Alcon

Founded in 1945, Alcon traces its roots back to two pharmacists, Robert Alexander and William Conner, who opened a small pharmacy in Fort Worth, Texas, and combined the first syllables of their last names to create the name Alcon.

The strengths of Alcon, CIBA VISION and Novartis Ophthalmics unite into one eye care business with Alcon becoming the second largest division of Novartis. With these collective resources and scale, Alcon offers the widest spectrum of eye care products in Surgical, Pharmaceutical and Vision Care across 180 markets and runs operations in 75 countries.  

People

Although the average tenure of Alcon associates is just nine years, it is not uncommon to find people who have worked for Alcon for 25 years or more. The dedication and commitment is contagious – often when people arrive, they see no reason to leave. Instead, they see several reasons to stay. Alcon associates are constantly being challenged and rewarded for excellence. It's easy to be proud of who we are and what we do. More importantly, it's easy to be proud of how we do it. Our mission is to provide innovative products that enhance quality of life by helping people see better.  Alcon has 23,000 associates around the world who are dedicated to this same mission. Learn more about the people who make Alcon successful.

Corporate Responsibility

Community & Humanitarian Involvement

We recognize we offer what many people need, whether or not they can afford it or even know it exists. As a result, a significant part of our culture revolves around our responsibility to the community and to humanity as a whole. Many of our charitable endeavors involve services for, and support of, the communities in which we operate and live. We also offer a patient assistance program to assist those in need of our therapies but who lack the resources to pay for them.

Alcon together with The Alcon Foundation Inc. donates over USD 60 million in cash and products to charitable activities annually, including patient assistance programs for low income patients and more than 1,000 medical missions in more than 100 countries that restore vision to those without access to eye care services. As part of these missions, we partner with physicians and humanitarian organizations such as the ORBIS "Saving Sight Worldwide" Program and Mercy Ships. Additionally, we established The Alcon Foundation, Inc. to support the philanthropic interests of Alcon that include research efforts and organizations in the field of eye care with special consideration given to those programs that advance the education and skill levels of eye care professionals. The Foundation also supports leadership programs, education and the arts in the communities in which we operate. Learn more about Alcon's involvement in the community and with humanitarian organizations around the world.

Commitment to Quality

We consider quality to be much more than simple conformance to product or program specifications and requirements. We seek to continually improve all aspects of our business processes and quality management systems. We strive to comply with the highest level of regulatory and statutory requirements, and we consistently meet or exceed these standards in each market. And we recognize that the global market can be a complicated one with local controls and requirements. As a global company, we are diligent in ensuring compliance in each of our global markets. Learn more about Alcon's commitment to quality.

Research & Development

Alcon has nearly 2,000 associates dedicated to research and development around the world working to address the world’s most pressing eye care needs. Our dedication to eye care extends to professional education at a level unmatched in the industry. Learn more about Alcon's research and development efforts.

Business Focus

Alcon´s leadership in eye care is founded in Pharmaceutical, Surgical, and Vision Care products.

Surgical

Alcon offers the industry's most comprehensive portfolio of ophthalmic surgical products, enabling surgeons to achieve optimal results for their patients. As the worldwide leader in ophthalmic surgical products, Alcon occupies the premier position in surgical suites across the globe and manufactures and markets products for all ocular surgical procedures. As the developer and manufacturer of the world's most preferred line of intraocular lenses, AcrySof®, which has implanted globally more than 50 million lenses. Alcon is redefining vision for the aging population. Learn more about Alcon's ophthalmic surgical products.

Pharmaceutical

Alcon continues to build its position as the worldwide leader in pharmaceuticals for the eye by continuing to advance treatments for diseases such as glaucoma, infection and allergy, while also expanding focus into relatively unknown areas such as, macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and other sight-threatening diseases. Our intraocular pressure (IOP)-lowering TRAVATAN Z® Solution is changing the treatment of glaucoma, still a leading cause of blindness today. Learn more about Alcon's pharmaceutical products.

Vision Care

In addition to Alcon’s leadership role in surgical and pharmaceutical eye care, the company is now one of the largest manufacturers of contact lenses and lens care products in the world due to the integration of CIBA VISION into Alcon. The three leading brands of contact lenses from CIBA VISION include AIR OPTIX®, DAILIES® and FreshLook®. These lenses are complemented by Alcon´s leading lens care brands such as OPTI-FREE® and Clear Care® Cleaning and Disinfecting Solution from CIBA VISION. Learn more about Alcon's products for vision care.

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