The story
All Lithuanian laser technology companies trace their roots to Vilnius University and the Institute of Physics. Members of Lithuanian Academy of Sciences and of the Institute of Physics organised an experimental workshop and established the EKSMA company in 1983. It represented the scientific instrumentation of the former Soviet Union.
In 1992, an EKSMA laser design and manufacturing spin-off named EKSPLA started operating as a separate legal entity. Gradual development of the company can be illustrated by its customer base expansion to Japan in 1993, and United States in 1996. Today it covers all the world.
The first EKSPLA commercial picosecond diode-pumped laser was developed in 2002. Currently, (2007) the company supplies more than 20 types of diode-pumped solid-state lasers.
In 2004, EKSMA became a holding company through acquisition of EKSPLA. The shareholders agreed to consolidate all laser and photonics related businesses of both companies into EKSPLA, and two divisions were established: Laser & Laser Systems and Photonics Components. Although company operates under the EKSPLA name, both EKSPLA and EKSMA trademarks are used for laser and components businesses.
Effective from 1 July 2008, all components business activities (covering optical components, laser & nonlinear crystals, positioning mechanics, mounts and optical tables) were moved from EKSPLA to an Optolita company with the brand name of and doing business as EKSMA OPTICS.
From Wikipedia’s article on Ekspla, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4