Dalloz Creations
When Dalloz Creations expanded its product portfolio and began fulfilling a large order for sports sunglass lens coating, the company turned its focus to mirror coating technology from Bühler Leybold Optics. Today, this pioneer from the Jura mountains in France has transformed its operations, unlocking new possibilities in both high-end and mass-market sunglass and goggle lenses. The company’s story is one of growth, perseverance, and a dedication to perfection – down to the nanometer.
Lukas Hofstetter, November 2025
Nestled within the rugged Jura mountains of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region, Dalloz Creations embodies how industrial companies around the world must stay ahead of the curve through innovation and foresight. The producer of sunglass lenses was founded in 1957 by Christian Dalloz, who recognized the potential of polycarbonate in optics. His pioneering research led to the creation of the first polycarbonate lens – a lightweight plastic lens made from a thermoplastic polymer. This paradigm shift ushered in a new era for lens manufacturers worldwide, who quickly adopted the technology for creating lenses in safety glasses, sports sunglasses, and glasses for children. Its durability and high impact resistance accelerated global adoption, opening new possibilities in both design and function.
Over the decades, Dalloz continued to innovate, developing new materials for sunglass production such as bio-based polyamide or specialized polycarbonate for safety applications, for example ballistic resistance. In 2022, the creative minds at Dalloz Creations introduced a bio-circular polycarbonate, which contains 60 percent by-products from the wood and paper industry and received the renowned ISCC PLUS (International Sustainability & Carbon Certification). The company covers the full value chain in sunglass lenses and goggle screens, from the injection molding process to varnishing and mirror coating.
Until recently, Dalloz’s product portfolio primarily served one market, leaving the company exposed to concentration risk. “In the 2010s, we were well-known in the luxury brand sector, predominantly for our applications of pure-gold coatings for high-end sunglasses. That’s why we wanted to expand our offering and enter the sport sunglasses market more strategically,” explains Frédéric Drivet, General Manager at Dalloz Creations. The breakthrough came when a major sports retail approached them regarding the production of large quantities of lenses for sport sunglasses in September 2021. “One year later, we started production of polarized lenses with mirror coatings for this customer,” he says. The retailer’s intention was to increase European production for the European market, reducing dependency on long and fragmented value chains from Asia and gaining access to reliable, locally produced materials. The frames are made in Italy, further boosting European production and shortening the supply chain.
Drivet remembers Dalloz’ effort to fulfill its contractual obligations with their previous mirror coating technology. “In the first year, we tried to develop color recipes and mirror coatings with our existing machines. The biggest challenge was the high scrap rate, which had a detrimental impact on both production and research and development,” he says “When production time is extended to reach the required quantities due to the high scrap rate, we have less time on the machine to develop and test new colors and recipes. This leads to longer response times for our customers, who count on fast developments in their dynamic markets. We knew this could not continue and that our contract was at risk.”
When Yvonne Bonnin-Degner, Sales Representative at Bühler Leybold Optics, learned about the issues Dalloz was facing, she was eager to help the customer she’d been supporting for years with new solutions. “Before Frédéric approached me, we found our-selves in a traditional supplier role for the occasional spare parts and consumables only. We also supplied evaporation-material mixtures used in the mirror coating machine according to Dalloz’s needs,” she explains. “For many years, we had been trying to convince Dalloz of the many benefits of our mirror coating machine. When I met Frédéric at SILMO eyewear exhibition in 2021, we had such an open and fruitful discussion about Dalloz’s challenges, and thanks to our preparation work, I was ready to present a tailormade solution. It was a turning point – a once in a lifetime opportunity to prove that Bühler has the expertise and technology to support their growth.”
We were known in the luxury sector for pure gold coatings for high-end sunglasses. Our goal was to expand our portfolio and enter the sport sunglasses market.
Frédéric Drivet,
General Manager at Dalloz Creations
The solution was the Bühler Leybold Optics ECS 1350. The vacuum coater is designed for mass production with low scrap rates, a throughput of 72 to 94 pairs of lenses per coating run, and a capacity of up to 1,000 pairs per 8-hour shift. It was exactly what Dalloz needed in terms of technological boost, and the advantages went much further. Frédéric Drivet could not believe the impact it had on Dalloz from day one.
“We signed the agreement in December 2022, and we received the machine at the end of 2023. Everyone knew that this was a real game-changer, but its performance exceeded our expectations,” Drivet explains. “We developed a new mirror in just half a day – in the past, this would have taken us three, four, or even five days, which means we had to stop production for up to one week. The scrap rate was cut in half immediately, which was an unbelievable boost for our productivity, and the cycle time improved as well.”
The scrap rate became so low that Dalloz no longer had enough defective lenses to use as protective covers for stacked good lenses. “The colleagues in production came to me and said ‘Boss, we’re running out of defective lenses’ – what a nice problem to have to solve,” says Drivet.
The service from Bühler goes beyond delivering and commissioning a solution. Training and support are just as important and create the kind of partnership in which both parties benefit. “After the set up, we agreed that a Bühler expert would support our R&D engineers in developing five processes for our five mirrors for sports applications. By the end of the week, we had 12 recipes. Even more impressive was the dedication of Bühler Process Commissioning Engineer Thorsten Naumann, who trained our young engineers in PVD (physical vapor deposition) mirror coating. This knowledge transfer enables us to develop at a speed and quality we couldn’t have imagined,” Drivet explains.
The key advantage for Dalloz is faster turnaround in co-developments with their customers, speeding up their time-to-market. Florie Loddo, who joined Dalloz in 2022 as Business Development Manager, knows how important it is to have confidence in the development and production capacities. “We support two types of customers. One knows exactly what they want and how it should be done, even on a technical level. The other is 100 percent clear on the emotion they want to evoke but relies on us to develop the recipes for them to create this emotion with colorful mirror coatings,” Loddo explains “Before Bühler, the challenge was time, quality, precision, stability – and the ability to respond precisely to customer needs. Today, we translate their needs much more accurately and quickly and are a reliable partner in product development.”
Traditionally, Dalloz coated sunglass lenses by loading round lenses on the curved calotte holder to secure them before coating the front surface. In this new process, the raw materials (consumables) such as titanium oxide for the reflective effect are placed on the electron beam gun in the crucible at the bottom of the machine. After the vacuum is created and all remaining moisture has been taken out via a Meisner trap cooled to - 152 degrees Celsius, the physical vapor deposition (PVD) process evaporates the materials into a gas. This gas is then applied to the lens with nanometer precision, layer by layer.
We enable our customers to evoke emotions with colorful mirror coatings. This is only possible with the most reliable and precise technology.
Florie Loddo,
Business Development Manager at Dalloz Creations
This was a once in a lifetime opportunity to prove that Bühler has the expertise and technology to support Dalloz’s growth.
Yvonne Bonnin-Degner,
Sales Representative at Bühler Leybold Optics
We knew that The ECS 1350 was a game-changer, but performance exceeded our expectations – an unbelievable boost for productivity.
Frédéric Drivet,
General Manager at Dalloz Creations
For context, a nanometer is 80,000 to 100,000 times smaller than a human hair. When Dalloz’s product range further expanded to lenses for sports goggles and larger sunglasses for skiing, cycling, or motorbike helmets, the engineers at Dalloz and Bühler co-created a “satellite” fixture for coating the larger, curved, and more complex shapes. While the “umbrella” remains stationary during coating with lenses locked in slots, the satellite rotates curved lenses and inverts them to ensure even layer distribution.
The business boost Dalloz experienced with Bühler Leybold Optics led to another order. In spring 2025, Bühler installed a second ECS 1350 at the Saint-Claude site to increase production capacity and align R&D and production needs even better. “We manufacture and coat lenses 24 hours a day from Monday to Friday, and sometimes on Saturdays to fulfill our customers’ orders. From 24-carat gold coatings for designer brands to sports sunglasses and goggles for outdoor enthusiasts – we’ve successfully diversified our portfolio and continue developing new solutions with our customers,” says Frédéric Drivet.
The next big challenge for Dalloz and Bühler is improving mirror-coating scratch resistance. Florie Loddo and her innovation team are working closely with customers to solve this issue. “Consumers love their shiny sunglasses and sports goggles, which offer style and protection from UV rays and glare. But, the price for the stylish look is reduced scratch resistance. We’re currently testing how we can integrate Bühler’s dry hard-coat solution into our processes, which will significantly improve scratch resistance and allow millions of people around the world to enjoy their sunglasses and goggles without worrying about scratches,” Loddo says.
With their set up, know-how, and understanding of their diverse customer needs, Dalloz Creations is well-positioned to continue the legacy Christian Dalloz began more than 60 years ago. And Bühler Leybold Optics’ experts are ready to support Dalloz in their quest of putting function into fashion.
Who: Dalloz Creations
Where: Saint-Claude, France
When: Founded in 1957.
What: Dalloz Creations is a leading European producer of lenses for sunglasses and sports goggles and employs over 30 people.
Customers: Dalloz supplies lenses for the high-end luxury markets as well as the mass market for leading European sport and fashion eyewear brands.
Bühler: Dalloz relies on two Bühler Leybold Optics ECS 1350 mirror coating machines. One coats sunglass lenses, and the other one coats larger skiing or motorbike goggle lenses. Bühler also supplies some raw materials.
Gupfenstrasse 5
Uzwil
9240
Switzerland
