| Protecting Your Eyes | | | | There really is not much to be said about protecting your eyes other than you would be foolish not to do so at all times while on the job.
Eye protection devices have been used in the construction industries since 1910. While the original eye protection devices were somewhat limited, today there are eye protection devices for every type of exposure.
While the wearing of eye protection at all times is strongly encouraged, many projects demand that workers wear eye protection. Just a few of these are:- Chipping, sledging and hammering on metal, stone or concrete
- Use of manual, pneumatic and power impact tools
- Caulking, brushing and grinding
- Drilling, scaling and scraping
- Babbitting, soldering and casting hot metals
- Handling acids, caustics and creosoted materials
- Gas welding, cutting and brazing
- Drilling overhead
- In environments of excessive dust
- Electric arc welding and cutting, and other operations that expose the eyes to flying particles, dust, hot liquids, molten substances, gases, fumes and liquids
Some people just don't like to wear safety glasses and goggles. One of the complaints is that goggles tend to fog up. Fogging happens when sweat vaporizes and coats the inside of the lens. If you have this problem with goggles and glasses, wear a handkerchief or sweatband around your forehead to keep perspiration out.
Another complaint is that eye protection devices are uncomfortable, but usually this is because the eye protection device does not fit properly. Make sure that you have the device properly adjusted for the correct fit or simply get another that fits betters. You can see a lot better out of a properly fitted eye protection device than you can out of a glass eye.
Like all safety devices, eye protection is there for you and your eyes. Be smart and use eye protection at all times when on the job. What have you got to loose, your sight?
Eye injuries are at a high risk when grinding, cutting and overhead work. Face shield are required to help prevent eye and face injuries during these operations. Unfortunately, metal (and other) fragments often get caught on the top lip of the face shield and when the face shield is slid back these particles fall behind the safety glasses and into the employees eyes.
Multiple methods are used to reduce the risk of these incidents:- Sticky tape or magnets (for non stainless) may be used to assist in catching the particles (PPE)
- The face shield and hat can be removed and brushed off before the shield is raised (new protocol)
- An extended face shield may be used to assist with catching and pushing the particles back instead of the particles catching on the top lip of the shield.
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