Protective Eyewear that Could Save Someone’s Sight

The manufacturing of industrial safety eyewear has evolved immensely over the last decade, many safety glasses have been designed to appear as normal sunglasses, making them easier to wear and more attractive, yet they are designed to provide more eye protection then their previous counterpart. You remember those massive safety googles that constantly fogged up causing obstruction, those are thing of the past.  

Preventing eye injuries on the worksite becomes an easier task when protocol and guidelines are put in place to help avoid incidences. Foresight is everything when it comes to protecting your team. Being aware of the dangers to eye safety, using the proper eye protection, replacing industrial protective eyewear when it gets damaged and minimizing hazards by using work screens and machine guards should be standard practice, regardless of the project. 

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) surveyed workers who suffered from work-related eye injuries, the report disclosed that nearly three out of five workers were not wearing industrial protective eyewear when their incident of injury occurred. OSHA requires the use of protective eyewear whenever there is a probability of injury that could have been prevented had industrial protective eyewear been used.  

When your worksite has dust, concrete, metal, wood and other flying projectiles in the air, wraparound-style glasses offer the highest protection in those conditions. Your crew’s safety glasses must meet standards of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). Eyewear manufacturers that meet these standards mark their lenses or frames with Z87+. This mark indicates that the eyewear has passed high velocity impact or high mass impact testing.  

If the task at hand involves hazardous UV radiation, chemicals, fumes or dust, safety googles are a must. Industrial safety googles should be rated for impact resistance – just like glasses. In addition, they provide a secure shield around the entire eye, offering complete protection against hazards. 

Ensure your worker’s industrial safety glasses fit properly and are made from the highest quality materials. Low quality material and an improper fit are avoidable issues that risk inadequate protection. Polycarbonate lenses are lightweight, durable and yield the highest level of protection from impact. 

Properly maintaining industrial protective eyewear is also important, dirty and scratched lenses obstruct vision and can cause glare, which can contribute to accidents. more, it can cause strain and affect the quality of vision. When working in dangerous environments having any obstruction of vision is less than ideal. 

Using the correct industrial safety eyewear can keep your team safe from any eye-related hazard. Wiley X has several industrial protective eyewear options offering all encompassed eye protection your crew needs. Learn more on our Industrial Safety page.