You may have heard—it’s Olympus’ 100th anniversary this year! A century of research, innovation, and re-innovation has produced an extensive line of products and advancements. Such a prosperous history is bound to have a few notable success stories.
Among our industrial nondestructive testing (NDT) products, the history of the OmniScan™ ultrasonic (UT) flaw detector is particularly noteworthy. Since the OmniScan MX instrument was launched 16 years ago, it and its successor model, the OmniScan MX2, have become favorite tools of NDT inspectors worldwide. Building on the success of the OmniScan MX2 phased array flaw detector, we added powerful new features and an innovative design to create the OmniScan X3 flaw detector.
Introducing the Latest Member of the OmniScan Family
When it came time to design the logo for the new OmniScan X3 flaw detector, François-Charles Angers, an in-house graphic designer on the Olympus Scientific Solutions Marketing Communications team, opted not to mess with a good thing. When you have a logo that is so well recognized and highly regarded, any modification becomes a big decision. “There wasn’t a good reason to change it. It’s a good logo. It still does the job.”
For the OmniScan X3 flaw detector, François used the original logo as inspiration. He added the “X” and, as a special touch, he took the “m” from OmniScan and turned it on its side to create the “3” in X3.
A Logo That Has Legs
The OmniScan logo has been around for 15 years, ever since the launch of the OmniScan MX flaw detector in 2003. Amazingly, François was there to witness the product launch, but he can’t take credit for the original logo. It was his father, Denis Angers, who designed the original. At that time, Angers senior did most of the graphic design work for R/D Tech, an NDT technology company based in Quebec City. Three years later, R/D Tech joined the Olympus family.
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Following in His Father’s Footsteps
Growing up with a father who was a graphic designer exposed François to the occupation and gave him unusual access and opportunity to tinker with graphic design software. As soon as he was old enough, François joined his father in the family business in his first job at R/D Tech. He remembers being present in the conference room along with his father during the initial discussions about the OmniScan MX logo.
His father has since retired, and François is no longer a “green” graphic designer with his foot just in the door. Now a longtime Olympus employee, he has a hand in many of the company’s major graphic design projects and product launches. Working on the OmniScan X3 logo, however, will always have special significance for him.
OmniScan X3: A Brand Name You Can Trust
The OmniScan logo hasn’t yet reached iconic status, but as the OmniScan instrument has evolved and become recognized as the standard in phased array ultrasonic flaw detectors, the logo has also come to represent high quality and reliability. With the launch of the new OmniScan X3 flaw detector, François has added his own touch to his father’s work, and extended his legacy.
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