General basic elementary safety 101

I was looking in the woodshop tonight and a gentleman was working without any PPE. When I asked about isn’t it necessary, I was told yea I’m at fault then the individual proceeded to put on a pair of glasses without side shields. Looks like some of us need a refresher on basic safety…

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Correct Sir.

you did the right thing, thank you. A simple reminder is usually all that is necessary.
Now on the other hand - if they dismiss that ‘suggestion’, simply note the time and send it to the chair/vice-chair and they can look it up on the video for a discussion with the individual. I don’t know if woodshop requires side shields but we do in the machine shop. And as a reminder - regular glasses are not necessarily safety glasses. we have enough of them to go around usually at the entrance, so please use them.

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I agree. Being a long-term glasses-wearer, I tend to be a bit lax about safety glasses, but not in situations where sharp pointy bits might bounce off something and come at my eyeballs sideway.

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I don’t see this as often as i used to see it - that is a great thing. When I do, I grab a pair of glasses and bring them to the individual. People are very grateful. It is usually they just forgot, as Nick said.

When I bought new glasses, I chose polycarbonate lenses so I could use them as safety glasses, and a larger size lens to not need side protection as much. (Note: I did not realize this was required in Machine Shop).

slip on side protection is avail. For less then $10, you can get 3-4 pairs. handy to keep them in the car. https://smile.amazon.com/s?k=side+protectors+for+glasses&crid=1LPPQS8F8PCH6&sprefix=side+pr%2Caps%2C175&ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_7

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Just for anyone planning on doing this in a more formal environment, polycarbonate doesn’t usually qualify glasses as ‘safety glasses’ with shop floors/employers.

ANSI Z87 is usually the requirement. Glasses rated to Z87 will usually have slightly heavier frames and iirc the grooves that hold the lenses to the frame will be more pronounced than normal. They come with fixed or clip on side shields and have ANSI Z87 written somewhere on the frames.

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You do not have to be around power tools to get something in your eye. Take a look at the large black paper clip that is attached to the coffee cup below.


Everybody uses coffee cups as a pencil holder on their desk. I was reaching for a pencil and the black paper clip was touched and it projected into the air with a lot of force hitting my safety glasses. The paper clip cracked the lens on my safety glasses. The coffee cup has a very shiny ceramic surface and the paper clip slid right off. I have made it a habit to wear safety glasses at all times, I add the safety side shields when I am around machinery. Wearing ordinary glasses or no glasses at all would have been disastrous…even in an office environment.

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