Company profile prometra GmbH (formerly Gravo-Optic GmbH) is a small company located in Balzers,Liechtenstein. It has been active in metrology since Fritz Helferich founded it in 1966 (History). The main activity is the development and manufacture of metrology products suchas precision gauges in glass and steel optical comparator charts, reference drawings and screens for profile projectors reticles optoelectronic program and control discs templates and masters in addition to trading in related products, such as testing an inspection systems with optional CCD cameras and data processing equipment the development, design and manufacture of tools and specialised measuring equipment to customer order. Our products are shipped throughout the world either through direct sales or via internationally renowned trading groups such as MITUTOYO, M-Service & Geräte, WERTH, SCHUT, Dr. Heinrich Schneider Messtechnik, etc.

History The series production of goods, such as the sewing machine as the first household appliance, began with the dawn of the industrial age. The essential for series production was that all the components used were "replaceable", which required the simultaneous development of "industrial metrology". The measuring and testing of workpieces with "profile forms" was a particularly difficult hurdle to overcome in this process and it was tackled from about 1920 on so-called "optic profile projectors" that were considered to be an enormous stride forwards at the time. Even though these projectors were technically and optically highly developed, the measurements they made were long handicapped by a high degree of measurement uncertainty, since each tester had to produce his own "reference standard" in the form of a "profile drawing" and since the information carriers used at that time (these were largely paper) had little dimensional stability. The lack of a suitable means of producing reference drawings that were true to size on the one hand and the changes that occurred in the carrier material resulting from temperature and humidity influences on the other, resulted in differences between the reference drawings of the manufacturer (supplier) and those of the buyer (customer), leading to discrepancies in the assessment of the workpieces and not uncommonly to frictions as a result. A positive change could only be brought about by the universal application of a precise and dimensionally stable reference standard. The idea was born of manufacturing measuring and reference drawings in distortion-free or low-distortion materials such as glass and later in special plastics. It was in order to implement this idea that the Company Gravo-Optic GmbH was set up by Fritz Helferich in Buchs/SG, Switzerland in 1966. This was followed in 1976 by the establishment of another company of the same name in Vaduz, Liechtenstein. In 1988 production ended in Buchs and in 1994 the company moved to Balzers, Liechtenstein. Immediately after the company was founded a start was made on the design of new layouts for the most varied types of reference standards, the manufacture of master templates and production of the first reference drawings in the form of glass plates. Many of these reference drawings have hundreds of ultra-fine engraved lines with patented designs and can be regarded as "the reference standard" for profile projectors in all industrialised countries of the world. The product range has been continuously extended over the years - our products are now being used in a variety of fields from mechanical manufacture to banknote inspection at national central banks. Since management introduced a comprehensive restructuring of the company in the years 2005/2006, we are embarking on new ventures, acting as an agent and thus further extending our product portfolio. This milestone in the history of our company motivated us to give it a new look as well. This is why we launched a new name and logo in May 2006.

Commitment to quality There can be no doubt that the manufacture of measuring tools and precision products requires a comprehensive commitment to quality and a staff of expert and highly motivated employees, who can implement this commitment in their daily work. Our products are proof of the fact that we have achieved this. A QA certificate to ISO standards is an essential requirement in many industrial sectors. Unfortunately there are some companies that have this certificate, but do not act in accordance with it. Our philosophy is, on the contrary, to "live" quality by putting our knowledge and abilities at the service of the customer and by doing everything possible to fulfil our customers’ needs both now and in the future. This is a procedure that does not function entirely without formalities of course. It was for this reason that we decided to introduce a process oriented quality management system and to implement it in a handbook. Straight from the planning phase we realised at once that the customary systems were not compatible with a small company like ours. That is why we are working on our own somewhat simpler system, whose structure, terminology and design, however, fully comply with the DIN ISO 9001:2000 or SN EN 29001:2000 standards (also see Quality management system).

company profile history commitment of quality quality management AGB