Avco Everett laser welder demonstrations (early 1980s)

AVCO Everett Research Labs developed 25-kilowatt lasers under government contract for heavy-steel laser welding. Tom's student worked there; his main job was making sure the laser worked for customer demos, because 90% of the time it didn't.

In my own experience, particle beams have been used for welding. In the mid-70s, they were making high-power lasers for military applications, but over here in Everett, Massachusetts — it's now the Mellon Bank building — AVCO Everett Research Laboratories had 25-kilowatt lasers developed for commercial applications under government contracts, and they tried to laser-weld heavy pieces of steel and other materials. One of my students went to work for them, and he said his main job was making sure the laser worked when one of the customers would come in to look at it, because 90% of the time it didn't even work.