EYE PROTECTION
EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK
This material is the property of CLMI Safety Training and may not be
reproduced or distributed in any manner. When permitted, you may print
a single copy of this material for your personal use.
© 2009 Comprehensive Loss Management, Inc.
Eye Protection
Employee Handbook
There may be no more valuable organ than our eyes. With their
remarkable ability to translate light energy into impulses transmitted to
the brain, which in turn becomes sight, our eyes provide a “window on
the world.”
In most cases, we need to see in order to work. As a result, our eyes are
one of the most important tools we have.
Unfortunately, the eyes are also the organ most vulnerable to
occupational injuries. Nearly 100,000 eye injuries occur on the job each
year, many resulting in partial or complete loss of sight and, in some
cases, total disability.
However, these injuries can easily be avoided through the use
of eye protection.
To keep your eyes safe, you need to know:
• Where eye hazards exist in the workplace
• How to use eye protection
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Eye Hazards
There are three major hazards to the eye:
• Physical hazards
• Chemical hazards
• Radiant energy
Several kinds of physical injuries can happen to the eyes. Impact from a
blunt object, laceration from a sharp object, damage from foreign bodies
entering the eye and thermal burns all are physical hazards that require
eye protection.
Physical hazards take many forms in the workplace, including:
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Flying fragments of metal or wood
Sand
Dust
Dirt
Hot sparks
Splashes from molten metal
High temperature exposure
Chemicals pose two major
hazards to the eyes:
• Chemical splash
• Mists, vapors and gases
When splashed into the eyes, acid and caustic chemicals can cause
serious damage — sometimes permanent. Mists, vapors and gases can
cause everything from mild irritation to a complete loss of vision,
depending on the chemical involved.
Contact with harmful chemicals causes over 20% of all eye injuries.
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“Radiant energy” refers to rays of high-intensity light which can damage
the eye. These include:
• Infrared rays are invisible to the human eye and have a penetrating
heating effect that can cause thermal damage to the eyes.
• Ultraviolet (UV) rays are also invisible to the eye, and UV radiation
can produce cumulative damage to the structure of the cornea and
lens of the eye. Even short exposures to UV radiation can produce
painful damage to the cornea, though the cornea is usually able to
repair itself.
• Visible radiation (light rays that can be seen by the human eye) can
also present an eye hazard. If too intense, radiation in the visible light
band can cause eyestrain and headache and can destroy retina tissue.
Bright light (such as sunlight or light produced during steel pouring
operations) requires the use of dark, tinted glasses to protect the eyes
from damage.
Ultraviolet, infrared or visible light are all sources of radiant energy.
Welding, torch cutting, brazing and soldering can all pose a radiant
energy hazard. Even sunlight and glare can be sources of dangerous
radiant energy.
As with thermal burns, radiant energies can cause serious permanent
damage to the lens, iris and retina.
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Welding And Radiant Energies
One of the most common sources of
radiant energies in the workplace is
welding processes. Infrared and
visible radiation are present in all
welding. UV radiation can be a
hazard in heavy-gas welding,
cutting operations, arc cutting and
welding over 30 amperes.
Welding helmets must be used to
provide head and face protection.
Safety glasses or goggles should be worn under the helmet for
maximum eye protection.
Helmets should be fitted with lenses in the appropriate shade for
protecting against radiant energies. For example, electric arc
welding operations require a filter lens shade of 10 to 14,
depending on the intensity of the radiant energy.
The shade of the helmet lens can be combined with the shade of
the goggles or safety glasses worn underneath to provide the
desired total protection. In other words, goggles with a filter lens
shade of 5 could be worn under a helmet with a filter lens shade of
8 to provide a total protection factor of 13.
Lasers And Eye Protection
Laser beams are another source of radiant energy. However, no
one type of glass or plastic provides protection from all laser
wavelengths.
