History

Geola Digital uab, Naugarduko 41, LTU-03227, Vilnius, Lithuania, EU; phone: +37052132737; fax: +37052132838; info@geola.com

2009 - Geola Digital uab is manufacturing 10 Joule pulsed laser for Prof. Paula Dawson of South Wales University in Australia. Also we are continuing our R&D on reflective holographic screens for autostereoscopic applications and working on photopolymer copying techniques.

2008 - Geola Digital uab has manufactured modern holography studio for Poznan Art Academy in Poland. Studio incorporates 5 Joule pulsed laser and digital imaging equipment. Invited talks about latest Geola achievements were given at the conferences in Japan, Canada, Russia.

2007 - Geola Digital uab has inventing and patenting hologram copying method, reflection hologram use as autostereoscopic screen, digital hologram lighting method. Geola Digital uab continues to run activities previously performed by Geola uab.

2006 - New Geola printing process was presented at the International Symposium on Display Holography. By installing in Vilnius one printer manufactured by its former subsidiary XYZ Imaging (Canada), Geola uab started the first and only digital holograms - i-Lumograms printing services in Europe.

2005 - Geola invents imaging device (Holocam) for digital holographic printing. The device separates geographically a life image capture and this image imprinting onto digital hologram.

2004-2001 - In 1999 Geola uab is patenting digital holographic printing with pulsed lasers, in 2001 - a pulsed RGB laser. In 2001 Geola is supplying the first working RGB prototype dot-matrix printer to Geola uab subsidiary in Canada - XYZ Imaging Inc.

Geola, short for General Optics Laboratory, laid down its roots in early 1992 shortly after Lithuania declared independence from the Soviet Union. Dr. David Ratcliffe, a British physicist and then managing director of General Optics Pty Ltd, a company incorporated in South Australia, traveled to Vilnius, Lithuania in order to meet Mr. Leon Issachenkov, the then director of a newly formed computer trading company, UAB Infortechnika. As a result of this meeting Infortechnika signed a contract with General Optics for the distribution of Soviet laser and optical equipment in Australia. The two companies worked together successfully for several years supplying the Australian science market.

General Optics Pty Ltd was closely associated with another company in Australia - Australian Holographics Pty Ltd. This company specialized in the production of ultra-large format holograms for mostly Asian clients. From 1992 onwards Australian Holographics started working closely with Infortechnika in all aspects of Holography. By 1995 the activities between Infortechnika and the Australian companies had necessitated the incorporation of a new company which was named UAB Geola - an abbreviation for "General Optics Laboratory". By 1996 Dr. David Ratcliffe had moved to Lithuania in order to oversee operations, the company consisted of 5 people and was enjoying successful collaborations in Australia, France and the UK.

From 1995 onwards Geola turned its attention more and more towards pulsed laser holography. Led by Drs. Rodin, Grichine and Ratcliffe, the company developed high energy pulsed solid state lasers and automated holography systems incorporating these lasers. In 1998-99 the first Nd:Glass lasers and holography camera systems were launched commercially in Australia, USA and Germany.

In 1998 Dr. Stanislovas Zacharovas, Geola's current managing director, joined the company. A close relationship was started with the Russian factory AO Slavich, a holography emulsion producer. Shortly after this AGFA, a major Belgium holography emulsion producer announced that it was ceasing all production of holography films. Geola was consequently able to establish a large international network distributing Slavich emulsions for holography. Today Geola is the official "International Sales Co-ordination Office" for Slavich and most of the world's albeit modest holography film requirements are now met here.

In same 1998 Geola commenced an intensive programme of research and development into digital holography using pulsed Neodymium lasers. As an integral part of its R&D programme into digital holography Geola developed a unique prototype RGB pulsed laser. The company had felt from the start of the programme that the only feasible solution towards a real commercial holographic printer would be one based on pulsed rather than CW laser technology. By 1999 Geola had developed both 1-step and 2-step digital hologram printing technologies based around their pulsed lasers.

From 1998 to 2000 a very large part of the company resources were spent on fundamental R&D. Quite some part of this R&D has been published in the public domain.

In 2000 Geola Technologies Ltd, a UK based company owned by the original shareholders of UAB Geola, acquired the majority stake in UAB Geola. All intellectual property is now owned and controlled by this company and Geola Digital uab.

The managing director of Geola Technologies Ltd is Dr. David Ratcliffe. The managing director of Geola Digital uab is Dr. Stanislovas Zacharovas. From 1998 both of them are frequently invited speakers at the major holography conferences.