Its a 50/50 Split on Who Does In-House Lens Edging and Finishing

question:

Do you offer in-house lens edging/finishing?

Yes: 50%

• I purchased a Coburn edger during COVID because I was frustrated trying to get glasses made during lockdown. We can often make lenses on demand but usually turnaround is 5-6 days with our surface work. — Nikki D., Oakdale and St. Paul, MN
• We have been in business for 60+ years and have a full surface and finish lab. The only thing we don’t do in house is anti-reflective coatings. Most glasses are made in about an hour. — Cindy H., Chattanooga, TN
• Yes, we offer in-house edging at select locations, and I’m a strong advocate for it whenever space and staffing allow. We currently complete 40–60% of lens jobs in-house, primarily single vision and select bifocal orders, using Santinelli LEX-1200 and Essilor Delta200 edgers. In-house jobs are often ready same day or within 1–2 business days, while surfaced lens orders take an average of 2–3 days, depending on how quickly we receive uncut lenses from the lab. What sets in-office edging apart is the level of care and precision we can apply to each job. Unlike high-volume labs that treat every prescription the same, we tailor each job with attention to frame fit, lens type, and patient need. This hands-on approach leads to better visual outcomes and fewer remakes. I also think many ECPs —whether they’re ophthalmologists, optometrists, or opticians — overlook the value of telling a patient, “You can hold on to your glasses while we wait for your new lenses.” That simple reassurance helps retain sales and builds long-term patient loyalty. — Vlad C., Parsippany, NJ
• We have been doing this for 50+ years, but more recently we send about 50% to the lab for precision optics. — Kenneth W., Livingston, NJ
• 95% of jobs are edged in house. The turnaround time average is one week, down from two weeks when we sent them out. I wish I started with an edger from the beginning and bought the faster one from the start. I just upgraded last month and am so happy. — Adam R., Palm Beach Gardens, FL
• My dad bought his first AIT edger in 1975. I was still in high school, but I learned to run it and have been edging ever since. Today I have a Santinelli LEXCE and an ICE 1500 Blocker. — Robert L., Jefferson City, MO
• For almost 10 years, 90% of the orders have been completed in-house. Turnaround time is 10 business days. — Danielle D., Detroit, MI
• We purchased our Coburn HPE-410 in late 2022. Our original storefront was so small I had it set up in my home basement. Since then, we’ve moved locations and are currently finishing up a renovation on our lab. We finish about 80% in house except for rimless, grooves, and some specialty tint jobs. Our turnaround tends to be about 10 days for most things. — Chris W., Portland, ME
• We use it for single vision jobs. About 20% is done in house. It takes a few days. — Jordan F., Baltimore, MD
• We have offered in-house edging for roughly 25 years. About 90% of our jobs are edged in-house. Once we get the lens blanks into our office, our turnaround time is usually one day. We use a Santinelli Lex 1000 and Ice Mini. — Amy D., Fergus Falls, MN
• We have done all our jobs in-house since opening in 2009. As a side note, the edger was the first piece of equipment I purchased. We’re running a Corburn 8000, and my original edger is the Santinelli 9000Sx. — Kevin C., Glenview, IL
• We offer it as a service but don’t utilize it a huge amount. Usually for second pair sales, plano suns, and patients who can’t give up their frame to have new lenses made, we schedule them an edging appointment. We do have the ability to order stock lenses and have them within 24 hours. We have a National Optronics 7Ex. We also have a polisher and offer refurb and polishing for a fee. I would like to use it more, but we do a lot of digital lenses that are surfaced and take longer to turn around, which defeats the purpose often. — Jason K., Phoenix, AZ
• We have done this for 15+ years. We do farm out the vast majority but are capable if needed. Three weeks is the new norm. — Mike B., Evans, GA
• We have been edging lenses in-house for over two decades. For most of that time, we were simply edging finish-stock lenses. After COVID, we started edging 90% of our jobs in the office, with just the more specialized jobs being sent out. Average turnaround remains about 7-10 business days, except for stock. Our lab is small, with a tracer, blocker, and edger, but we consistently have around 400 orders a month going through. — Anna K., Kittery, ME
• We have been offering this for over thirty years. We do about 80% of all jobs. We can turnaround same day if we have lenses in stock. If not, it takes about five days. We have a Santinelli edger. — Deborah T., Austin, TX
• We have been offering it for 12 of the 14 years we’ve been in business. We are probably about 65-70% in house, with average turnaround time being one week. We have a Santinelli edger. — Cynthia S., Lewis Center, OH
• It was part of our business plan when we opened; 80% of our jobs are cut in house, and specialty jobs are shipped out to the labs. We have a basic Briot. — Jennifer Y., Canandaigua, NY
• We have been doing this since we opened 13 years ago. About 65% is done in house, and turnaround is about one week. We use a Santinelli edger. — Rick R., Girard, PA
• We have been offering it since we opened. We use in-house edging for the majority of our jobs, approximately 85%. Our turnaround time is usually the same day that we receive lenses, and we pride ourselves on getting our patients their glasses as quickly as possible. We use a Coburn Technology blocker and edger. — Whitney H., Missoula, MT
• We’ve been cutting and edging 100% of our jobs since 2021. We typically turn jobs around in 3-5 days, which is great for customer service. We use the Coburn HPE-910 edger and the HAB-8000X tracer/blocker. — Ben T., Miami, FL
• We have the LEXCE Trend edger and finish 99% of our jobs in-house, including drills. We have edged in-house since the office opened in 2019. It means I can get a stock lens job turned around the next day if ordered in the morning. We don’t keep any lenses in stock. Average turn time is about a week, but the big benefit is quality control. — Rialeigh Y., Norfolk, VA
• For 25+ years we used to do all our own edging until insurance came along and now we are required to outsource most of our orders. We mainly now only edge stock lenses. Our equipment is older, but financially it is not worth replacing unless I could staff a finishing position full time again. We also have an apprentice program, so it is nice to have it around so they can experience finishing. — Jocelyn M., MA

No: 50%

• We are planning to offer this service very soon. We went to Vision Expo West to look at edgers. — Elena J., Nashua, RI
• We do not have in-house edging. There never seemed to be a good time to spend the money and commit. — Joni S., Iowa City, IA
• No interest. There are great labs out there with fantastic turnaround, and I would rather my staff be doing direct patient care. — Jenna G., Fargo, ND
• We edged years ago, and when the edger broke, we decided not to replace it. That was 11 years ago. — Mark P., Orlando, FL
• It is too small a local market to be profitable in a rural or small-town setting. A competitor tried it about 10 years ago and had to give it up. — Jen H., Sandpoint, ID
• Unfortunately, being in a historic building, we are limited on space, so having a super loud edger in here would be a nightmare. — Kelsey B., Winston-Salem, NC
• It would be amazing to be able to do this. We do not because of space issues and expense. — Morgan D., Carmi, IL
• We do not. We had previously, and at the time it was only minimally financially beneficial based on the products we sell. This has changed greatly over the last three years, so it is something we are looking back into due to lab costs. — Zachary D., Saint Peter, MN
• We are still a growing business, and we just do not have the space yet. — Eryn S., Ortonville, MI