ABC Safety Glasses Archive Page
Monday, April 30, 2007
In almost every job, you need dexterity of movement and in many jobs you also need to add hand protection to that equation. Many gloves won't give you the safety you need along with ease of ergonomic movements. There are many brands of gloves available on the market however many people fail to wear the correct glove for the job they are doing.

Warehouse workers won't generally have a need to protect their hands from extremes of hot or cold, however they will need gloves that are useful for gripping and handling. The gloves they use will need to have a rubberized palm and finger areas to make it easier for the worker to grasp and hold packages and other warehouse items. Having a good grip on items in the warehouse will lessen the chances for an accident.

People that weld for a living will need special protection for their hands. Welders need to protect their hands from the heat however they also need gloves that allow them to hold welding rods and have the dexterity of movement to work with the object they are welding. Kevlar gloves are also good for maximum hand protection as they resist heat and will stand up to heavy use. ** Welding Gloves

If you work in the medical field, tattoo, food service or another type of industry where you need to use several pairs of disposable gloves a day to keep your work sanitary. You will need them to be form fitting and comfortable. Also if you have a sensitivity to latex, opt for gloves made from polyethylene of vinyl. Either type of glove will allow you to keep your safety and sanitary concerns at an optimum. ** Disposable Gloves

People that work with glass and in other industries where getting their hands cut or nicked by a sharp object is an on the job hazard should wear special gloves that are made to give maximum hand dexterity as well protect the hand from cuts and gouges from sharp objects.

The handling of chemicals in many cases shouldn't be done with just plain disposable gloves. Many chemicals are caustic such as certain acids used for cleaning and they will melt ordinary latex gloves. If you work with hazardous chemicals, you will need to wear specialized gloves that fit snugly around the wrist as well as protect your hands from the chemicals you work with, keeping your working environment safe. ** Chemical Gloves


Safety vests are an essential piece of protective equipment for any individual that works outside. Requirements for safety vests are actually set by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and there are standards that must be met for safety vests and other safety apparel that insures the workers that wear them are getting adequate protection for the job they are doing and lower the risk of on the job injuries. ** Safety Vests

The two key values of a safety vest come in the visibility the safety vest offers as well as protection of hazards on the job. This is done without compromising motion or any binding that would restrict the wearer and possibly create an unsafe working environment.

You will see two classes of safety vests and the work you do when you wear a vest will determine which class of safety vest you need. Class II vests are for occupational activities where risk levels require that you be visible, other workers are performing duties that may distract oncoming traffic and you need greater visibility because of this. Anytime there are vehicles present or you're going to be working in close proximity to approaching vehicles. The Class III safety vests are for people who need a little more protection. A brief overview of Class III would entail jobs where workers will be exposed to significantly higher vehicle speeds and/or reduced sight-distances; the worker and vehicle operator have high task loads, clearly placing the worker in danger or the wearer must be conspicuous through the full range of body motions at a minimum of 390 meters (1280 feet), and the wearer must be able to be identified as a person from a distance.

Hunters can also use safety vests. The bright colors and reflective tape will ensure that they are easily seen by other hunters. Making yourself visible is of the utmost importance especially when you're hunting larger game such as deer. Prime visibility will negate a tragic accident from happening. A Class II vest will normally be sufficient for hunters.

Another option for safety on the work site is to use t-shirts. They are more comfortable to wear than even safety vests and come in bright colors and the same flame retardant fabric as many of the vests. The t-shirts offer more all around protection as they are visible from any angle and if you have employees that will be working where there is moving traffic, t-shirts may make them even more visible to motorists.

Choosing your safety vest is as important as wearing it on the job site. Use these tips to get the best vest for your industry and work with confidence that you're working safely.


Saturday, April 28, 2007
Anyone that works on ladders, scaffolding or other type of industry that requires work be performed off the ground, is in danger of falling. A sobering statistic shows that falls are the number one killer in construction and for the past few years the number has been rising as not enough people take the proper precautions to avoid falling scenarios.

As of December 2005, over 1200 construction workers were killed in on the job injuries. More than a third were killed in fall related accidents. A statistic that wasn't reported was the number of workers that survive their fall and must live with crippling injuries for the rest of their lives.

