§1What this business is

Photochromatic glass turns dark in sunlight and becomes clear again indoors, because of tiny silver halide crystals inside the glass; it also blocks UV rays. This unit does not make the glass. It buys photochromic blanks (photogrey, photobrown, photosun) and coloured glass blanks, fixes each blank on a blocker, grinds the curve on a diamond curve generator, smooths it and polishes it with cerium oxide on automatic spindle machines. The blank is then taken off the block and the second side is done the same way. Finished lenses are cleaned, tested for power and accuracy, and sold to people who fit them into frames.

Capacity: 3,000 dozen photochromatic lenses and 575 dozen coloured glasses a year, on one 8-hour shift, 300 days a year at 85% utilisation. The profile's first page values this at ₹33,69,500 (₹30,12,000 + ₹3,57,500), while its turnover table shows ₹34,95,000 (₹31,50,000 + ₹3,45,000).

§2Is it right for you?

Who it is for

Someone trained in lens grinding, or an optician or optical wholesaler who wants to make lenses instead of only buying them.

Who it is not for

Someone with no optical training — a lens with the wrong power or a scratch cannot be sold.

Advantages

  • Small fixed capital — ₹2,60,000 in the profile, with rented premises
  • The profile says the machines are available from Indian makers
  • One lens works both as a sunglass and as a reading glass, so it sells to two kinds of buyers
  • Fits into 900 sq ft

Drawbacks

  • Glass blanks are ₹1,98,300 of the ₹2,03,000 monthly raw material bill, so the unit depends fully on blank suppliers
  • The profile itself calls the grinding and polishing work sophisticated, with strict checks at each stage
  • Net profit ratio in the profile is 9.90%
  • The 2003 profile covers glass lenses only; it says nothing about plastic lenses

Skills you need

  • Blocking, grinding and polishing lens surfaces
  • Reading prescriptions and checking lens power on a lensometer
  • Setting and maintaining spindle machines and tools
  • Selling to optical shops and wholesalers

Why difficulty 3/5: Small investment, but the work needs trained hands and strict checking of every lens.

§3Market

Who buys

  • Optical shops that fit lenses into frames
  • Optical wholesalers
  • Sunglass assemblers and frame makers

How it sells

  • Direct supply to opticians in nearby towns
  • Sale through optical wholesale markets

Good to know

  • The profile says demand is immediate in urban and semi-urban areas, both for eye care and for fashion.
  • The profile's turnover table prices photochromic lenses at ₹1,050 per dozen pairs and coloured glasses at ₹600 per dozen pairs (2003 prices).
  • Standard named in the profile: IS 6472:1976, general requirements for tinted ophthalmic glass.

§4Raw material & machinery

ItemQtyCost
Spherical diamond curve generator with 1 HP motor and pump1₹50,000
Automatic two-spindle spherical smoothing machine with feeding pumps, motors and timer2 sets₹45,000
Automatic two-spindle spherical polishing machine with feeding pumps and motors5 sets₹80,000
Surface blocker and deblocker unit with thermostat1 set₹15,000
Set of spherical grinding and polishing tools20 pairs₹1,500
Spherical blocking holders, 50 mm to 55 mm25 dozen pairs₹1,500
Brass gauges10₹2,500
Lensometer1₹10,000
Lens measure2₹750
Trial set1 set₹2,500

From: DC-MSME project profile — Ophthalmic and Sun Photochromatic Glasses (2003)

  • Photochromic glass blanks (photogrey, photogrey extra, photobrown, photosun), 60 mm to 65 mm diameter, 2.8 mm to 5 mm thick260 dozen a month at ₹680 per dozen = ₹1,76,800 (2003 prices)
  • Coloured glass blanks in different shades, 55 mm to 65 mm diameter, 3.00 mm to 5.00 mm thick50 dozen pairs a month at ₹430 per dozen = ₹21,500
  • Abrasive and polishing compounds (cerium oxide)₹1,500 a month
  • Blocking alloy and cleaning chemicals₹1,500 a month
  • Packing materials₹1,000 a month

From: DC-MSME project profile — Ophthalmic and Sun Photochromatic Glasses (2003)

§5Licences & registration

  1. Udyam registration
  2. GST registration
  3. Trade licence from the local body
  4. BIS certification where a Quality Control Order applies

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§6Schemes & subsidies

At 2003 prices the project is ₹10,05,500, well under the PMEGP ceiling of ₹50 lakh for manufacturing — but work out today's cost and check it against that ceiling. MUDRA can cover a small loan and CGTMSE a loan without collateral.

§7Money

How the investment is worked out: The premises are rented. Fixed capital ₹2,60,000 (machinery ₹1,93,000; testing equipment — brass gauges ₹2,500, lensometer ₹10,000, lens measures ₹750, trial set ₹2,500; office equipment and furniture ₹20,000; installation and electrification ₹22,875; preliminary and pre-operative expenses ₹8,375) + working capital for 3 months ₹7,45,500 = ₹10,05,500.

Working capital: Recurring cost is ₹2,48,500 a month: raw material ₹2,03,000, staff ₹31,510, other expenses ₹6,690, utilities ₹3,300 and rent ₹4,000. The profile keeps 3 months of this, ₹7,45,500, as working capital.

Prices from 2003 — machinery, rent and wage costs will be much higher now.

How to prepare a loan file

§8Export potential

The profile prints no HS code and does not discuss exports. Look up the code for spectacle lenses of glass in the DGFT ITC-HS list if you plan to export.

§9Risks — where people fail

  • Rejections from scratches, wrong curves or wrong power
  • Supply or price trouble with photochromic blanks
  • Buyers moving to other lens materials
  • Credit sales to optical shops that pay late

§1030 / 60 / 90-day plan

A general plan that applies to any business. A plan for this business will be added after research.

  1. Days 1–30: Visit a working photochromatic and coloured sunglass lenses unit, ask 10 buyers about price and quantity, and get quotations from 3 suppliers.
  2. Days 31–60: Udyam and the licences you need (Udyam registration, GST registration), a project report (DPR), and the scheme or loan file.
  3. Days 61–90: Space and machines, trial production, and first deliveries to 10 customers.

§11Who to connect with

§12Watch

There is no episode on this business yet. Shows are coming soon on the Podcast page.

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Sources

  1. DC-MSME project profile — Ophthalmic and Sun Photochromatic Glasses (2003)

Data review: 6 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Report it. For information only — not legal or financial advice.