Eye Protection: A ReView

An alarming number of all reported eye injuries occur in the workplace, ranging from mild eye strain to more severe injuries, with the potential to cause permanent damage, vision loss and blindness. Protecting workers from eye injuries can be a challenge. However, with the use of proper eyewear, it is estimated that 90% of recorded eye injuries are preventable. Keeping eye injuries at bay requires every employee to consistently wear the appropriate protective eyewear, at all times, but is it really that simple?

What contributes to eye injuries at work?

• Not wearing eye protection. Nearly three out of every five workers injured are not wearing eye protection at the time of the accident.
• Wearing the wrong kind of eye protection for the job. 40% of the injured workers were wearing some form of eye protection when the accident occurred. However, these workers were most likely to be wearing protective eyeglasses that offered inadequate eye protection, such as glasses without side shields.

What causes eye injuries?

Where do accidents occur most often?

• Craftwork. Potential eye hazards can be found in nearly every industry, more than 40% of injuries occurred among craft workers, like mechanics, repairers, carpenters and plumbers.
• Industrial equipment operation. Over a third of the injured workers were operators, such as assemblers, sanders, and grinding machine operators. Almost half of these injured workers were employed in manufacturing.

How can eye injuries be prevented?

• Always wear effective eye protection. AS/NZ standards require that employers provide workers with suitable eye protection. To be effective, the eyewear must be of the appropriate type for the hazard encountered and properly fitted.
• Better training and education. Workers injured while not wearing protective eyewear most often said they believed it was not required by the situation. Even though the vast majority of employers furnished eye protection at no cost to employees, about 40% of the workers received no information on where and what kind of eyewear should be used.
• Maintenance. Eye protection devices must be properly inspected and maintained for them to be effective. Even small cracks can cause the eyewear to fail should an accident occur. Scratched and dirty devices reduce vision, cause glare and may contribute to accidents. Damaged eyewear should be replaced immediately.

Tinted Glasses

Safety glasses come in numerous shapes and styles, but do you know how to choose the right tinted safety glasses for your job?

Safety glasses are available in many different tints that serve many different purposes, depending on the job at hand and your environment. Tinted safety glasses can help reduce glare, reflect bright light, absorb harmful light, including UV and infrared (IR), and even increase contrast in your field of vision.

We’re discussing the reasons why selecting the right lens for your specific application is so important and sharing what you need to know about popular lens tints.

Why does the right lens matter?

Safety

The top reason why lens tint matters comes down to safety. When you’re wearing the right colour of tinted lenses, not only will this help protect your eyes from the hazards of the job at hand, your eyes can feel less fatigued from strain that can result from different working conditions. This can result in fewer instances of workers removing eyewear from their face due to discomfort, thereby keeping them safer. It’s also important to look for eyewear that meets AS/NZS 1337.1:2010, which means it has passed impact testing and other safety requirements that can help protect your eyes.

Health

The right eyewear can help reduce light sensitivities, eye strain and headaches for wearers. Polycarbonate lenses contain UVA and UVB coatings, which help protect eyes from light conditions that can damage them and increase a wearer’s risk of developing eye disease, including cataracts. Different people have different needs, and choosing the right lens tints can be beneficial to a worker’s health.

Productivity

Certain lens tints provide contrast and can help workers see fine details better and more easily. This can help workers complete certain tasks more accurately and more quickly.

Comfort

This is one of the most important considerations when choosing a lens tint – and personal protective equipment (PPE) in general! When PPE is comfortable, workers are more likely to wear it and keep it on. This is why 3M produces so many different styles of safety eyewear and encourages sampling different pairs of safety glasses to see what will work for a worker’s individual face size and shape

Tints

This Polycarbonate Lens Selection Guide will help you understand the need for different colour lenses and lens types for industrial applications. It will also help you determine what type of lens is best for your application and environment. When choosing a lens, the basic “rule of thumb” is to consider colour opposites. There are many lens options other than Clear, Grey and Mirror. 

Lens Marking

Lens markings are a requirement for certification as per AS/NZS 1337.1: 2010 to ensure they are approved to standards. They assist in identifying their intended use by pointing out their impact rating to ensure the eyewear matches the hazard and is fit for purpose.

For further information, view 3M's post about eye safety here