PATIENTS TO EXPERIENCE THE OUTDOORS LIKE NEVER BEFORE WITH ESSILOR’S XPERIO LENSES
New polarized lenses deliver superior visual performance and optimal comfort
DALLAS – (March 27, 2009) – Essilor of America, Inc., the nation's leading manufacturer of optical lenses, today announces the launch of Xperio™ lenses, a new brand of advanced polarized lenses featuring industry-leading designs, materials and coatings that deliver superior visual performance and optimal comfort.

In addition to Xperio’s unmatched availability, all lenses that carry the Xperio name meet or exceed Essilor’s rigorous performance standards. The lenses are superior to ordinary tints with benefits including: glare reduction, natural-color enhancement, 100 percent UVA/UVB protection, unmatched clarity of vision and superior scratch resistance.

“Of the 150 million eyeglass wearers in the U.S., only 15 percent (23 million) have a primary outdoor pair and less than 7 percent (10 million) use polarized lenses,” said Carl Bracy, vice president of marketing for Essilor of America. “Essilor’s new Xperio lenses provide eyecare professionals [ECPs] with an opportunity to grow their practices by encouraging every clear prescription patient to also own a primary outdoor pair.”

Xperio polarized lenses allow patients to experience both a safe and beautiful world by delivering UV protection plus glare reduction. A recent clinical study measuring driver reaction times for Xperio polarized lenses versus ordinary tinted lenses concluded that driver reaction times were reduced by 1/3 of a second with Xperio lenses. For a car traveling 50 mph, 1/3 of a second allows a driver to stop a vehicle 23 feet sooner, which could be the difference between getting in an accident and avoiding one.

Clinical studies also show that Xperio polarized lenses improve contrast sensitivity and visual acuity by 75 percent, allowing wearers to experience the outdoors with exceptional clarity of vision versus ordinary tints. In addition, Xperio grey lenses allow for natural color enhancement, or the ability to see true color outdoors.

Xperio polarized lenses bring together the very best designs and materials from Essilor, KBco and SLC so ECPs can provide their patients with the widest range of polarized offerings available in the world. Xperio offers 37 unique polarized lens design and material combinations—more than six times the offering of the closest competitor.

The Xperio launch will be announced at International Vision Expo Conference in New York, NY on March 27th. Product availability, ECP and consumer materials and a new demonstration unit will follow. For more information on Essilor Xperio polarized lenses, contact your lab representative or visit www.essilorusa.com.

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Varilux, Crizal, and DEFINITY are registered trademarks and Xperio is a trademark of Essilor International. Thin&Lite is a registered trademark of Essilor of America, Inc.