Spire Corporation, a longtime SBIR-involved global solar company, had been involved in the development, manufacturing and marketing of highly engineered products and services for commercial markets, including energy manufacturing equipment, biomedical devices and optoelectronic components. Responsible for the design and manufacture of specialized equipment for producing photovoltaic solar modules, Spire also developed biomedical-processing services offering surface treatments and enhancing the durability or antimicrobial characteristics of orthopedic and other medical devices. Spires flagship product, the Spi-Sun Simulator became an industry standard for module performance testing and is used by more than thirty standards testing laboratories worldwide. The quality and consistency of Spires products and services have resulted in awards and widespread brand recognition for the company throughout the international PV community. The Companys equipment is used by over 300 companies in 50 countries worldwide. Spires involvement in the solar industry began with development of space-based solar cells. Focus shifted to terrestrial photovoltaic applications soon afterward, and the Company quickly built a leading position as a worldwide supplier of solar cell and module manufacturing equipment with embedded, advanced processes. In 2009 /Spire Biomedical (surface engineering technology to improve orthopedic and cardiovascular devices) has sold its hemodialysis catheter business to CR Bard Access Systems (vascular access devices). In 2012, the firm sold a major part of the the assets of Spire Semiconductor, LLCs foundry services business to Masimo Semiconductor, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Masimo Corporation ("Masimo").