Devices that protect against various laser wavelengths can be
special ordered from eyewear manufacturers. These devices
typically offer maximum protection at a specific laser wavelength,
with the level of protection dropping off sharply at other
wavelengths.
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Where Do Eye Hazards Exist?
Finding eye hazard areas in the workplace is fairly simple. If you handle
chemicals, perform operations in which particles of wood, dust, metal or
other foreign bodies are in the air or are at risk for impact from blunt
objects, eye protection is necessary.
Here are some typical workplace operations and the eye hazards that
may be present:
Operation
Eye Hazards
Acetylene welding, cutting
& burning
Sparks, harmful rays,
molten metal, flying particles
Chemical handling
Splash, acid burns, fumes
Chipping
Flying particles
Electric (arc) welding
Sparks, intense rays, molten metal
Furnace operations
Glare, heat, molten metal
Grinding
Flying particles
Laboratory operations
Chemical splash, glass breakage
Machining
Flying particles
Molten metal operations
Heat, glare, sparks, splash
Spot welding
Flying particles, sparks
You need to wear eye protection when you are directly involved with
operations that produce eye hazards. But it’s also important to wear eye
protection if you work in the area of eye hazard operations — even if you
only enter the area for brief periods.
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Controlling Eye Hazards
Eye hazards present in the workplace can be controlled using the
following methods:
• Engineering controls
• Administrative controls
• Eye protection
Engineering controls are specialized equipment and processes that can
remove or reduce many sources of eye hazards. Engineering controls
refer both to the way you work, as well as to the equipment and
materials you use.
Some examples of engineering controls include:
• Installing eye guards on equipment
• Enclosing equipment or processes that produce eye hazards
• Substituting equipment or processes that produce eye hazards with
ones with lower eye hazard levels (such as the use of lower-powered
lasers, for example)
Administrative controls are used to control eye hazard exposure by
scheduling reduced work times in eye hazard areas and/or by changing
work processes and procedures to reduce exposure to eye hazards.
If engineering and administrative controls are not sufficient for reducing
eye hazards, eye protection must then be used.
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Types Of Eye Protection
The following are common types of eye protection equipment:
• Safety glasses are similar to regular glasses but are designed to be
resistant to impact. They can be fitted with sideshields to restrict side
entry of flying particles.
• Goggles provide protection from flying particles and chemical
splashes, vapors and mists. Most goggles are designed to fit over
regular prescription glasses.
• Chipping goggles have contour-shaped rigid plastic eyecups and
provide maximum protection from flying particles. A transparent and
durable coating can be applied to protect the lenses from pitting.
• Welding goggles can have eyecups or larger frames that cover
prescription glasses. The eyecup style protects the eye socket and
should be flame-resistant, corrosion-resistant and non-irritating to the
skin. The lenses are tinted to protect the wearer from optical radiation
from the welding process.
• Faceshields protect the entire face from flying particles and chemical
splashes.
• Welding helmets protect the entire head from flying particles and
sparks and have a filtered lens to protect eyes from harmful rays.
In many situations, more than one type of device is necessary to provide
full eye protection. For example, if you are working with molten metal, a
faceshield will protect against splashes but not impact. In that case, you
must also wear safety glasses or goggles under the faceshield.
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The following chart shows some common workplace activities and the
appropriate eye protection equipment.
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Operation
Eye Hazards
Eye Protection
Acetylene welding,
cutting & burning
Sparks, harmful rays, Welding goggles with
molten metal, flying tinted lenses
particles
Chemical handling
Splash, acid burns,
fumes
Goggles, faceshield
Chipping
Flying particles
Goggles, safety
glasses with
sideshields, chipping
goggles
Electric (arc) welding
Sparks, intense rays,
molten metal
Welding goggles,
welding helmet over
safety glasses with
sideshields
Furnace operations
Glare, heat, molten
metal
Welding goggles
Grinding
Flying particles
Goggles, safety
glasses with
sideshields, faceshield
Laboratory operations
Chemical splash,
glass breakage
Goggles, faceshield
over safety glasses
with sideshields
Machining
Flying particles
Goggles, safety
glasses with
sideshields, welding
goggles, faceshield
Molten metal
operations
Heat, glare, sparks,
splash
Welding goggles,
faceshield over safety
glasses with
sideshields
Spot welding
Flying particles,
sparks
Safety glasses with
sideshields, goggles,
faceshield
Using Eye Protection
Eye protection only works if you wear it, so it’s important to choose
devices that are comfortable and fit well. Make sure you know how to
adjust and maintain your eye protection equipment.
