What Bertin Winlight does

Bertin Winlight is a French designer and manufacturer of high-performance optical components, subassemblies, and complete instruments for four primary markets: space, defense, synchrotrons, and astronomy. Founded in 2001 as Winlight System and acquired in 2017 by Bertin Technologies (CNIM Group subsidiary), the company operates from a ~2,200 sqm temperature-controlled production facility in Pertuis with approximately 1,000 sqm of ISO 5 and ISO 6 clean rooms. Its technical capabilities span optical design (Zemax), opto-mechanical design (NASTRAN/Femap), precision grinding and polishing (MRF, IBF), molecular adhesion assembly, ultra-vacuum mirror benders up to 1,500 mm, and ISO9001:2015/EN9100-certified assembly, integration, and testing. The company supplies prime contractors and agencies including NASA, ESA, CNES, ESO, Thales, Airbus Defence and Space, and DGA, with flight-proven contributions to JWST NIRSpec, Mars 2020 SuperCam, DESI spectrographs (10 units as prime contractor), VLT MUSE (2,500+ components), and Subaru PFS (4 spectrographs).

Bertin Winlight operates a project-based B2B model with multi-year direct contracts negotiated per program. Revenue is generated through one-off custom builds and small-batch production runs of optical components and complete systems, with no public pricing or self-serve channel. The company is privately held and does not disclose standalone revenue, though its parent Bertin Technologies Group reported €92 million in 2021 turnover across 530 employees. The customer base is concentrated among government space agencies, national defense organizations, and a small set of aerospace primes; product distribution is direct-sales with technical pre-sales support spanning initial design through qualification and delivery. Proprietary technologies include world-leading image slicer manufacturing (jointly developed with CNRS-LAM), ultra-vacuum mirror benders, molecular adhesion assembly, and super-polishing for X-ray mirrors down to 0.1 nm RMS surface roughness.

Name

Bertin Winlight

Legal name

Bertin Winlight

Website

https://bertin-winlight.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Bertin Winlight is a French designer and manufacturer of high-performance optical components and systems for space, defense, synchrotron, and astronomy applications, supplying prime contractors and agencies such as NASA, ESA, CNES, and Thales from its EN9100-certified facility in Pertuis.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Precision Optical Components and Systems

SIC

Optical Instruments & Lenses (3827), Laboratory Analytical Instruments (3826)

akta.pro primary industry

Optoelectronic Components (LEDs, photodiodes, optocouplers, optical sensors) (IMAGAJAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Optoelectronics & Photonics (LED/Laser/Optical ICs) (HDAHAAAH)

Keywords

• High-precision optical components
• Space-grade optronics
• Synchrotron X-ray mirrors
• Astronomical spectrographs
• Defense optical subsystems

Headquarters

HQ city

Aix-en-provence

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Custom Optical Systems and Component Manufacturing: Bertin Winlight designs and manufactures high-performance optical components, subassemblies, and complete systems on a project-contract basis for defense, space, astronomy, and synchrotron customers. Revenue is generated through direct contracts with prime contractors, government agencies, and research institutions, typically as one-time custom builds or small-batch production runs. The company also provides assembly, integration, and testing (AIT) services as part of its product delivery.
2. Optical Ground Support Equipment (OGSE): Design and supply of calibration and test benches used to test and qualify optical performance of flight instruments and military systems. These are custom-engineered to customer specifications, sold as complete systems.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Bertin Winlight designs and manufactures high-performance optical components, subassemblies, and complete optronic systems for space, defense, astronomy, and synchrotron markets. The company offers end-to-end capabilities covering optical design (Zemax), opto-mechanical design (NASTRAN/Femap), precision grinding and polishing, optical metrology, and assembly, integration, and testing (AIT) of optical components and subsystems. Production is carried out at a temperature-controlled plant of approximately 2,200 sqm with ~1,000 sqm of ISO 5/ISO 6 clean rooms in Pertuis, France.

