Wood-Mizer®, the number one seller of sawmills worldwide, created portable sawmills in 1982. At that time, Wood-Mizer was the only company to use a cantilever-cutting head for its sawmills. This feature was so crucial to making an accurate cut that the U.S. Patent Office issued Wood-Mizer a patent for its design. Wood-Mizer knows the importance of cutting logs accurately and also knows that all the components that make the bandmill run correctly also need to be accurate, reliable and durable.

In the mid 1990s, Wood-Mizer began designing a new control system which incorporated a linear-position feedback sensor to help automate the cut height adjustment. After several years of development, the company was still seeking an absolute linear position sensor that could withstand operation in harsh outdoor environments. The sensor needed to operate in temperature ranges from –20° F to +110° F as well as operate in rain, snow and sleet while withstanding elements such as road salt, direct sun light, the shock and vibration from on and off-road traveling as well as electrical noise.