The invention of optical fiber and semiconductor lasers in the 1960s opened up a cornucopia of applications, notably as a medium of carrying light signals for communications and sensing applications. Optical fibers provide a fundamental improvement over traditional methods offering lower loss, higher bandwidth, immunity to electromagnetic interference (EMI), lighter weight, lower cost, and lower maintenance. By applying a UV laser to "burn" or write a diffraction grating (A Fiber Bragg Grating-FBG) in the fiber it became possible to reflect certain wavelengths of light, which used together with an interrogation analyzer (spectral analyzer) precise sensing measurements could be taken. The recent developments of optoelectronics components in the optical telecommunications field have dramatically enhanced the capabilities of many components, such as: light sources, fibers, detectors, optical amplifiers, mux/demuxes, switches, etc. As a result, numerous applications are now available for monitoring strain, stress and pressure in harsh environments. Examples of current and planned deployments will be presented.