Summer months often mean intense sunlight at roofing job sites,
and roofing workers typically wear protective eyewear to resist the
sun's harsh rays. Unfortunately, workers may emphasize style or
brand name when selecting protective eyewear based on personal
preferences rather than safety. However, when analyzing and
choosing eye protection for your employees, you must be more
practical and consider requirements set forth by the Occupational
Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and relevant standards
published by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).
OSHA sets out requirements for eye and face protection in
construction in 29 CFR 1926.102, Subpart E, "Personal Protective
and Life Saving Equipment." The rule states workers must be
provided eye and face protection "when machines or operations
present potential eye or face injury from physical, chemical or
radiation agents."
Hazard assessments relating to eye injuries usually focus on
flying particles from cutting, sanding or grinding operations. The
radiation aspect mentioned in OSHA's rule involves ultraviolet (UV)
radiation burns or welder's flash that can permanently damage eyes.
However, UV rays from the sun also can damage eyes, and the
intensity of the sun's UV rays can be increased by light-colored or
reflective surfaces—bodies of water; snow; or roof system
components, materials or...
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