New Bedford, MA, USA, May 2015 - Fiber Optic Center, Inc., (FOC), an international leader in distributing fiber optic components, equipment and supplies and recognized as one of the most technically savvy fiber optics companies in the world, announces a new association with Wayne M. Kachmar and partnership with his Technical Horsepower Consulting, LLC. to its technical offerings.
Wayne M. Kachmar, a fiber optic cable innovator with over 35 years of experience, has a proven record of bringing concepts to production as well as designing the integration of cables with their environment. In 1988, Mr. Kachmar founded Northern Lights Cable, Inc. (NLC), in North Bennington, VT., using his ten years in the fiber optic cable industry. In addition to standard cables, NLC also offered military cable designs, custom cabling of specialty fibers, unique specialty products such as furcation tubing, and services such as independent testing and private labeling. After more than nine years of independent growth, NLC was bought and sold several times over the next decades, most recently by TE Connectivity, formerly Tyco Electronics. Mr. Kachmar transitioned in 2000 from NLC CEO to Director of Global Cable Development and RD&E. In 2012, he was named a TE Fellow in Electro-optic Engineering (the highest technical honor within TE).
Over the years, Mr. Kachmar has provided optical cables for diverse environments such as the underwater ROV that penetrated the Titanic, as well as sensing sub-atomic particles in the Antarctic ice. He has developed unique concepts and products which use optical fibers as both information carriers and as the sensors themselves: e.g., fiber laser ring-gyroscope components and acoustic sensors for terrestrial and underwater applications. As a principal investigator for government-sponsored projects, Mr. Kachmar developed cable designs that significantly reduced costs of materials and processes. To date, Mr. Kachmar has over 50 granted patents in fiber optic cables, connectors and tools and over 60 patents published or in process.
Neal Weiss, founder, and president of FOC, notes, "Wayne has always confronted problems and challenges in his own fresh and creative way. If Wayne is on the job, it will get done in a cost-effective and efficient manner, even if no one has ever been able to do the particular task before him. His set of skills and experience is unique."
Weiss continues…"FOC is primarily a distributor, not a manufacturer, but in some areas – connector polishing, adhesives, testing – we are ‘at least as technical as the manufacturer.’ This really means that we know more about the practical use of equipment we sell than the people who make these excellent products. With the addition of Wayne’s services, cablers can now successfully offer new designs in the shortest possible time to market. Wayne not only designs the cable, he can specify the chemicals and components, and modify equipment so that it does exactly what is needed."
Mr. Kachmar said, “Neal and I have a long history in the fiber optic industry. Our years together, as both customer and vendor to each other, have shown me the deep commitment that Neal and Fiber Optic Center offer for both. In the past, I have reaped the benefits of the excellent FOC staff knowledge base on connectors and test equipment needed to run a fiber optic cabling business. I look forward to partnering with the FOC team in providing "Technical Horsepower" in solving their customer’s needs and problems."
Mr. Kachmar resides in North Bennington, Vermont with his wife of 37 years. He also has one stepson, one grandson, and many four legged dependents. Some of his interests include farming, horse-keeping/riding, antique machinery restoration, maple sugar production, railway museum operation and animal training. Mr. Kachmar is also a retired chairman of Southwest Vermont Healthcare Board of Trustees which is in the top 10 largest employers in Vermont.
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