As the ecological and socio-cultural forces impacted the industry, our environmental awareness increased, and we took the first steps to reduce our footprint on the environment in 2017. We’ve been paying close attention not only to our waste management, from as basic measures as the correct use of recycling and general waste bins, but also to ensuring that our suppliers comply with their corporate responsibility as well. We receive our overseas lens blanks and equipment via shipping by sea, which is significantly more environmentally friendly than air freight.

As part of the onboarding process, we provide keep-cups (reusable cups or drink bottles) to each of our staff members, so the use of disposable cups is reduced to the minimum. The communal areas are equipped with selective waste bins, and we have filtered tap water in our kitchens.

In 2018, we established an award-winning custom-built waste management plant. Optical lens manufacturing requires a lot of water and coolant to maintain clean and precise machining. Lenses are ground of a plastic “blank”, resulting in a lot of fine filings of plastic waste, or “swarf”. Our Waste Management Facility collects the water used during production, together with the swarf and coolant. The filtration system filters, compresses, and discharges the swarf with as little coolant remaining in it as possible, allowing us to reuse and run the coolant back into production. The wastewater then goes through a centrifuge, which further separates and condenses the waste material, leading the purified water back into production, saving over 500,000 litres of water per year, and reducing the swarf waste volumes to a 20:1 ratio. This may be one of the most environmentally friendly advances in the industry.

In 2019 – 2020, we moved to digital invoicing and changed our packaging to recycled cardboard boxes, paper lens envelopes, and biodegradable ink. We invested in soft microfibre cloth cases to be reused when sending glasses between the optometry practices and the lab, replacing the single-use plastic bags. Where plastic packaging is unavoidable, we use eco-friendly EVA (ethylene-vinyl acetate) bags, that are BPA-free and do not contain chlorides, heavy metals, phenols, latex, and other toxic substances.

In 2020 – 2021, we moved most of our marketing to digital platforms. We supply our clients with digital images and videos they can use to promote their practices and our Australian made products. Our online ordering system enables practices to send orders to us without physical transportation. With a device called Tracer, the optometry store can put the selected frame in the device, which maps out the frame shape and generates a trace file. This digital file then can be transferred to us in the lab, where we create the prescription lenses, which we can cut to the frame shape using the trace file. We send the edged lenses to the optometry practice, who can easily fit them into the frame on-site. This type of lens orders can contribute to the reduction in emissions of carbon dioxide, as deliveries go one way (from the lab to the practice only).

The COVID-19 restrictions also taught us how much we can do remotely. Our office workers have shifted to hybrid work arrangements, visiting the site only when necessary. We learnt how to be more efficient and more eco-friendly this way, when files cannot be physically passed around in print, but are easy to be shared via online platforms. When meetings can be held on video conference, we do not require the staff to travel to work. These may be small impacts, but the sum of all our small efforts contribute to the betterment of the environment.