CooperVision, which employs 500 people from the local area, has unveiled its new distribution warehouse in Segensworth which will handle half a billion contact lenses every year.
With many businesses in turmoil and financial markets struggling, the company has opened the new building in a bid to continue expansion in testing times.
The Mayor of Fareham, Councillor Ernest Crouch, officially opened the new building by turning on the high-tech automated stock handling system.
He said: 'Any enterprise which brings jobs and economic prosperity to Fareham is always very welcome within our borders.
'CooperVision has the insight to be spending large sums of money and investing in a great and very modern warehouse.
'As well as being a great-looking building, they are employing 500 people right here in Fareham.
'They have a lot of vision to spend large amounts of capital while we are in the middle of a credit crunch, but they are an expanding business and a superb organisation.'
The impressive three-storey, 150,000 sq ft building supports all direct shipments to the UK market as well as shipments to mainland Europe, Asia Pacific, Japan and Australia.
The warehouse facility also contains the distribution management team and the quality control team.
The new facilities are located at CooperVision's £15m Europe, Middle East and Africa Commercial HQ in Segensworth, and are part of an ongoing investment programme into the future of contact lenses and the local area.
With heavy investment in the distribution system, the new warehouse will speed up the supply chain for opticians, ensuring they receive the right product at the right time.
Andrew Sedgwick, CooperVision president for Europe, Middle East and Africa, said: 'This represents a significant economic contribution to the Fareham area and further demonstrates CooperVision's confidence in continuing to expand in the European marketplace.'
CooperVision is a global contact lens company with a distribution network covering more than 60 countries spread over six continents.