What Is OSHA Approved Prescription Safety Glasses?

If your employer says that you must wear prescription safety glasses at your workplace, then the first thing you need to know is whether you are buying a pair that has been approved by OSHA. For too long, safety eyewear has been too bulky and uncomfortable. The good news is modern pairs are much less bulky and they are also a lot more comfortable than before. According to OSHA, you must wear the right PPE (personal protective equipment) for those jobs where there are risks to your health and safety.

Protection against hazards like flying debris
Eye protection along with face protection is required when you are working in an environment where there are flying debris and particles flying about in the air. Even if you work with dangerous liquids, you need to wear the right kind of face and eye protection. Ideally, you need to choose a pair that has ANSI Z87.1 certification. This certification shows that the eyewear meets and even exceeds OSHA standards.

ANSI Standards
ANSI or American National Standards Institute sets the standards as far as design and construction as well as testing and use of eye protective gear go. These standards also spell out how well the eyewear meets impact and penetration-resistant requirements. These standards spell out the requirements for lenses that are either passed for basic impact or high impact. It all depends on the test criteria. For basic impact lenses, the lenses must be able to withstand an impact of a single-inch diameter steel ball dropping on the lens from a height of fifty inches.

High Impact Tests
For high impact lenses, they must be able to pass the velocity test. In this test, a quarter-inch steel ball is hurled at a velocity of between 150 and 300 feet per second at the lenses. If the lenses do not break, then they have passed the test.

When choosing safety glasses, you need to look for the impact-resistant level mark on the device. If the device is certified for basic impact, then it should have not just the name of the manufacturer but also the Z87 mark. For high-impact devices, they should have the name of the manufacturer as well as the Z87+ sign. For lenses, there are other indicators like 3.0 and 5.0 which denote the number of the lens’s shade. If you go for special-purpose lenses, then they may have an S mark on them while a lens with variable tints will have a V mark.

Do You Need Side Shields?
Another thing to keep a look out for is whether you require side shield coverage as part of the lenses. OSHA demands that the lenses and the eyewear must be able to protect you from flying particle hazards, which are almost always present in most occupational environments.

Now that you know more about OSHA-approved prescription safety glasses, go ahead and use this information to help you buy the best pair possible. At Cheapglasses123.com, you can buy the best pair at the best prices. This is an online seller with a reputation for selling quality eyewear at affordable prices. So, be sure to take a look at what they have to offer.