improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page . learn how and when to remove these template messages this article contains content that is written like an advertisement . please help improve it by removing promotional content and inappropriate external links and by adding encyclopedic content written from a neutral point of view . august 2015 learn how and when to remove this template message this article needs additional citations for verification . please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . unsourced material may be challenged and removed . may 2013 learn how and when to remove this template message learn how and when to remove this template message essilor international s.a. type soci t anonyme traded as euronext ei industry medical equipment founded 1849 ; 167 years ago 1849 headquarters charenton le pont france key people hubert sagni res ceo products corrective lenses and ophthalmic equipment revenue 6.72 billion 2015 1 operating income 1183 million 2015 profit 757 million 2014 total assets 6.907 billion end 2012 total equity 3.921 billion end 2012 number of employees 61 000 end 2015 website essilor.com essilor international s.a. is a french company that produces ophthalmic lenses along with ophthalmic optical equipment . it is based in charenton le pont near paris france and quoted on the euronext paris stock exchange . it is a component of the euro stoxx 50 share index . essilor is responsible for creating varilux the world s first progressive lens which corrects presbyopia and allows clear vision in the wearer s near intermediate and far vision . the company formed from the merger of ophthalmic firms essel and silor in 1972 . essilor now operates in over 100 countries over five continents . its activities are largely focused on research and development . it is the world s largest manufacturer of ophthalmic lenses . 2 contents 1 history 3 1.1 1849 1972 essel and silor 1.2 1972 1979 beginning of essilor 1.3 1980 1989 international growth 1.4 1990 1999 partnerships and varilux comfort 1.5 2000 2010 1.6 2010 present 2 research and development 18 2.1 institut de la vision 2.2 vision impact institute 2.3 dioptric loop method 2.4 crizal prevencia 2.5 virtual reality 2.6 sun protection factor e spf 2.7 nikon essilor co. ltd. 2.8 varilux 2.9 optifog 3 corporate social responsibility 4 corporate affairs 4.1 board of directors 4.2 executive committee 4.3 sales 5 see also 6 references 7 external links history 3 edit 1849 1972 essel and silor edit essel was founded in 1849 then called l association fraternelle des ouvriers lunetiers as a small network of eyeglass assembly workshops in paris . it quickly expanded in the late 19th and early 20th century through the acquisition of factories in nearby parisian neighbourhoods and in eastern france . essel soon added frame design and trade to its activities . the firm launched a frame design in 1955 called nylor which is still used today . the nylor system introduced a thin nylon thread which embraces the lens and is fixed to the frame s higher branch . essel s breakthrough came in 1959 with the invention of varilux the first ophthalmic progressive lens . citation needed silor first started under the name lissac in 1931 as a retailer of ophthalmic lenses and frames before becoming a lens manufacturer . in 1959 the same year essel invented the progressive lens lissac made a discovery of its own the orma 1000 lens made from a lightweight material . citation needed 1972 1979 beginning of essilor edit after many years as rivals essel and silor merged on 1 january 1972 to form essilor the then third largest ophthalmic optical firm in the world . essilor s first year of existence was marked by two events the creation of valoptec a non trading company composed of stock holder managers which held half of the company s capital stock and the purchase of benoist bethiot a french lens manufacturer specializing in the production of progressive lenses . in the mid 1970s essilor focused on becoming a true optical group specializing in the plastic progressive lens . many subsidiary activities are first sold off but in 1974 essilor fused benoist bethiot with guilbert routit creating a subsidiary called bbgr . in 1975 the company was listed on the stock exchange . the innovations by essel and silor essilor s predecessors lead to the launch of the varilux orma in 1976 . citation needed the late 1970s were marked by essilor s change in strategy of geographical expansion . by making the acquisition of manufacturing plants in the united states in ireland and in the philippines essilor began its transformation from being a mainly exporting company to being an international company . citation needed 1980 1989 international growth edit the 1980s began with intensified competition . to cut costs and improve service essilor purchased four new plants in four years in mexico puerto rico brazil and thailand . in france new instruments facilitated the automation of the manufacturing process . many distributors were acquired or merged with essilor in europe norway portugal and in asia burma indonesia japan malaysia singapore taiwan and vietnam . citation needed in the united states all subsidiaries were brought together under the essilor of america umbrella . this global network allowed essilor to launch a new varilux lens called the vmd in europe and the united states . citation needed 1990 1999 partnerships and varilux comfort edit to maintain its position as a world leader essilor gradually withdrew its frames operations to concentrate on corrective lenses . employing a value added strategy the company launched the crizal coating offering lens resistance against scratches reflections and smudges . essilor also formed a partnership with ppg an american company to offer the transitions photochromic lens a technology that allows a lens to become darker or lighter depending on the intensity of ambient light . through the acquisition of gentex essilor was also able to launch the airwear polycarbonate lens a light and unbreakable lens material . finally the fourth generation of the varilux was launched under the name varilux comfort . citation needed 2000 2010 edit at the beginning of the 21st century essilor launched the varilux physio a lens that derives its performance from the twin rx technology which combines the wavefront management system to calculate lens optics along with a production technique called advanced digital surfacing . citation needed finally in 2005 essilor entered the french cac 40 stock market . citation needed in 2007 essilor launched the essilor vision foundation in the usa . this organization was created in order to run vision tests in schools to detect vision problems . the follow up care and glasses are provided by essilor vision foundation for children in need . 