About us

Lansmont's origin goes back to the mid-1950s, where Firestone won a government contract to produce the 'Corporal missile' for the US Army. Production began in California in 1951 with the first flight in 1952.

Firestone established a research lab in Monterey, California, in 1957 and began recruiting engineering talent through journal advertisements, including Popular Science, that read:

You’ll find stimulating projects in our Los Angeles development program for the Army’s Corporal…or equally exciting challenges at the new Firestone Engineering Lab in idyllic Monterey - Carmel by the Sea.

Firestone sold the Engineering Lab to Research, Inc. in 1959 that later became Monterey Research, Inc.

In the 1960s they became Monterey Research Labs (MRL). MRL possessed expertise in high-velocity shock equipment and testing, primarily focused on the aerospace and automotive industries. Key players at the time were Frank Bresk and Bill Kipp.

The Director of the Michigan State University (MSU) School of Packaging, Dr. James Goff, contacted MRL in 1968 with the idea that shock testing technology could be utilized to help design more durable commercial products. Better designed products would require less protective packaging to withstand their movement through the supply chain.

MRL had a relationship with Dr. Bob Newton, of the Naval Post Graduate School in Monterey, who partnered with both MRL and MSU to develop what was called the Fragility Assessment Theory and Test Procedure, that included Damage Boundary shock testing.

Using this procedure a product's fragility (or durability) could be quantified and the results used to simplify the protective packaging design.

Michigan State Univesity (MSU) then undertook a research effort to prove this theory, using Newton's recommended test procedure, with a variety of real-world products and an MRL IMPAC shock machine on consignment.

A small group of MSU grad students supported the research and testing, and it was their collaboration and results that lead to the formation of Lansmont Corporation.

This photo taken in Lansing, Michigan, in 1975 recognizes the incorporation of the company. It features the original IMPAC shock machine consigned from MRL, with (from the left) Ed Church and Ken Horiszny (recent MSU grad students) along with Bill Kipp and Frank Bresk (of MRL), then Dennis Young (MSU grad student). Ed, Ken, Bill, and Frank, are the founders of Lansmont. The name Lansmont was derived from the two key locations, LANSing and MONTerey.

Lansmont's innovative approach to technology and test systems was high-tech, before 'high-tech' was a thing. From the 1970s to this day, it is not a stretch to say that all of the major technology companies of the world developed and tested their technologies using Lansmont test systems, before introducing them to the market.

Our technologies truly changed the world and they continue to do so today. All the gentlemen pictured above were (and still are) recognized giants of their time, known and respected around the world.

Lansmont Corporation, a world leader in Shock and Vibration measurement systems and monitoring instrumentation, was been acquired by the Physical Properties Testers (PPT) Group. Lansmont joins forces with Alluris, James Heal and Mecmesin as part of the PPT Group – a group of brands expert in the design and production of testing instrumentation and quality control technologies.