Product overview

Bertin Winlight is a French company specializing in the design and construction of high-performance optical components, subassemblies and systems for demanding environments. The company operates primarily in four markets: space, defense, synchrotrons and astronomy. The product portfolio centers on Optical Components (lenses, mirrors including X-ray and aspherical mirrors), Optronics (onboard optronics and hardened optical subsystems), Calibration & Test Benches (OGSE for space and military test benches), Spectroscopy & Imaging Systems (image slicers, spectrographs, collimators, derotators), Instrumentation for Plasma Experiments (X-ray microscopes), and Onboard Instrumentation (space optics components and subsystems). The company also offers the Cleapart-100 particle monitoring device. These products are offered as both individual components and integrated subsystems, with capabilities spanning design, manufacturing, assembly, integration and testing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Optical Components High-precision optical components including lenses, mirrors, prisms, aspherical mirrors (on-axis, off-axis, free-form), and X-ray mirrors up to 1,500 mm in various shapes adapted to grazing angles of incidence for synchrotron, astronomy, space and defense applications.
• X-Ray Mirrors Mirrors specifically adapted for grazing angles of incidence required for synchrotron and X-ray applications, featuring ultra-vacuum compatibility and performance evaluated by RMS slopes (e.g., 0.3 µrad RMS) and surface roughness (e.g., 0.1–0.2 nm RMS).
• Aspherical Mirrors On-axis or off-axis aspherical optics produced using innovative technologies that allow grinding and polishing parabolic optics directly off-axis without requiring a master parabola.
• Optronics (Hardened Optronic Systems) Hardened high-performance optical instruments combining opto-mechanical and electronic skills, including onboard optronic systems and hardened optical subsystems for visible, SWIR, MWIR, and LWIR bandwidths, supplied to defense and aerospace customers.
• Onboard Optronics Electro-optical systems designed to customer specifications and compliant with all standards and qualification requirements, including the Sling Load Camera (SLC) for NH90 military helicopters supplied to Airbus Helicopters.
• Hardened Optical Subsystems Hardened lenses and optical subsystems covering visible, SWIR, MWIR and LWIR bandwidths, produced in-house at the Pertuis facility as ITAR-free equipment for defense customers.
• Calibration & Test Benches Calibration and test benches capable of aligning, checking and qualifying optical and photonic performance of high-performance systems for space and military customers.
• OGSE (Optical Ground Support Equipment) Optical Ground Support Equipment for space applications, including hyper-stable telescopes, telescope simulators using molecular adherence technology, and focusing test simulators using the Hartmann method.
• Test Benches & Tools for Military Test benches and tools for military equipment production, including 3-channel co-alignment bench, IR collimators with black bodies, sight adjustment tools, and complete optronic benches.
• Spectroscopy & Imaging Systems Instruments for large telescopes including image slicers, spectrographs, collimators, lenses, derotators, and complete systems for VLT, ELT, Keck, Gemini, Subaru and other major observatories.
• Image Slicers World's leading production of image slicers using proprietary technology developed with CNRS-LAM, enabling quick and cost-effective volume production while guaranteeing surface quality and optimized edges (no bevels, chips or chamfers); used in MUSE, KCWI, SPIRou and other instruments.
• Production Spectrographs Volume production of spectrographs under tight deadlines while ensuring quality, including multi-spectrograph instruments delivered for MUSE (24 units), PFS (4 units for Subaru), and DESI (10 units as prime contractor).
• Collimators, Lenses & Derotators Collimators, camera lenses, atmospheric distortion correctors (ADC), derotators, prisms, folding mirrors, transport doublets and field separators supplied as components, subsystems, or completely assembled systems for astronomy and space applications.
• Instrumentation for Plasma Experiments X-ray microscopes and optical systems for plasma diagnostics used in large scientific facilities and high-power lasers, requiring toroidal mirrors and micron-level positioning accuracy.
• X-Ray Microscope Single or multi-channel X-ray microscopes designed, built and tested for plasma diagnostics used on high-power lasers and other major facilities.
• Onboard Instrumentation (Space Optics) Spaceborne optical components and subsystems fully compliant with strict sector requirements, including complete configuration, process and testing qualification and management for satellite systems (e.g., JWST NIRSpec baseplate, Mars rovers' mirrors).
• Space Optics Components & Subsystems Space-qualified optical components and subsystems including spherical, plane, aspherical and free-form optics made from aluminum, silica, CaF2, ZnSE, SiC and other materials, assembled and tested in ISO 5 and ISO 6 clean rooms.
• Associated Systems for X-Ray Mirrors Mirror benders (proprietary ultra-vacuum technology up to 1,500 mm), coolers (side-cooling or indirect eutectic bath), KB (Kirkpatrick-Baez) systems for micro- and nano-focusing, and positioners with vacuum chambers.
• Cleapart-100 Particle Deposition Rate Monitoring Device Patented particle deposition rate monitoring device with no influence on local aerolics, composed of a 100-cm² glass collection surface and an imaging and lighting system that detects, counts and sorts particles in real time for safe manufacturing of sensitive products.

Quantifiable outcome

• Surface roughness down to 0.1 nm RMS
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers18 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major, significant, emerging and parent/group.

