CCP Modulo ONE follows an entirely new philosophy. It comes with a new spindle design, pad architecture and smarter process technology facilitating lights out polishing. Just a single pad is enough to achieve highest quality results. Its innovative pad design provides the versatility and durability required for longterm uninterrupted polishing.
CCP Modulo ONE works entirely without tool changes, eliminating the risks that come with it. Running all processes simultaneously, unprecedented speed for highest throughput is promoted.
CCP Modulo ONE comes with full 4.0 intelligence, smart pad wear monitoring as well as a dedicated cleaning station, cleaning and drying the lens and the block piece.
Fast and highly cost-effective, the robust polisher provides labs with lowest cost per lens!
Hanna Diewald Chief editor
Tell us your opinion, ideas and suggestions: hanna.diewald@mafo-optics.com
Good vision for everyone?
In highly developed countries, spectacles are often even a fashion accessory and their availability to the population is generally good. According to Statista, sales in the global ophthalmic optics market are expected to reach around 135.60 billion euros in 2024 – with continuing steady growth thereafter.
That sounds great but unfortunately, large parts of the world’s population are left behind. They do not even have access to basic care with the simplest spectacles. They may not see an eye specialist in their entire lives and do not have the benefit of vision-preserving surgery. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), spectacle coverage in low-income countries is six times lower compared to highincome countries. The WHO also estimates that “globally only 36% of people with a distance vision impairment due to refractive error and only 17% of people with vision impairment due to cataract have received access to an appropriate intervention.”
This is particularly tragic, as people are thus deprived of fair participation from the outset. In many cases, the lack of adequate healthcare may even lead to blindness, which could otherwise have been prevented. For example, when cataracts are not operated on. When people with severe sight impairment still do not get spectacles, or when poor hygiene leads to the spread of
infectious diseases that could theoretically have easily been treated.
At the same time during our research, we were impressed by how many people are currently working to improve the situation. Hundreds of organizations around the world work day-in, day-out to provide people in the most remote regions of the world with spectacles, set up eye clinics, train staff or develop innovative products for an inclusive society. Unfortunately, it is impossible to present them all, but we report on some of those trailblazing projects (page 20).
Other topics related to sustainability and our special topic “Go Green!” covered in this issue are: a glossary of important sustainability terms (page 10), the new CSE label for sustainably manufactured eyewear (page 14), or the benefits that Green Recruiting can bring to a company (page 36).
We also spoke to Michael Walach, founder of the Quest Vision Care Specialty Lab, – on the occasion of the labs 20th anniversary – about what it means to manufacture special glasses for people with extreme visual requirements on a daily basis (page 26).
Additionally you can find out more about the optical and aesthetic advantages of lens edge coating (page 16), and why golf glasses may not always be as good as the industry promises (page 30). Enjoy reading this issue!
All about you
News from the international ophthalmic industry
Fielmann closed Shopko Optical acquisition
The Fielmann Group, a leading global eyewear provider, announced that it has closed on its acquisition of Shopko Optical. This transaction was signed on June 10, 2024. It marks another important milestone in the German family business’ plans to expand internationally and execute on its Vision 2025 growth strategy. Shopko Optical is consolidated as part of the Fielmann Group as of July 1, 2024 and will contribute six months of business sales this year. Shopko Optical (Shoptikal Topco, Inc.) is an optical retailer operating more than 140 stores in the USA.
Lorraine Berton takes over the responsibility for Mido and further activities
As planned at the beginning of her term, Lorraine Berton, now ANFAO President, also became president of the subsidiary IES Srl, the service company which successfully manages a number of activities, including the international eyewear event Mido | Milano Eyewear Show.
The 2024 Silmo Paris trade fair is getting ready to welcome all of the players from the optics sector from 20 to 23 September 2024 with more than 900 exhibitors participating in the event and 1,500 brands from 144 countries throughout the world on hand to showcase their offers. This key event will offer a top platform for an in-depth look at the latest technological developments, product innovations and trends that are shaping the future of the optics industry on a global scale. The “Futurology” space for example invites visitors to take an immersive dive into the future of optics with exciting prospects for 2025 to 2035.
Registration open for Vision Expo West
As co-organizer of Vision Expo, The Vision Council is pleased to announce that registration for Vision Expo West 2024 in Las Vegas at the Venetian Expo & Convention Center is now open. Held from September 18 to 21, Vision Expo West will offer members an exclusive industry experience, including diverse show floor neighborhoods, engaging programming and events and a world-class education program. The organizers expect more than 450 exhibitors from around the world, from fashion designers and brands to lenses and medical technology. The show will also feature more than 320 hours of education and 23 specialty topics to improve patient care and grow your business.
Silmo 2024 looking ahead to optics in 2035
All about markets
Graphical data
In just two decades, the global annual production of plastic waste has doubled from 180 million tons to more than 350 million tons, according to the OECD's Global Plastics Outlook report.
About one in ten
U.S. consumers own sports sunglasses. Among those who own sports sunglasses, men are three times more likely to own them compared to women, states The Vision Council Focus inSights Report.
78%
of the 159 The Vision Council member executives surveyed have open positions, but only 10% report production shortages due to staffing gaps, states The Vision Council Focus inSights Report.
All about products
Innovations and working materials for your lab
SCHNEIDER opens new office in China
SCHNEIDER celebrated a big opening party after moving to their new central Shanghai location, which allows them to further expand: “China is a highly important region for us. Seeing our team grow brings us great joy, as it also means that we can provide even better customer support,” states Lukas Lechner, General Manager Asia Pacific. “Besides our new modern office, we have also doubled our warehouse space, to increase stocks and ensure best availability of our parts and consumables.” With the new prime location in the heart of Shanghai, SCHNEIDER is dedicated to engaging more deeply, building stronger partnerships, and further supporting the growth of their customers in China. Luck, fortune and prosperity were also symbolized with a traditional lion dance. www.schneider-om.com
EssilorLuxottica establishes a solar farm and natural food crops in Italy
EssilorLuxottica implements an innovative project near Pescara, Italy which oversees the recovery and reconversion of industrial land surrounding the site of Barberini, a world-class optical glass lens manufacturer and part of EssilorLuxottica.
Covering almost 40 hectares, EssilorLuxottica will create a large solar farm to produce renewable energy along with a green area hosting sports facilities and natural food crops for the corporate staff restaurants, with a sustainable and circular approach.
Covering an area of 25 hectares, the solar farm will be the first large-scale ground-mounted photovoltaic system built and directly managed by EssilorLuxottica and will have a total power of 20 MW. The plant is expected to generate approximately 30,000 MWh of renewal energy per year (equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of approximately 10,000 families) and will be connected directly to Barberini’s industrial site to maximize selfconsumption of onsite renewable power production. www.essilorluxottica.com/en
ALL ABOUT HIGH-TECH & AUTOMATION
CDC 1000
Designed for mid- and large-sized production, the new CDC 1000 produces up to 160 lenses/h. Its technical area is completely separated from cleaning & coating chambers. CDC 1000 is equipped with a smooth dipping system, providing no vibrations at all. Cleaning and coating chambers feature laminar flow and controlled air exhaust. The cleaning line includes 6 tanks, 1 primer and 2 varnishes for fast processing. CDC 1000 is characterized by a particularly high level of automation - doors, etching process, detergent, water, alcohol & primer refillings, water control. High environmental friendliness with 75% water savings rounds off the machine’s profile.
Green crowding
Green hushing
Green crowding is when brands stay hidden within the crowd to avoid having their unsustainable practices spotted or progressing at the pace of the slowest participant. Though industrywide and collaborative commitments are important, joint statements or goals that are less-than-clear can make tracking and achieving real progress a difficult feat.
Companies that conceal their climate and environmental protection measures engage in “green hushing”. Companies want to prevent possible accusations of greenwashing if they fail to meet their climate targets for example. Green hushing is therefore a protective mechanism for a company or brand.
Greenwashing
Upcycling
Greenwashing refers to the attempt by organizations to achieve a “green image” through communication, marketing and individual measures without having systematically anchored corresponding measures in their operational business. This gives the impression of a more sustainable company or produced product or service than it is actually the case.
Life cycle assessment (LCA)
The process of attempting to measure the environmental impacts of a product or service throughout its existence. It therefore includes the effects of design, raw materials, production, transportation, use and recycling.
Waste stream
Zustainable Development Goals (SDG)
ero Carbon
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), also known as the Global Goals, were adopted by the United Nations in 2015 as a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure that by 2030 all people enjoy peace and prosperity. The 17 SDGs are integrated − they recognize that action in one area will affect outcomes in others, and that development must balance social, economic and environmental sustainability.