OSHA has created a general safety guideline for protection against falling. The standard that is set generally requires the employer to have at least one type of fall protection in place. The types of protection fall into three main ways to protect workers. A guardrail, safety net or personal fall arrest system – for every worker exposed to a possible fall of six or more feet. By way of exception, fall protection is required on scaffolds ten feet or taller, and roofers must have warning lines. ** Fall Protection

Wearing a harness with lanyards for line attachments isn't required but it's a very good idea for anyone that is working above the ground. A lanyard attached to the harness will hold a line and the line is anchored nearby where you are working. If you happen to trip or slip, the line will catch you and the harness will hold you. Falling or slipping is never fun but when you merely hurt your pride for doing it in front of your co-workers instead of possibly dying or becoming critically injured from a fall, being embarrassed for a short period of time will seem like a very small thing. ** Lifelines and Lanyards - Fall Protection

Working on a ladder comes with its own set of safety rules. Generally, workers should never lean on a ladder in a way that tilts it to one side or the other. Make sure a ladder is set up safely before you climb it. Ladders that are unsteady or don't have both feet on the ground can be a falling hazard. Never climb a ladder you even suspect isn't safe, following your instincts is usually a good idea,
Walk your work site often and look for hazards on the job and address them. Also, put a safety policy in writing. If you require certain safety equipment to be worn on the job, you are within your rights to ask the employee to comply. It's important that you make your working environment safe for your employees; by doing so you will not only establish a great place to work, you will also lower your Worker's Compensation claims.


If you are working in a warehouse type of environment, there are a few types of safety equipment that you will need depending on the type of work you're doing.

Gloves will be absolutely necessary as a part of your safety equipment almost all warehouse jobs entail lifting and moving boxes. If you work with products that are sharp or have the possibility of breaking and cutting your hands, a pair of specialized work gloves that are cut resistant will be necessary to fully protect your hands. Another consideration is the temperatures that you will be working in. If you work in low temperatures, gloves will be necessary to keep your hands from feeling the effects of the cold. Cold hands don't grip as well and can cause an accident. ** Work Gloves

If boxes or other objects are stacked high on racks in your warehouse, your company will almost certainly require a hard hat. Don't get a bargain basement one because it's the cheapest. A hard hat may very well be the only thing between yourself and a permanent brain injury or even death. Get a good hard hat so you can have peace of mind that your head is protected. ** Standard Hard Hats

Eye protection is another must have for many types of warehouse jobs. If you think eye protection has to be those bulky sci-fi looking clear plastic goggles, think again. Eye protection has come a long way in the past few years. Many safety glasses designs now look like designer sunglasses and come in chic colors so you can look good and have the optimum eye protection on the job. ** Safety Goggles

One of the top on the job injuries in a warehouse environment is a back injury. A back injury can occur simply by lifting incorrectly or attempting to move an object heavier than you're capable of. You can do two things to protect yourself from back injuries. First of all, never work without back protection. If you're on the job, wear your back protection. The second thing to do is learn to lift correctly. Even when you're wearing back protection this is a must. Bend your knees when picking up objects and do the lifting with your legs not your lower back. Following this routine will let you stay employed and avoid becoming a back injury statistic. ** Back Supports

Those are just the basics for working in a warehouse. Even if your company doesn't require all the above safety equipment, think carefully about the type of job you do and work safe.


Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Working in the construction industry can be lucrative as well as hazardous without the proper safety equipment and the basics in safety training for the job you're going to be doing.

Many construction companies only give their crews the minimum of safety equipment and basically put employees "on their own" to obtain the rest of the safety equipment. Instead of becoming an on the job injury statistic, be safe and wear the proper safety equipment for the type of construction job that you're going to be doing. **
Work Gloves
Good gloves will be necessary when you work on a construction job site. ** Depending on the type of construction job you'll be doing there are numerous types of gloves for particular jobs. Welders wear special gloves that allow good grip and heat resistance. Construction workers that install the glass for windows and commercial glass for business facilities will use special gloves that are resistance letting the worker's hand receive cuts.

Protection for your back is another concern. ** Back Supports A herniated disc is very painful and can take months and even surgery to health and there's still no guarantee that you'll be able to do all the lifting and other hard physical labor you once did. It's much cheaper to invest in a good ergonomic back support to wear on the job and protect your back from strains.

Eye injuries are all too common on construction sites. Splinters, metal chards and chemicals used on the job are all culprits of eye injuries. The cure for eye injuries on the job is to simply protect your eyes. ** Safety Goggles You can choose lightweight clear plastic safety goggles that fit over your existing glasses or sunglasses or you can get a pair of safety glasses that look like chic designer shades if you're a person that finds style is just as important as optimum safety.

