Bausch + Lomb owner Valeant Pharmaceuticals has added a new manufacturing line in the US for its Ultra range of contact lenses.
A ribbon cutting ceremony was held this week for the expansion, which adds 120 new jobs to the Rochester, New York facility.
A solar array was also currently under construction at the plant, to generate greener electricity through the installation of 3,667 solar panels.
Michael Pearson, Valeant chairman and chief executive officer, said: ‘Our Rochester facility is a very important piece of our strategy to rebuild Bausch + Lomb as one of the leading contact lens producers.
‘Our Rochester optics centre is a first in class manufacturing site for contact lens manufacturing and distribution, and with the new contact lens manufacturing lines, we will add much needed production capacity to supply both current and future demand. I want to thank both Senator Schumer and the state of New York for their support of this project.’
Earlier in the year Valeant agreed a redundancy package for 200 workers at a B+L contact lens plant in Waterford, Ireland, with remaining staff there taking a wage reduction of 7.5 per cent to ensure the survival of the factory (News 18.06.14).
New York senator Charles Schumer said: ‘Rochester's Bausch + Lomb workforce invented the contact lens and it's only fitting that Bausch + Lomb's next great lens innovation, Bausch + Lomb Ultra, will be manufactured in Rochester by 120 newly-hired workers.
‘I appreciate that Bausch + Lomb's parent company Valeant heeded my call last summer to build these new multi-million dollar manufacturing lines right here in Rochester – and not overseas.
‘These new Bausch + Lomb manufacturing lines will help keep more than 1,000 good-paying, high-skilled jobs here in Rochester. All signs say Bausch + Lomb Ultra has the potential for massive growth, which will keep Rochester and its innovative workers at the forefront of growing this storied Rochester company for decades to come.’