Alex de BoldThe eyewear manufacturing process has been slow-moving for years. With small manufacturers starting to represent the production of 95% of the global market, competition has hit an all time high.
The reason for this is simple: smaller manufacturers are adapting to market demands much faster than their counterparts. VARAi offers a cutting-edge solution designed specifically for manufacturers and designers, enabling faster approvals, higher precision, and trend-driven designs—all without the need for physical prototypes!
Stick around to discover how VARAi can revolutionize your eyewear manufacturing process.
The Manufacturing Gap in Eyewear
While global eyewear production is dominated by manufacturing hubs like China and Italy, it is undeniable that some manufacturing gaps have persisted over the years. Bridging the gap between design, production, and market readiness remains a persistent setback for many. The common things eyewear brands struggle with:
- Limited control over production efficiency and scalability
- Challenges in balancing cost, quality, and customization
- Dependence on traditional, time-intensive prototyping methods
- Inconsistent access to cutting-edge manufacturing technologies
Despite advancements, there has only been one company, VARAi, who is offering automation and digital design tools, helping eyewear brands negate delays, high costs, and inefficiencies when transitioning from concept to production.
The reliance on manual labor, complex supply chains, and slow production cycles creates bottlenecks that hinder both innovation and affordability. Future innovations can help bring big opportunities to standard production methods, helping faster time to market results.
Best Tools for Designing and Manufacturing Process
VARAi has created the best tools for manufacturing and designing processes that promise a cut down by up to 9 months. This can help people hop on to trends much quicker.
Here are the tools you need as a designer and manufacturer to completely change your process from the traditional to the new one:
3D Configurator
VARAi’s 3D configurator is meant for designers who want to create compelling 3D models using existing digital prototypes. First, your eyeglasses are converted into 3D models. Secondly, now you can change the texture, color, or features of the eyewear completely.
Other use cases for the 3D configurator:
- Swapping different types of lenses in models
- Creating new eyewear designs from scratch
- Getting 1:1 accurate digital replicas of physical frames
- Visual collaboration for easy and fast approval cycles
- Precise material behavior representation for better prototyping
3D Viewer
Our 3D viewer is a special software that displays all types of eyewear, such as transparent, semi-transparent, frosted, rimless, and other types without any distortions. Our models are stable with hyper-precision technology that showcases every little detail.
Other use cases for the 3D viewer:
- Better visualization of custom models
- Used with other platforms for real-time model view
- Reflects the actual behavior of the eyeglasses in real-life
- Provides high-resolution 360° views to show all details
- Replaces physical prototypes for promotion and sales
How VARAi Is Helping Global Eyewear Brands?
There are a few ways in which VARAi is enhancing the way you design, manufacture, and launch your eyewear. Below are the benefits you can only get with VARAi:
Accelerating the Design-to-Production Timeline
- VARAi’s tools reduce the eyewear design and manufacturing process by up to 9 months, allowing brands to keep up with fast-changing trends.
- Digital prototyping eliminates the need for time-consuming physical sample iterations, speeding up approvals and finalization.
Revolutionizing Eyewear Design with the 3D Configurator
- Converts physical eyewear into highly detailed 3D models, making digital design and customization seamless.
- Enables designers to modify textures, colors, and frame details without restarting the prototyping process.
- Supports real-time material and lens swaps, helping brands experiment with different frame aesthetics effortlessly.
- Enhances collaboration by allowing teams to make instant updates and gain rapid approvals.
Enhancing Visualization and Customer Experience with the 3D Viewer
- Showcases eyewear with hyper-precision rendering, accurately displaying frame materials, transparency levels, and light behavior.
- Provides a 360° high-resolution view, allowing customers and stakeholders to examine products in full detail.
- Reduces dependency on physical prototypes, cutting costs while improving marketing and sales presentations.
- Seamlessly integrates into e-commerce platforms for interactive product display and virtual try-on compatibility.
Enabling Seamless Digital Manufacturing and Customization
- Ensures 1:1 digital replicas of eyewear, reducing production errors and enhancing accuracy in manufacturing.
- Allows manufacturers to preview exact material behavior, optimizing for durability, flexibility, and comfort before production.
- Facilitates mass customization, making it easier for brands to offer bespoke eyewear solutions without excess inventory.
Supporting Sustainability and Cost Efficiency
- Reduces waste by minimizing the need for physical prototypes and unnecessary sample shipments.
- Lowers production costs by streamlining the design, approval, and manufacturing process.
- Supports eco-friendly eyewear development, allowing brands to experiment with sustainable materials before full-scale production.
Other Ways VARAi Can Help You
VARAi has other tools for the eyewear value chain that can help eyewear brands provide the best experience to their customers without spending a fortune. Let’s take a look at them:
Seamless 3D Design & Prototyping
- Transforms 2D CAD drawings into hyper-realistic 3D models, allowing designers to visualize frames with precise detailing.
- Eliminates guesswork in prototyping, ensuring accurate design execution before production even begins.
Real-Time Material Customization
- Provides access to a vast digital library of acetates, metals, and lenses, enabling brands to experiment with different materials effortlessly.
- Allows designers to make instant material and texture adjustments, removing the need for time-consuming physical samples.
Enhancing Customer Engagement with Virtual Try-On (VTO)
- Before sending a design to production, brands can offer customers a Virtual Try-On (VTO) experience, improving purchasing confidence.
- Reduces the likelihood of costly post-production redesigns by ensuring consumer approval before manufacturing.
Faster Time-to-Market with Digital Prototyping
- Eliminates inefficiencies in traditional design cycles, accelerating the process from concept to final product.
- Reduces reliance on physical samples, enabling brands to react to trends faster and bring new designs to market in record time.
The Future of Eyewear Manufacturing Starts Here
The global production process and the traditional ways of making eyewear has become quite outdated. VARAi is providing a smarter, more agile way to design and develop eyewear, giving brands unprecedented control over their collections.
With VARAi, brands no longer have to be bound by traditional limitations—they can design freely, innovate faster, and bring their vision to life with greater precision than ever before.
If you are ready to make the smarter decision, contact us to get started today.