Jeff High, Gemvision Founder and President, is shown here holding the prestigious Prometheus Award for "Business Product of the Year" awarded to Gemvision's Matrix software by the Technology Association of Iowa.

At that time, all jewelry design and manufacturing was done by hand with a rough sketch and tools and techniques that hadn’t changed in hundreds of years. Working in his shopping mall jewelry store, Jeff became frustrated with these traditional methods, and started integrating emerging digital camera, computer hardware, and graphics software into a system to help him communicate jewelry design ideas to his customers.

These early “Gemvision” systems allowed Jeff to sit down with customers, photograph existing customer jewelry, and design jewelry digitally using the customer’s jewelry or building entirely new pieces. Jewelry store customers could now participate in the process, clearly seeing the results on-screen, and making intuitive design decisions until satisfied. Gone were the days of crude pencil sketches, ambiguity, and frequent mistakes. In its place was a revolutionary new way of designing jewelry using technology. Since then, Gemvision has refined this technology into the stand-alone products Digital Goldsmith and the System6 HD Camera System (part of the Gemvision Design Studio).

Around the turn of the millennium, Gemvision embarked on its most ambitious technological advancement to date with the release of Matrix 3D Jewelry Design Software. While 3D CAD software had been used for years in other industries, the ancient art of jewelry making had always resisted technology. But when Gemvision harnessed the power of CAD and gave it a jeweler-friendly interface and functionality, a CAD/CAM revolution was underway in the jewelry industry.

In 2003, Gemvision released the Revo540 Milling System, a CAM counterpart to Matrix to put precision output of jewelry parts into the hands of all jewelers. The Revo Mill Series has evolved to the latest Model C, featuring innovative dual spindle technology and tool-less quick-change fixtures.

Since the introduction of its Matrix Jewelry Design Software in the year 2000, Gemvision has grown considerably year after year while becoming the CAD/CAM  industry standard. Matrix is now the preferred software for major colleges, universities, and educational institutions to prepare jewelers for successful careers. A growing roster of distributors places Gemvision products in over 35 foreign countries. And Gemvision opened a European headquarters in Leeds, England in 2006. All of these locations are supplied from Gemvision global headquarters in Davenport, IA.

More than just an equipment provider, Gemvision also offers comprehensive product training all over the world and provides exceptional technical support. User-focused events held throughout the year cultivate a true jewelry CAD/CAM community.

From the days of building the original “Gemvision” systems in Jeff High’s basement almost two decades ago to today’s global company, the story of Gemvision is a true reflection of the impact technology can have on an ancient art form.