Hilaire van der Veen.

UPPER GALILEE, Israel—Long-time optical industry executive Hilaire van der Veen will be leaving Shamir Optical, Ind. (SOI), effective Jan. 1, 2015, according to an announcement from the company. Van der Veen has worked with SOI for over 22 years in various high-level positions within the organization, and will be leaving his current position as VP of business development to focus on personal projects and consulting services.

Van der Veen was most recently involved with launching an innovative SOI concept called InoTime Inc., as reported by VMail. Located in Philadelphia, InoTime Inc. is an Accelerated Optics Facility offering premium Rx lenses in as little as three hours.

"Hilaire has been an integral part of Shamir, with the opening of Shamir Insight, Inc. located in San Diego in 1997, and Shamir's expansion throughout Latin America," said Amos Netzer, CEO Shamir Optical Industry. "Instrumental with revolutionary initiatives, such as the launch of Shamir Freeform in the U.S., as well as the introduction of the InoTime concept, he has played a key role with the development of Shamir both in the U.S. market and worldwide," added Netzer.

Over the course of the next two years, van der Veen will provide consulting services to Shamir Optical, Ind., according to the company.