• CNRS (French National Centre for Scientific Research)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 November 2017Winlight System and CNRS established LabCom NANO PtoV partnership on November 16, 2021, to promote research, studies, design, and manufacturing of components dedicated to high-performance optics. Winlight also collaborates with multiple CNRS laboratories (LATMOS, LAM, IRAP) on specific instrument programs including MARBLL, MUSE, and PFS.
• Berkeley Lab (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWinlight System was prime contractor for 10 spectrographs of the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI), in collaboration with Berkeley Lab, CEA, and CNRS. Winlight took charge of all integration tasks and commissioning of the instrument at its Pertuis facility to reduce transportation risks.
• CEA (French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on multiple projects including DESI spectrographs, Cleapart-100 particle monitoring device (with CEA-CESTA), and JWST NIRSpec. CEA and CNRS are key co-development partners in major astronomy instrument programs.
• LAM (Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Marseille)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint development of image slicer technology with CNRS-LAM. Partnership for PFS spectrograph integration: Winlight manufactures spectrographs in Pertuis, LAM handles detector integration and scientific commissioning before shipment to Hawaii. Long-standing collaboration on MUSE and other instruments.
• NAOJ (National Astronomical Observatory of Japan) / Kavli Institute / Subaru TelescopemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWinlight System is developing 4 spectrographs for the Prime Focus Spectrograph (PFS) on the Subaru Telescope. NAOJ operates the instrument. Collaboration also involves LAM and Princeton University. All spectrographs manufactured in Pertuis.
• CEA-CESTA and Aix-Marseille UniversitysignificantStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint development of the Cleapart-100 particle deposition rate monitoring device. CEA-CESTA and Aix-Marseille University collaborated with Winlight System to develop this patented technology for monitoring particle contamination in sensitive manufacturing environments.
• AIP (Leibniz-Institut für Astrophysik Potsdam)emergingStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint technology transfer project to deploy Winlight's MUSE spectroscopy tools for development of a minimal-invasive optical cancer diagnostics device capable of detecting cancer in real time, potentially replacing biopsies.
• CNES (French Space Agency)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing collaboration on French space missions. Winlight supplied SuperCam mirrors for Mars 2020 Perseverance rover, ChemCam mirrors for Curiosity, and NIRSpec baseplate for JWST. CNES provides scientific direction for French contributions to these missions.
• Airbus Defence and SpacemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAirbus Defence and Space awarded Winlight System a contract for critical components and optical sub-assemblies for the MICROCARB mission (CNES mission decided at COP21). Also a customer for satellite optical subsystems and space-qualified components.
• LATMOS (Laboratoire Atmosphères, Milieux, Observations Spatiales)significantStrategic or Co-development PartnerWinlight produced a Mach-Zehnder interferometer by molecular adhesion for the MARBLL (Mars Boundary Layer Lidar) instrument, in development at LATMOS since 2008 with support from CNES.
• Bertin Technologies / CNIM Groupparent/groupOthersWinlight System was acquired in 2017 by Bertin Technologies, a subsidiary of CNIM Group. Operational management remains unchanged. Bertin Technologies has over 530 employees and operates brands Bertin Instruments, Bertin Photonics, and Bertin Medical Waste.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• HORIBA Scientific: Division of HORIBA producing spectroscopy and imaging instruments for research, astronomy, and synchrotron applications. Comparable in spectroscopy systems and astronomy instrumentation, though operates more on the instrument/integrator side than custom optical manufacturing.
• Thales Alenia Space: Joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%) building satellite systems, space instruments, and optical payloads. Overlaps with Bertin Winlight on space-qualified optical components and Earth observation instruments, but operates as a prime contractor rather than a specialist subsystem supplier.
• L3Harris Technologies: Major US defense prime producing hardened electro-optical/infrared systems, space payloads, and scientific instruments. Comparable in defense optronics and space optics but with vastly broader portfolio and US-centric ITAR-controlled supply chain.
• Carl Zeiss (Zeiss Industrial Metrology / Zeiss Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology): German precision optics and optoelectronics manufacturer with deep heritage in astronomy, lithography, and semiconductor optics. Comparable in precision optics expertise and global customer footprint, though significantly larger and more diversified.
• Coherent (formerly II-VI / Finisar): Global photonics and optoelectronics manufacturer producing laser optics, IR optics, and precision components for aerospace, defense, and scientific applications. Overlaps with Bertin Winlight in high-precision optical components but at much higher volume and broader scope.

Others

• SCHOTT: German specialty glass and optical materials manufacturer supplying substrates and glass-ceramic materials to astronomy, defense, and synchrotron optics manufacturers including Bertin Winlight. Adjacent rather than competing — functions as an upstream materials supplier to the precision optics industry.

Direct peers

• Media Lario: Italian precision optics manufacturer specializing in electroformed nickel optics for space telescopes (including contributions to IXO, Athena) and other X-ray/UV astronomy missions. Highly comparable in technology profile and customer overlap (ESA, NASA astrophysics programs).
• Sagem (Safran Electronics & Defense): Safran subsidiary producing hardened optronic systems, infrared cameras, and sighting equipment for defense applications. Directly comparable to Bertin Winlight's optronics business (visible/SWIR/MWIR/LWIR hardened optical subsystems), and competes for similar French and export defense programs.
• Ball Aerospace: US-based prime contractor for space optical instruments (JWST, Hubble instruments, Landsat) and scientific payloads. Direct peer in large-aperture space-qualified optical systems and spectroscopy instruments, with comparable end customers (NASA, DoD) but greater scale.
• Safran Reosc: Safran's optics division (formerly Reosc) is the most direct competitor to Bertin Winlight: a French manufacturer of ultra-precision optical components and systems for astronomy (VLT, ELT), space (Earth observation, science missions), and defense applications. Operates in the same Pertuis-adjacent ecosystem and serves the same ESO, ESA, and CNES customer base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/winlight-cnim-group

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bertin Winlight