Precision optics services

Precision Optics Services on One UK Site, From Design to Delivery

Kingsview Optical provides precision optics services from one site in Rye, East Sussex: optical design, CNC lens and prism manufacture, vacuum coating, custom graticules, optomechanical machining, cleanroom assembly and metrology. Use one service, or hand us the whole project and one team takes responsibility for it, from the first drawing to repeat production.

  • Design to delivery
  • One team, one site
  • Cleanroom assembly
  • ISO 9001:2015
Discuss Your Project See All Services
Finished precision lens assembly built by Kingsview Optical, precision optics services UK
A finished lens assembly, built in our cleanroom.
1 siteDesign, make, coat, assemble, measure
5 coating chambersIncluding magnetron sputtering
3 cleanroomsIncluding H14 HEPA filtration
Since 1996Making optics in the UK
Use one service or all of them

Every Stage of an Optical Project, Under One Roof

Most optical projects pass through several companies: a designer, a lens maker, a coater, a machine shop and an assembler. Each handover adds time, and a place where responsibility can blur. Here, every stage is done by one team, on one site.

Kingsview Optical LtdHarbour Road, Rye
East Sussex TN31 7TE
  1. DesignOptical and mechanical design, toleranced against our own process data.Optical design
  2. ManufactureLenses, prisms, windows, mirrors and filters, made to your drawing.Components
  3. CoatAR, mirror, filter and beamsplitter coatings in five vacuum chambers.Coating
  4. MachineBarrels, cells and housings cut on our own CNC mills and turning centre.Optomechanics
  5. AssembleMounted, aligned, cemented and sealed in our cleanrooms.Assembly
  6. TestMeasured in our own metrology lab before anything ships.Metrology

Every photo on this page was taken at our site in Rye.

Our services

Precision Optics Services We Offer

Each service has its own page with the detail. Many customers start with one, such as coating or assembly, and later hand us the whole project.

Optical design in Zemax and mechanical CAD at Kingsview Optical Zemax & SolidWorks

Optical Design & Consultancy

Optical design in Zemax OpticStudio and optomechanical design in SolidWorks, by engineers who work beside the polishing lines. Every design is toleranced against our own process data, so what we design is what we can make, at the cost you expect.

Feasibility · optical design · tolerancing · ISO 10110 drawings

Optical design services
Engineer running a vacuum coating chamber at Kingsview Optical 5 chambers

Optical Coating

Anti-reflection, mirror, filter and beamsplitter coatings, designed in Essential Macleod and applied in our vacuum chambers, including magnetron sputtering. We also coat customers' own optics.

Measured 200 to 3000nm on our Lambda 1050+

Optical coating service

Need More Than One Service?

Most customers do. Send us what you have, whether it's a sketch, a drawing or a Zemax file, and we'll tell you which parts of the project we'd take on.

Discuss Your Project
Why one site matters

Why Customers Give Us the Whole Project

You can use any one of our services. But the real advantage comes when the same team designs, makes, coats, assembles and tests your optics.

01One point of responsibilityNo arguments between designer, lens maker and coater about whose problem it is. If something isn't right, we own it and we fix it.
02Fewer handovers, faster iterationsParts move between departments in one building, not between companies, so a design change can be tried in days.
03Designs made to be madeOur designers sit beside the people who polish, coat and assemble, so tolerances come from real process data.
04One set of quality recordsDesign, manufacture, coating and test records sit in one ISO 9001:2015 system, from prototype to production.
Testing & metrology

Measured Before It Leaves Rye

Every component and assembly is checked in our own metrology lab, by the team that made it. Measurement data can be supplied with your parts, so your goods-in inspection has something to check against.

