3M (St. Paul, Minn.) entered into an agreement to sell its safety prescription eyewear business to Hoya Vision Care, a global eyeglass lens leader based in Japan.
3M’s safety prescription eyewear business has existed for more than 90 years. Today, it has annual global sales of around $45 million, according to a 3M statement.
“After a thorough strategic review, we have decided to exit the safety prescription eyewear business to focus on our core personal safety businesses,” said Bernard Cicut, vice president and general manager, personal safety division, in a statement.
About 140 employees are expected to join Hoya after the transaction closes, which is expected in the first quarter of 2017.
The sale does not impact 3M’s non-prescription safety eyewear business.