Is the upgrading of existing products or materials into a new product. Resources can be conserved through upcycling. Furthermore, upcycling is in line with the principle of the circular economy.
Zero Waste
The complete flow of a specific type of waste from domestic or industrial areas through to recovery, recycling or disposal.
A term sometimes used to describe a product or service that creates no greenhouse gas emissions during production and/or operation.
Zero waste is a lifestyle or philosophy that aims to produce as little waste as possible. The motivation behind this is not to waste resources and to avoid environmental pollution. The goal of zero or at least less waste is achieved through recycling and upcycling, repairing and re-gifting, but also by changing purchasing behavior, for example by avoiding certain products.
Visionary Horizons: The Future of Optical Retail with mimesys® Technology
In the traditional optical retail landscape, buying progressive lenses has often been an exercise in patience and perseverance. Patients have long sought clarity and simplicity amidst the complexity of lens customization. Enter mimesys® technology, a beacon of innovation that streamlines the purchasing process and enhances patient satisfaction through a joyous and empowering experience.
From the moment patients step into an optical shop equipped with mimesys® technology, a sense of anticipation fills the air. Donning mimesys® glasses, they embark on a journey that delves deeply into their visual needs and preferences. What was once a daunting task is now an immersive experience, where patients can marvel at the tangible insights provided by mimesys®. mimesys® technology employs advanced virtual reality (VR) simulations and gaze dynamics analysis to offer unprecedented clarity into patients' visual habits. By utilizing VR, patients can see how their unique gaze dynamics translate into personalized lens designs tailored to their needs. This process demystifies lens selection and turns it into an engaging journey towards better vision and an enhanced quality of life.
The integration of VR and gaze dynamics represents a significant leap in optical retail. According to recent studies, the use of VR in customer experiences is growing rapidly across various sectors, including healthcare and retail. mimesys® leverages this trend to create a more interactive and personalized shopping experience, setting a new industry standard.
As patients engage with mimesys® technology, they feel empowered with knowledge and confidence. mimesys® ensures that patients understand what they are purchasing and the tangible benefits it offers. The abstract concepts of lens customization and visual acuity become relatable, thanks to mimesys®' intuitive interface and user-friendly approach. Research shows that informed customers are more satisfied and loyal. mimesys® addresses this by providing data-driven insights and clear explanations throughout the purchasing process, leading to higher satisfaction and a more positive experience.
mimesys® is more than just a tool; it is a trusted companion on the path to better vision. Every step of the sales process is guided by mimesys® technology, ensuring that patients feel supported and understood. From frame selection to lens customization, every decision is informed by comprehensive data tailored to the patient's needs.
Ultimately, the mimesys® experience is about enjoying the journey towards personalized eyewear solutions. Patients leave the optical shop with clearer vision and a profound sense of empowerment, knowing they have made informed decisions that will positively impact their lives.
As mimesys® continues to lead the way, the future of optical retail is bright. This technology exemplifies a future where patients are empowered, informed, and delighted by their eyewear choices. By redefining the optical retail experience, mimesys® enhances how patients buy lenses and reshapes their journey towards better vision and a higher quality of life.
David Benet Chief Commercial Officer Horizons
First eyewear sustainability certification program
Created, registered, and promoted by ANFAO and Certottica
A matter that is increasingly at the center of global attention is sustainability. In fact, the market is moving toward greater consumer awareness of eco-friendly issues, which often also influences their consumption choices. According to several researchers, 47% of consumers consider it essential to pay attention to the eco-sustainability of their favorite fashion brands, while 83% believe that the design of a product should reduce its environmental impact. This led to the conviction that companies that pursue good sustainability strategies should also be clearly recognized as sustainable by means of a trustworthy label. Precisely in this respect, ANFAO presented the Certified Sustainable Eyewear label at Mido 2024 for the first time. By Hanna Diewald
Certified Sustainable Eyewear (CSE) is the first product sustainability certification program for the eyewear industry. It was created, registered, and promoted by ANFAO, the Italian Association of Optical Goods Manufacturers, in collaboration with Certottica. According to the organizations, this certificate is destined to become the new product sustainability standard for the eyewear industry, certifying glasses and their components: frame fronts, temples, lenses, small metal and plastic parts. It is possible to certify both individual components and the finished product.
Improving sustainable performance
The new label should help all companies that already operate in accordance with the concepts of transparency and sustainability, to certify in an official and voluntary manner. The purpose of the CSE label is to promote the demand for and supply of those products and
services that cause least harm to the environment, thus helping to stimulate a market-driven process of continuous environmental improvement, using the communication of verifiable and accurate information, which is not misleading. Through the CSE process, everyone will know how, when and where each product is made, and the label offers a benefit to customers who want to make responsible choices.
Entire life cycle of the product is taken into account
After a preliminary study, which ANFAO, Studio Fieschi and Certottica collaborated on with members of the Association's Technical Committee, the program was pilot tested on five eyewear companies, different in type and size, after which the project was approved.
The certification identifies the most sustainable products, it is voluntary and based on DIN ISO 14020 and DIN ISO 14024 standards. It is open to all eyewear companies, both Italian and international, who will apply for the program.
The CSE label will be issued based on a number of industry-specific assessment criteria that take into account the entire life cycle of the product (resource extraction, raw materials, production, distribution, use and disposal).
The assessment will take into consideration environmental, social, economic, and technological factors, and these criteria will be updated on a regular basis, according to technological advances and market requirements. The general rules and criteria are based on ISO 1402 “Environmental Labelling”, with three years of validity and three levels of label.
Three levels of certification
For each of the categories eligible for the CSE certification program, specific evaluation criteria have been selected on a scientific basis. The
Fig. 1: The color of the mark is black. The mark may be placed on a colored background as long as both the logo and the textual part and the link are clearly visible.
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Lens edge coating
A new approach for aesthetic excellence and visual comfort
For years, research has been carried out on new technologies in the field of edge machining of spectacle lenses. For this purpose, there exists a research partnership between the TH Köln (University of Applied Sciences in Germany) and Shape Engineering. The technologies developed are used to apply structures and coatings precisely to the edge of the lens and enable, among other things, the colored coating of the lens edge. In a mechanical process, the lenses are individually CNC-coated in an automatic process. The result is a high-quality and durable edge coating.
By Jörg Luderich and Christian Pöpperl
This article provides an insight into the motivation and the new possibilities for improving vision and appearance through tinted lens edge coatings. For the time being, the focus will be less on technological aspects and more on the benefits to the spectacle wearer.
Influence of the edge of the lens on vision and appearance
While the lens is responsible for “vision”, the “appearance” is determined by the frame. However, there is another factor that has a major impact on the appearance and effect of the glasses: the edge of the lens. Figure 2 shows two optical phenomena that are always present and have a detrimental effect on the overall impression of the spectacles and the spectacle wearer, due to reflections at the edge of the lens. The power of the lens leads to myopic rings in short-sighted people, which are more or less visible to the observer depending on the lens power, frame size and viewing angle. While myopic rings can only be seen at a flat viewing angle at lower diopters (see Fig. 2 on the left), at higher diopters, the rings are also visible from the front and can have a significant impact on the aesthetic appearance. We would also like to address the second effect here, namely the white reflections between the frame and lens – known as “white rings” – which can also occur with plus lenses. Caused by the diffuse reflective surface of the edge of the lens, they show up more or less strongly depending on
the lighting conditions, making the otherwise transparent lens visible to the observer. For some people from outside the industry who are interested in aesthetics, this makes the edge of the lens appear rough or poorly finished – in contrast to the optically perfect surface of the lens and the high surface quality of the frame.
Both phenomena are of course known to every optician and many spectacle wearers and are accepted as inevitable – “it has always been that way”.
Edge coating opens up many possibilities – from “invisible“ to “fashionably individualized“
The new coating technology (shape·line) now makes it possible to modify the color of the reflections that inevitably occur at the edge of the lens towards the frame, depending on the lens power, and thus greatly improve the aesthetics; especially in the case of short-sightedness (Fig. 3). The edge-coated lens blends harmoniously into the overall appearance of the spectacles. It becomes almost invisible and – depending on the viewing angle – can only be perceived by the colored residual reflections of the anti-reflective coating. In order to achieve this effect in as many frames as possible, five coating colors are currently used – black, grey, blue, brown and gold – which are combined in the “classic line” color palette.
