Author Archives: Sales

Westchester Medical 16 Years & Going Strong with In-Office Lens Technology

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“The Optical Dynamics progressive lens, produced with the Q-2100 Digital Lens System, provides consistent and strong optics for 99% of all patients.,” says Ken Usatch, who runs the optical shop at Westchester Medical in White Plains, NY.  He is referring to the Optical Dynamics tabletop lens production system that he strongly recommended to the practice 15 years ago.

“It took me about 18 months to talk this medical clinic into taking on the Optical Dynamics system, but I had seen what it did in another practice in NY.  I highly recommended it, and I can safely say that most opticians have no idea how great this is,” Usatch added.

Optical Dynamics has spent the better part of two decades assisting practices with reducing their lab bill by offering a turnkey, in-office system that saves his practice 40%, according to Usatch.

“The industry has moved to expensive free-form lenses.  I have seen the casting capabilities, and even in the beginning, Optical Dynamics offered lens-making that produced digital quality lenses that had strong wearability, and did what they were supposed to do,” Usatch remembered.

He indicated that he uses a height of 17 ½ “ as a guide for the progressive lens client. He also indicated an upswing in the new product categories of sunSMART and of ultraSUN – which is good for all people. “They don’t have to go into a polarized lenses, and, it can be used as a sports lens as well,” he pointed out.

For the average optical shop, there is a perception that several thousand dollars is a lot of money to invest into a small, tabletop system which is ergonomic, clean, quiet, and self-diagnostic.  “I say it is the best thing that money can buy to make money and provide patient value in this business,” Usatch added.

Create a High-Efficeincy Practice

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In an article in Optometric Management, the editor offers six tips to maximize your patient flow for increase profitability.

Tip 1: When it comes to administration think “e”. By allowing your patients to schedule appointments and  fill out patient forms online, you can free up to 45-minutes a day for your employees and free up time for your patients as well.

Tip 2: Utilize high-tech equipment. The use of high-tech equipment in both diagnostics and production is key to increasing practice profitability. <end article> With the Q-2100 Digital Lens System you can produce free form quality lenses at a fraction of the time and cost as with traditional labs. Dispensing lenses with just-in-time delivery will be noticed by your customers and they will return with repeat business. Everyone wants things quickly and efficiently and this in-office technology allows you meet the expectations of the consumer. <begin article>

Tip 3: Delegate. Don’t try to be the keeper of all the knowledge. Share information and give your employees the opportunity to grown and expand their abilities in the work place.

Tip 4: Provide staff training. Do multiple people know how do do the same job? If not, they should! Cross train your staff in dispensing, lens production and administrative tasks. By cross training your team you will operate at peak efficiency.

Tip 5: Schedule weekly staff meetings. Industry leading consultant Dr. Richard Kattouf recommends you schedule weekly staff meetings at which discussions on how to refine individual responsibilities are discussed to maintain efficiency and enthusiasm.

Tip 6: Value your time and your patient’s. Time is important to everyone. By focusing on efficiency creating choices, you will see an improvement in the time you and your patients spend at the business. Your family will appreciate it and so will your customers.

What Free-Form Is

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At Optical Dynamics, we use digital free-from molds to produce customized lenses with improved optics and enhanced visual clarity. As published in Eyecare Business, the following six points are key to understanding the free-form process.

  1. The main difference between digital and traditional surfacing is digital surfacing’s ability to produce more complex surfaces with extreme accuracy.
  2. Digital surfacing can be used to create simple single vision or complex progressive surfaces. The ability of the lens to provide visual comfort and performance is determined by the quality of the design.
  3. Digital surfacing is referred to as direct-to-surface, CNC and free-from. All refer to basically the same process.
  4. The most significant variable involves the process used to calculate the design. Digital surfacing processes require significantly more calibration and control compared to traditional surfacing.
  5. There are two inherent benefits common to nearly all digitally surfaced PALS: reduction of marginal astigmatism and reduction of “rounding errors”.
  6. Remember: all lenses that bend light will have aberrations and spherical surfaces create aberration. Its a matter of how those aberrations are managed that provides a unique benefit to the wearer.

