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Bausch & Lomb to consolidate contact lens manufacturing facilities
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ROCHESTER, N.Y. — In an effort to consolidate its global contact lens manufacturing operations, Bausch & Lomb has announced plans to begin migrating most of its production plants to existing locations in Waterford, Ireland, and Rochester, N.Y., the company announced in a press release.
Bausch & Lomb based its decision on an extensive appraisal of its current production facilities, during which the company considered factors such as each facility's proximity to established research and development resources, global operational efficiency, future investment potential and overall cost savings, according to the release.
Over the next 2 years, Bausch & Lomb plans to enact a phased withdrawal from its production facility in Livingston, Scotland, beginning with a 90-day consultation period that is scheduled to take effect shortly. During the consultation period, the company will engage the Scottish Government and Scottish Enterprise in discussions, the release said.
As part of the proposed consolidation, the company plans to move its SofLens daily disposable lens manufacturing lines from Livingston to its Waterford and Rochester plants over the course of the next year. In addition, production lines for its PureVision SVS lenses would be relocated from Waterford to Rochester.
"It became very clear to our senior leadership team — following our detailed analysis — that company-owned sites in Rochester and Waterford held a strong advantage in most major assessment criteria. The long-term cost savings alone are hundreds of millions of dollars," Gerald M. Ostrov, chairman and CEO of Bausch & Lomb, said in the release. "At the same time, this will better position us to more rapidly grow production volumes as we increase professional and consumer contact lens demand worldwide."
Collectively, the relocation is expected to generate approximately 30 new positions in Rochester in 2010; however, no employment increase is expected at the Waterford facility. In all, the proposed consolidation would affect approximately 500 employees in Livingston on a staggered basis over the next 14 to 18 months, according to the release.
Bausch & Lomb maintains that it has made the necessary preparations to ensure that manufacturing for all of its eye care products continues uninterrupted during the consolidation period.