| abstract
| - Before the founding of Duvolle Labs, Jinneth Duvolle was completing her doctorate in Nanomolecular Engineering at the Center for Advanced Studies. Her thesis on K-series contact surfaces attracted immediate attention from both academics and the military. Soon after graduation she perfected the production of K90, a robust structure that permitted a threefold increase in plasma propagation in stock fusion reactors. Immediately recognizing the commercial value in this technology, she teamed up with her older sister Jorouette Duvolle, a business graduate from the University of Caille, and with a sizable grant from the Garoun Investment Bank; the sisters were able to establish Duvolle Laboratories. As the company's profits grew, so did its product and research lines. Duvolle hired aggressively, offering compensation packages far higher than that of their competitors'. They wish to attract the best young minds they were. One such mind was Avagher Xarasier, a physicist and fellow alumni of the Center for Advanced Studies, who would later go on to be one of the most influential designers of starship systems in the entire Gallente Federation. Other promising minds followed. Patent office records show that, at its height, Duvolle Labs applied for as many as 30 patents every day. By YC 100, Duvolle was a major corporation within the Federal military-industrial complex. Their research and technologies found their way into thousands of products in the form of first party products and licensed technology, which includes fusion reactors, starship weaponry, infantry warfare systems, ground-to-orbit shuttles, rapid-charge power cells, industrial refineries, and even cutting-edge kitchenware. Only 30% of research projects ever saw production, but the strategy of rampant growth and aggressively licensed successes delivered healthy profits. The Duvolle Lab's "failed" technologies were regularly recycled into runaway successes in completely separate fields. Soon, Duvolle began branching into the emerging biotechnology field, contributing several key patents relating to cloning technology. This placed them prominently center-stage when the capsuleer population developed and exploded. During this time, the Federation Navy began shopping around for various contractors to take part in the Advanced Starship Program, to significantly upgrade existing naval hulls in the coming years. In response, Jorouette formed a multi-disciplinary taskforce within Duvolle Labs and rapidly increased the company's in-house production capabilities. Led by Jinneth and Avagher Xarasier, who had married, the team won the bidding for the program. Although broadly successful, the early days of the ASP project was marred by scandal. In an escalating series of public clashes, it was revealed that many in the company had severe doubts over Jinneth's ability to manage such a large team. In response, Jinneth issued a public letter accusing Jorouette of unethical business practices. Duvolle Labs might have collapsed were it not for the quietly competent management of Xarasier. In the annual shareholder's meeting in YC 102, it was announced that Jinneth had left the company and her position, as Chief Researcher, was replaced by Xarasier. Jinneth herself went on to form Progressive Plasma, now one of Duvolle Labs' favored sub-contractors. The Advanced Starship Program eventually matured into its "Tech Level II" banner. After years of designing and secrecy, Duvolle released the Taranis interceptor, a model that became an immediate success on the capsuleer market. The company subsequently expanded the Taranis's design principles. By being strong all-round performance, rapid acceleration, and hardpoints heavily optimized for plasma blasters. To the cruiser-sized Deimos heavy assault ship and eventually to the battleship-sized Kronos marauder, and more specialized hulls. Duvolle Labs became a household name, within New Eden. In YC 110, shortly after the start of the Empyrean War, Duvolle Labs began acquiring several smaller companies directly. The two largest acquisitions were Cromeaux Inc. and ArcLite Arms. ArcLite was a planet-side, Jin-Mei small-arms manufacturer who specialized in rugged weaponry designed to withstand hostile terrestrial environments. Despite having a dedicated following, ArcLite lacked the capital needed to expand their product line. Selling to Duvolle allowed the company to experiment with newer technologies and attract lucrative government orders. The entire company was re-branded the "Duvolle Labs Personal Weapons Division," and its workforce was immediately expanded almost tenfold. Duvolle weapons became a favorite among Gallente PMCs and security forces for their durability and back-to-basics interface. Biometric devices were soon worked in, ensuring that each weapon would respond only to the appropriate users. Cromeaux Inc. began as a division of Duvolle Labs' competitor Chemal Tech. As a research house, it had spent several years experimenting with new applications of cloning technology. Although its researchers made many small advances in the use of biomass in modern medicine, their owners at Chemal Tech were continuously disappointed with Cromeaux's inability to create low-cost cloning that could be brought to mass market. The entire division was in danger of liquidation when Duvolle Labs offered a very generous bid for the company. Industry analysts expected acquired staff to be folded into Duvolle's own cloning department, but Cromeaux Inc. remained largely autonomous. In early YC 111, an internal document from Cromeaux leaked to the press describing a new program called "Final Soldier." Although the aim of the project is unknown, the document does confirm that resources from both Duvolle's Personal Weapons Division and Cromeaux Inc. are involved, and that the team is headed by Xarasier himself.
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