Essilux acquires Belgian Automation & Robotics

EssilorLuxottica's acquisition strategy continues with a view to completing its vertical supply chain and innovation. The Franco-Italian group has announced the acquisition of Automation & Robotics (A&R), a Belgian company specialising in the design and production of automated systems for quality control of prescription lenses, used both in the industrial sector and in ophthalmic laboratories.

On the Paris market today, the Essilux share was flat, while the balance since the beginning of the year is positive by more than 8%.

Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Belgium, A&R is active in the field of advanced optical metrology, through proprietary technologies that accompany the digitisation of the production processes of the main players in the ophthalmic sector. The company, which develops solutions ranging from high-precision machinery to state-of-the-art software, covers the entire value chain and integrates specialised skills in research and development, software design, production, distribution and dedicated services.

With four locations (also in the US and Bagkok) and a network of 170 employees worldwide, the Belgian company tests 1,500,000 per day.

"The integration of A&R into our industrial solutions portfolio represents a further step forward in EssilorLuxottica's path of excellence in the ophthalmic sector. With the same spirit of innovation and attention to detail and quality of service, we will be able to respond even more effectively to the evolving needs in the field of ophthalmic lens production, including emerging product categories such as wearables. The acquisition will enable us to improve the quality and performance of our ophthalmic solutions and further strengthen our technology platform," commented Francesco Milleri, president and CEO, and Paul du Saillant, deputy CEO of EssilorLuxottica.