ASD was the vision of Dr. Alexander Goetz, who earned his Ph.D. in geophysics from the California Institute of Technology in 1967, and Dr. Brian Curtiss, who received his Ph.D. in geochemistry from the University of Washington in 1985. Founded in 1990, these two scientists developed and produced state-of-the-art spectroradiometers designed to be portable and rugged enough for extensive field use.

    Users who needed fast, accurate and reliable NIR measurements outside of the traditional laboratory environment quickly adapted the Company's products. The Company responded to the ever-increasing demands from field research scientists for smaller, faster, and higher performance field NIR instruments. Today, ASD is the undisputed industry leader in the design and manufacturing of portable NIR spectrometers for the Remote Sensing market.

    Building upon its success in the remote sensing market, starting in 2000 ASD expanded its focus to material identification and characterization in the Industrial markets. ASD developed and introduced an entirely new, advanced line of products for this market: the LabSpec Pro, the FieldSpec Pro, the FieldSpec HandHeld, and the QualitySpec. Aimed at providing material measurements using NIR in a variety of environments outside of the laboratory, customers are quickly learning the benefits of making the material measurement by bringing the instrument to the material in the factory, warehouse, or field, rather than taking material samples to the lab. A comprehensive assortment of accessories complements the entire product line to provide even greater flexibility and versatility.