Another way to reduce the unaesthetic reflections on the edge of the frame, thereby offering the customer improved aesthetics and greater perfection, is to use skin tone-like colors. Based on colors often used in
Photos: Shape Engineering
cosmetics, the aim is to achieve harmony between the skin color and the reflections from the edge of the lens, thereby to create a harmonious overall impression thanks to the reduced contrast. The color palette is complemented by the five bold colors of the “splash line” which can be used by fashion-conscious spectacle wearers to express their preferences. If the color is chosen to contrast with the frame color, the edge of the lens can be fashionably accentuated – the glasses can thus be individually adapted to the wishes of the wearer (Fig. 4). Glasses are created in which not only the lens and frame have a perfect finish, but also the transition between the two – the edge of the lens – is perfectly designed.
High-tech made in Cologne
In total for the market launch, shape·line is being offered in 15 colors in 3 lines. To ensure the highest level of quality for this special area of application, not only the development of the application technology but also the development of the coatings is carried out internally at Shape Engineering in Cologne. On the one hand, this allows us to react quickly to customer demand and optimize or expand the color range. On the other hand, the coatings can thereby be better designed and thoroughly tested to suit the typical requirements of the industry. The coatings are available for all common lens materials with refractive indices from 1.5 to 1.74. They are tested for their resistance to UV radiation, cleaning agents and sunscreen, among other things. The color of the coatings is stable over the long term and remains unchanged over the service life of the glasses.
The coating is applied via an automated process in which the material is applied very precisely to the edge. It is not necessary to mask off the edge beforehand or wipe off any excess afterwards. The lens itself is machined in the usual way, based on a few instructions, and then sent in for coating. There is no need for the optician to purchase his own equipment or additional aids.
The edge thickness determines the effectiveness
The effect of the edge coating obviously depends on the edge thickness of the lenses. With normal edge thicknesses, very good results are achieved with minus lenses with a suitable choice of refractive index up to approx. -6 dpt. (Fig. 3 and 4). Even a moderate protrusion of the rear edge of the lens is generally unproblematic. If the edge of the lens is particularly thick, due to the choice of an inexpensive lens (e.g. n=1.5) or a large frame, it is advisable to choose a contrasting coating from the “cosmetic line” or “splash line”. Otherwise the colors selected to match the frame may appear too dominant. Even when the thickness of the edge increases due to high correction values, the deliberate choice of contrasting colors is a good way to achieve aesthetically pleasing designs. Fig. 5 shows spectacles with -13/-16dpt –with and without coating. While the thick lens rims do not become “invisible”, the result is a design that pleases customers. Coating offers another advantage for these high lens thicknesses. The interference of light from outside via the clearly protruding rear edge of
2: Myopic rings and “white rings” affect the overall appearance of the spectacles. Example glasses with -4dpt lenses.
3: With edge coating, bright reflective and myopic rings can be made to “disappear” by choosing a suitable color. The lens becomes almost “invisible” and a harmonious overall appearance of the spectacles is created. Example glasses with -2 dpt.
to “discreet“.
the lens is blocked by the coating. The diffuse light that normally occurs in this area is eliminated and customers describe their vision as much more relaxed, especially at work or driving.
Eliminating diffuse light for optimum visual comfort
This effect is observed even more strongly by spectacle wearers with black edge coatings (Fig. 3). Black edge coatings absorb all diffuse light emanating from the edge and, in combination with a high-quality, antireflective coating, provide optimal visual comfort, e.g. when driving.
All 12 of the people fitted with black edge-coated lenses (range -2 to -6.25 dpt) as part of the practical long-term test reported significantly better vision, particularly at work, when driving after work, watching TV, at the cinema and in general.
They particularly noticed this in comparison to their previous glasses: suddenly they could see reflections they had never noticed before. The repurchase rate is 100%.
Fig.
Fig.
Fig. 4: For the fashion-conscious: customers can choose their desired color from “high-contrast“
Myopic rings
It is no exaggeration to state that dark, highly absorbent edge coatings should be recommended as standard for high visual comfort requirements. They not only block the light hitting the edge of the lens from the outside, but also eliminate all internal reflections through absorption. This is something that has long been known in the field of precision optics. For example, all optical edges of high-quality lenses are always blackened. The same potential for improved vision can now also be exploited for ophthalmic optics.
As can be concluded from the above, this innovative technology opens up completely new possibilities for short-sighted spectacle wearers while at the same time the overall appearance of the glasses can also be optimized with plus lenses. Fig. 6 shows a pair of low-vision varifocals (+1/+1.25dpt) with “splash green” coated lens edges to match the side color. The colored lens edges, which appear discreet due to the low edge thickness, give the glasses an interesting, particularly high-quality appearance.
Getting to know and using the new technology
Participating opticians are provided with a high-quality box containing up to 15 sample lenses in different colors (Fig. 7), divided into the “classic”, “cosmetic” and “splash” lines and supplemented with two optician-specific sample frames. The new options can be visually presented to customers and their questions answered. If the sample frames are provided with a coated lens on one side and an uncoated lens on the other, the advantages can be easily demonstrated and understood by any layperson.
As the technology presented here is a genuine innovation, it is also uncharted territory for all eyecare professionals and many questions will arise. The authors will be happy to answer them directly − just get in touch. The upcoming Opti will be a perfect opportunity to see the newly developed edge coating at first hand and talk to the developers about the possibilities and potential. ◆
Prof. Dr. Jörg Luderich is the Head of the Product Development Laboratory and the MakerSpace at the University of Applied Sciences in Cologne. Based on 35 years of experience in the optical industry, he researches production systems for the adaptive manufacture of customized products. One of his main focuses is on additive and unconventional coating processes. joerg.luderich@th-koeln.de
Christian Pöpperl
Christian Pöpperl is a mechanical engineer and Managing Director of Shape Engineering GmbH. He has worked in the ophthalmic industry for 15 years and together with his team has successfully developed production systems and process technology for a wide range of applications since 2017. With shape·line, the market launch of the first in-house product for a wide audience is under way. poepperl@shape-engineering.de
Prof. Dr. Jörg Luderich
Fig. 5: Even with high lens thicknesses, designs can be found that appeal to customers
Fig. 6: Progressive spectacles with +1.25 dpt. The edge coating chosen to match the temple color subtly perfects the aesthetics of the glasses.
Fig. 7: A high-quality box with up to 15 sample lenses and two sample frames is available to assist with advice and sales.
Glasses with -13 / -16 dpt coated with "honey gold"
Light sensitive lenses with the best optical quality with Camber Technology
Good vision for everyone?
About innovative projects and NGOs
There are projects that are difficult to earn money with. For example, helping blind people to get through their everyday lives more easily or to recognize the connections between climate change and eye health. This makes it even more important that particularly dedicated people take on such problems. Fortunately, there are hundreds of organizations worldwide that are tackling a wide range of vision associated issues and fight avoidable blindness. The following article presents some of those special projects. By Hanna Diewald
The World Health Organization says: “Globally, at least 1 billion people have a near or distance vision impairment that could have been prevented or has yet to be addressed”. The problem starts when children cannot follow the lessons at school due to visual impairments. Adults have problems when looking for a job or practicing their profession, right through to senior citizens who can no longer read ‒ simply because they do not have the necessary aids.
Risk of blindness
Also, the risk of going blind is significantly higher in developing countries. There are many examples of avoidable cases of blindness, most of which affect the poorest people. For example, almost 17 million people are blind from cataracts, especially in Asia and Africa. People who go blind from cataracts are not operated on, even though the blindness would be easy to treat with an operation, as it is usually done in richer countries.
At least 3.6 million people worldwide are blind as a result of the eye disease glaucoma. It is usually caused by high intraocular pressure, which damages the optic nerve. As there is no pain, many of those affected only notice that they are ill very late.
People especially in developing countries also go blind due to a bacterial eye infection called trachoma, which is caused by a lack of water and the associated poor hygiene conditions.
People can also go blind due to an infection with the so-called river blindness or onchocerosis. The blackfly, which is found in West and Central Africa, South America and parts of the Arabian Peninsula, is responsible for spreading the disease. The drug Mectizan, which must be taken once or twice a year, helps to combat this disease. The distribution of this tablet by aid organizations costs around one euro. In total, almost 1.44 million children are blind. The main causes of childhood blindness in developing countries are uncorrected defective vision, congenital cataracts, congenital glaucoma, corneal scarring caused by traditional medicine and vitamin A deficiency disease (xerophthalmia). Other important causes are rubella or retinal disease (retinopathy) in premature babies.
To tackle these problems, a variety of organizations try to improve the situation by training specialists, establish new clinics, train opticians, provide cheap glasses and much more. The approach is often holistic: helping people to help themselves. Those initiatives can bring other benefits in addition to eye health: economic, social, and in some cases even environmental improvements.
