SureFire Address
17680 Newhope StreetFountain Valley, CA
United States