Nobody paces the aisles encouraging quick production. In fact, workers seem to be trusted to work at the pace that will produce the best quality. Quality control is strict, and any errors will be quickly detected. Technicians seem to be about equally divided between men and women, and ages range from 19 to 65. The most delicate and skilled work is in the construction of microscope objectives.
Optical glass is made from Baltic sand, and is used throughout the world.
However, although careful work, lens making is not as important as mounting the lenses. If there is even a fraction of a micron of misalignment in the lenses, aberrations will destroy their usefulness. There may be as many as eighteen separate elements in an objective, as well as mechanical units such as iris diaphragms. Lens mounts must first be prepared, on a jeweler's lathe. They are turned to the correct dimensions, and then adjusted by hand to fit a particular piece of glass.