Global advocacy organization with more than 250 members
and Nepal Eye Hospital to conduct the first-ever workplace eye screening at the ILO’s Kathmandu office. Photo: IAPB
The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) is an association with over 250 member organizations from all over the world. These include NGOs, eye clinics, professional associations and many more. They are all united by one goal: to put an end to avoidable sight loss.
As a global advocacy organization, the IAPB aims to raise awareness among key international institutions in order to obtain resources that will subsequently enable better access to vision care worldwide. For this reason, the IAPB also regularly establishes global campaigns. Currently, for example, the 2030 In Sight initiative. It is a clear call to action to anchor sight as a fundamental economic, social and developmental issue, to integrate eye health into broader healthcare systems and to drive change among patients, consumers and the market. All with the aim of ending preventable sight loss worldwide.
The IAPB also focuses on the importance of climate protection. For example, it has set up the Climate Action Work Group. According to the agency, the devastating effects of climate change will also have an impact on eye health. It is predicted that the frequency of trachoma infections, cataracts, eye lesions, severe allergic eye diseases, glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration and eye injuries will increase.
In addition, extreme weather events will lead to disruption of critical eye care services such as cataract surgery and refractive error services including the supply of medication and eyeglasses.
Be My Eyes connects blind or visually impaired people with “sighted” people
Not being able to distinguish yellow from red, not being able to read street names or not being able to find an object that has fallen ‒ these are all everyday problems for severely visually impaired people. Hans Jørgen Wiberg ‒ himself visually impaired ‒ has developed a truly innovative solution to this problem. “Be My Eyes” is an application that now connects more than 500,000 blind or visually impaired people worldwide with sighted volunteers via a live video call. The “sighted” people can thus help quickly and easily with everyday tasks: Determining the color, reading out the street name in a foreign city or explaining where the lost key is. “We have over six million volunteers. Most people have never met a blind person before when they sign up,” explains Wiberg. “When a volunteer receives their first video call, they recognize first-hand the barriers that limit inclusion. Then he says: "This washing machine is impossible for blind people to use!", and this realization is a step towards a more inclusive society.” The visual aid is available in
IAPB joined forces with the International Labour Organization (ILO)
more than 180 languages from one million volunteers. The service is free and can be used as often as someone like. Most calls can be answered within 30 seconds.
The inventor also has an appeal to society: “Don't just develop for us, develop with us.” After all, who should know better than the visually impaired themselves what they need?
Easily produced glasses for round about one dollar
The aim of the GoodVision association is to provide basic eyecare for all people worldwide. This is why the GoodVision Glasses were developed. The glasses themselves are made of flexible spring steel wire. They are very light and at the same time extremely stable. The prefabricated plastic lenses are clicked into the frame according to the prescription determined in the eye test.
The most important thing, however, is that the total material costs are only around one dollar and that the glasses can be manufactured very easily and simply.
At the heart of this is the bending machine, a device on a metal plate with which the spring steel wires can be precisely bent into shape. As the machine works without electricity, it can also be used in areas where there is no reliable power supply. However, there is now also an educational concept for glasses. A specially created training course enables trainees to carry out a simple eye test and to fit glasses, for example. Training is also provided in the eyewear production facilities and particular attention is paid to providing jobs
for people with physical disabilities. In Lima (Peru's capital), on the other hand, only single mothers from the surrounding Pueblos Jóvenes, the desert-like outskirts of Lima, work in eyewear production. Around 400 people are employed in the eleven program countries in Asia, Africa and South America, some of whom finance the livelihoods of their entire families. This creates new jobs with prospects even in regions with poorly developed labor markets.
One cheap spectacle even for the most remote villages in the world
In 2021 the DOT glasses won the Red Dot Design award.
In 2014, the initiators of DOTglasses started with the aim of making glasses accessible even to people in the most remote villages in the world. The idea resulted in a radically simplified lens concept that does not strive for perfect correction but accepts deviations of up to one diopter. As the initial aim was to ensure that people could cope with everyday life, participate in working life and drive a car. The result is a pair of glasses that offers a one-size-fits-all frame. However, the frame has an adjustable frame that can be quickly adapted to different head shapes. The design was developed by MBtech, a joint venture between Mercedes-Benz and AKKA Technologies, and has even won the Red Dot Design Award. There is also a standardized range of lenses. Thanks to the “one-size-fits-all” glasses, the costs have been kept as low as possible.
Mission for children
The focus of EyeCare4Kids is particularly on children in need. Since 2001, the organization has been working to provide children with free eye examinations and glasses. There are now nine clinics where children receive those professional eye examinations and the glasses
Traditionally dressed woman in Bolivia. Photo: GoodVision
Mobile vision center in Colombia. Photo: GoodVision
they need. After more than 20 years, the mission has helped more than 400,000 children to see better. There is now also a virtual clinic called Sight the World, which aims to help even more people to see better who previously had no access to examinations and glasses.
Focus on building an inclusive society for children
“80% of childhood blindness can be prevented or cured” states the organization CSF Global. It all started with the founders aim to improve the situation of blind children in Bangladesh. However, they quickly realized that hardly anything was known about the situation of blind children in this country. One more reason to change that. Founded in 2001, the non-profit organization is today committed to building a rights-based inclusive society for children with disabilities in developing countries around the world. The aim is to ensure that
no child is disabled due to preventable or treatable causes and that all children with disabilities have access to professional support. The organization does pioneer research about disabilities in children in developing countries. Among other things, it provides internationally recognized guidelines, manuals and more, thereby providing inclusive aids.
Special attention is still also paid to visual impairments. To date the organization has provided over 14,750 spectacles to children with vision impairments and over 1,000 white canes to blind children in Bangladesh.
Specs 2030 initiative
Uncorrected refractive errors are the main cause of visual impairment in children and adults. According to the WHO, it is estimated that only 36% of people with refractive errors in distance vision have access to suitable glasses. While 800 million people have uncorrected presbyopia that could easily be corrected with reading glasses.
WHO / Carolina Pardal Belinchón
The Specs 2030 initiative, organized by the World Health Organization, is committed to a world in which all people have access to high-quality, affordable vision care services. The initiative aims to support member states in achieving the goal set by the 74th World Health Assembly: the effective refractive error coverage. The initiative calls for coordinated global action amongst all stakeholders across five strategic pillars to address the key challenges to improve refractive error coverage: improve access to refractive services, build capacity of personnel to provide refractive services, improve the populations education, reduce the costs of refractive services and strengthen surveillance and research.
Raising media awareness to prevent blindness
The precursor to Prevent Blindness already rooted in the USA back in 1908 after the founders realized that 30 percent of blindness in children could simply be prevented. Today, Prevent Blindness is the US leading volunteer eye health and safety organization dedicated to fighting blindness and saving sight.
The organization focuses on public eye health and safety education. Through regular media campaigns such as the declaration of this July as Dry Eye Awareness Month, the organization generates a great deal of media attention. Every year, it organizes the Focus on Eye Health Summit as a digital interactive event for interested parties from all over the world.
The organization is dedicated to professional training and technical assistance as well as the creation of direct eye health services. 1,455,222 children and adults were cared for in the centers. For example, through vision screenings or referrals to ECPs.
Access to visual aids within a day´s journey
EssilorLuxottica established the OneSight Foundation in 2013. The aim is to provide people all over the world with access to vision care. The organization has created permanent access to vision care for an estimated 872 million people. Thanks in part to more than 29,000 rural optical points. 77 million people from under-reserved regions have received glasses.
The Foundation works worldwide with governments and global and local NGOs and private sector partners. The organization trains people and helps them to set up optical stores and offer mobile services. It also works with governments and communities to establish next to hospitals and clinics also permanent vision centers. The aim is for everyone to have access to visual aids within a day's journey.
The organization also invests, for example, in the development and production of inexpensive digital screening tools that can be used without intensive training. ◆
Focus on Eye Health Summit. Photo: Prevent Blindness
Affordable vision screening for developing communities.
Photo: OneSight Foundation
CBIII LAYER COAT PHOTOCHROMIC LENSES
“Always stretching the limits!”
‒20 years of Quest Vision Care Specialty Lab
An interview with founder Michael Walach
From machines that look like museum pieces to latest technologies: at the Quest Vison Care Specialty Lab “The Lab´s Lab” you will find all of this under one roof. The lab is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year and has not rejected a single prescription since the time first opened. MAFO spoke to founder Michael Walach about how he and his team are stretching the limits of what is possible on a daily basis and about the need to constantly adapt to current circumstances. By Hanna Diewald
The Quest Vision Care Specialty Lab is not a usual prescriptions lab. The customers are rarely opticians but other labs worldwide who find themselves in the position of being unable to craft extreme prescriptions. The team of 28 uniquely specialized and experienced lab technicians has made impossible challenges to their daily routine here, delivering up to 280 extraordinary lenses a day.
