A Finishing Look
Earlier this year, EB surveyed its readers to find out what’s really happening in those in-office labs. Nearly half (49%) of the respondents in our 2019 Equipment Virtual Focus Group edge lenses in-house, a number that has remained steady over the past five years.
How well are those retail finishing labs working out? The ECPs surveyed edged an average of 47 lens jobs per week with their lab equipment—their average annual profit generated from in-office edging and surfacing is $44,000. That’s nothing to scoff at, though it is a drop from the $61,000 high average that was reported in 2015.
If you have an in-office lab and are curious about how your peers are doing with theirs—or if you don’t have one and are considering starting one—these key stats will help you put your finger on the pulse of the market trends.
THOSE WHO JUST SAY ‘NO’
Not every ECP feels the need or desire to do any kind of lab work in-house.
Those ECPs who do not edge in-house remain fairly steadfast in their decision, with 81% of those respondents saying they never plan to start. Why? The most-cited reason (35%) was satisfaction with their wholesale lab, followed by the belief that it won’t be cost-effective (20%), not enough room (17%), not enough staff (13%), and too small of a lens output (11%).
Of the respondents who don’t currently have an in-house lab, 12% plan to get one in one to two years, and 4% say they’ll consider edging within the next five years.
THE WORK YOU DO
If ECPs have in-house labs, they are largely using them for edging. And more than a third of the ECPs are edging at least 75% of their lens jobs themselves.
PURCHASING PATTERNS
How do your peers pay for their lab equipment? Almost half purchase it outright.
BIGGEST CHALLENGES IN FINISHING
• Time/staffing
• Keeping up with work that comes in
• Human error
• Cost
• Working with drill mounts/rimless
• Insurance lab requirements
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