Field Trip to Spitz, Inc.

On April 14th, CCAS members were treated to a private tour of the facilities of Spitz, Inc., the world's leading projection dome supplier. Founded in 1945 by Dr. Armand Spitz, the company began as a provider of affordable optical planetarium projectors for schools and small educational institutions. Since then, Spitz has grown to become the largest supplier of planetariums and domes with over 1,200 installations located around the world.

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Coffee anyone? Dave Hockenberry holding the original projector, made from a coffee can.	Projector Ball An unfinished traditional projector.	Machine Press Dome components are all cold-formed using presses to shape the metal.
Wooden Form Wooden forms are used to shape the dome plates.	Geodesic Dome Spitz is also a major manufacturer of geodesic encolsures.	Manufacturing Floor All dome components are constructed onsite and shipped to the customer location.
Traditional Projector A Spitz “A-1” projector and photo of Dr. Spitz in the lobby of the company lobby.	Hydraulic Metal Cutter The cutting machine used to fabricate the panels for each unique dome project.	Sample Dome Tile Here’s Sarah holding a sample of the epoxy powder-coated tiles used in dome construction.