Zygo interferometer4″ aperture, for surface form and flatness
Trioptics OptiCentricLens centration and alignment in assemblies
Trioptics OptiSurf LTMNon-contact centre thickness and air gaps
Taylor Hobson autocollimatorsPrism angles and parallelism
Lambda 1050+ spectrophotometerCoating transmission and reflectance, 200 to 3000nm
Inspection recordsFirst-article reports and coating traces on request
Measuring lens centre thickness on a Trioptics OptiSurf LTM at Kingsview Optical
Measuring centre thickness on our OptiSurf LTM.
Who we work with

Optical Projects for Engineers Across Industry

Our customers are engineering teams who need optics designed and made to work in their product, first as prototypes and then in production, year after year.

Defence & SecuritySights, periscopes and imaging optics, under NDA, with full traceability.
Medical & Life ScienceCompact lens systems and windows for diagnostic and imaging instruments.
Science & ResearchOne-off and small-batch optics for instruments and experiments.
Laser SystemsCoated optics and beam-delivery assemblies built for your laser line.
Machine VisionLens assemblies, windows and filters for inspection systems.
Infrared & ThermalGold-coated mirrors and IR optics for thermal imaging.

See Every Stage for Yourself

Qualifying a new supplier, or planning production? Come to Rye and walk the whole route: design office, polishing lines, coating chambers, machine shop, cleanrooms and metrology lab.

Arrange a Visit

Precision Optics Services FAQs

What precision optics services do you offer?
Optical and optomechanical design, CNC lens, prism, window, mirror and filter manufacture, vacuum coating, custom graticules, CNC machining of housings, cleanroom assembly and metrology. All of it is done by one team at our site in Rye, East Sussex.
Can I use just one of your services?
Yes. Many customers use us for a single service, such as optical design, coating or cleanroom assembly. Others hand us the whole project, from the first concept to repeat production.
What's the benefit of one supplier for design and manufacture?
One team takes responsibility for the whole result, so there is no gap between designer, lens maker, coater and assembler where problems can fall. Designs are toleranced against our own process data, changes are tried in days rather than weeks, and you get one set of quality records.
Do you design optics as well as make them?
Yes. We design optical systems in Zemax OpticStudio and the mechanics in SolidWorks, then make, coat, assemble and test them here. See our optical design services page.
Do you machine the metal housings yourselves?
Yes. Barrels, cells, mounts and housings are machined on our own CNC mills, one with 4th-axis capability, and our CNC turning centre. Anodising is handled by our approved finisher, managed by us, so you still deal only with us.
What testing can you supply with my parts?
Surface form from our Zygo interferometer, centration from our Trioptics OptiCentric, centre thickness from our OptiSurf LTM, angles from our autocollimators and coating traces from our Lambda 1050+ spectrophotometer. First-article inspection reports are available on request.
Will you sign an NDA?
Yes. We can sign your NDA, or send ours, before you share any details. Defence and security work is welcome, and all work is carried out under our ISO 9001:2015 quality system.
What do you need to get started?
Whatever you have. A sketch, a specification, a drawing, a STEP file or a Zemax file are all fine, along with what the optics must do, the quantities and your timescale. An engineer will review it within one working day.

Starting a Precision Optics Project

Send us whatever you have. An engineer, not a sales team, will review it and tell you plainly which services the project needs, what's achievable and what will drive cost.

What to send

  • A sketch, specification, drawing, STEP or Zemax file
  • What the optics must do, and where they will work
  • Which services you need, or "all of them"
  • Quantities: prototypes and expected production volumes
  • Your timescale

What happens next

  1. We sign your NDAOr send ours, before you share any details.
  2. An engineer reviews itWithin one working day, flagging anything that will drive cost or lead time.
  3. We propose the routeWith prices for prototypes and for production at your volumes.
Start Your Project

One Team for Your Whole Optical Project

Design, manufacture, coating, machining, assembly and test, on one site in the UK. Tell us about your project and we'll tell you how we'd run it.

Discuss Your Project Call 01797 226202
Made in Rye, East Sussex. NDA-friendly. Defence and security work welcome. ISO 9001:2015.