Michael, you founded the Quest Vision Care Specialty Lab 20 years ago. How did the idea come about, of setting up such a special lab?
Well, the freeform technology era started about 20 years ago. That was a big change for the prescription lab industry worldwide. At the early-stage people were doubting the new technology very much, but I was sure that this technology was not only amazing but was here
President and CEO Michael Walach with CFO Ilona Ostrowski. Photo: Joanna Bodnar
to stay. It let me think about the future, and I anticipated incredible potential for automation.
I also immediately realized obvious downside of this big change – the range. Even the best machine has its capabilities guarded by its very specifications. So, there will be prescriptions out of range of the machine, even the best one, I assumed.
I was also thinking about those lab technicians with unique skillset and experience, acquired over decades. What will happen to them? I thought at that time sooner or later the people will be missing, who know how to do special things or stretch the possibilities, limited by the process or capability or the production range. Even if the new technology was truly wonderful, when something is out of range, it is out of range.
That means I saw the niche, but I also recognized that the new technology was ‒ and still is ‒ very expensive. In the old times, when you wanted to open a lab and you had the skills and the knowledge it was quite easy to open a nice lab.
Today you will need at least one million dollars to do the same. That eliminated the small independent guys to large extent, whereas the major properly capitalized companies are getting in, and they run 24/7 totally automatic.
I thought that most labs will not have the old technologies anymore where you can stretch the limits of your production capabilities due to handwork of experienced staff. Therefore, I decided to open a small lab to only do the non-standard prescriptions for other labs.
In your experience, how many percent of lenses are non-standard?
Over the time we found out that this applies to approximately about 0.4 to 0.5 percent of orders a typical lab is processing daily. Which means that for labs, processing 1000 jobs per day, there are plus minus five prescriptions they simply cannot do.
Then they face the choice: they can either refuse it, meaning they will send the client somewhere else, and they might lose that client, or they can send it to some kind of specialty lab, which will do everything without exceptions.
You present the “Hall of Fame” of the most extreme spectacle lenses on your website. Which production was the biggest challenge in your professional career?
That is very difficult to say, because extreme or extraordinary requirements of the prescription are our daily grind. But we have had for example a very experienced Apache test pilot. The challenge was that for his night test, he needed everywhere intermediate vision except below where he needed near and additionally, he needed two little circles for distance to be able to wear the night-vision visor. We have made for him two 24-millimeter circles for distance perception.
Egorova inspects a lens.
Everywhere else we have made intermediate and at bottom included the prescription for near vision.
Talking about extreme powers we have made stuff like -60 diopters of vertical imbalance or +58 diopters spherical power, also cylinders over 12 diopters are very common. We also produce strong additions for jewelry makers, for example, with additions over 30 diopters.
Often it takes two or three lenses to create various franklins, channel or sectoral prisms. We are doing custom quadrifocal for commercial pilots, eyeglasses with the yoked prisms for hyperactive children and juvenile delinquents and many more.
In general, we do a lot of weird stuff, and the bottom line is that we have never refused a prescription, since the time we have opened. To achieve this, we have combined the oldest technology, that ‒ apart from our lab ‒ can only be found in a museum, with the latest digital freeform technology. We have created our own digital lens design system and we have modified our freeform technology to do everything that is impossible otherwise.
In the past, you have often shown to be open to new technologies. Do you currently use special technologies in your lab?
We are a small independent lab and apart from the fact that we never refused a prescription in 20 years and that we have done lots of creative concepts and designs, we also think outside of the box when it comes to technical equipment and lens designs.
When we glaze prescription lenses for surgical telescopes, we have to edge them into tiny little forms with nipples or squares or whatever. That cannot be done on conventional equipment. Therefore, we have developed a laser apparatus to cut out the lenses instead of edging. We were just granted a patent on June 6th for a new solution to clean AR Coating contaminated stainless-steel parts ‒ the Beamblaster. Most labs use sandblasting to clean those parts but the whole process is very dirty itself and then there is a health risk as the sand contamination
Tatiana
Photo: Adam Bodnar..
is very bad for the lungs. Therefore, it is usually done outside in some shade or other nasty room and the personnel needs protective clothing. This whole process is a logistical nightmare and a very unpleasant experience to the operator.
To fix that we have invented and developed the unit we called the Beamblaster. AR operator can use this unit to clean the stainless-steel contaminated parts by bathing them in electromagnetic waves. It takes half or less of the time and it can be installed right in the clean room. So, it streamlines the work of the AR staff, it is highly effective, and the air remains completely clean, which eliminates scary health risks.
You mentioned also an innovative lens design. How did this invention come about?
It started to be apparent in the past years, that the visual habits of the populations have significantly changed. There are two aspects: Number one, that people are spending almost 75% of their life indoors, and number two: the use of handheld devices has exploded. What is important here is that you are not reading from your mobile devices like you were reading a newspaper. So, either when looking at the screen of your phone in hand or when indoors you seldom have the focal length support you need from your current lens. That means when you are using progressive lenses indoor which are in real no-line, no-image jump trifocals, you will heavily rely on your eye accommodation capabilities for your brain to be able to see. Because remember, vision is a creative process of the brain. Eyes are only a part of the vison process. Is the eye accommodation problematic for you? For short period of the time probably not. It is like with a 1kg weight. That will be no problem for you to lift it once or twice. But if you will need to do that 3000 times a day that will probably be
very hard to do. So, this is what is happening to your eyes. After a day of non-stop accommodation, the eye gets strained because it was never totally relaxed. And even every year, billions are made in sales of progressive lenses, nobody really addresses those issues.
The fact is that today there are about 300 patented designs based on the same idea of progressive lens pioneer Bernard Maitenaz. He created his first PAL (Progressive Addition Lens) in 1959 on the principle of distance, intermediate and near vision united in one spectacle lens with a smooth transition. But at that time, the world was different, and people had much different lifestyle. I am sure he would be redoing it today.
Nevertheless, all the prescription lens industry giants in the world have their own new digital freeform designs based on exactly those principles from 1959. Let us be honest: if you will take five different progressive lens designs, you mix them up and try them blind ‒ nobody will recognize the difference, but still, everybody claims his lens is the best. We decided to not follow the crowd and we were able to actually address all these issues above with our new Natural Accommodation Lens (NAL) concept.
What exactly is different about your lens design compared to all the others?
The concept! We, as a small, independent lab, were able to see the need, understand the process and then created and got patented the Natural Accommodation Lens (NAL).
It is a very special lens which corrects the vision by mimicking natural eye accommodation requirements in all distances starting from far and ending on close reading. The correction is applied in one smooth deceleration ramp providing for the eye various power points at the level of the particular prescription needs and in the location the eye expects it to be.
This is why adaptation period for new wearers is usually about non, frequently instant. We actually see independent opticians who are changing their practice and now prescribing only single vison or NAL lenses, gaining on patient retention.
You have even founded a new company to market the design. Who is the target audience?
Yes, in 2017 we founded the QLDS – digital lens design company. We are approaching labs, retail chains ‒ whether the business model base on brick and mortar or e-commerce propagation.
It also became apparent that the NAL lenses are very good for active people playing various sports including table tennis, tennis, golf, pickleball, etc.
The team of the Quest Vision Care Specialty Lab. Photo: Joanna Bodnar
Of course, like with all ground-breaking inventions there is a lot of cynicism and skepticism. Just imagine that my last name is Walach and not Zeiss, and I am the one responsible for NAL concept. Most people think that it is too good to be true and consider it impossible until they actually try it. Therefore, I tell everybody – especially the doubters ‒ you should try it, because otherwise you think it is just another bunch of baloney that we have been listening to for the past 50 years. We have sent hundreds and hundreds of lenses for testing because the big companies are very careful due to the nature of our market and the response so far is no less but fantastic.
Would you found both companies again with your current level of knowledge?
Yes! If you would have asked me about that eight years ago, I would have said: no way! But for the past eight years we turned the page and today I am extremely happy that I persevered, because we are in the position of a very good, solid organic growth. Most of the lab employees have now been with us for 10 or 20 years, they are fully trained. Thanks to that we are able to come up with other ideas, like the Beamblaster, the Natural Accommodation Lens and more.
What would you personally still like to achieve in your professional career in the next years?
