One of the market’s most exclusive sights for hunting and sport shooting is manufactured in Malmö. Aimpoint red dot sights are a Swedish invention that has conquered the world – and an investment that lasts a lifetime. Cotec Labs is an important part of the development of surface treatment.

The whole story began one morning in 1974. Arne Ekstrand was standing in front of the mirror shaving. Behind him, the light from the mirror was reflected on the wall, and he noticed that the reflection did not move, regardless of whether he moved or not. Arne, a technician, inventor and hunter, had a brainwave and immediately began sketching his idea. He made the prototype for his invention out of an empty toilet roll. He then contacted entrepreneur Gunnar Sandberg at ElektroSandberg to get help with financing. Gunnar believed in Arne’s idea and decided to support its further development. In 1975, the company was founded and the first red dot sight from Aimpoint was launched.

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But what exactly is a red dot sight?
When Arne Ekstrand developed the red dot sight, he wanted to improve his accuracy when shooting at moving targets, both when hunting and when practising at the shooting range. Unlike traditional sights, the shooter does not need to position their eye correctly to get a good sight picture. They can aim with both eyes open while focusing on the target. The red dot can thus be placed on the target in a more intuitive way. As long as the eye can see the red dot and the sight is calibrated, the shooter will hit where the dot is located – this is called parallax-free.
The intuitive functionality of the red dot sight makes it particularly well suited for shooting at moving and fast-moving targets. Since the shooter can shoot with both eyes open, they are also always aware of what is happening around them. Furthermore, the red dot is not projected onto the target but can only be seen by the shooter.

Aimpoint red dot sights are currently used by hunters, sport shooters and professional users in the military and police forces around the world. The company also manufactures special products for military applications. Development and manufacturing are based in Sweden, with headquarters in Malmö and additional manufacturing in Gällivare. All products are thoroughly tested under challenging conditions – a task that Aimpoint has chosen to entrust to Proton’s subsidiary Cotec Labs in Bankeryd.

Focus on climate and corrosion

     ‘Unfortunately, I can’t go into exactly what tests are done,’ says Martina Grövnes, a test engineer at Aimpoint.
‘But we set high standards for durability and user-friendliness, and the tests are designed accordingly. Surface treatment and anti-corrosive properties are an important part of those requirements. That’s where Cotec Labs comes in.’

Aimpoint sights are waterproof, and certain models are designed to withstand diving to depths of 25 metres. Some are also designed to withstand extreme temperature variations, from -46°C to +71°C.

     ‘The tests we perform at Cotec Labs are various types of climate tests. Among other things, we need to examine the adhesive properties of the glue to ensure that it can withstand these stresses. The properties of the surface treatment – our products are available with surface treatments in several different colours – are also important to ensure,’ says Martina Grövnes.

‘Never leans back’

Cotec primarily assists with testing in the development process.

      ‘I can say without exaggeration that Aimpoint is one of our most interesting customers. We are talking about a unique product that must meet extremely high quality standards. Anyone who buys a red dot sight from Aimpoint expects it to last a lifetime, which places extremely high demands on quality and surface protection,” says Joakim Ekström, Sales Manager and Senior Test Engineer at Cotec Labs.

     ‘It’s obviously really exciting to get the trust of a world-class manufacturer. As a professional, I also find it inspiring to see how they always focus on quality, testing all their models continuously and never resting on their laurels.’