WE BEGAN AS ROCK STARS
It's the mid 1950's. Rock and Roll is taking hold, concerts are growing in popularity and musicians and performers crave an affordable, reliable and great sounding system for their gigs. Starting life in a garage workshop, Kustom amplifiers is formed... building cutting edge systems using transistorized electronics (a revolution at the time).
Kustom amps and speaker cabs were incredibly well constructed with a big, clean sound and (thanks to word of mouth) they were soon in high demand. Production was moved to a dedicated manufacturing facility in Chanute, Kansas (where we still manufacture today).
Artists using Kustom products in the 60’s and 70’s included Johnny Cash, The Jackson 5, John Fogerty, and Brian Wilson and Kustom amps were the preferred choice of musicians across all genres.
Our knowledge of electronics allowed us to diversify into manufacturing of radar and car monitors (perhaps an odd move, but one which played to our key strengths)... and our foray into designing and manufacturing public safety equipment was born.
THE 1970'S AND BEYOND
Kustom Signals has a long testimony of innovative accomplishments and industry firsts. We introduced the first digital readout radar, the industry’s first moving radar, and the first hand-held option. In 1979, we introduced an instant-on function that added to an officer’s ability to track speeds on compulsion and, in 2008, we introduced the Raptor, the first two-piece radar with graphical display, target tracking bar and Dura Trak™.
An avionics division began in 1979 and was sold in 1984, but not before designing the “space radar” used by NASA to measure speed and distance of objects in space.
By the late 80’s we were offering officers the added security of in-car video surveillance options and continue to invest significant resources to upgrade our video technology and to remain an innovative front runner. We have lead the industry by providing the first digital in-car video that offered multiple compression and file transfer options (2004), the first to offer dual control for MDC and a dedicated controller (2004), the first four-camera solution (2010), and the first digital in-car video system utilizing Windows Internet Explorer as the primary user interface (2010).
As speed enforcement technology progressed, we continued our history of being cutting edge and reliable. 1990 was a year full of firsts for Kustom Signals in laser advancements: The first heads-up display, the first LIDAR (Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging) with continuous tracking history, and the first with a settable range.
In 2006, we introduced the first binocular style speed enforcement laser weighing only 19 ounces. 2011 brought the rock star of industry recognition, the Innovation Award, for our ProLaser 4.
50 YEARS OF CUSTOMER SERVICE
Kustom Signals has a long history of putting customer service above all else, and we know that your safety, the safety of your community and the success of your safety enforcement program are dependent on reliable, effective, and superior technology.
We have outstanding products that are superbly designed, tested and serviced. Our products meet all federal performance guidelines and any equipment issue is resolved by a team of engineers, corrective actions professionals and technical support specialists. In short, we have quality people rocking quality products.
For nearly 50 years, we have strived to be the worldwide leader in speed enforcement, the most trusted provider of video evidence solutions and the recognized leader in customer satisfaction. We are part of an international network of companies offering vehicle safety products, we aim to provide you, the customer, with the tools that continue to make you the 'Rock Stars' within your own community.
For a brief video of our history, click here.
For highlights of what we do today, click here.