Our portfolio is filed with wonderful items. Now, I would love to see some of these new concepts to gain “wind under the wings and lift off the ground”. See, you can always make things cheaper, that is not a big deal. But, to make things genuinely better, oh – that is a big deal. We have inventions which will not only help to grow the economic strength of independent players on our market. But most importantly they will touch people’s life by adding comfort to their lifestyle while taking care of their health.
In your opinion, is there still any invention that is missing in the world of ophthalmic optics?
Einstein said the difference between genius and stupidity is that the genius has its limits when stupidity does not. But I think that there is no end to human genius, human creativity is boundless. I am 100% sure that innovation and improvement will go as long as humankind will go. Life is a constant change, and almost every change is for the better. And now, with the artificial intelligence (AI), we have to watch that attentively so the AI will not get ahead of us. Hopefully it will become our tool to be even more creative. Technology is always process in progress.
Thank you very much for the interview. ◆
Iwona Siemieniecka checks a special lens. Photo: Adam Bodnar
What makes a good pair of golf glasses – and what does not
An interview with André Durow
The golf season is in full swing and with it sales of golf glasses. But what visual needs do golfers actually have and are the industry's golf glasses really a good solution? The sports eyewear expert André Durow has a strong opinion on this. MAFO spoke to the enthusiastic golfer and opthalmic optician about what makes a good pair of golf glasses ‒- and what does not. By Hanna Diewald
According to André Durow there is hardly any other athlete who places greater demands on his or her vision than a golfer. But often neither the optician nor the golfer himself is aware of this.
The sports optician, who specializes in golf and poker glasses, has even developed his own golf glasses and regularly holds workshops on better vision in golf. And his concept has been successful: he has already
fitted golfers such as Nick Faldo on the European Tour with golf glasses, is well-known nationally among golfers and poker players and his Google ratings speak for themselves.
What is your approach to selling golf glasses?
The focus, of course, is always on the athlete. But one element is important to me – regardless of the person concerned: the consultation always
starts with the refraction, because the eye can change even over a very short period of time. Therefore, it does not matter if the eyeglass prescription is only four weeks old.
Then I explain to the customer what golf glasses should or must be able to do, and I ask about the athlete's particular requirements. We have a practice green and a variety of clubs available in our sports arena. The golfer then hits a few balls there and we then decide which glasses would best suit his or her needs.
Many experts would recommend a standard progressive lens with appropriate tinting to golfers, do you agree with this approach?
Normal progressive addition lenses (PALs) encourage the wrong head and body posture during the golf swing. During the swing, the golfer wants to have his chin relatively far away from his chest. But if you have varifocals, you have to put your chin on your chest to see the ball clearly through the distance vision area. This is fatal because it completely changes the golfer's swing plane and posture; the longer the club, the more pronounced the incorrect posture becomes.
This means that the ball takes an unwanted curve to the right or left and then the golfer starts to compensate for the problem. He changes his grip or other technical details because he does not understand that the problem is directly due to the optics.
You have developed your own golf lenses. What is so special about them?
I simply combined things that are readily available on the market in a way that nobody else has done. I decide on a certain surface design for the progressive lens, then I correct the lens to the average tee-off distance. This means that the golfer can see the ball clearly with a natural golfing head and body posture irrespective of which club he is using.
The addition is therefore significantly lower and this has a further advantage: there are often uneven bumps in the area around the hole called breaks. If you now try to “read the green” with a progressive lens ‒ i.e. to work out in which direction the green slopes fall of ‒ then you may see breaks that are not actually there, or see the breaks more prominently than they actually are. As soon as I reduce the addition, this problem is considerably lessened.
The golfer only needs to understand that he or she can no longer read optimally with the reduced addition. But that is acceptable, because the average golfer hits the ball about a hundred times during the round, but only needs to fill in the score card 18 times.
What do you think of single-vision glasses as an alternative? These do not work for most players over the age of 40 or 45, but you still can try. That is why I have a practice green in the store. I also have clubs of different lengths and observe how the golfers will hit the ball. I keep track of the different additions. For customers over 45, I only fit single-vision lenses to around 20% to 25% of golfers.
The number one golfing nation is the USA, where more than 28 million people play golf –almost one in ten of the population.
When we play golf, we have to cope with specific lighting conditions and a lot of ‘green’. How does this affect visual requirements?
There are two problems with normal sunglasses with a typical 75% tint. Firstly, the glasses do not only filter UV light. Whether brown, green or gray tints, light in the visible spectrum is always filtered as well. We all know this from red wine. In a green bottle, it no longer appears red, but black. The green glass filters out the red component, among other things. This also happens when playing golf. The contrast on the green may be more or less lost depending on the color. Golfers find it much more difficult to read the green and identify breaks. Secondly, sunglasses change spatial perception, making it more difficult for the golfer to estimate distances. It means that golfers wearing normal sunglasses may perceive objects to be closer than they really are. This is a particular disadvantage when putting and hitting the ball.
Which color would you recommend?
We always choose a color that increases the contrast on the green. We also make sure that the amount of light behind the lens is optimized. This is important because you always have an enlarged pupil when looking through conventional sunglasses. However, a large pupil also means more aberration and less depth of field. For outdoor sports such as golf, however, you want a pupil that is as small as possible and a great depth of field. In addition, wearing sunglasses for long periods of time reduces light-dark
adaptation. This means that an eye looking through conventional sunglasses first has to adapt when there is a change from light to dark. For example, when the next shot is hit under the trees, or when a large cloud moves in front of the sun when putting.
The pupil and lens of our spectacle lenses work together. The lightdark adaptation functions almost normally. The golfer has a nearly constant perception with the glasses. After all, spectacle wearers can not simply push their glasses onto their head, like someone who does not normally wear glasses.
What exactly does this mean in terms of tinting?
I experimented with the color for several years until it was optimal. The development was based on the experience of golfers and many measurements. Thus, I do not disclose the detailed characteristics of the lens to the public. However, I use an orange shade with reflective coating. I was never able to achieve the positive effects described w ith the green or brown lenses that are commercially available.
You developed your own “golf-lens design” because you found the industry's standard solutions unsatisfactory. Can you elaborate briefly on this?
My point is that these are often not proper golf glasses. This is because the industry is too inflexible due to mass production to be able to respond to specific customer requests. That is why a “standard product” is offered for a specific group of athletes. Examples of this are that the color is often unsuitable for golf glasses and the fact that PALs are generally ordered ‒ but the disadvantages that those lenses often have in golf are not taken into consideration.
One lens manufacturer, for example, asks for body size when ordering golf glasses. However, height is only of limited importance because very few golfers have their club length adjusted to their height. If someone who is 1.90 meters tall plays with standard clubs, he or she will change their posture so that they are just as far away from the ball as someone who is 1.70 meters tall. Thus, this question on its own in isolation makes no sense. It follows that many athletes
do not always feel they have received the best advice from opticians. This is also because opticians sometimes buy these products without questioning them. If the customers do not get “proper” golf glasses, they do not have the desired success when playing golf. This is not to say that these glasses are entirely bad, but they are often unsuitable for the purpose for which they are offered by the industry.
Customers frequently come to you because they are dissatisfied with their current golf glasses. In your experience, what mistakes are made in the sales process?
Many opticians seem to hold the view: “Golfers have money” ‒ so golf glasses can be expensive as you like because the customer can afford them. In my opinion, this is a mistake. A golfer is a “special” person who may or may not have money, because playing golf has now become a popular sport.
I recently had a customer who works at the car wash at the weekend, so that he can still afford to go to the golf club. There is also poverty among golfers, but they do not usually admit it.
Another golfer might have money and flies to a 5-star hotel for a golfing vacation. At the same time, however, he buys used balls at the clubhouse because he finds it too expensive to hit the good balls. Thus in reality he lives in two very different worlds. The golf club for € 1,000 is perhaps a bargain in his perception, but he finds golf glasses for the same price overpriced.
Opticians need to understand that the customer does not have the same perception of value for spectacles as the optician. Though “fair”, “expensive” or “cheap” are relative in the eye of the beholder and every optician has his or her own philosophy.
So how expensive are your glasses?
My golf progressive lenses generally cost no more than € 499 to € 599 a pair. This is because I want golfers to feel that they are paying what I consider to be a fair price and that they are getting a good product in return. Thus, customers will trust me. As a rule, every customer brings me a new golfer ‒ and they often buy their next pair of PALs from me too. This makes their main pair of glasses into an additional sale.
