Scottsville Production, West Henrietta Distribution and Victor Commercial Center Harnessing Wind Power to Make, Ship and Manage Contact Lenses
ROCHESTER, N.Y. April 4, 2019—Taking yet another step to succeed with sustainability in mind, CooperVision has converted its three Rochester, N.Y.-area sites to 100 percent renewable electricity usage. These include the Scottsville contact lens manufacturing plant, the West Henrietta global packaging and distribution operation, and the Victor commercial center.
The company began moving to electrical power using renewable energy certificates (RECs) two years ago in Rochester. The sites now completely rely on wind-derived electricity via RECs, a choice made by CooperVision because of wind generation’s prominence in New York State.
CooperVision employs more than 1,000 people across the Rochester region, which also serves as the base for its Americas business.
“Making the switch to 100 percent renewable electricity was the right thing to do as we continue to invest in upgrading our Rochester facilities,” said Myles Ott, Environmental, Health & Safety Engineer at CooperVision. “It reflects our commitment to the environment, health and well-being of our employees and the local community, as well as complementing many of our customers’ and partners’ sustainability efforts.”
CooperVision worked with consultant Power Management and Constellation, an Exelon company, for the Rochester-area renewable electricity supply.
As part of ongoing renovations at the Scottsville site, which manufactures made-to-order contact lenses worn by people worldwide, the company has made several other enhancements. These include LED lighting installations, incorporation of natural lighting in the cafeteria, and the introduction of variable-speed motors for reduced power consumption, as well as significant gains in materials recycling.
Likewise, the 275,000-square-foot West Henrietta distribution site, which at any given time stores more than 120,000 different contact lens products, has made several sustainability advancements. The massive warehouse was retrofitted with new energy-efficient LED lighting, covering 95% of all spaces. It recently obtained zero waste-to-landfill status, with 90 percent of materials recycled and the remaining 10 percent converted to energy.
The Victor site, opened in 2015 in the town’s High Point development, houses employees in marketing, sales, finance, information technology, customer service, and supply chain management. While it benefitted from sustainable design practices incorporated during its construction, the commercial office continues to implement additional gains through smart sourcing initiatives. These include moving to reusable utensils, as well as biodegradable paper products and coffee pods.
Progress in Rochester reflects only a portion of CooperVision sustainability initiatives focused on saving water, conserving energy; reducing, reusing and recycling resources; and empowering people within the company and the communities in which it operates. Its recently-introduced website that highlights efforts around the globe is available at coopervision.com/sustainability.
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About CooperVision
CooperVision, a unit of The Cooper Companies, Inc. (NYSE:COO), is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of soft contact lenses. The Company produces a full array of monthly, two-week and daily disposable contact lenses, all featuring advanced materials and optics. CooperVision has a strong heritage of solving the toughest vision challenges such as astigmatism and presbyopia; and offers the most complete collection of spherical, toric and multifocal products available. Through a combination of innovative products and focused practitioner support, the company brings a refreshing perspective to the marketplace, creating real advantages for customers and wearers. For more information, visit coopervision.com.
About The Cooper Companies
The Cooper Companies, Inc. ("Cooper") is a global medical device company publicly traded on the NYSE (NYSE:COO). Cooper operates through two business units, CooperVision and CooperSurgical. CooperVision brings a refreshing perspective on vision care with a commitment to developing a wide range of high-quality products for contact lens wearers and providing focused practitioner support. CooperSurgical is committed to advancing the health of women, babies and families with its diversified portfolio of products and services focusing on medical devices and fertility & genomics. Headquartered in Pleasanton, CA, Cooper has more than 12,000 employees with products sold in over 100 countries. For more information, please visit coopercos.com.
Media Contact
Mike McDougall, APR, Fellow PRSA
McDougall Communications for CooperVision, Inc.
mike@mcdougallpr.com or +1-585-545-1815