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Wikipedia / Meopta

Meopta, s.r.o. is a Czech-based company that manufactures various products mainly in the field of optics. The company was once well-known for its still and movie cameras, although it no longer manufactures such products.

History

The Optikotechna company was founded in 1933 in Přerov, Czechoslovakia. Originally established with the intention of producing a limited range of lenses and condensers, the company rapidly expanded the range of products to include enlargers, composite lenses, binoculars, riflescopes, cameras and slide projectors.

In 1935 Optikotechna became a subsidiary of Zbrojovka Brno and a major supplier of military optics for the Czechoslovak Army. The company retained its focus on military production when it was seized by the Germans during the occupation of Czechoslovakia as well as after WWII, when it was nationalized and renamed to Meopta – an acronym for MEchanická OPTická výrobA ("mechanical optical manufacturing"). In 1945 the company merged with the Bratislava subsidiary of C. P. Goerz. Apart from military deliveries, the company became one of the world's major manufacturers of cinema projectors between 1947 and 1970. The abrupt halt of military demand after the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact forced the company to refocus mainly on civilian applications.

The company was privatized in 1992. Members of the Rausnitz family, who emigrated from Czechoslovakia to the United States in 1946, became the majority owners.

In December 2009, the Ministry of Industry and Trade issued a decision to provide a subsidy from the OPEI for the Modernization of Meopta Research and Development project, so that the following year the development building could be reconstructed and research and development capacities were significantly expanded.

In 2013, the company had 2,200 employees in Přerov and 150 in the USA.

Meopta owner Paul Rausnitz received the Medal of Merit for the State in the field of business from the hands of the president of the Czech Republic Miloš Zeman on 28th October 2013.

Meopta U.S.A., Inc.

The company which became Meopta U.S.A., Inc. was founded by the Czech-American Rausnitz family in New York in 1960 under the name Tyrolit Company, Inc. At that time, its main business was selling grinding wheels in the US and Canada. Tyrolit gradually changed its focus to manufacturing various optical products and in 2005 was renamed to Meopta U.S.A., Inc.

Cameras

Large format 13x18

  • Magnola

TLR 6x6

  • Flexette

  • Autoflex

  • Optiflex

  • Flexaret

  • Flexaret II

  • Flexaret III

  • Flexaret IV

  • Flexaret V

  • Flexaret Standart

  • Flexaret automat VI

  • Flexaret automat VII

Folding 6x6

  • Milona

Panoramic 6x23.5

  • Pankopta

Interchangeable lens 35mm

  • Opema I

  • Opema II

Fixed lens 35mm

  • Cola

  • Etareta

  • Optineta

  • Opema 95

  • Axoma AF 96

Stereo 35mm

  • Stereo 35

Subminiature 16mm

  • Mikroma

  • Mikroma II

  • Mikronette

Stereo 16mm

  • Stereo-Mikroma

  • Stereo-Mikroma II

Enlargers

Professional enlargers

  • Agrand (1967–68) – 10x12

  • Meogrand (1968–70) – 6x9

Large format

  • Laborant (1939) – 9x12

  • Magnitarus 10x15 (1954–68)

  • Magnitarus 13x18 (1954–72)

  • Herkules (1955–69) – 18x24

Medium format 6x9

  • Multifax (1933)

  • Magnifax (1954–67)

  • Magnifax II (1958–73)

  • Magnifax 3 (1972–80)

  • Magnifax 3a (1981–84)

  • Magnifax 4 (1985)

  • Magnifax 4a (1998)

Medium format 6x7

  • Opemus 7

Medium format 6x6

  • Opematus (1940-45)

  • Opemus 6x6 (1953–70)

  • Opemus II

  • Opemus IIa (1960–69)

  • Opemus III (1969–75)

  • Opemus Standard (1970)

  • Opemus 4 (1974–77)

  • Opemus Standard 2 (1977)

  • Opemus 5 (1978–80)

  • Opemus 5a (1982–84)

  • Opemus 6 (1985)

  • Opemus 6 Standard (1986)

  • Opemus 6a (1998)

  • Opemus 6 Student

  • Opemus 6 Super

Medium format 6x4.5

  • Ideal (1934)

Medium format 4x4

  • Colombo (1936)

  • Opemus 4x4 (1953-70)

Small format 24x36

  • Axomat (1938)

  • Axomat Ia (1960–69)