How Does nanoCLEAR AR Perform in Ocean Climates?

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We are often asked how nanoCLEAR™ AR performs in humid beach city climates as compared to vacuum AR. Well, nanoCLEAR AR and vaccum AR vacuum AR (whether it’s Crizal™ or some other brand) have very different failure modes. In the better vacuum AR stacks, craze is the root cause of most failures and patient returns. With the nanoCLEAR AR lens, its essentially impossible to induce craze.  As a result, our AR is damaged far less in boiling water and salt water tests than vacuum lenses

With vacuum AR on a plastic lens, the thermal expansion rates are vastly different between the AR and the lens. Since the AR layers are also brittle, they tend to fracture under the stress created when the lens heats up and expands. Once that happens, contaminants work their way into the stack more easily and can cause delamination. Even if delamination is avoided, craze typically causes haze, so once it’s severe enough that will lead to a returned lens as well.

Since our nanoCLEAR AR uses plastic binders and nanoparticles, the thermal expansion rates of the AR and lens can be matched, which eliminates craze failures. That’s not to say we never have failures, all AR can be damaged by patients, however, nanoCLEAR AR performs well in hot, humid coastal regions. Just ask our customers in Miami, Puerto Rico and the Caribbean!

Protect Your Investment with the Q-2100 Extended Warranty & Recertification Programs

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Q-2100R Extended Warranty/Maintenance Contract*

  • Includes parts, labor, ground shipping and loaner program (Main and/or Post)
  • If unit does not need to be serviced during the 1-year period, the extended warranty allows for the return of the Main and Post units to Optical Dynamics for preventative maintenance, including cleaning and inspection
  • 50% discount on cast lenses through RTE (+$18 w/AR), during down time due to repair

Q-2100R Recertification Program* Extended Warranty

  • Return the Q2100R (Main and Post) to Optical Dynamics and we will recertify the equipment; includes replacement of lamps and filters and ensures the machine is in proper working order
  • Includes a 1-year extended warranty on parts, labor and ground shipping.
  • 50% discount on cast lenses through RTE (+$18 w/AR), during down time due to repair
  • Loaner program may be purchased at a discounted price

*     Does not include hepa filter, spin bowls, germicidal lamps, actinic lamps, post cure lamps, main logo panels, post logo panels, consumables or expedited shipment. This warranty will be void in its entirety as to any parts or equipment covered hereunder in the event of damage caused by abuse. All repairs necessitated by damages excluded from this warranty will be charged to the customer

**    Does not include spin bowls (upper & lower), hepa filters, foam pre-filter for hepa, wash nozzles, wash filter, suction cup seal ring, syringe cap o-ring, plastic deck plate, arm sneeze guard & strobe lamp, consumables, expedited shipment or preventative maintenance on PC or wash module This warranty will be void in its entirety as to any parts or equipment covered hereunder in the event of damage caused by abuse. All repairs necessitated by damages excluded from this warranty will be charged to the customer

***    Includes free software upgrades only; new product software upgrades must be purchased

Call 800-797-2743 for more information

 

Quick Do’s & Dont’s for Selling to Men

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Eyecare Professional, by Bob Phibbs

  • DON’T leave us alone. While you may think that giving us some space is good, don’t leave us completely alone or we’ll walk away! Its too overwhelming
  • DO take us by the hand (figuratively). Don’t assume that we know what we want or that we know what we’re looking at. If it’s an item we’re not familiar with buying then we need some guidance. Show us around and point things out.
  • men shoppingDON’T hover. While we want your guidance and your help, take the cure if we need a little space. Help us narrow down our choices first but if we want to take some time to mull it over on our own, back off or you might spook us. Its fine to check back in every few minutes to see if we need additional assistance, but don’t hover or make us feel pressured.
  • DO, point out fashion trends. We don’t necessarily want to be on the cutting edge of trends…but we still want to look good and stylish. If we feel like it makes us look like Brad Pitt that matters to us. We might even want to know if it was featured in a magazine. We are vain – we just don’t make it obvious
  • DON’T ask or assume our budget. If you ask for our budget, you allow us to limit ourselves. You will dumb down our choices and ultimately you’ll loose out. Show us the merchandise first, then talk price.

