Echoes of the past: How Manufacturing Optician magazine covered the Northern Optical Congress trade show

While searching the Optician archives for this week’s instalment of Echoes of the past, volumes of monthly sister title Manufacturing Optician from March 1964 came to light.

The magazine catered for manufacturers, processors and factors of optical and ophthalmic optical goods worldwide. Articles covered everything from management and practice issues, to how light behaved when passing through polarised lenses.

With Optrafair London now just a few weeks away (April 11-13 at the Olympia National), a look at how Manufacturing Optician covered the Northern Optical Congress trade show in Southport seems fitting.

The event was formally opened by then chairman of the Federation of Manufacturing Opticians, G Druiff – who warned delegates that many would feel the pinch in the coming months. He said the benefits of modest increases to Statements of Fees and Charges would be offset by rising production costs and reduced value for money factors since the introduction of the National Health Service.