MAKING GLASSES FOR THE MASSES: CAPE GIRARDEAU COMPANY CREATES EQUIPMENT AND LENSES FOR FIRMS THROUGHOUT AREA

More than 140 million Americans wear prescription glasses today and about 26,000 pairs are made in Cape Girardeau each year.

Rhea Optical produces lenses, frames and other eyeglass equipment for optometry professionals in three states -- Missouri, Illinois and Arkansas.

The company, with offices at 1105 Broadway, is the only full-service optical lab between St. Louis and Memphis.

The company was founded in 1944 by C.W. "Charles" Rhea and much has changed since then, including ownership. Today the company is owned by Charles Ross.

Ross, a Jackson, Mo., native joined the business in 1978 as a salesman and learned about the business.

"It was interesting to watch a piece of glass become a lens," he said.

But that has changed. Today the majority of lenses are made from plastic.

When Jerry Daniels started his work as an optician 41 years ago, lenses were made of glass.

"Today about 85 percent of lenses are made of plastic," he said. Daniels is shop foreman for Rhea Optical.

Lenses must be sized, cut, ground, polished and finished before being placed into a frame.

"A lot of this can be done by computers now," said Ross. "But at one time we used the frame to trace the size of a lens."

Glasses can have single-focus, bifocal or tri-focal lenses.

The single-focus lens has only one focal point and all light rays that pass through the lens meet at that point. In a bifocal lens, the top of the lens has a different focal point than the bottom. The top part is used for distance vision and the bottom for near vision. A tri-focal lens has a third focal point in the middle of the lens, allowing a person to see objects "in between" distances.

Lenses for each pair of eyeglasses are shaped according to a prescription issued by an opthamologist or optometrist.

Once the size of the lens has been determined, they are cut from blank lens forms, edged, polished to a certain power and finished.

The lenses at Rhea are all impact resistant, meaning that they won't shatter from sharp blows.

The company produces between 85 and 110 pair of lenses each day.

"These lens are very thin, lightweight, and offer an unprecedented level of optical clarity," said Ross.

Rhea Optical creates its lenses in a manufacturing facility located in one of two boat-shaped buildings in the Broadway area.

"Our building was originally an auto dealership and garage," said Ross. "You can see where the car bays were bricked in later years."

The company's founder retired to Florida in 1963, sold the business to Jerry and Lester Pind, who operated it until June of this year. Ross served as the company's sales manager for 24 years before buying the business this summer.

Other employees are Billy Buck, who polishes the lenses; Debbie Farrow, lens department manager and Cindy Uhrhan, office manager. One salesman, Bill, also calls on clients.