Celebrate Our Independence!

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4th of July“Fourscore and seven years ago, our fathers brought fourth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.” Abraham Lincoln”

Those who won our independence believed liberty to be the secret of happiness and courage to be the secret of liberty.” Louis. D Brandeis

“Where liberty dwells, there is my country.” Benjamin Franklin

Are You Dispensing blueVIEW?

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blueVIEW defenseOptical Dynamics newest lens material is blueVIEW defense, sunglasses for your indoor world.

Optical Dynamics’ indoor lens with advanced spectral filtration protects against visual discomfort and possible damage from exposure to HEV and blue spectrum light waves.  Infused with an array of organic pigments, blueVIEW defense helps block and absorb a varying level of violet and blue light across a 400-500nm spectrum. blueVIEW people pic

This design provides 100% attenuation in the UV spectrum and gradually allows more light to pass as the waves lengthen for balanced protection. blueVIEW defense filters all types of blue light encountered in everyday indoor activities, while enhancing visual acuity, reducing eye strain, and retaining natural color perception.

Once you experience the comfort of blueVIEW defense you’ll never want to be inside without them again.

Call today about blueVIEW defense monomer for your Q-2100 Digital Lens System 800-797-2743 today!

The AR Process

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Traditional AR coating is applied by a method know as vacuum AR. This process typically requires a very large capital expenditure, clean room, highly skilled production staff and takes from 4 to 10 plus hours to complete. This process begins with the lens moving through a multi step cleaning bath to ensure proper adhesion of the AR layers. Once cleaned, each lens is inserted into a spring retainer and married up with other lenses for a specific coating process. The lens retainers are moved to a degassing oven for surface optimization. From here, lenses are placed into a metal collate and set inside the vacuum AR coater. According to a recent article in Vision Care Product News, “a pump then removes the atmosphere and recreates a vacuum, where an ion-assisted gun helps cleanse the lenses even further prepping them for the treatment layers to be applied. The collate starts to rotate and an electronic beam gun focuses onto a crucible holding a series of different compounds. As the beam reaches its peak, a shutter plate swings to the side allowing the evaporated material to be dispersed and reach the lenses.” Most of these AR treatments involved oxide metals for the low index layers and materials such as tantalum and titanium for the high index layers. After the layers are processed, a final step is completed for the hydrophobic and oleophoic finish. The lenses are then shipped to the corresponding optical location and dispensed to patients. From order to delivery, the typical optical location must wait 3 to 7 business days before they can notify their patient of their eyeglass arrival.

Due to the cost and technical aspects involved with traditional AR coating, the majority of independent optical professional do not have the production volume necessary for profitability. In response, Optical Dynamics’ Research and Development team created the revolutionary nanoCLEAR AR system. This small table top unit works in conjunction with the Q-2100 Digital Lens system and employs a nanocomposite AR coating. Since this system processes films at atmospheric temperatures and pressures, the required hardware is greatly simplified reducing overall cost, training and production time

The nanoCLEAR AR process begins with the operator setting the four digital free form molds into the AR unit. The nanoCLEAR AR system pressure washes the molds for optimal cleanliness. The use of spin coat technology is then employed with the system laying down a scratch coat followed by the nanocomposite AR coating in mold. The digital molds are removed from the AR unit and a mold cavity is formed. The cavity is filled with either the clear or photochromic UV-curable monomer doped with nanoparticles. This allows us to engineer the refractive index and strength of the nanoAR films while maintaining the flexibility inherent to most polymers. Once the mold cavities are filled, they are cured in the main and post chambers. During the curing process the nanoCLEAR AR bonds with the lens material to produce an AR lens. The process is completed with a hydrophobic and oleophic top coat. In under 90-minutes, you have a pair of nanoCLEAR AR lenses to dispense to your patients.