Appropriate protection
February 1st 2006

While many eye injuries occur as a result of the victim not wearing any eye protection, there are a disturbing number that can be traced to inappropriate use of safety eyewear. Mike Denton, technical support manager of Aearo, explains the need for appropriate protection

As always we need to start with a risk assessment. What foreseeable risk to the eyes do we have in carrying out our work?

Mechanical: This is the classic eye injury we tend to think of. An object hits the eye with sufficient force or with some cutting action and the eye is physically damaged.

We understand swarf being thrown from a cutting machine stone or metal flying through the air after a hammer blow. Sometimes these seem trivial, occur infrequently and can lead to a casual attitude. The problem is that every so often there are complications, the eye is punctured or infection sets in. Really heavy blows tend to be rare. We don't deliberately expose people and the blow is accidental, leading to the thought that 'it always happens to the other guy'.

Chemical: If we handle chemicals we may be splashed by them. Again this is accidental and 'it always happens to the other guy'. We wear gloves, an apron perhaps because we often see contamination in these areas, but eyewear is sometimes omitted. We need also to realise that some materials which we might not consider as chemicals can cause chemical actions. Cement is an example. The dry powder may seem relatively innocuous and we might consider the grittiness to be an irritant in the eye, but when damp (mixed with tear fluid) it produces a strongly alkaline solution which can cause severe burns. We need to read the Health and Safety Data Sheet for any material we are handling.

Radiation: We tend to associate radiation with radioactive material or things like X-rays and, while these 'ionising' radiation hazards do require protective measures, the radiation we come across most frequently is 'non-ionising' radiation. This can vary from heat from a furnace through excess visible radiation from light sources to sunlight. This radiation is frequently split into visible, ultraviolet and infrared. Visible light produces a natural reaction when we are exposed to too much of it. We turn away from the source, screw up our eyes or use other methods such as shielding our eyes with a hand or the brim of a cap. UV and IR can also damage our eyes, but the damage may not be immediate or painful at the time of exposure. Like sunburn, the damage can appear later and be distressing.

So what should we do? Some of us wear eyewear every day to correct small discrepancies in the optics of the eyes. All of us can wear spectacles if we need to and they don't need to be a significant burden. The problem is that most of us don't want to! A safety spectacle can give 100% protection in many eye hazard areas but, importantly, it will often give 80% protection 100% of the time. Prescription wearers should be provided with prescription safety eyewear.

Spectacles can be seen as the first line of defence, with other solutions added where the risk dictates. If we are handling chemicals, a spectacle will not be guaranteed to keep all of the splash out of the eye, but to wear a goggle or a faceshield all day may seem a heavy burden. We can use a spectacle all day and use the additional protection when deemed appropriate. If the person next to you drops their sack of cement, you are better off with a spectacle on than no protection at all.

In all cases, options should be offered. Get a group of users to select two or three different styles to cover all age ranges and tastes. By being part of the selection process users are more likely to 'buy in' to wearing safety equipment. Common reasons for not wearing safety eye wear are that it is scratched or mists up. Anti-scratch and anti-mist coatings do much to reduce these problems.

Mechanical Risk: Spectacles for low speed and reasonably large particles. Anything being thrown into the air may go behind a spectacle and cause problems, so select something close fitting with a brow guard. Where higher impact speeds might be expected, grinding drills, setting up machines, hammering and chiselling for example, a goggle or a faceshield will be more appropriate.

Faceshields can be lifted to cool the face when not required and provide protection to most of the face as well as the eyes. Goggles have to be the ultimate eye protector for chemical, dust or even gas hazards since they totally enclose the eye area.

Chemical Risk: Here we have to use a goggle or a faceshield. If the chemical is very fine dust or gaseous then a goggle (or a respirator which includes eye protection) will be needed. Remember to encourage the habit of wearing a spectacle at the same time to cover the times when the primary eye protector is removed.

Radiation Risk: Any eyewear can include filters to protect from radiation. We may recognise obvious risks; welding, UV curing, bright lighting for example but we need to remember that sunlight and accidental exposure need to be guarded against. Those working in areas where welding is taking place or where other exposure might happen accidentally should wear a light filter.

To summarise, get users to wear some protection all the time. Make it comfortable and remove problems like scratching and misting. This then gives you greater leverage and awareness to encourage the wearing of more appropriate protection at times of greater risk.