A Reminder From: Globus Electric Inc.
Why Should Your Company Implement An
Eye Safety Program?
Why an eye safety program before others?
So many reasons exist for having an eye safety program. The most apparent is:
The law requires that every employer provide protective eyewear
if there is a danger of impact from flying objects.
The more important reason, though, is to protect your workers' vision! Obviously,
your business operates with the purpose of generating a profit. Eye injuries will not
only be very traumatic, they will also be very expensive.
What the law means:
As part of the OSHA audit process, Personal Protective Equipment programs are
evaluated in terms of compliance to the recognized standard. If a company's safety
program is not being administered correctly, an OSHA inspector has the capability
to impose fines for non-compliance. The fines that can be avoided with the proper
safety program directly affect the P/L of a business. To better understand the need
for and selection of the proper PPE, refer to OSHA regulation 29CFR1910.132.
This can be found at the Web site http://www.osha.gov.
Avoiding costs is a good incentive:
Inherent costs are readily recognized by several factors, including increased insurance
premiums and workers' compensation costs. However, the total cost of an eye injury
is actually much higher.
The added costs, which cannot be so readily identified when a worker sustains an eye
injury, will include the wages paid for lost time, the overtime required to make up his
time and meet targeted deadlines, plus the costs associated with the damage to material
and equipment. There will also be the costs of teaching a substitute to take his place,
investigating the accident, and all the legal fees.
One eye injury can cost thousands of dollars. Nevertheless, the cost of preventing that
injury, one pair of prescription safety glasses, is about $100.
The cost of an eye safety program is minimal compared to the cost of an eye injury.
What are the differences between safety glasses and regular glasses?
Safety glasses have fixed side shields on them. Safety glasses must also meet the
ANSI Z87 requirement for both the lens and the frame in order to meet the OSHA
convention for eye and face protection: 29CFR1910.133.
Since the OSHA Act of 1970, the ANSI standard for eye and face protection has
changed several times. At present, the standard is being reviewed again and is
awaiting approval. This new standard will be ANSI Z87.1-2003.
Changes in the ANSI standards have always resulted in better eye protection for
workers. The new standard will permit the use of both Basic Impact and
High Impact prescription lens.
A Basic Impact lens can only be used where there is no risk of high impact flying
objects. A High Impact lens must pass both a high velocity and a high mass test.
When the new standard is passed, present lenses may only meet the Basic Impact
requirements and will not be permitted in locations where a worker is exposed to
Note: After the new standard is passed, any prescription safety eyewear that only
meets the Basic Impact level must be delivered to the employee with a Warning
Label that indicates the lenses have impact limitations.
The new requirements:
Many employees, who are presently wearing frames with polycarbonate lenses,
find a pair of side shields that seem to fit the frame and think that they are protecting
their eyes according to OSHA's requirements. What the employee is wearing
“appears” to be a safety frame, however, it will not provide sufficient protection.
OSHA regulations are extremely specific regarding the ANSI Z87 standard for eye
and face protection and if your facility is audited by a Compliance Safety and Health
Officer, severe fines will incur.
To meet the OSHA regulations, frames, lenses, and shields are all tested to make sure
they meet the current ANSI Z87 standard. To ensure they provide impact resistance,
they are shot with a ¼” steel ball at a speed of 150 feet per second. Then a 17.6 oz.
slug is dropped on the lens and frame mounted on a head form from a height of 50".
To pass this test, the frame and lens must not break.
Prescription safety lenses must meet unique requirements and go through rigorous testing
in order to meet the ANSI Z87 requirements for safety to prove their strength, before
they can be monogrammed with the manufacturer's logo that shows they meet the ANSI
How do you know if your safety eyewear meets the current standard?
To meet the current standard, a frame must be marked Z87. With the new standard, the
frame will be marked Z87-2. The lenses will have the manufacturer's logo (for example,
a manufacturer whose name is “West Optical” would probably use “WO”. With the new
standard, lenses meeting the High Impact Standard would have the logo, “WO+”. Shields
are designed only for the safety frames designated by the manufacturer. Never use side
shields on regular frames due to the risk of eye injuries.
One additional benefit of an eye safety program:
Companies that sponsor safety create a sense among workers that their personal health
and well-being is important. You will notice that in addition to reduced costs and injuries,
employee morale will improve – this will result in better production and an increase in
You're ready to make the commitment for better safety and protection, so why wait?
Pick up your today and call
Globus Electric Inc.
for a No Obligation Consultation and Price Quote.