Many employers offer safety glasses in a number of styles, allowing you
to choose a style that you like and will be comfortable wearing.
Make sure you know the proper procedures for obtaining eye protection
in your workplace. In the case of nonprescription devices, make sure you
know where they are stored and how to obtain them.
If you require prescription eye protection devices, make sure you know
the procedure for obtaining them in your workplace.
When using eye protection devices, keep the following in mind:
• When wearing a welding helmet, it’s important to wear
additional eye protection (such as safety glasses with
sideshields) under the helmet. This protects against residue
that gathers on the helmet and can slide into eyes when the
helmet it tipped up. This also applies to faceshields worn to
protect against chemical splashes.
• When wearing eye protection
equipment, remember that
residue can gather in
eyebrows and hair, falling
into eyes when eye protection
is removed. Always brush off
these areas before removing
eye protection.
• Make sure that your eye
protection equipment is
comfortable and fits well.
• Sideshields should always be worn when a flying particle
hazard exists.
• As a general rule, faceshields should always be worn over eye
protection such as safety glasses or goggles.
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Prescription Glasses & Contact Lenses
If you wear prescription glasses or contact lenses, keep these factors
in mind:
Prescription Glasses
• Make sure your prescription is current, and update it as necessary.
• Make sure that goggles fit comfortably over prescription glasses.
• Prescription lenses in eye protection should be matched to the lenses
you usually wear to reduce the transition adjustment between regular
eyewear and eye protection.
Contact Lenses
• Contact lenses provide no protection against eye hazards.
• In case of accidental displacement or loss of a contact lens, you should
have a pair of prescription safety glasses available.
• Contact lenses should not be worn in areas where you may be exposed
to chemicals, vapors, splashes, radiant or intense heat, or molten
metals or in an atmosphere that contains a large concentration of
particulates, such as dust, dirt or other contaminants. Waterpermeable lenses can be ruined by chemical splashes and can
complicate medical attention if a chemical splash occurs.
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Cleaning Eye Protection Equipment
It’s important to keep eye protection equipment as clean as possible to
reduce vision impairment and make it easier for you to wear. Your
workplace may provide stations near eye hazard areas for cleaning and
defogging your eye protection equipment.
Eye protection equipment should be cleaned using methods suggested by
the manufacturer.
NOTE: Sweatbands can help prevent eye irritation, reduce fogging and
eliminate work interruptions for face wiping. If a sweatband is worn on
the forehead, it should not interfere with safety glasses or goggles.
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First Aid For Eye Injuries
It’s important for you to know what to do in case of an eye injury. The
proper first aid procedures depends on the type of injury to the eye.
If foreign material enters the eye, it’s important to get immediate
medical attention. Don’t try to take care of it yourself; often, this can
cause additional damage. Removal of particles that have entered the eye
should be performed by a trained medical person.
In the event of a chemical splash, the extent of permanent damage
depends almost entirely on how you react. If you receive a concentrated
caustic splash, quickly and properly irrigate the eye for at least
15 minutes, and then promptly seek medical attention.
Irrigation should be with water from
eyewash fountains, emergency showers,
hoses or any other available sources.
The water should be clean and not so hot
or cold as to cause discomfort.
If you work in eye contamination areas,
eyewash stations must be provided.
Eyewash stations are designed to
provide full flushing for at least
15 minutes, utilizing clean water at
room temperature.
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