Hard hats are a must for a construction site. Many companies have the rule, "If you're on the site, you're in a hard hat". That one time you just go back without a hard hat to retrieve some forgotten object could be the time you get conked on the head and your life changed forever. Don't skimp on your hard hat either. Look at the money you put into a hard hat as an investment in your safety. The hard hat is there to absorb impacts that would seriously hurt your head - make sure it can take it. ** Standard Hard Hats

Another plus for purchasing safety equipment is in many cases it's a tax write off as necessary for you to do business in your chosen profession. Everyone has an individual tax situation so check with your tax professional to see if the write off for safety equipment applies to you.


Did you know a full 90% of eye injuries could be prevented simply by wearing proper eye protection? Whether you're on the job or at play, take your eye protection seriously, your vision may literally depend on it. ** Safety Glasses


A foreign object getting embedded in your eye is a possibility on a construction site or warehouse type of environment. If you have something get in your eye - do not rub it as it can scratch your cornea or eyeball or embed even further causing more injury to your eye. Instead of letting someone on the job remove it, get it looked at by a medical professional as quickly as possible. This is the best way to ensure only a minimum of damage is done to your eye.

Burns are serious and can continue to do damage even after flushing. If your warehouse or site doesn't have an eye washing station, check with your foreman to be sure one isn't needed; they are required by OSHA for many types of businesses that work with hazardous chemicals. ** Eyewear Dispensers Before you work with hazardous chemicals, read what to do in case of introduction to the eye. Some chemicals requires flushing with water, others will require the application of saline to dilute their caustic nature. Know completely the chemicals you work with before you begin using them, in case you need to know how to handle an emergency situation. Precious seconds will be ticking away while someone else tries to read the side of the container otherwise.

Both of these scenarios can be prevented by wearing protective eye wear on the job. There are two main types of safety equipment for the eyes. The first kind consists of lightweight plastic goggle-type eye protection that will normally accommodate other eye wear if you wear prescription glasses or need to wear sunglasses. The other type looks deceptively like regular fashion eye wear and will protect your eyes from debris but won't be the all around protection from chemicals.

Children should not be allowed to use toys that propel objects such as air guns or paintball guns without supervision. Improper usage of toys is one of the top ways that children (and some adults) suffer from sight-robbin eye injuries. Make sure your children are old enough to handle the responsibility of operating these types of toys understand the proper way to use them as well as basic safety precautions such as never pointing them at another person and always wearing eye protection during play with these types of toys.

Sports injuries are another common type of eye injury. Monocular blindness which is blindness in one eye is most often caused by sports related injuries and is second to the cataract as the cause of most of the blindness on one or both eyes in the world. If you play a recreational sport, be sure that you play it safely and wear eye protection.

Whenever you're at work or play make sure that your eyes receive the maximum attention for protection. It's a lot easier to put on your eye protection and have a day of work or fun than spend your day in the emergency room with an eye injury that could have been prevented. Work and play both smart and safe, always wear your eye protection.


Friday, April 13, 2007
You've seen those commercials where a person is sitting in their home and another person's voice is coming out of their mouth bragging about how they stole the credit card number and they've been shopping online for extravagant products. This scenario may have made you wary about shopping online but statistics show that you don't need to be.

Did you know your personal information is more likely to be stolen through careless handling at a brick and mortar store than through an online transaction? Many credit card thieves do an activity called "dumpster diving" and they literally jump into dumpsters behind stores, especially shopping malls, at night and look for carbon copies of sales receipts and other items that have customer's personal information on them. This information is then taken home where most of these people have credit card pressing machines and they use your information and press out their own credit card for use. They know it will be a day or so before the victim of the fraud is notified of the misuse of their card so they spend, spend, spend for a day or so. In this way, these thieves are rarely caught and we all pay through high prices at retail stores for stolen merchandise that wasn't paid for and in higher rates at our credit card companies to compensate for losses through fraud. Only rarely does this affect your credit rating but that is another factor that can occur as well.

When buying online, there are several safety check points and along with 128 bit encryption for safety during the transmission of the information, you can rest assured that your purchase will be handled privately and securely. Most sites also have a privacy policy and only information related to the purchase is collected and that information is not sold to third parties. There are some sites however that will sell your personal information, purchase details and more to third party partner companies that will in turn send you spam emails that are supposed to entice you to purchase products and services in the same genre of the purchase you made.

When in doubt, check the privacy policy of the website you're dealing with. It will tell you how secure and private your transaction will be and if you don't want your information sold or rented to third party companies, write the company and tell them to remove you from their records. By law they must do so.

Buying online is still one of the safest ways to shop and it's up to you to get educated on whether or not your information will be sold. A happy fact is the majority of online retailers do not distribute personal information regarding their customers or purchases made because this practice was costing them sales and in most cases your information will stay between you and the online store.
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