Menicon's selection of UltraVision CLPL to market its silicone hydrogel lens in the UK throws the Leighton Buzzard company into the premier league of contact lens firms and could herald a bigger collaboration between the two.
Speaking at the BCLA show, Nick Loan, managing director of UltraVision, said the opportunity to become the first supplier in the world of the two-week PremiO SH lens took the firm into the mainstream. 'UltraVision never market commodity product, we always market high quality, high value.' But he said the potential for the PremiO was huge. 'This takes us into a completely new area. It is mass market but there are things that make it stand out. How refreshing for a small company to have a world-class product.'
Dr Jacinto Santodomingo, global professional relations manager for Menicon, said the firm first filed a SH patent back in 1979 and the PremiO was the start of a big change for the Japanese RGP giant. 'This is a huge step forward for us, we are world leaders in RGP but having SH lenses gives us a bigger slice of the pie.'
On the tie up he said: 'When Nick Loan came in, as a former MD of Bausch & Lomb that put UltraVision in a completely different league.'
Loan headed B&L when it launched the first SH lens into the market in 2000. 'You do learn lessons and that lets you adopt the right strategy,' he said.