  • Axomat II (1969–71)

  • Axomat 3 (1974–77)

  • Axomat mini

  • Axomat 4 (1978–80)

  • Axomat 4a (1980–84)

  • Axomat Standard

  • Axomat 5 (1985)

  • Axomat 5 Standard (1986)

  • Axomat 5a (1998)

  • Axomat 5 Autofocus

  • Axomat 5 Student

  • Proximus (1961–67)

  • Proximus 2 (1970)

Subminiature 11x14

  • Mignoret (1961–62)

Enlarger Heads

Color Heads

  • Barevná hlava (Color Head)

  • Meochrom

  • Meochrom 2

  • Meopta Color 3

  • Meopta Color 4-ES

Variable Contrast Heads

  • Meograde

Projection Heads

  • Projekční hlava (Projection Head)

Power Supplies

  • Meochrom trafo

  • TR 100

  • ST 100

Movie cameras

8mm Cameras

  • OP 8 (1939)

  • Somet 8 (1956)

  • Admira 8 C (?–46)

  • Admira 8 D (1946–51)

  • Admira 8 E (1952–57)

  • Admira 8 II (1955–58)

  • Admira 8 IIa (1958–61)

  • Admira 8 IIb (1958–62)

  • Admira 8 F (1960–64)

  • Admira EL 8 (1962–64) – the only camera with zoom lens

  • A8 G (1964–68)

  • A8 G0 (1966–67)

  • A8 G2 (1966–68)

  • A8 G0 Supra (1968–73)

  • A8 G1 Supra (1968–71)

  • A8 G2 Supra (1968–71)

  • A8 L1 Supra (1971–77)

  • A8 L2 Supra (1971–77)

  • Supra is an indication for Super8.

9.5mm Cameras

  • Admira Ledvinka (1934)

16mm Cameras

  • Admira 16 (1932)

  • Admira 16 A Electric

  • Admira 16 A1 Electric (1963–68)

Movie projectors

8mm projectors

  • OP 8 (1936)

  • Somet 8 (1938)

  • Optilux (1945–50)

  • Atom (1940–45)

  • Meo 8 (1954–60)

  • AM 8 (1960–69)

  • Meocord (1966–67)

  • AM 8 Super (1967–70)

  • Meolux (1969)

  • Meolux 2 (1972–77)

  • KP 8 Super

  • KP 8 Super 2 (1976–80)

  • Meos Duo (1977–86)

  • Meos (1978)

9.5mm projectors

  • Scolar (1934) – modular projector for 9.5mm/8mm and 5x5 slides

  • Jubilar 9.5 (1945–50)

16mm projectors

  • Almo 16 (1936)

  • Pictureta (1936)

  • OP 16 silent and sound (1938)

  • OP 16 (1951)

  • Opefon (1945)

  • Club 16 (1962–63)

  • Club 16B

  • Club 16C

  • Meoclub 16 (1965)

  • Meoclub 16 Automatic (1968)

  • Meoclub 16 Automatic H (1970)

  • Meoclub 16 Automatic S (1974–78)

  • Meoclub 16 Electronic (1980–84)

  • Meoclub 16 AS 2 (1982–84)

  • Meoclub 16 Electronic 2 (1984)

  • Meoclub 16 AS 3

  • Meoclub 16 AS 3a

16mm cinema projectors

  • Meopton I (1945–50)

  • Meopton II (1945–50)

  • Meopton IIa (1966)

35mm cinema projectors

  • Eta 7 (1947)

  • Meopton III (1955–57)

  • Meopton IV (1959) - IV S with magnetic soundhead

  • Meopton UM 70/35 (1963–73)

  • Meo IVa

  • Meo 5X series (1978-?)

Sport optics

Meopta is producing Binoculars, Telescopic sights, Red dot sights and Monoculars on the field of sport optics and caters hunters, birdwatchers and sport shooters. In 2019 the production includes the following series of products:

Binoculars:

  • Meostar B1

  • MeoRange (available only in EU, with laser rangefinder integrated)

  • MeoPro HD

  • MeoSport

  • Optika HD

Rifle Scopes

  • Steyr AUG factory optics

  • MeoTac

  • MeoStar R2

  • Meostar R1

  • MeoPro Optika 6

  • MeoPro

  • ZD

Reflex sights

  • MeoSight III

  • MeoRed

References