What type of eye protection is right for my business?

By Martin Ellis
15th February 2021

Did you know? 90% of eye injuries could be avoided if the wearer had been wearing proper eye protection. That’s why it’s vital that you choose the right eye protection for your business.

Give your employees anything less than the best PPE for the job and you could not only risk seriously (and permanently) injuring them, but you could also make yourself liable for heavy fines and compensation payouts if the worst does happen.

To help you keep your employees safe and minimise the potentially devastating impact heavy fines and payouts could have on your business, we’ve put together this quick guide on which safety glasses to choose for your business.

Wrap-around safety spectacles

Wrap-around safety spectacles are the most commonly used type of safety glasses. The reason for this is that they’re pretty good at reducing the chance of eye-related injuries in most cases. Unless you’re in a seriously high-risk industry, these will likely be the right type for you.

Always remember, when exploring any PPE, it’s important to look for relevant CE, EN and BS certification numbers. Not only will this ensure your PPE is manufactured to a high standard but it will also ensure you’re operating within legislative guidelines – maximising the safety of your workers and also keeping you protected from a legal perspective.

With safety glasses, you should look for EN166 certification and CE certification as a minimum. This ensures they’ll meet the basic standards of protection for eyewear as designated by the EU and also that they meet European health and safety standards.

Consider wrap-around safety spectacles if you’re in the following industries:

Manufacturing
Construction
Plumbing
Most skilled labouring

Looking for budget-friendly safety spectacles in bulk? Follow this link.

Ultra-vista ski-style goggles

Ski-style goggles are a less commonly used type of safety glasses. That said, since they’re designed to sit tightly against your skin, completely covering the eye from all angles, they offer considerably more protection against potential injuries.

While safety spectacles tend to be used in industries where there’s a risk of flying shards, ski-style goggles are better suited to environments where there’s a high-risk of splash from harmful chemicals, dust residue or gasses and vapours. This is why you’ll often see them in science labs.

As with safety glasses, we recommend looking for EN166 and CE certification as a minimum requirement. For additional protection, you should also consider EN170 certification – this ensures the product is also certified at blocking ultraviolet light.

Consider ultra-vista ski-style googles if you’re in the following industries:

Carpentry or high-dust exposure
Science and laboratory work where harmful chemicals are present
Any manufacturing environment where harmful vapours are present or chemical splash-back is likely

Looking for budget-friendly goggles in bulk? Follow this link.

Safety visors

Finally, you also have the option of safety visors. These are generally much less hardy than safety glasses and goggles, so you shouldn’t consider them for environments where there’s a high-risk of flying shards, chemical exposure or large dust particles.

Instead, these are for more general-purpose eye protection such as minimising the spread of harmful bacteria. Many people don’t realise, but viruses and infections (including coronaviruses) can be passed on via the eyes. That’s why you’ll often see supermarket and transportation staff, who are directly in contact with large numbers of people every day, wearing these. It’s also why many nurses wear them in hospitals.

Consider safety visors is you’re in the following industries: