'Awards of Excellence' Named at OLA 2004; Shyer Family Given Directors' Award

From left to right: James Shyer, Arthur Waite (President of OLA and Winchester Optical),
Christopher Shyer, Henry Shyer

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Optical Laboratories Association (OLA) announced the winners of its annual "Awards of Excellence" at a banquet at the close of the annual OLA trade show here, November 13, 2004. The awards are chosen by OLA members. In addition to 14 category winners, the prestigious Directors' Choice Award this year went to the Shyer family, which has run Zyloware for 81 years and three generations. The 2004 Awards of Excellence received by Zyloware were:

• Best in Dress Frames: Via Spiga Montebello by Zyloware
• Best in Sports Frames: Invincilites Beta by Zyloware
• Best in Sunglass Frames: Via Spiga 312-S by Zyloware

The Optical Laboratories Association (OLA) is an international business association founded in 1894 to serve the needs of the optical laboratory industry. The Optical Laboratories Association Board of Directors established in 1987 the "DIRECTORS' CHOICE" award to honor individuals, companies or organizations who, in their opinion, have made outstanding contributions to the ophthalmic industry. The annual presentation is the keynote of the Awards of Excellence ceremony.

OLA's current members include 337 companies, representing 505 wholesale and retail laboratories in the U.S., Canada, and 14 other countries. OLA produces a variety of education and training materials for optical laboratories and eyecare professionals, including Perspective on Lenses, Lens Menu, Progressive Identifier, and the OLA Lens Center, the Indispensable Dispensing GUIDE, the bi-monthly magazine CLEARVisions, and MemberNews bulletins on legal and technical topics for optical laboratories. The association sponsors an international exposition and conference - "THE OLA" - the world's largest show exclusively for optical laboratories.