In my opinion, you have to meet customers on their own ground ‒ whether they are golfers, poker players, tennis players or whoever. Because a sportsperson speaks his own language and I have to speak it too. Otherwise, it is difficult to position yourself in any niche. That applies in sport just as much as it does to art, music and anything else.
Who would you recommend to specialize in golf eyewear and who not?
It does not make sense to choose this path if you do not really want to do it, if perseverance is not one of your strengths or if you do not see a need. Of course, it will help if you play golf yourself. However,
the most important thing is to take the needs of golfers seriously and try to understand them. Because the reputation for supplying great golf glasses has to be earned bit by bit.
We do this by going into golf clubs. For instance, I give presentations about better vision in golf and mention in passing that I offer this service ‒ but I do not insist on it.
If someone only wants to go into the golf niche because they see golfers’ money, then I strongly advise against it. I think many opticians also sell sports eyewear, but that does not make them sports opticians, because they do not deal with the sports. They fall back on a readymade portfolio and then sell something ‒ that is the mistake.
What distinguishes a sports optician from an optician who only sells sports glasses?
Let me tell you about a special case: we had an archer in the store. He came in and said: “Hello, I need glasses for archery.” Then I asked him, what do you need? Do you go shooting once a month because you feel like it or are you a sports shooter? In this case, the customer answered: “I want to become German champion this year and join the national team.”
He had already been to three opticians who had told him that he does not need glasses and that they could not do anything for him. I then checked his eyes and found out that without glasses he has a visual acuity of 1.0, but with -0.25 diopters he has a visual acuity of 1.5. That is 50% more. For someone in his position, that is vitally important.
We then tried out different frames and filmed the archer pulling the string, subsequently watching the images in slow motion. With two of the frames, he barely touched the front surface of the glasses with the string and intuitively left the string a little behind ‒ so he did not have the speed he would otherwise have had.
That is why we took the glasses where he could pull the string back completely relaxed and he was given a special color. Then he was really on form.
Six months later, I got a WhatsApp at 21:01 in the evening: “I'm the German champion. Thank you. National team next year.”
That is what I expect from someone who calls themselves a sports optician: to simply go beyond the mere sale.
What expectations do you have regarding yourself?
I think I should aspire to be the best I can be. That is why we do not do some things in our store, because I cannot or do not want to be “the best”. You do not have to do everything. I am happy to pass these customers on to colleagues who specialize in them. However, if customers come in who have other problems, then I deal with them too, because I am well trained to help the customer. But the most important thing is that we do not meet customers as opticians. We meet everyone as a person! For us, optics is only the accessory.
Thank you very much for the interview! ◆
Together with his wife Nicole Sepeur, André Durow runs the eyewear studio N in Germany. He gives training courses for golfers on how to see better when playing golf. He also trains ECPs and he gets often booked as a speaker by the industry. He gives lectures at the Lions Club or Rotary Club, talks for frame manufacturers and more. Furthermore, he also coaches individual professional athletes, for example in the areas of mental attitude and body language.
He initially started his own business in 1998 and by 2000 had several stores. As a passionate sportsman, he quickly focused on the sale of sports glasses and in particular golf glasses. In 2000, he created his first own golf lens design, which he had custom-made by German manufacturers, as he found the existing solutions offered by the industry inadequate. In 2004, the I GA Optic sales group temporarily took over the brand and Durow exclusively trained IGA Optic opticians to sell golf glasses.
In 2011, the couple decided spontaneously to leave the optical business. However, they have been back in business since May 2020 and, in addition to golf glasses, now have an additional focus on poker glasses; Durow has also developed his own lens design for this sport.
André Durow
André Durow playing golf. Photo: private
A soccer team of forwards
How to better assess the effectiveness of your advertising
“I know that half of my advertising is a waste of money. I just do not know which half.” This quote by Henry Ford still applies to many advertisers today. Would it not be a dream come true to know what advertising will be successful and what not? The problem is that the customer journey – i.e. the path from consumer to sale –is more complex today than ever before. Podcasts, Spotify, Meta, TikTok, SmartTV, WhatsApp channels, printed ads, newsletters, etc. – the communication options are almost unlimited and continue to grow.
By Dominic Scheppelmann
Why attribution is becoming increasingly important
But which channel will ultimately lead to advertising success? To try to measure this, there are so-called “attribution models” in marketing. They aim to assign conversions or sales to particular channels, to determine their specific value for marketing. For example, did you get the customer because of a flyer, a printed ad, an ad on Instagram or through an organic search on Google?
Is there a system in place in your company to record this data? This is the very first step that many opticians and the industry still have to take. Has the data from the digital channels been evaluated? Is the tracking on the website set up in such a way that various conversions can be measured and assigned to the respective channels? And are consumers followed up after the purchase to find out how they became aware of the company? All of this should be routine.
To complicate matters even further, the forward paradox often lurks in the data collected. If you look at a soccer match purely in terms of numbers, the data shows that goals are mainly scored by forwards. It therefore stands to reason that, based on these figures, only forwards should play. Then more goals would be scored.
In this example, it is clear to everyone that this would not work, because without defense and crosses from midfield, no goals will be scored. So you also need players who enable the forwards' success in the first place.
The same principle can be applied to advertising. It often takes several contacts with the customer (e.g. through a large billboard or a banner ad) before the customer ultimately converts through an ad on Facebook or Google or searches on Google itself after the fifth contact and then features among the organic hits.
From “last click“ to the u-shaped
model
Some attribution models focus on the last interaction before the purchase (last click) and assign the entire sale to this channel. Even if the aforementioned “forward problem” remains, most companies take this approach. This is understandable, as it is the easiest to implement and provides clear figures at first glance.
Others take a completely different approach – working with the first known interaction (first click) as a starting point. Somewhere in the middle is the so-called “u-shaped” model (first and last touchpoint higher value contribution of the sale).
There is also the “time decay” model, which assigns increasing value to the different touchpoints from the first to the last, and the “linear” model, which assigns the same value contribution to all touchpoints.
It often takes several contacts with the customer before the customer ultimately converts through an ad.
These models are static because the allocation of value contributions is fixed based on the position of the touchpoints. In a dynamic attribution model, also known as a “data-driven” model, the value contribution of the sale of the individual touchpoints is determined entirely individually and automatically based on factors of influence that have been previously defined.
For those of you who have not understood any of this: there is no right or wrong way here; and you do not need to understand everything down to the last detail. What is important here is to start thinking about how the effectiveness of your own advertising can be measured better.
After all, the information gained can then be used to manage the advertising budget in a more targeted and effective way, leading to more sales being achieved with the same advertising budget; or achieving the same turnover with significantly less advertising budget.
Scheppelmann is the CEO of 2do digital, one of the major digital agencies specializing in ophthalmic optics in Germany. For 20 years, he has been supporting companies on their digital journey and sharing his knowledge through lectures, ERFA groups, etc.
Dominic Scheppelmann
Dominic
Green recruiting
Sustainability as the basis of human resources (HR) processes
Skilled workers want to work for companies that are already thinking about the future today. With green recruiting, companies strengthen their market position right from the start. In this way, talented individuals recognize early on in the application process that sustainability strategies do not just exist on paper, but actually support processes within the company.
In recruiting, this is a real competitive advantage: only 30 percent of German companies for example have a sustainability strategy ‒ the basis for an authentic personnel search in terms of a sustainable working environment.
What is green recruiting?
By definition, green recruiting describes the sustainable orientation of application processes. This includes climate and environmentally friendly processes, but also decisions on a social level. What green recruiting looks like depends on the focus of the individual company.
Every company has an obligation towards the environment and society.
Positioning the company's environmental goals in the early stages of the application process has a positive effect on the recruitment process.
According to the Job Change Compass 2021, 71 percent of applicants would like to see more information on sustainability aspects on the careers page alone.
Hurdles in green recruiting and how companies can lead by example
Green recruiting is an ideal marketing tool for employer attractiveness. However, companies must remain realistic. An oil company can only boast of climate-friendly behavior to a limited extent in the application process. Even a paperless office does not make a company an environmental saver.
Recruiting can therefore only be as green as the company is. Otherwise, recruiting under the guise of being green is just an employer branding measure that talent will recognize as greenwashing once they are hired.
If companies approach green recruiting in the right way, there are numerous positive effects:
▶ Competitive advantages in times of skills shortages
▶ Increased attractiveness as an employer
▶ Incentives to apply even before the initial contact
▶ Intrinsic motivation of candidates right from the start
▶ Higher employee loyalty in the long term
▶ Recruitment of employees with the same moral standards
Green recruiting rethinks HR processes
The first step towards green recruiting is to focus on digital processes for the sake of the environment. Green recruitment is therefore software-based and requires a rethink of long-established HR processes.
