CooperVision hosts eye care professionals of the future on manufacturing tour

Contact lens manufacturer welcomes students from the University of Manchester for the first time since Covid

Global contact lens manufacturer, CooperVision, was delighted to welcome 16 students from the University of Manchester to its main UK manufacturing facility in Hamble on Sunday 23^rd March, 2025.

For a number of years, CooperVision has been a supporter of the University’s MSci Optometry course, a four-year course delivered in an active learning environment where undergraduates gain the knowledge and skills required to register as a UK optometrist. Manufacturing tours were a regular part of the students’ experience until the Covid pandemic hit in 2020 and this recent tour sees the long-awaited return of this valuable element of the partnership.

The half-day tour commenced with a lunch, during which students could interact with CooperVision representatives, and was followed by behind-the-scenes access to the manufacturing process for Biofinity^®. The students were able to see firsthand the high degree of quality assurance that goes into the manufacture of the medical devices as well as learn how the process is being made more sustainable.

The guests were led by Head of Optometry and Director of Eurolens Research at the University of Manchester, Professor Philip Morgan, who said: “I feel that our students really benefit from seeing the manufacturing process for contact lenses. The chance to see the impressive, automated processes of modern contact lens manufacture has great educational benefit and helps inform students about issues related to lens fitting and ongoing patient management. I am grateful that CooperVision has once again hosted our group from Manchester.”

University of Manchester PhD student Abdullah Alomran said: ‘It was very interesting to see the modern manufacture of soft contact lenses first hand. I was impressed with the automation of the CooperVision manufacturing process, and our visit has helped me gain a better understanding of contact lenses more generally.’

CooperVision host, Neil Harvey FBDO.CL FBCLA, Professional Affairs Consultant, commented: “It is an absolute pleasure to welcome the students and staff of the University of Manchester back to the CooperVision manufacturing facility here in the UK. We are proud of our state-of-the-art facility and the high-quality products manufactured here.

“Allowing the eye care professionals of the future to see this process will help with a better understanding of the lenses when they see them on their patients’ eyes in practice.”

CooperVision continues to provide additional support to students at the University of Manchester and other Optometry schools across the UK and Ireland through educational workshops and clinical fitting sessions as well as through the OptiStudent™ app.

OptiStudent™ is a mobile phone-based app which provides a library of educational content to students including videos assessing the fit of soft contact lenses and an introduction into myopia management.

It also includes information about the OptiStudent™ Awards, an annual contact lens competition where University students may present research projects on contact lenses or the anterior eye. This year’s OptiStudent™ Awards EMEA final is planned for October in Budapest where students will come together to present their work to a panel of judges, with the winner being declared ‘OptiStudent™ of the year’.

The OptiStudent™ app can be downloaded from the App Store for iOS users and from the Google Play Store for Android users.