Hardin Optical

09/11/2025

09/04/2025

Hardin Optical is a proud sponsor of the Bandon Youth Soccer 2025 season! A big thank you to all the other sponsors for supporting our kids.

02/19/2025

We are proud to announce the well-deserved promotion of Tim Inselman to Diamond Turning Supervisor! Tim has consistently demonstrated exceptional technical expertise and remarkable leadership growth. His dedication to learning, developing new processes, and expanding our capabilities has been pivotal in strengthening our diamond turning department.

Tim has emerged as a leader, working closely with his team to drive efficiency through yield improvements and continuous growth in throughput. In his new role, Tim will oversee workflows, supervise employees, manage diamond turning operations, and ensure smooth communication across the organization. His ability to coordinate resources, train technicians, and implement process improvements will be crucial to meeting internal demand and supporting our ongoing success.

Tim's journey reflects his unwavering commitment to both technical excellence and leadership development. We are excited to see him thrive in this role and continue to make a lasting impact at HOC. Please join us in congratulating Tim on this well-earned promotion!

02/19/2025

We are excited to announce that James Widdifield has been promoted to the role of Precision Optics Generating-Polishing Manager! James has consistently demonstrated his value to our team through strong leadership, unwavering dedication to business needs, and a commitment to driving success in our operations. His ability to adapt, mentor others, and spearhead improvements has truly set him apart.

In this new role, James will focus on enhancing planning, resource management, and team development, all while working toward the company’s objectives of delivering projects on time, on target, and on budget. His leadership will be crucial in streamlining processes, optimizing capacity, managing departmental finances, ensuring seamless communication across the organization, and fostering a culture of accountability and growth within the team.

We have full confidence in James as he takes on this exciting new role and set of responsibilities. Please join us in congratulating him on this well-deserved promotion!

10/31/2024

We have just received a 2024 recognition Performance Award for our outstanding Quality and On Time Delivery on a specific Customer Program.

Congratulations to our Hardin Optical Team!

08/20/2024

We are a proud sponsor of Bandon Youth Soccer's 2024 season!

05/14/2024

Congratulations to Michelle V. Ortiz in her promotion to Senior Human Resources Manager.

Recent professional qualifications:
• Graduate Certificate, Human Resources Management, October 2023.
• SHRM-CP, January 2024.
• Master of Science, Organizational Leadership, May 2024.

Michelle has excelled in her performance as HR Manager, she has built strong relationships with HOC employees and worked hard on employee retention. She quickly embraced the family culture of the business and always has an open door. Michelle will be a key driver for continued success in making HOC a great place to work.

Michelle will continue with her current responsibilities and report directly to the President, Micheal Hardin.

Please congratulate Michelle!

05/02/2024

We are thrilled to announce the promotion of Frank Sterzinar to the position of Machine Shop Supervisor. Frank has demonstrated exceptional dedication and skill in his role, leading to this well-deserved advancement.

Throughout his tenure, Frank has achieved numerous key accomplishments, including standardizing faster programs, thereby enhancing the efficiency of our processes in faceplate production. He has also effectively managed material costs, contributing to our bottom line. Furthermore, Frank has played a crucial role in training and mentoring his colleagues, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and excellence within our team.

Under Frank's guidance, our machine shop achieved a remarkable safety record of no injuries in 2023, a testament to his focus on safety in a highly active working environment. Additionally, Frank has spearheaded the implementation of a 6S organization system, ensuring the efficiency and organization of both the machine shop and its work cells.

Importantly, Frank has consistently upheld the company's quality policy and core values, demonstrating a commitment to excellence in every aspect of his work.

Please join us in congratulating Frank on his promotion and wishing him continued success in his new role as Machine Shop Supervisor!

04/15/2024

Hardin Optical Company is delighted to announce that Kaycee Tessman has been promoted to Diamond Turning Engineer. Kaycee has been a HOC employee for 6 years and contributed to the growth and technical success of our Diamond Turning lens manufacturing Dept.
Key achievements that led to this promotion involved process improvements on challenging IR Materials for aspheric and diffractive lenses, water clear acrylic process development, fixture design, metrology process development and improvements along with various new product integration.

In this new role, Kaycee will divide her time supporting daily production goals and Engineering. Areas for accountability lie within cross training of new Technicians and supporting the Dept Lead for Cost, Schedule, and Quality. She will also spend some of her time creating Bill of Materials, authoring Work Instructions, and developing in situ Quality documents. As the Dept grows and output gradually increases during 2024, and beyond, Kaycee will drive continuous improvement activities and add higher levels of fidelity with process controls.

We look forward to her continued success and personal growth during the expansion of this key technical capability area. Please join us in congratulating Kaycee on this well-deserved promotion.

02/12/2024

Hardin Optical is pleased to announce that Joni Dominguez has been promoted to Faceplate Manager. Joni joined Hardin Optical just over 3 years ago and has been an integral part of our team. Key achievements that led to Joni’s promotion include team development, meeting inventory contractual requirements, a 100% percent customer acceptance rate, with 100% on time delivery. Joni is a shining example for all our employees by upholding Hardin Optical’s core values. Please join in our congratulations to Joni on her well-earned promotion.

12/21/2023

It is with great excitement we are announcing the promotion of Martin Mather to the role of Vice President & General Manager. Mr. Mather’s four decades of industry experience revitalized the company culture and established new core disciplines that have achieved high levels of improved business performance across the organization. These sustained disciplines will drive, with velocity, Hardin Optical’s strategic path forward, ensuring our customers’ continued success.

Martin looks forward to working closely with current and new strategic partners to realize mutual prosperity and the best possible service for our Warfighters.

In 2023, Hardin Optical Company (HOC) enjoyed record revenues and an all-time low scrap to sales ratio. For 2024, HOC has won record bookings and secured long term US Defense Programs of Record. These Program wins were secured from many years of investment and long-term customer relationships with our team. They will be the foundation for year-over-year future business growth and job security for Hardin Optical’s employees.