4 essilor buys satisloh in 2008 . the acquisition of the swiss company aimed at offering a wider range of products for the consumer . 5 two years later essilor launched a merger with shamir optical industry . essilor acquired 50 % of the kibbutz based company . shamir optical industry took advantage of essilor s worldwide distribution network and developed its activity by launching new products . 6 in 2010 essilor acquired fgx international an american company whose brands include foster grant . 7 2010 present edit essilor acquired 50 % of the chinese company wanxin optical in 2011 . the growth drivers for the chinese market are the aging population and the increase of reimbursement for eye care . 8 the 40th anniversary of the merger between essel and silor took place in july 2012 . this was the occasion to highlight their contributions and improvements on technologies . 9 in september 2012 essilor involved in the special olympics for 10 more years . the ophtalmic lenses supplier provided almost 100 000 free eyeglasses to the athletes since 2002 . 10 in may 2013 safilo and essilor agreed on a 10 year licensing deal allowing essilor to use safilo s polaroid brand for the making of polarized eye lenses . 11 in july 2013 essilor announced the buying of 51 % of transitions optical s stakes from ppg industries . 12 essilor will then hold 100 % of transitions optical . the deal is to be closed in the first semester of 2014 . 13 the transaction aims at developing essilor s leadership in lenses that adapt to changing light . 14 in march 2014 essilor announced the acquisition of the canadian online distributor coastal.com . essilor aims at reinforcing its presence online adding coastal.com to its online subsidiaries such as myonlineoptical framesdirect and eyebuydirect . 15 on 25 november 2014 essilor won 4 awards at the first edition of the vision x vp awards . essilor s varilux s series won the award for most popular lens progressive while the transitions signature vii won the most popular lens best value award . its crizal forte uv and mr blue were voted the most popular lens coating value add and best value enhancer lab . 15 in 2015 the u.s. subsidiary of essilor international acquired vision source a service network of independent optometrists from brazos equity partners llc for an undisclosed amount . 16 by the 19 march 2016 the company had a share value of 23 564 million euros distributed in 216 477 934 shares . in march 2016 the company bought the uk online contacts retailer visiondirect uk adding to many online eyewear brands essilor already owns . 17 research and development 18 edit essilor s research and development team includes 550 researchers in its three innovation and technology centers in france the united states and asia . citation needed in singapore the centre for innovation and technology and the international vision academy are housed in a new facility called kallang bahru . 19 in 2014 essilor was ranked 49th on forbes listing of most innovative companies in the world . the brand is the 4th french company of the ranking . 20 institut de la vision edit essilor participate in the institut de la vision de paris inaugurated in december 2008 . this institute is a research center on ocular pathologies . the development of technologies improving the life of visually impaired people is the main goal of this partnership . 21 vision impact institute edit in march 2013 was launched the vision impact institute endorsed by essilor . people from essilor and boston consulting group take part in this project . 22 this institute aims at collecting data about impaired vision and its socio economic impact . one of the first research results available on the website of the institute demonstrated impaired vision caused a loss of us 269 billion in productivity each year in the world . 23 in collaboration with singapore indian development association essilor launched in may 2014 vision foundation in order to provide eye exams for children belonging to low income families . 24 dioptric loop method edit with the launch of varilux comfort in 1993 essilor developed the dioptic loop method making it possible to gauge wearer satisfaction . it involves using repetition until an effective result is achieved for the wearer . it comprises five stages 25 collection of the wearer s physiological data optical design creation of prototype lenses measurement control clinical tests crizal prevencia edit essilor launched a research in partnership with the institut de la vision in france in order to determine the wavelength of the light emitted by the sun leds computers or smartphones which leads to degeneration of retina cells and age related macular degenaration 26 this preventive lens was launched in 2013 . virtual reality edit essilor s research department particularly concentrates on the combined progress of two complementary disciplines optics and physiology with particular recourse to virtual reality . a simulation tool that makes it possible to perceive and interact in 3d in a multi sensory way . 27 researchers today use a virtual