A clear look at lens manufacturing

IF you are reading this article with spectacles that were recently made in Namibia, chances are that your lenses were manufactured by the Central Optical Laboratory in Suiderhof, Windhoek.

And although its owners – Ockert Mouton and Johann Junius – established the company a little more than a year ago, they have over 20 years’ worth of experience in the industry between them. They first met as employees of the South African company Independent Optical that was based in Namibia and that is where they learnt the art of lens-making. ‘We became friends and eventually we decided to set up a business together making plastic lenses,’ says Mouton while Junius adds that ‘from next month we will be able to make glass lenses as well because the machines are on their way’.So what are the benefits and disadvantages of each type of lens? Mouton explains that plastic lenses are lighter and safer – ‘especially in car accidents because they don’t splinter onto your eyes’. On the other hand, says Junius, ‘glass lenses are cheaper and don’t scratch so easily, making them more suitable for dusty farms and Namibia’s dry climate’. As a result, the more affluent residents of Windhoek usually go for the plastic variety whereas those living in rural areas opt for glass ones. Mouton and Junius make about 60-80 pairs of lenses for glasses per day, in a process which takes about 40 minutes: ‘After your eyes are tested, many opticians send the prescriptions and the frames to us,’ says Mouton. ‘We order the lenses rough from South Africa and the process includes measuring the shape of the frame, cutting the lenses, and polishing them to a smooth finish. We triple check for standards to make sure our products are of the best quality and service. And we’ve never had a comeback, a reject, which we had to do again.’Machines are used in the different stages and although they speed up the process, Junius makes it clear that not everything is done automatically and that the touch of an experienced technician is needed. The machines are imported from abroad and are very expensive. In fact, they formed the bulk of the expenditure when Mouton and Julius first set up their business. As Junius states, ‘We applied for a N$1,2 million loan from the Emerging Small and Medium Enterprises scheme of Bank Windhoek and DBN. We put up our houses as collateral – together they were worth about N$600 000. It was a little bit risky but we knew the industry well and the optometrists that we have previously worked with started ordering from us.’The loan has an 11.5 per cent interest rate, which they are still paying off but view as fair. However, Mouton and Junius feel that the 10-month process of obtaining the loan was too long, especially as they quit their jobs when they submitted their application. ‘If we could do it again, we would keep our jobs,’ says Mouton. ‘We thought it was going to be much quicker and it was a financial loss to us.’But it was worth it in the end as their company now makes between N$150 000 and N$200 000 a month, with profit constituting a healthy 50 per cent of that amount. What’s more, there are benefits for their customers too because they have halved the time they wait to receive their glasses. This is because the lenses can now be made here in two to three days instead of being sent to South Africa and back, which takes a week. Mouton and Junius also want to sell ready-made contact lenses and frames, and in the future, they hope to expand into the SADC region. *The Central Optical Laboratory can be contacted at Tel: (061) 221 644 or Fax: 061 222 178. Thanks to SMEs Compete for their assistance.

In an age of information overload, Sunrise is The Namibian’s morning briefing, delivered at 6h00 from Monday to Friday. It offers a curated rundown of the most important stories from the past 24 hours – occasionally with a light, witty touch. It’s an essential way to stay informed. Subscribe and join our newsletter community.

The Namibian uses AI tools to assist with improved quality, accuracy and efficiency, while maintaining editorial oversight and journalistic integrity.