As part of green recruiting, for example, companies completely dispense with paper. Instead, recruitment takes place digitally and consistently. Job interviews via video call instead of on-site contribute to reduced CO2 emissions and contracts can be signed digitally.
The conversion of HR processes is also associated with efficiency gains. Software automates recurring steps in the application process. This saves time, which in turn can be used for communication with candidates.
Positioning the company's environmental goals in the early stages of the application process
Most applicants would like to see more information on sustainability aspects on the careers page
Ecological aspects include: digital processes, reducing the carbon footprint, job bikes and others
Social aspects include: flexibel working models, opportunity to support social projects, health checks and more
However, companies should inform honest and authentic about their climate-friendly behavior
Green recruiting can lead to competitive advantages, higher employee loyality and more positive aspects
While the conversion of processes supports green recruiting within the company, it is the communication of environmental awareness to the outside world that makes it visible to applicants.
Above all, communication should outline how green the company's working environment actually is. Insights into the company's sustainable processes are just as exciting as sustainable corporate benefits for employees. They include ecological and social aspects:
▶ Energy-efficient technologies reduce the CO2 footprint
▶ Job bike for employees instead of a company car
▶ Flexible working models that help to minimize travel distances
▶ Opportunity to support social projects
▶ Yoga courses and health checks
Conclusion: green recruiting is part of digitalization
If companies approach green recruiting correctly, this has a positive effect on new hires as well as internal applications. First and foremost, the green form of recruitment makes a company's sustainability
strategies and values visible to the outside world. Talents identify with them and receive the answer to the question of “what for”. Green recruiting therefore places the purpose behind the company's own activities directly at the center of communication. This increases intrinsic motivation and thus also the talent's interest in working for the company.
Agentur Junges Herz
The agency “Agentur Junges Herz” is dedicated to employer branding projects. As neutral observers, they analyze given companies: What makes employers stand out? Where can the agency provide expertise as support and what is already working well? They provide intensive advice on creating a new employer image. Over the years, the agency has worked with numerous satisfied clients - from the medium-sized company next door to the global player. “We learn with every project, because every project is unique” is their motto. willkommen@agentur-jungesherz.de
Hard coating machines
An extremely robust hard coating is a top priority for spectacle wearers and manufacturers. Processes are constantly being improved to optimize the coatings while offering modern machines that meet all requirements of labs worldwide. In the following market overview, MAFO has summarized the most important criteria and differences of hard coating machines, to make it easier for customers to find the perfect match. The survey is divided into dip hard coating machines and spin hard coating machines.
7 (ultrasonic cleaning, rinsing, DI cleaning and rinsing, drying)
2 primer and 2 top coat (optional additonal coating stage available)
to 16 pairs
8 steps (detergent tanks, rinsing tank with tap water, rinsing tank with DI water, drying with infrared)
Dip hard coating machines
Cleaning steps 8 steps (detergent tanks, rinsing tank with tap water, rinsing tank with DI water, drying with infrared)
steps (detergent tanks, rinsing tank with tap water, rinsing tank with DI water, drying with infrared) Coating tanks
3 pairs
7 steps (detergent tanks, rinsing tank with tap water, rinsing tank with DI water, drying with infrared)
3 tanks (1 primer and 2 varnishes)
l (coating)
spin coater with wash, coat, UV cure stations. Coating
keeping viscosity
Second generation automated Velocity backside spin coater with wash, coat, UV cure stations. Coating is thermally controlled, keeping viscosity consistant.
www.coburntechnologies.com
SHC-Nano
Mini2
Fully automated unit with two coating reservoirs and the capability of job-to-job recipes and remote diagnostics.
Through his research, he contributed significantly to the progress of theoretical and physical optics. His numerous works, such as the invention of the slit lamp, are still of great importance today. This time we present the physician Allvar Gullstrand. By Mareike Alber
llvar Gullstrand was born in Landskrona, southern Sweden, on June 5, 1862. He was the eldest son of the town doctor Alfred Gullstrand and Sofia Mathilda. Already at school, the refined Gullstrand achieved university level in mathematics. In 1880, he studied medicine at Uppsala University. Five years later he married Signe Christine Breitholtz. He had a daughter with her named Esther Gisela, but she died of diphtheria when she was just three years old. In 1888, at the age of 26, he completed his medical studies in Stockholm. In 1890 he was awarded a doctorate. His dissertation dealt with the basis of astigmatism.
Mathematically description of the cornea
After his dissertation, Allvar Gullstrand set himself the goal of developing a complete theory of the refraction of the eye. He was aware that the cornea accounts for two thirds of the total refraction. He therefore developed an instrument to describe the cornea mathematically. Firstly, he used Javal and Schiötz's ophthalmometer to measure astigmatism. Later he developed this ophthalmometer further by inventing a photographic method. For this, Gullstrand needed a special magnifying glass, which he developed with the Carl Zeiss company in Jena. The optics company manufactured the Verant magnifier for Gullstrand. For the first time, Gullstrand was able to photograph the cornea with reflections originating from concentric rings. He was now able to determine parameters such as the curvature and distances between the cornea and the crystalline lens as well as the refractive indices of the ocular media. As a result, he introduced reciprocals for lengths and convergences. Gullstrand's method was expedient for him. However, it was still too cumbersome to use in clinical practice. But still Gullstrand formed the basis for the development of the keratograph, which a century later provides precise data on the cornea using computer-aided image processing and analysis.
The Gullstrand eye
With these findings and numerous precise measurements on the eye, Gullstrand developed a simplified and exact model eye in 1900. He
realized that the refraction of light in the human eye depends on the refractive indices that change in the eye.
He also discovered that the refractive index is changed inside the lens during accommodation for near vision. He described this as the intracapsular accommodation mechanism.
In Gullstrand's time, theoretical opticians began to use diopters instead of focal lengths to describe the performance of a lens. However, in calculations with different refractive indices in front of and behind a lens system, it was necessary to revert to focal lengths. Gullstrand found that one only had to divide the distance by the refractive index of the medium. In 1906, Gullstrand published what is probably his most important work, ”Basic Principle of Geometrical Optics.”
Gullstrands achievements
Also the “aperture lamp”, today's slit lamp, was once invented by Gullstrand. The essential component was Gullstrand's eye mirror. The lighting device, which was originally built for his ophthalmometric research, proved to be useful for gaining a deep insight into the tissue structure of the eye.
At the same time, he invented reflexless ophthalmoscopy and again collaborated with the Zeiss company. In 1911, Zeiss launched Gullstrand's large stationary ophthalmoscope on the market. This formed the basis for the Zeiss-Nordenson fundus camera, which was considered the gold standard for several decades.
At the 1922 congress of the American Society of Ophthalmology in Washington, Gullstrand's work on the slit lamp was cited as the most important contribution. The congress president described how the lady with the lamp, Florence Nightingale, had a male counterpart ‒ the gentleman with the lamp named Allvar Gullstrand.
In addition to the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, Allvar Gullstrand received many other special awards. His life of tireless research ended when he died of a cerebral hemorrhage on July 28, 1930. He left behind outstanding works that served as the basis for further research. ◆
Allvar Gullstrand. Photo: digitalmuseum.org
Closing with good news!
Eyesight from a 3D printer
Printing a new cornea during an operation to restore a patient’s eyesight: This groundbreaking step in the fight against corneal disorders is set to become reality with a laser-based process using personalized bioink. The method was developed by researchers at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in collaboration with Carl Zeiss Meditec AG and Evonik Healthcare.
When the cornea becomes deformed or loses its transparency, vision is seriously impaired. Corneal disorders are a typical phenomenon of old age, and an increasing number of people in our aging population suffer from them.
“Instead of being dependent on cornea donations, we’re using bioink made from the patient’s own stem cells and chemically modified collagen fibers,” lead researcher Ute Schepers said. “With our laser-based process, we can precisely position these cells to generate transparent and functional corneas with minimal risk of rejection.”
The method is set to provide a promising alternative to conventional transplantations and is also a crucial step toward personalized medicine. In a project involving industry partners, the next step will be to scale up the technology with initial production and testing in small batches.
Special topics in MAFO 2024
The next issue will be published just in time for Vision Expo West and Silmo in Paris. The special topic of this issue is “Go Digital!”. We will be delving into the world of smart glasses, explaining cyber security strategies and you will learn more about state-of-the-art cosmetic inspection. Furthermore, you can find an article on hard coating in ophthalmic labs and much more interesting topics. Stay curious!
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A CONSCIOUS VISION
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