Hoya Australia is expanding its Sydney based manufacturing facility and will introduce a freeform capacity. The first local freeform lenses are expected to come into production by the end of April.
Managing Director Mr. Bairstow said the move has come about in response to the impact that the 2011 Thailand floods had on Hoya’s manufacturing capacity in that country.
“The Thailand flood crisis has been devastating for Hoya globally, but particularly for us in Australia because we were very reliant on that country for supply.
“We’ve had a very significant set-back – in Australia we lost about 30 per cent of our capacity to supply product and we still haven’t been able to make it up. Our limited ability to fill freeform jobs has caused us the most problem.”
It’s a huge challenge for Hoya and for me personally, but it’s an exciting step forward that to a great degree will future proof the company
The company will rebuild its Thailand facility and expand its manufacturing capacity in Sydney, Malaysia, Korea, Vietnam and Indonesia to protect future international supply. Only last year, Hoya Australia’s laboratory was restructured and capacity had been reduced.
“In the last few weeks we’ve signed off on an investment in Australia. As well as introducing freeform capacity, we will expand our AR coating. We have installed a new machine in Sydney and we’re expanding our ability to produce high value, top of the range coatings, such as SFT and Diamond Finish. We expect production to come on line by the end of April.”
Previously, Hoya produced a limited range of SFT lenses locally. Diamond Finish lenses were exclusively manufactured out of Thailand.
”We’ve lost a lot of business due to the Thailand crisis and so we have a lot of pain to go through locally to build it back up. Continuity of supply in the future for our local customers is essential to do this. With manufacturing capacity in Australia, Malaysia, Korea, Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand, we’ll no longer be reliant on one facility,” said Mr. Bairstow.
As well as rebuilding its capacity in Thailand and expanding internationally, Hoya is developing a completely automated ordering facility. “The new system will be seamless and highly visible, one system that enables us to automatically process and manage orders through all of our international facilities,” said Mr. Bairstow. “It’s a huge challenge for Hoya and for me personally, but it’s an exciting step forward that to a great degree will future proof the company.”
In December 2011, Mr. Bairstow was appointed Managing Director of Hoya Australia, in charge of all operations. In this country, the company was previously led by two Managing Directors – Mr. Bairstow, who held primary responsibility for marketing, and Brad Weatherstone who managed financial operations.