VR Industries Inc. has evolved significantly over its 40-year history. Founded in 1985 by Fred Pestana, the company transitioned from a relay business in Long Island, N.Y., to an electronic contract manufacturer in Warwick. Today, it designs, manufactures and tests electronic products for clients in industrial, defense, medical, and blue economy sectors.
Pestana’s son, Brian, joined the company after graduating from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in 1996. At the time, VR Industries was still using typewriters and lacked modern assembly documentation. Brian Pestana introduced digital cameras to improve instruction quality and has continued to modernize operations, now incorporating artificial intelligence for marketing and data analysis.
He worked his way up through the company and became CEO in 2010 after buying it out. Pestana says VR Industries has succeeded by narrowing down who the company’s best customers are. VR Industries mainly works with customers in the industrial, defense and medical industries, as well as those within the blue economy.
“As long as we stay in our niche, we do a good job,” Pestana said.
At the heart of VR Industries’ operations is the assembly of printed circuit boards. Customers provide the board design, which is programmed into one of four surface assembly lines. The board is coated with solder paste and placed into a pick-and-place machine that positions up to 400 components in minutes.
The company was the first in Rhode Island to earn ISO 9001 certification in 1996, underscoring its commitment to quality. Products range from night vision goggles and altitude sensors for aviation to temperature monitors for sprinkler systems.
Now in its 40th year, Pestana hopes to grow the business within its current 35,000-square-foot space by running equipment more often and possibly expanding to a second eight-hour shift, which would require hiring more employees beyond the current 35-person staff.
“You’ve got to be flexible and adapt and evolve to the work that’s available and what people need,” Pestana said.
